Wigtown's Storyteller Renita Boyle's Wild Words
Mindful, multi-sensory sessions to foster wellbeing, connection and creativity in wild places.
Renita Boyle has been our Resident Storyteller for nearly two decades, reaching an estimated 30,000 people of all ages. She is especially beloved for captivating young audiences and for hosting Book at Bedime – which has been described as “a jewel in the crown of the festival” featuring childhood stories, teddy bears, hot chocolate and hugs (optional) - for adults.
In recent years, Renita has developed Wild Words - mindful, multi-sensory sessions to foster wellbeing, connection and creativity in wild places. We asked Renita for a few words about Wild Words and this year’s theme - Wee Wings.
It may be hard to believe, but I am actually quite an introvert. When I am not bouncing around, I am the opposite - quietly observing, reflecting, creating and absorbing inspiration from silence solitude in nature under wild, wide skies.
Wild Words is a microcosm of everything I love and need for my wellbeing - storytelling, poetry, music and art. It is more than an event; it’s an invitation to slow down, wonder, notice and create. It is a space to connect with what makes us human: ourselves, each other and the natural world around us. Wild Words brings wellbeing into the palm of your hand.
This year’s theme is Wee Wings. It’s a celebration of the miniature and momentary, the transformative and freeing, the playful and resilient.
So flutter along. Enjoy a quiet story, song and poem. Celebrate wee wonders like bees, dragonflies, butterflies, robins, swallows and wrens. Craft your very own wee winged creature to take home. Find well-being in wild places.
In the meantime, a blessing from the Wren:
Wren’s Blessing
May you be small, but mighty.
May each day offer a hidden song.
May you sing loudest in the hush of dawn,
your voice carry hope through tangled thickets,
your presence bring warmth to the coldest of days.
Find joy in the simple and strength in stillness.
Seek shelter in quiet places;
let your nest endure every storm.
May each night grant you rest,
a safe perch among kind branches.
Let your spirit remain nimble,
your heart be bold.
May you dance through wind and shadow.
So be it —
under oak and ash and thorn.
~ Renita Boyle
The PDF of the 2025 Wigtown Book Festival programme can be downloaded here, or book your tickets online.