I am thrilled to announce the publication of my story A Conversation without Words in The Turning Point, an anthology of moments that changed people's lives, edited by Gareth St. John Thomas.
What's even more exciting is that my story was chosen from more than 100 entries into an international writing competition hosted by Exisle Publishing in early 2020 with the theme: The Moment My Life Changed.
A Conversation without Words is a short version of the first chapter of my memoir Dare to Dance.
There were around 100 entries that were seriously publishable and lots of other good ones too. Taking that down to just 40 means that we had to exclude some excellent writing and brilliant observations. What we have selected will be our best anthology ever in our thirty years. The Turning Point is an anthology of personal accounts, showcasing the extraordinary and unexpected moments that have completely altered everyday lives.
A milestone in my writing journey
Being published in this anthology on an international scale is a huge milestone in my writing journey, which started back in 2015 when it was one of my New Year resolutions to write about my life. As I had no idea how to start, I attended a six-week life-writing course with Patti Miller. It was in this course that I met my writing group and we have been working together ever since. I attended our monthly memoir writer's meetings on and off over the years. Sometimes, the writing did not flow as I wished, and other times, I had other priorities especially when I concentrated on my ballroom dancing. Writing my story has enabled me to see my life from a bird's perspective and see my parents and grandparents in a different light. It has also contributed to my decision to leave my marriage in which I was not happy anymore. I realised that I had been living my mother's life for many years instead of finding my own path and following my inner wisdom.
So getting my first chapter out into the world is a dream come true. It is a very raw and vulnerable story and it was very challenging to describe what I felt as I had never experienced something similar before. And connecting to my soul and spirituality had been elusive to me for most of my adult years.
The writing astonished us — it was as if the writers had taken note of the English poet Sir Philip Sydney’s muse simply instructing, ‘look in thy heart and write’.
The Turning Point is due for release 6th October in ANZ / 12th October in UK/US/CAN and available for pre-order now from
Inspiring women to celebrate midlife
A Conversation without Words is a short version of the first chapter of my memoir Dare to Dance. I had no idea that a massage could change my life, but that is exactly what happened on 31 December 2016. A spiritual dance literally turned my life upside down. Dare to Dance is my story of exploration and transformation in midlife.
My vision for Dare to Dance is to inspire women to celebrate midlife, to dare to dance and to find their truth. It requires courage, trust, and faith but great joy can wait on the other side of fear. I want to encourage women to tune into their bodies and to follow their heart and intuition – rather than seeking valuation from others or society.
If you would like to learn more about my creative writing projects, books, content writing and editing services, visit my website.
To follow my journey as a writer, ballroom dancer, Arbonne brand ambassador, and healthy living coach connect with me on
Instagram @bettina_deda
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