About Lynette Benton
Jul 28th, 2009 by Lynette Benton
Classes
Scroll down to see the writing classes I’m teaching during the first part of 2012!
About Me
I laugh a lot. And so do my clients and students. Oh, wait. I wasn’t supposed to start with that.
I’m a published writer of articles, essays, and blogs, under my own name and several pseudonyms.
I write two creative writing blogs, and I teach versions of “Polish and Publish” and “Tools & Tactics for Writers” in the Greater Boston area. Most of my students are life story writers and poets, although some are working on very good fiction. And I always bring pastries to the last class.
I ghostwrite for clients, edit manuscripts, and coach people in their writing. And we have a lot of fun in the process.
As if all that’s not enough, I’m working on two memoirs. One’s My Mother’s Money—about the my siblings’ and my efforts to find our mother’s money. (It’s a nail biter.) The other is about the trials of working for 11 bosses (two were quite insane—I mean, unpleasant) in 11 years in a single institution.
My interactive booklet, Polish and Publish, is available on this site or at www.polishandpublish.com.
Just so you know: I have a BA in English and a Master’s degree in Communications Management. I’ve worked in for profit, nonprofit, and higher ed institutions, as director of large and small internal and external marketing communications projects.
For tons of writing tips and information, follow me on Twitter @lynettebenton.
Classes
Writing Stories from Your Life class at the Arlington Center for the Arts is winding down, but I plan to run it again in April. I promise you’ll have a good time and learn a ton of good stuff about writing.
My courses at the Arlington, Waltham, and Belmont Senior centers resumed in January 2012. Contact me at Relief11@verizon.net for information. I also teach journaling at the Weston Public Library.
I’d love to help with you any of your business or creative writing projects, so let’s talk.
Dear Lynette,
I followed your link from Gather. Thank you so much for your kind words about my first chapter, and I look forward to keeping up with your writings as well!
Kim
Dear Lynette,
‘Just wanted to say that I stopped by your website and I’ve subscribed to your RSS feed for further posts. I look forward to getting to know you better at First Parish.
Kind regards,
Doug Davidoff
douglass.davidoff@gmail.com
Hi Lynete,
I have finally been to your website. It is first of all visually very appealing. I have read only the Aout, Home, and Upcoming events. tabs. I haven’t ventured into the blogs yet (I just don’t have time at work), but I wirte to encourage you because your wiring is so good and clear, and your tone is genuine and attractive.
Have your experiences teaching the Tips and Techniques cntinued to be positive? I would think that someone coming inot the class and not knowing you would be quite at ease by the end of the first class and this, of course, frees people to get into the writing in a non-prressured way. Your writing gives confidence to others. I wish your talents were more valued in the world so you could make a killing doing something as useful as this.
Bye, dear,
Bob
Hi Lynette!
Thanks for the link to your blog. I will be sure to utilize the helpful tips that you’ve provided here.
Thanks!
Claudia
Lynette, Thank you for posting on my HubPages article. It’s always a pleasure to meet others in “the field”. I am going to try and figure out how to get your blog on my own
Wish me luck.
Let’s stay in touch through LinkedIn et al.
I found your blog on google and read a few of your other posts. I just added you to my Google News Reader. Keep up the good work Look forward to reading more from you in the future.
Hi, Lynette. Thanks for following me on Twitter. I’m on the board of a 200-member writers’ workshop in the Chicago area and we are always looking for writers who also teach to speak to our group. If interested, please email me for more information.
Susan
Hi, Sue:
Thanks for your comment. I’m very interested in speaking to or teaching your group. The problem is, I’m in Boston. Do you have any video presenters? Any other way(s) I can help?
- Lynette
Lynette,
I enjoyed reading your over your accomplishments and excitment regarding writing. Thanks for the motivaton and support. Have a wonderful week.
Thanks, Cherese. You’ve got a profound story to tell, but for now, enjoy your weekend. (Take a break!)
Dear Ms Benton
My name is Murees Dupé. I am the author of the blog DAILYDRAMAOFANASPIRINGWRITER.BLOGSPOT.COM. I recently found out about a link to my website that was posted to the following twitter page http://twitter.com/LynetteBenton/status/24797918374
I do not know if perhaps twitter posted it or whether perhaps you did, but if you did I politely ask that the link to my website be removed, as it was posted to twitter without my permission.
I apologize for posting this letter in such a public domain but I knew of no other way to reach you.
Feel free to contact me at mureesdup@yahoo.com, with regards to this confusion.
Thank you for your time.
I’ve tried to contact you, Murees. Left a message on your blog, but don’t think it went through.
My intention was to share YOUR blog w/ aspiring writers. 1) I’m not an aspiring writer. 2) Anyone clicking on the link would go to YOUR site.
