About

My latest project is a speculative fiction novel set in a future climate changed Australia. More details as the project continues.

For my previous published books see Wild Seed and my collection in Friendly Street Poets 15: A Pause in the Conversation.

My Bio from Haikupedia

Lynette Arden (born 1943, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia), writer and artist. Following graduation from the University of New England in Armidale, NSW, she worked for the Commonwealth Public Service in Canberra (1964–1969) and the Australian administration in Papua New Guinea (1970–1971), later earning a degree in graphic design in Liverpool, U.K. Her poetry, including haiku, haibun, and tanka, has been published in Australia, Canada, India, Japan, New Zealand, U.K., and U.S.A. She has produced a prize-winning collection of poetry, A Pause in the Conversation (2010), and two later volumes, Travelling Through the Unexpected (2018), and Wild Seed (2022). She has travelled to Japan on two literary tours following the trail of Matsuo Bashō. Arden convened the Bindii Japanese Genre Poetry Group in Adelaide, South Australia, from 2009 to 2019. She was vice president of the Australian Haiku Society (2012–2017) and is currently the society’s web manager. She publishes the online haiku journal Echidna Tracks and resides in Adelaide.

Cat Blog

Fortunately I still have a cat, although he is an older cat at eleven, which in human terms would be nearly retired at sixty-one human years. In his spare time, after supervising me, he also has a blog, which I am updating. Link to the new site coming soon. The old site: Read Lynette’s Cat Blog

I have goldfish in a pond and they also have a blog.

Goldfish Blog

The fish don’t seem to have as much to say as the cat and are not bossy like the cat. They seem wary of the cat, but he never interferes with them.

Echidna Tracks

I publish Echidna Tracks Australian Haiku and have been fortunate to work with a magnificent team of editors, who select the haiku and many artists across Australia who have provided imagery. Haiku Editors have been Lyn Reeves, Simon Hanson, Gavin Austin and Marilyn Humbert. Endless gratitude to all these people. Julia Wakefield has recently joined our team and will start a new project to publish haiga with Marietta McGregor. More to come.

Lynette Arden GIFS

Lately I have been fun making GIFS on the Giphy website. They are all free to download and use for your messages. Animation has always intrigued me. I made a short animated film during my Art College days at Liverpool Polytechnic in Liverpool UK (now part of Liverpool John Moores University).

Art

See my murals and photography under the Art item in the menu.

Other Interests

I was an Adelaide Zoo Volunteer for many years, mostly in the Information Centre. I also designed a mural for the zoo, which is no longer in a public area. I travelled with the Zoo Volunteers to China where we worked with the pandas in the conservation sanctuary near Chengdu.

I painted murals for Burnside Library and St Peters Library. Both libraries have since been rebuilt.

I am a Life Member of Adelaide U3A. I ran two Philosophy discussion groups for Adelaide U3A for many years and a Writers Workshop. I am now involved in helping run the Climate Change Zoom group.

Other Writers Groups: I convened City Writers in Adelaide City Library (group folded largely due to Covid). Haiku Bindii: I founded this group and still run their web presence. Australian Haiku Society: I have been Vice President and am still the Web Manager.

History: I produced a small book of local history – Now and Then: Stories from the past and present in Kensington and Norwood. This contained details of plaques installed by the Kensington & Norwood Historical Society and my photos of the buildings, together with a section containing memories of Norwood through history contributed by residents. This book is still offered to local bookstores by the Kensington and Norwood Writers Group.

Norwood Cork Tree: I organised the group that prevented the tree from being demolished. A long project from 2014 to 2024. Signage has now been installed by the latest developer.

Anything Else?

There is always something new to explore!