Staff Spotlight: Andy Wolfendon
Posted by David Duhr in 
Today we’d like to introduce the newest member of WriteByNight’s staff of consultants and coaches, Andy Wolfendon. Andy is a prolific ghostwriter, playwright, stand-up comic and lyricist, and has years of experience teaching writing at the college level.
Below is a Q&A with Andy Wolfendon, followed by a brief bio.
Where are you from?
The Singularity, by way of Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Where did you study?
Got my Master’s at Emerson College, where I learned that the people who had the most game weren’t necessarily the best writers.
How did you get your start as a writer?
Writing and storytelling have always been survival tools. I faked my way through college by writing killer essays, and saved my a** more than a few times by telling a good story. I got into professional writing by way of comedy. I was an actor and stand-up comic, but finally realized I liked writing the material better than I liked performing it. That led to several years of writing scripts for the computer/video game industry and spec screenplays, and then finally back to my first love: books.
List some of your influences.
Fear. Alcohol. Shame.
What is the hardest part of writing for you?
Getting started on a new project. There’s always a hump to get over. But, since I’ve been making a living at this for over twenty years, I’ve learned to keep the hump no bigger than a zucchini mound.
What is your strangest writing experience?
A few years ago I joined an L.A.-based screenwriters’ website, where writers critiqued one another’s scripts. For every three critiques you did, you got a critique from someone else. So I picked this random horror script to read, and, after starting on it, realized it was set on a lake in Massachusetts. So when I was chatting with the writer, I asked him if the setting was based on a real lake. He said, “Yeah, Lake Attitash in Amesbury.” I responded, “How weird is that? I used to live on Lake Attitash!” He asked where, and I told him Lakeshore Drive. He said, “No way. I live on Lakeshore Drive.” I replied, “I used to live in that funky little A-frame with the orange door and the stupid Swiss stenciling.” His response: “I OWN that funky little A-frame with the orange door and the stupid Swiss stenciling. That’s where I wrote the script.” Pretty weird.
What is your favorite word and why?
Any word with three syllables starting with “b” is pretty tough to beat—balderdash, befuddle, bombastic, bamboozle . . . I mean, come on.
Word association: Literature.
A ten-dollar word for the kind of story no one wants to read.
Andy Wolfendon has ghostwritten over fifty published books in the self-help/inspiration, business, popular psychology, biography, and children’s genres. Some of these have been credited to NY Times bestselling authors and have been published by well-known houses such as BenBella Books, Random House, Impact Publishers, and HCI. He has worked on high-profile series such as Chicken Soup for the Soul and on numerous well-reviewed titles. In addition to his ghostwriting work, Andy has had children’s titles and comic books published under his own name. He is also an award-winning playwright and the writer/designer of over 25 computer/video games, many of which have won major industry awards. Andy has worked as a lyricist, actor, stand-up comic, script consultant, voice director, playwright, musician, and comedy writer. He has a Master’s degree from Emerson College and has taught the craft of writing at several Boston area colleges.
If you like Andy Wolfendon’s style, he’s available to sharpen your prose or help you publish. Hell, he’ll even write your story for you. Express interest in working with Andy now!