Seniorwriting: A Brief Guide for Seniors Who Want to Write [Paperback]

Marlys Marshall Styne (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 3, 2007

Seniorwriting is a brief manual for senior citizens who need to record their valuable experiences and memories for themselves, their families, or posterity. It covers journaling and the benefits of personal writing to discover, to heal, and to reinvent. It offers short writing samples by the author based on some of her writing suggestions. Finally, it describes various methods of organizing, revising, editing, printing, self-publishing, and sharing life stories.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Marlys Marshall Styne, a retired college English teacher, rediscovered the joys and benefits of writing at age 73, when she wrote her previous book, Reinventing Myself: Memoirs of a Retired Professor (Infinity, 2006). That book won a first-place award in the 2007 Illinois Woman's Press Association Communications Contest. Ms. Styne lives in Chicago, where she writes and promotes writing by, for, and about senior citizens. She writes two blogs, Never too Late! and Write your Life! and is a columnist and contributor for senior web sites.

Product Details

• Paperback: 81 pages
• Publisher: Infinity Publishing (October 3, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0741442965
• ISBN-13: 978-0741442963
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #639,671 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #16 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Nonfiction > Education > Adult & Continuing Education

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Encouragement for the road to discovery, October 29, 2007

By 

Linda Austin "Moonbridge" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seniorwriting: A Brief Guide for Seniors Who Want to Write (Paperback)

"Seniorwriting" is a short and easy read that offers a more open and creative approach to writing life stories and also contains examples based on the author's life stories. Legacy journals are commonly given to grandparents whose families want to unlock the treasure chest to delight in the pearls, but those journals are filled with so many questions that they may be daunting (Is this homework? Must I answer ALL these?!), and one of the biggest complaints is there not being enough space to write. On the other hand, just sitting down to write one's stories can feel overwhelming without at least some kind of guidance or structure. Here's where "Seniorwriting" steps in.

"Seniorwriting" provides a relaxed approach to writing that makes the capturing of stories more fun and enjoyable. This book would be of great help to those who are not as experienced in writing and would also be a great tool for family members to use to encourage their older relatives to tell stories that they can then write down and type for them, as I had to do with my mother. I am going to give my copy of this book to my dad, and use what I have learned from it to work more with him so our family will have his book of stories, too. This simple guide may be all that's needed to inspire you or someone you love to capture the memories before they are lost.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It will be one of the most rewarding reads you can do!, January 6, 2008

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seniorwriting: A Brief Guide for Seniors Who Want to Write (Paperback)

"Seniorwriting: A Brief Guide For Seniors Who Want To Write" by Marlys Marshall Styne is a succinct 81-page instruction manual specifically designed and intended for older men and women wanting to record their thoughts, their memories, their experiences, their observations, and their commentaries for the benefit of themselves, their friends and family, and future generations. Short writing examples and samples are provided based on Marlys Styne's own writing skills, expertise, and personal experience as a retired college English teachers who took up writing an award-winning book at the age of 73. "Seniorwriting" is a non-technical 'how to' manual and guide that is ideal for those who have never written anything before -- and holds much of value for those who have written things earlier in their lives, but who have not done anything along those lines since. There are no rigid rules or straight-laced requirements in "Seniorwriting", only practical advice, inspiring examples, alternative ideas, and motivating choices. If you are a senior and would like to record your thoughts be they simple observations or the next Great American Novel, then give "Seniorwriting" your attention. It will be one of the most rewarding reads you can do!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brief, Excellent Guidance, and a Plethora of Excellent Ideas, December 29, 2007

By 

Story Circle Book Reviews - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seniorwriting: A Brief Guide for Seniors Who Want to Write (Paperback)

Seniorwriting: A Brief Guide for Seniors Who Want to Write lives up to the promise of its title. It is brief: 81 pages. I consider this a good thing. Too many books that purport to help others to write are unnecessarily wordy. This in itself can be discouraging.

However, the brevity and straightforward quality of this book succeeds in making the writing process more fun and less intimidating than other books of its kind. (Another good thing: seniors are open to being encouraged. They deserve nothing less.) Its author, Marlys Marshall Styne, writes about what she knows. A retired teacher, she wrote this book at age 73 and self-published it through a reliable company. I am impressed when a writer practices the words she preaches; she guides seniors through the process of writing their memoirs, having written her own memoir in a book entitled Reinventing Myself: Memoirs of a Retired Professor (Infinity, 2006). She also writes two blogs, "Never Too Late!" and "Write Your Life!".

Early in her book, Ms. Styne makes the point that "Many people are better writers than they think they are." She believes that there is no absolute right or wrong" way to write. I heartily agree with this. In my view, writing requires a healthy dose of self-confidence. Without it, the discipline necessary to sit down, to take oneself seriously and hold to the task, will not be strong enough.

The cover of Ms. Styne's book offers four good reasons to write about oneself: to discover, to heal, to reinvent, and to share. Any one of these, I feel, would be reason enough to take pen (or computer keyboard) in hand. She stresses that our experiences and ideas have value in and of themselves, that the important thing is not so much what we write about as that we write. She believes that the details, not just the major events, are important, and that the idea that "our life has not been interesting enough" is poppycock. Every life is interesting and worthy of reflection and recording. And she strongly recommends the practice of journal writing.

Ms. Styne compares the benefits of journal writing for the writer to the benefits of warm-up exercises for the athlete. The journal, she says, is the place where we do our practicing, where we warm-up our writing muscles (our ideas), where we get ourselves started. At first, what we wish to write about may not come easily. She urges us to sit and be patient. Journaling for only fifteen minutes a day, she feels, will get the flow started. But she is not rigid and admits to skipping days here and there when she writes not one word.

Writing, she tells us, can be a process of discovery, revealing our inner natures and teaching us things about ourselves that dwell beneath our conscious thoughts. Writing our true feelings instead of hiding them or pushing them away can be a great release. A lot of energy goes into repressing feelings, and I can attest to how much better I feel when I talk to myself on paper. I feel pounds lighter as I let loose my thoughts, and sometimes laugh when I read my rantings and ravings to others. And, especially, when I see a few heads nod in agreement, I realize none of it is as terrible as it seemed.

As we learn who we are, we begin to see that change is a constant in our lives. "Over the years," Ms. Styne quotes David Debin, co-founder of the Third Age Foundation, "I've been convinced that only when you bring forth that which is within you can you see who you truly are. And only when you see who you truly are can you begin the process of change, from what you are now to what you are meant to be."

Ms. Styne's excellent guidance is supplemented with a plethora of excellent ideas and examples of how to get us started: ideas for writing in one's journal, ideas for writing to discover oneself, ideas for writing to heal, as well as practical information about organizing one's work and getting it published. I can promise that this book does not disappoint.

by Duffie Bart
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women