Below are some of the classes I’m currently offering for teens and adults, but I’m always open to suggestions or ideas for new ones. Pricing and scheduling are flexible.

Photo Credit: Janice Estabrook

Using The Past to Write Your Future

Suitable for ages 12+

In this 45-minute long interactive seminar, students will consider ways in which their personal histories tie in to global history, and explore ways to find universal emotional connections using Story. We’ll talk about how everyone needs stories – whether those stories are in the form of novels, dreams, video games, movies, TikTok, or comics – and discuss what stories teach us about ourselves and each other over time. Lindsay will show students the specific ways she has used empathy, self-reflection, personal experience, and historical research to create compelling fictional characters, and encourage students to utilize these same tools as they create their own stories – and futures.

Writing Life (For Gifted Learners, Parents, and Educators)

Suitable for ages 12+.

Lindsay Bandy hasn’t always lived by the motto worry is a misuse of imagination. She knows first-hand that growing up gifted can be a isolating and emotionally tough. In this interactive seminar featuring examples and writing prompts, Lindsay will show you how writing has become not only her career, but a way of life that has helped her to overcome severe anxiety, explore life’s big questions and emotions, and form deep and often surprising connections with readers.  Whether you prefer fiction or non-fiction, poetry or prose, Lindsay will help you embrace your unique voice and perspective while tapping into the universal, transforming your writing into a gift you can give yourself and others.

What high school Gifted students are saying about this program:

• I learned how common it is for gifted kids to feel emotions more intensely and deeply. That was comforting to me because I worry that I always overanalyze my emotions and question why I feel a certain way when it doesn’t seem to be something other teens are dealing with. This may help my parents understand me better as well because they just think I overthink my emotions and make them into more than they actually are, but my brain is hardwired to be more emotional. 

• I learned that writing fiction can reveal truths about yourself and help you deal with your emotions and past. I can use this to help myself because I can write fiction to uncover my thoughts and understand what other people go through as well. 

• I learned how writing can help you connect with others and explore your mind. I can used what I learned to help others feel less alone and make new connections. I can also use it to find myself and adventure into my emotions. 

• The presenter was honest and relatable. I really appreciated the Jamboards because they allowed us to communicate with the written word instead of having to verbally speak. 

• The presenter helped me learn more about myself and feel less alone.

Balancing Structure and Surprise: A Pantser’s Guide to Plotting

Suitable for serious writers high school – adult. 

Here’s the funny thing about pants: No matter how comfy they are, they have structure. Whether they’re leggings or bellbottoms, joggers or Mom jeans, they have a pouch for each leg and a space for your butt, or else they’re not pants. The same goes for Story: If it doesn’t have structure, it’s just words on the page.

The good news is, story structure, like your favorite pants, can stretch to fit YOU! It’s not one size fits all, or one style fits all, but if you want to be an author, you really do need to cover your butt. So let’s help you find your perfect pair of Plotting Pants! Lindsay will share her own surprising plotting journeys, filled with super-practical examples and templates, mentor texts, diagrams that don’t require a PhD to comprehend, and simple and interactive exercises to help you find your perfect fit.

Telling It Slant: Balancing history, reality, and research when writing fiction

Suitable for high school-adult

The framework of history can provide writers with some ready-made plot points and details for world-building, but it takes work. Good news: This work can be fun! Along the way, authors must decide how many facts and details to include, how to handle real historical people who can’t speak for themselves, and how to balance History with Story. In this workshop, Lindsay will talk about her own research process, which includes wild rabbit trails, a suspicious google search history, weird dinner conversations, libraries, and lots of underlining.

But for Lindsay, no matter the time period she’s writing about, research also includes herself and the people around her in the present. Mingling personal facts/emotions with historical facts/situations can be a great way to bring a character to life in a different time and place. It’s a way to tell your story without quite telling your story.

Like Emily Dickinson said, “Tell the truth but tell it slant…..”