If you want to discuss more, email me at relief11@comcast.net.
Dear Ms Benton
I apologize for the confusion and lack in communication. I also wish to thank you for recommending my blog to other aspiring writers. Though I don’t know if anyone can learn anything useful from my blog, for I tend to write about a lot of useless things. But thank you once again.
All the best for the future.
My partner and I really enjoyed reading this blog post, I was just itching to know do you trade featured posts? I am always trying to find someone to make trades with and merely thought I would ask.
Sure, I’d trade posts. What’s next?
Actually, our fields are so far apart, I don’t know that trading posts would be of interest to our respective readers.
Lynette,
I’ve been following your blog and twitter for a while – you are so generous with your tips and writing wisdom. I also have a copy of your eBook (http://bit.ly/aTaDpq) which is excellent and I highly recommend it.
I want to thank you for sharing all this great info for those of us who are aspiring writers (I am a secretly aspiring writer!)….I love your writing style and I just cannot wait until your memoir comes out!
Terry, you are the best. Thanks so much for your comments. And I hope you know I learn a ton about career (and life) management from you!
Hi Lynette,
I love your blog! Your advice is grounded and down-to-earth, yet inspiring and exciting at the same time.
Maria Papadopoulou
Poetry Book:From Hell With Love: http://bit.ly/ic2tED
Thank you, Maria! Keep up the poetry writing.
Jeff, Thank you so much. I’ll be in touch soon about having you guest post here. Hope you’re well. (I need to check out your blog again to see what you’ve been writing.)
Hi Lynette
I just stumbled upon your blog and I would like to know if you could give me your opinon about my memoir idea? The following statements weren’t written in the form of a proposal since I am not trying to sell you anything, and I have only briefly described the premise behind the memoir. I have asked people close to me to give me their opinon and they seem to think that people would be interested. I have researched publishing and I see that it has a lot more to do with celebrity or platform then I expected.
My husband is an undocumented person who was recently arrested by immigration and is in the process of being deported. He has been in detention since April 6th, we were recently married in the facility that he is currently being housed in. Many hold the misconception that marrying automatically resolves immigration problems, this isn’t the case if the person entered the country without inspection meaning without a visa. The legal battle will continue because once he deported he will be banned from the U.S for ten years. This is due to a law passed by Bill Clinton, the only recourse is to file a 601 waiver, for which the burden of proof is high.
I would like to know if these events taken together create enough interest to justify writing a memoir? If these experiences are rich enough for memoir, then I can spend the necessary time and energy trying to build a platform, and writing the book.
Thank you,
Vanessa
Of course, yours sounds like an interesting story, Vanessa. Go for it!
Hi, Lynette. I saw that you have followed me on Twitter. Yesterday I got serious about Twitter. Got some good information via a blogging friend, and think I am “getting” it. Used correctly, and wisely, I see how it can help one find and connect with writers and others who have similar interests.
As you probably noticed, I write memoir–just had one published by a small press. (I’m also a full-time caregiver of a disabled daughter; she’s in my memoir.) I’m 71 years old, have perfect health, so far, and am trying to carve out time to begin a second memoir! And to read more books.
So. Here you are, a memoirist, too, among many other wonderful pursuits. I’m bookmarking your site so I can come back tomorrow and read in more depth. I just read through all the comments on this page, and I’m eager now to keep in touch with what you’re doing and writing, as well as to meet some of the people who commented here. Thanks for following me on Twitter, where I see you post a lot of interesting and helpful links.
Hi Lynette,
I love your blog and the title Polish and Publish. I’m passionate about craft, as well (and appreciated your kind words about my memoir, The River of Forgetting!). Any chance we could have a conversation or an interview on your site about the difference between writing for oneself and writing for publication? After decades of journaling and years of polishing my memoir, I have passionate feelings about that difference. I don’t want to discourage a single soul from writing, but I wince when people conflate “writing my story” with publishing.
Hi Lynette,
I know your wrote back to me about my previous comment, but my email program seems to have lost your mail, as it sometimes does. You asked me to be back in touch about now about a guest blog post or interview. For now, I’d just to say Hi and let you know I’ll be on vacation until Oct 1. Let’s see about setting up something after that, if you’d like.
Hope things are going well for you.
J
Hi Jane: Just shot you an email about it. Thanks for getting back in touch w/ your schedule.
Thanks for your comment, Jane. I’ve emailed you about guest posting here.
Ann, you’re an inspiration.
I follow you on twitter so of course I wanted to learn more about you. This is great! You teach at senior centers. That really must be rewarding. I want to read more of your writing. Thank you so much for the contact and may you have great success.
Thank you. I do teach at senior centers and adult education programs—and I love it. Wish I’d discovered this career 3 decades ago!