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Weekly-ish stories for humans seeking depth and meaning. I'm Janelle Hardy and at some point you signed up for this 3-4x/month newsletter on memoir-writing, somatic (body) healing and stories.

Over the next week I'll be sharing about my Dirty, Messy, Alive: Embodied Memoir-Writing Workshop Series. Don't want to receive e-mails about it? Click here to opt-out but stay on my newsletter.

This will help you start, write and share your memoir ✍️

I know how vast the world of memoir and non-fiction writing is.

I've been writing (and sharing) various forms of memoir since I was a child.

First most memorable line, in an elementary school journal:

I'm currently at work crafting that childhood sentence into a Modern Love essay submission by the way. Some stories take 35+ years to take shape!

Then, when I was 17/18, I had a monthly column in my local newspaper, The Yukon News.

I'd snail mail my handwritten missives from Japan, where I was a Rotary Club International Exchange Student. This was 1996, back when computers were in computer labs, emails were an exotic idea as most people used the fax and telephone, internet was dial-up, and long-distance phone calls were so expensive my parents could only afford to have me call home once a month from Kurikoma, Miyagi, Japan to Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada.

My stories were all about being a 'dekai gaijin' high school student, living with a Japanese family, in Japan. The column I remember writing? A story about why most of my Japanese high school classmates didn't like their fathers. Why? Because work culture was so intense many barely saw their dads, and when they did, they were often tired and stern.

Then, in my 20s and early 30s, I wrote part-time for a couple coming events magazines. This was an informal apprenticeship in time management and economics because pay was just $50 per piece.

Being self-employed juggling many gigs as a solo single parent, I crafted the art of writing a 500 word article in just two hours from start to finish, including getting the assignment, researching, interviewing, writing, revising and submitting.

Creative non-fiction is my favourite kind of writing!

I've written for niche arts and in flight magazines, had a personal story about single motherhood published in an anthology, and gone down, then exited, the rabbit hole of submitting creative non-fiction to literary magazines.

I currently have a non-fiction book proposal languishing, because after six intensive months of pitching agents I needed to shift my focus and time back into teaching healing and memoir-writing.

All of which is to say...

I know how vast the world of memoir and non-fiction writing is.

It's a lot to figure out!

For all of those reasons, I can’t wait to share the free 4-day event I'm producing and hosting, which will help you explore memoir-writing from start to finish and learn from 25+ skilled memoirists and writing teachers - with sessions on outlining, overcoming writer’s block, craft, revision, promotion and more.

The Dirty, Messy, Alive: Embodied Memoir-Writing Workshop Series starts September 26th, and I've got the coolest people presenting!

During this free event, which is happening September 26-29, myself and 29 other presenters will help you explore ways to write your memoir, develop the craft of writing your stories, make choices about promoting your work, all while integrating writing and creativity and your body into your healing journey.

The best part? It’s completely free. All you have to do is register, which you can do by clicking the button below.

​SIGN UP FOR THE DIRTY, MESSY, ALIVE: EMBODIED MEMOIR-WRITING WORKSHOP SERIES​

It's going to be so wonderful! Our four days together are jam-packed with fun surprises that I promise you won’t want to miss.

See you there!

xoxo,

Janelle

ps - Can’t attend live? Don’t worry! Go ahead and register for the workshop series, and you’ll have an option to upgrade your ticket to for ongoing presentation access.

The All Access Pass will allow you to go back and watch any presentations you miss without having to fit it all in next week. It also includes lots of other fun bonuses to help you start, write and promote your memoir!

You’ll get all the details and a one-time special offer once you register for the Dirty Messy Alive: Embodied Memoir-Writing Workshop Series.

pps - not interested in hearing about this event? Click here to opt-out but stay on my newsletter.