Following his retirement from football, Vendrame pursued a career as a writer, publishing several books, including "Se mi mandi in tribuna godo" in 2002 ("If you send me to set in the stands I will enjoy it," in Italian – a reference to a phrase he had uttered after being excluded from the first team by his Napoli manager Vinício before a match against Cagliari during the 1974–75 season), in which he expressed that one of his biggest regrets as a footballer was disrespectfully nutmegging A.C. Milan star Gianni Rivera, who was one of his footballing idols, along with Luigi Meroni, Gianfranco Zigoni, and Diego Maradona. Vendrame was also deeply interested in music and poetry; he also wrote songs, poems, and even played the guitar.