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A family mystery can do more than answer questions, it can hand you an entire novel. After a long break, I’m back to talk about why genealogy has become my most surprising tool for fiction writing, and how digging through records can turn half-remembered oral history into a living, research-backed story world.

I share what I’m working on now: Stay Outside, an Australian foster story set around 1900, inspired by the oral history passed down about my maternal grandfather, Frank Cohen. He and his siblings were abandoned by their birth parents and placed into foster care, and that early trauma shaped everything that came after. I avoid spoilers about what I’ve learned, but I explain how genealogy websites like Ancestry.com, MyHeritage.com, and Geni.com help me build a factual backbone while still writing a novel rather than a memoir.

From there, the research widens into the bigger forces that shape character choices and family conflict. I talk through studying Ballarat, Victoria, the aftershocks of the Victorian Gold Rush, and the Victorian Depression of the 1890s, and how those economic and social pressures can become plot, not just background. I also touch on the practical ethics of writing from real roots: changing names and some dates for privacy, using the “cobweb of reality” approach when details are incomplete, and leaning on the genuine sense of community that appears when relatives contribute their own discoveries.

If you’re interested in genealogy for writers, historical fiction research, or building character backstory from real documents, this is a focused listen with plenty to spark your own project. Subscribe, share the show with a writer friend, and leave a review telling me what piece of your family history you’d be tempted to fictionalize.

• While you are waiting for this novel to be published, please check out my two fiction novels, “The Overlife: A Tale of Schizophrenia” and “Three Kidnapped, Three Siblings, Three Furies. I live with schizophrenia, and I am a survivor of sibling abuse, the theme of the second novel. Here are my Amazon Affiliate Links to the two novels. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. For “The Overlife,” click on https://amzn.to/3Q3ReDZ, and for “Three Kidnapped,” click on https://amzn.to/48EdLNS. More information is available on my website: https://dianadirkbywrites.com/
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The URL links are my Amazon Affiliate Links, which take you straight to the product. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Clever Fox Planner Pro Second Edition https://amzn.to/4aVpl7Z
Clever Fox Budget Planner https://amzn.to/3ZWnmex
Kindle Colorsoft Made Easy 2026 by Alex Proctor https://amzn.to/4aQ5qbr
My books:
The Overlife: A Tale of Schizophrenia https://amzn.to/3OisOFM
Three Kidnapped, Three Siblings, Three Furies https://amzn.to/3MqbKNG

My website: https://dianadirkbywrites.com

Planning only works when it’s easy to keep. We dive into the Clever Fox Planner Pro Second Edition to show how a well-designed paper system can cut through app fatigue and help you move from big vision to calm weekly focus. Along the way, we compare that tactile flow with a Kindle Scribe setup, including what a recent Scribe guide gets right about organizing a growing notebook library—and what it misses for first-time users.

We start with the foundation pages—self-discovery, daily rituals, and long-horizon vision—that anchor priorities in values and time. From there we translate ideals into action: one-year goals with clear reasoning, then three-month targets and a simple mind map to surface dependencies. Monthly calendars set direction and keep skills, connections, and habits in view. Monthly reviews close the feedback loop so you adjust with data, not guilt. Finally, the weekly spread brings it all together: a single main goal, tight priorities, split work and personal to-dos, habit tracking, and a brief end-of-week check to lock in learning.

If you’ve tried to force everything into one device, we make the case for a hybrid stack. Let paper hold strategy and attention—vision, quarters, weekly focus—while your Kindle Scribe handles searchable notes, drafts, and reference material. We also share candid thoughts on a new Kindle Scribe ColorSoft book: helpful for library organization once you’re familiar with the device, less so for hardware differences or true beginner steps. Whether you’re team paper or team digital, you’ll leave with a structure you can copy today—and a simple way to make progress feel steady, not frantic.

Subscribe for more thoughtful workflows, share this with a friend who’s stuck in planning limbo, and leave a quick review to tell us your paper vs digital setup.

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My Website: https://dianadirkbywrites.com

My Affiliate Links (As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases)

My books: The Overlife: A Tale of Schizophrenia: https://amzn.to/4k6NlZE
Three Kidnapped, Three Siblings, Three Furies: https://amzn.to/4roE3uE
Clever Fox Budget Planner https://amzn.to/4bLVS2i
Clever Fox Planner Pro Second Edition https://amzn.to/3MBfcVD
Kindle Scribe https://amzn.to/3ZtpBFJ
Kindle Scribe Colorsoft https://amzn.to/3MgzSlO
Scriveiner Silver Chrome Fountain Pen https://amzn.to/3O9X5qg

#cleverfox #cleverfoxplanner #budgetplanner #weeklyplanner #kindlescribe #kindlescribecolorsoft #Scriveinerfountainpen

Want a calmer way to run your week and your money? We explore how choosing paper—yes, actual pages—can sharpen memory, reduce distractions, and restore a sense of control, while still getting the most from your Kindle Scribe. As writers navigating real‑world chaos, we share how handwritten planning slows the mind just enough to reveal trade‑offs, anchor commitments, and make budgets feel tangible rather than abstract numbers behind a login.

We unpack the science and lived experience behind handwriting: why your brain encodes details more deeply with pen and paper, how that leads to better follow‑through on tasks and more honest budgeting, and where digital tools can unintentionally make plans feel disposable. Then we get practical with a guided tour of the Clever Fox Budget Planner, from annual goals and mind maps to monthly spreads, expense tracking, and end‑of‑month reviews. Savings trackers, debt pages, and an annual summary turn a pile of transactions into a clear story you can act on.

This isn’t a paper‑only manifesto. We explain a simple hybrid workflow: map long‑term goals and budgets on paper for clarity and mindfulness, then mirror key items into digital templates on Kindle Scribe for reminders and easy access. You get the privacy and focus of an offline planner plus the convenience of modern tech. Along the way, we talk about creative touches, tactile joy, and mental health benefits of stepping off screens—especially when life already runs on notifications.

If you’re feeling scattered, overscheduled, or disconnected from your money, try using paper for a month and see how it compares. Subscribe for the follow‑up where we dive into the Clever Fox Planner Pro Second Edition, and share your setup with us—are you team paper, team digital, or proudly hybrid? If this helped, subscribe, leave a review, and send it to a friend who needs a planning reset.

My Website and Social Media:
https://dianadirkbywrites.com
My Instagram: @dianadirkby_writings (https://www.instagram.com/dianadirkby_writings/)
My Facebook Page: Diana Dirkby Writings (https://www.facebook.com/DianaDirkbyAuthor)
My X-account: @dianadirkby (https://x.com/DianaDirkby)

My YouTube channel @DianaDirkbyWrites (https://www.youtube.com/@DianaDirkbyWrites)