bender's many books on writing include "creative writing demystified, writing and publishing personal essays, writing in a new convertible with the top down, keeping a journal you love, a year in the life: journaling for self-discovery, the writer's journal: forty writer's and their journals", and "perfect phrases for college application essays". her memoir, "a new theology: turning to poetry in a time of grief", chronicles how reading and writing poetry helped her cope after the loss of her 25-year-old son and find a way to live with love in the spirit of her son. her newest collection of poems, entitled "behind us the way grows wider", appeared in 2012.