Erin Farley is a local historian and storyteller based in Dundee. She tells mainly Scottish folk tales and historical legends with a traditional style, and specialises in those from Dundee and Angus, where her family hails from. Tales from Orkney and the Nordic countries have also been a lifelong fascination for Erin. She enjoys stories with a strong sense of place and a touch of devilry and the supernatural, and lightens darker tales with a dash of humour.

Erin enjoys working in the places where storytelling, history and literature messily overlap – which, as she will tell you, is pretty much everywhere if you start looking for it. She loves using folk tales, historical stories, poetry and more to explore places with groups of young and old, through storytelling sessions, walks and workshops, and hearing others’ stories and memories is one of her favourite parts of the storytelling process.

Erin works with Dundee Libraries’ Local History Centre, where she looks after collections of stories in many formats and looks for new ways of connecting them with people. She has previously worked as an oral history fieldworker, adult education teacher, trainee community archaeologist and retail worker. All of these roles have taught her a lot about people and stories in their many guises. She also has an MSc in giant worms (mythical) and a PhD in Dundonian poetry (mostly real.)

Erin is a committee member and regular teller at both Dundee’s Blether Tay-Gither storytelling group and the Orkney Storytelling Festival. She has worked on storytelling sessions and shows in collaboration with musicians, singers and artists as well as fellow storytellers, and looks forward to doing so again in the future if they will let her. Her first book, Angus Folk Tales, was published by the History Press in November 2021.