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Wendy Dale joins Thomas J. Bellezza on The Write Mindset to talk about traveling the world, dodging bombs, and partying with guerrilla soldiers. They dig into her latest book, The Memoir Engineering System, a practical guide to writing memoir with both structure and heart. Wendy also shares why you don’t need an extreme life to tell a powerful story and how anyone can learn to shape their experiences into a meaningful memoir.
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Hiya Fellow Writer I have a new video up on YouTube. Ever have those days when you just don't feel up to writing? We all do! So what do you do about this? That's the topic of my new video. Spoiler alert: I also tell the story of how this same fear got me uninvited to the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, one of the biggest failures of my life. https://youtu.be/xDHKV49YweE?si=zgPAsdG1PzCPGjFl
In this podcast episode, Polly is joined by memoir coach and author Wendy Dale. Wendy talks about how reviewing countless memoirs influenced her thinking about what makes a story work, and how this experience led her to create a practical framework for writers.
She explains the core ideas behind her approach, including how to use scenes and transitions effectively, and shows how these tools can help writers shape a more solid and engaging draft. Hiya Fellow Writer I have a new video up on YouTube. So many people make these three prose mistakes, thinking that they are making their writing better. What they're actually doing is making their writing feel cheap. https://youtu.be/gn_dAOJAyao?si=ause7ApQ1Fa5SbLQ THIS IS THE LAST TIME I'LL OFFER THE TWO-DAY MASTERMIND The two-day mastermind is a massive amount of work for me. Even though I love doing it, this is the last time I'll hold it. If you've been putting off taking this amazing live class, this is your last chance. It is less than a week from now so don't put off signing up any longer. Learn more here: https://www.memoirwritingforgeniuses.com/jan2026 Hiya Fellow Writer! Want to know what most memoirists get wrong in their book? This YouTube video is full of information I wish I'd known when I was starting out. https://youtu.be/12oY_6z8U10 Happy writing! Hiya Fellow Writer I have a new video up on YouTube. A lot of people struggle with memory gaps when it's time to write about their life. In this video, I talk about why that's actually a good thing: https://youtu.be/ALy327TK2sQ I am offering the two-day mastermind one final time. This is your last chance to take part in this live class. If you haven't yet signed up, learn more here: https://www.memoirwritingforgeniuses.com/jan2026 Hiya Fellow Writer! Happy Thursday. Or Friday if you're in Australia or New Zealand. Want to know what actually makes writing good? This is a question I asked myself over and over again during the course of 15 years as I read memoir after memoir. Some prose really spoke to me. Other writing samples left me uninterested. Want to know what the difference was? You'll find the video here: https://youtu.be/v1JtDFz58_4?si=igO63N3vmEub0LwT Wishing you lots of happy writing! Warmly, Wendy P.S. The January mastermind is coming up! This is the last time I will offer a two-day mastermind. This is also the only live class I offer to the public. Learn more here: https://www.memoirwritingforgeniuses.com/jan2026 A new year! Whatever you're doing today, I hope you're taking some time to celebrate life. I work far more weekends than I like to admit. The holidays are the one time of year when I like to meet up with friends, watch tons of Netflix in bed with the bunnies, and eat chocolate and ice cream without feeling guilty. In fact, that's my New Year's resolution: to be a little more relaxed. I feel like I spend so much time pushing myself: Get more done. Eat healthier. Get more exercise. No sugar. So maybe my New Year's resolution for 2026 is to not make a resolution. Sort of. But it's more about leaning back and relaxing and trusting that everything will turn out okay. There is so much going on in the world right now and so much of it is out of our control. I want the world to be better and people to be kinder and for AI not to take over the world. I want the best for people in Southern California struggling through the floods right now. I want the planet to go back to feeling safe and for the natural disasters to stop. I can want all of these things but wanting them makes me feel helpless and miserable. So I've decided to take a deep breath, love the people close to me and live my life. And donate what I can to charity. If there is one thing I've learned as a memoir-writing coach, it's that we're all basically the same. We all want the same things. We all want the best for each other. We just sometimes get distracted by pain. So I've decided to let go of the pain. Or at least I plan to try. I wish the same for you in 2026. Be kind to yourself. Spread the love. Let go of the pain. I deal with pain in the form of humor--or at least I do on a good day. This week's video is a bit sillier than usual and it's really just for fun. It's on common words that even smart people get wrong. But that doesn't mean I care if you screw them up. I love language and understanding how it works. That doesn't mean I'm a snob about it. So watch the video and laugh. That's why I made it. But please stop saying, "I feel badly." The correct way to express this sentiment is "I feel bad." Really! Don't believe me? Watch my explanation in the video. https://youtu.be/-TDa3KhNOtw?si=yj4_F50wirMrdB8J Wishing you a joyful 2026 Warmly, Wendy P.S. I am offering the two-day mastermind one final time. This is your last chance to take part in this live class. Learn more here: https://www.memoirwritingforgeniuses.com/jan2026
On this episode, Jonathan and Wendy talk about useless writing advice such as just write a first draft, why the journey is more important than the memories themselves, and the things to prep yourself for capturing your life on the page in the best way possible.
Author and memoir writing teacher Wendy Dale discusses the important steps in writing a memoir, the exceptions to "show don't tell," and why you should beware of online tips
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AuthorA Random House author offers tips on writing your own memoir. Archives
March 2026
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