Diane Williams is a storyweaver, keeper of treasured tales, collector of phrases, and a griot. As a griot, she shares stories from books, history, myths, legends, and folktales. Many of her stories are original. Diane has traveled around the world collecting stories. She has traveled to Africa, Germany, Hawaii, and throughout the United States to tell stories. She has also traveled to such far away places as Switzerland, Belgium, France, England, and Canada. She was a finalist in the 1999 National Storytelling Awards Contest. She recently received a storytelling research grant from the National Storytelling Network to continue her work and has been selected as a 2002 recipient of their Regional Leadership Award. Diane founded the Mississippi Storyweavers Guild in 1994. She is a member of the National Storytelling Association, the National Association of Black Storytellers, the Network of Biblical Storytellers, KOTC (Keepers of the Culture), and the Poplarville Storytelling Guild. She has studied storytelling and has attended many workshops and storytelling conferences throughout the US. Diane's poetry has been published in a poetry book entitled Seasons To Come. Her name and biography appears in a book entitled, Storytellers - A Biographical Sketch of 120 English Speaking Tellers From Around the World. Her story, The Gift, was published in Today in Mississippi. Her book, Annie Mae Jumps The Broom, has been published and is now available ISBN1-892455-03-X. She has two audiocassettes- Mississippi Storytelling - A Heap of Comfort, and Rabbits, Raccoons, Frogsand More..... Diane is currently the Arts Industry director for the Mississippi Arts Commission. She is a board member for the National Storytelling Network and will become the incoming board chair in January 2005. Diane has appeared on Conversations with Gene Edwards on ETV, Channel 29. She is an Arts Education Demonstrator for The Mississippi Arts Commission and New Jersey Council for the Arts. She has been a featured teller for the National Association of BlackStorytellers, Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida; the Lake Charles, LA Storytelling Festival; Strawberry Storytelling Festival at Southeastern Louisiana University; Montgomery CityFest, AL; Mountain Echoes Festival,UNC-Asheville, NC; African American Heritage Festival, Pensacola, FL;JubileeJam, Jackson, MS; the Blue Bluff Festival, Aberdeen, MS, and Double Decker Festival in Oxford, MS. She has also performed at Delta State University, Cleveland, MS, Jackson State University,Jackson, MS; Ole Miss University, Oxford, MS; Stillman College, Tuscaloosa, AL;and was featured at the Young Author's Day in Worms, Germany. She has performed storytelling with the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, and in schools, libraries, festivals, churches, organizations, museums, radio, TV, etc.

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