COMING IN 2027

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A Life Worth Putting in Words:

Living Eulogies and Mini Life Stories

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There is more than one way to put a life into words.

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You may want to pause and reflect on what your life has meant to you and what you would like to leave for the people you love. Or you may want more room to preserve the memories and stories that have made your life uniquely yours.

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Wendy & Words offers two ways to do this: a Living Eulogy and a Mini Life Story. You can choose one—or create both.

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Both begin with you—your memories, experiences and perspective—but they have different purposes and create quite different keepsakes.

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Living Eulogy: A chance to look back while you are still looking forward

A Living Eulogy is a distilled reflection on your life—what has mattered to you, what has shaped you, what you have learned and what you would like to leave in words for the people you love.

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It isn't simply a eulogy prepared in advance. It gives you an opportunity, while you are still here, to pause and consider the life you have lived and the person you have become.

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You might reflect on significant relationships and experiences, challenges you've overcome, things that brought you joy, what you're proud of, values and beliefs, lessons learned, and the ordinary things you may not have realised were significant at the time.

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You may also want to leave personal messages—words of love, gratitude, encouragement, forgiveness or a little hard-earned wisdom.

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A Living Eulogy is usually 1,200–1,800 words and takes approximately 8–12 minutes to read aloud.

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It can be shared now with family and friends, read at a Living Service or gathering, kept privately for the future, or eventually shared at your funeral or memorial service.

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Most importantly, it allows your perspective and your voice to become part of the story that will one day be told about you.

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Mini Life Story: More room for the stories behind the life

Sometimes, once we begin remembering, there is simply more we want to tell.

A Mini Life Story gives you room to preserve more of the stories, people, places and experiences that have made up your life. At approximately 5,000–10,000 words, it is considerably more detailed than a Living Eulogy without becoming a full-length autobiography.

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Your story might include:

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• childhood, family and relationships

• school, work and different stages of life

• turning points, challenges and times of change

• adventures, travels and memorable places

• passions, interests and everyday pleasures

• funny stories and family anecdotes

• people who influenced you

• beliefs, values and lessons learned

• memories or messages you'd especially like future generations to have.

 

You don't need to document everything that has ever happened to you. Together, we can identify the stories and experiences that best capture your life, your personality and what has mattered to you.

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Your finished Mini Life Story can become a personal keepsake for children, grandchildren, family and friends—preserving stories that might otherwise gradually disappear with time.

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Which one is right for you?

A Living Eulogy captures the essence.
What has my life meant to me, and what would I most like to leave in words?

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A Mini Life Story preserves more of the stories behind it.
What stories from my life would I like to preserve and pass on?

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Or choose both. One preserves more of your story; the other distils what that story has meant to you.

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How would you like to create it?

Whether you choose a Living Eulogy, Mini Life Story or both, you can choose how much help you'd like with the writing.

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1. Write it yourself—with my editorial support

I'll provide a guided set of questions and prompts to help you gather your memories, thoughts and reflections. You write your first draft in your own way and in your own voice.

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When you're ready, I'll professionally edit it, helping with structure, clarity, flow and expression while preserving your personality, meaning and natural voice.

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You remain the writer. I help you make your words the strongest expression of what you want to say.

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2.We write it together

If you'd rather tell your stories than write the finished piece yourself, we can create it collaboratively.

You'll begin with the relevant guide to help memories and ideas surface. I'll review your responses, then we'll explore them further through conversation.

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I'll listen, ask questions and help draw out stories and reflections you may not initially have considered important. With your permission, our conversations can be recorded so I can capture not only what you tell me, but something of your natural expressions, humour and way of speaking.

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I then craft the first draft for you. You'll have the opportunity to review, correct, add to and refine it with me until it feels genuinely yours.

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We can weave photos throughout the story as well, helping put faces and places to the memories you are preserving.

Your life. Your memories. Your perspective. Your voice.

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What you receive

Living Eulogy

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Your finished package includes:

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• your professionally edited or collaboratively written Living Eulogy

• professional formatting and presentation

• two beautifully presented printed copies, each in a keepsake folder

• a digital PDF copy for you to keep and share

• your guided Living Eulogy workbook

 

Mini Life Story

Your finished package includes:

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• pour professionally edited or collaboratively written Mini Life Story

• professional A5 book formatting and layout

• apersonalised colour cover

• inclusion and placement of up to 10 photographs supplied by you (additional photos by quotation)

• 1 x A5 hardcover keepsake copy, printed in black and white with a colour cover

• a digital PDF copy to keep and share

• the option to order additional hardcover copies for family and friends

 

Up to 10 of your photographs can be included throughout your story and reproduced in black and white as part of the standard package. Colour reproduction is available at additional printing cost.

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Investment

Prices coming soon​

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Your story can begin here

 

You don't need to have everything worked out before you begin.

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You may already know exactly what you want to create, or you may simply have a feeling that there are memories, reflections or words you don't want to leave unsaid.

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I offer a free initial 20-minute conversation about your life, what you'd like to preserve and which approach might suit you best.

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Contact me now via the form below to express you interest for 2027! 

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Photographs show what we looked like. Stories reveal who we were.

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