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Description
Writing Hard StoriesBy: Melanie Brooks Some of the countrys most admired authorsincluding Andre Dubus III, Mark Doty, Marianne Leone, Michael Patrick MacDonald, Richard Blanco, Abigail Thomas, Kate Bornstein, Jerald Walker, and Kyoko Moridescribe their treks through dark memories and breakthrough moments and attest to the healing power of putting words to experience. What does it take to write an honest memoir? And what happens to us when we embark on that journey?
By: Melanie BrooksSome of the country’s most admired authors—including Andre Dubus III, Mark Doty, Marianne Leone, Michael Patrick MacDonald, Richard Blanco, Abigail Thomas, Kate Bornstein, Jerald Walker, and Kyoko Mori—describe their treks through dark memories and breakthrough moments and attest to the healing power of putting words to experience.
What does it take to write an honest memoir? And what happens to us when we embark on that journey? Melanie Brooks sought guidance from the memoirists who most moved her to answer these questions. Called an essential book for creative writers by Poets & Writers, Writing Hard Stories is a unique compilation of authentic stories about the death of a partner, parent, or child; about violence and shunning; and about the process of writing. It will serve as a tool for teachers of writing and give readers an intimate look into the lives of the authors they love.
Authors profiled in Writing Hard Stories: Andre Dubus III, Sue William Silverman, Michael Patrick MacDonald, Joan Wickersham, Kyoko Mori, Richard Hoffman, Suzanne Strempek Shea, Abigail Thomas, Monica Wood, Mark Doty, Edwidge Dantict, Marianne Leone, Jerald Walker, Kate Bornstein, Jessica Handler, Richard Blanco, Alysia Abbott, and Kim Stafford
Insights from Writing Hard Stories
“Why we endeavor collectively to write a book or paint a canvas or write a symphony...is to understand who we are as human beings, and it’s that shared knowledge that somehow helps us to survive.”—Richard Blanco
“Here’s what you need to understand: your brothers [or family or friends] are going to have their own stories to tell. You don’t have to tell the family story. You have to tell your story of being in that family.”—Andre Dubus III
“We all need a way to express or make something out of experiences that otherwise have no meaning. If what you want is clarity and meaning, you have to break the secrets over your knee and make something of those ingredients.”—Abigail Thomas
“What we remember and how we remember it really tells us how we became who we became.”—Michael Patrick MacDonald
“The reason I write memoir is to be able to see the experience itself...I hardly know what I think until I write...Writing is a way to organize your life, give it a frame, give it a structure, so that you can really see what it was that happened.”—Sue William Silverman
“After a while in the process, you have some distance and you start thinking of it as a story, not as your story...It was a personal grief, but no longer personal...[It’s] something that has not just happened to me and my family, but something that’s happened in the world.”—Edwidge Danticat
“Tibetan Buddhists believe that eloquence is the telling of a truth in such a way that it eases suffering...The more suffering that is eased by your telling of the truth, the more eloquent you are. That’s all you can really hope for—being eloquent in that fashion. All you have to do is respond to your story honestly, and that’s the ideal.”—Kate Bornstein
“You can never entirely redeem the experience. You can’t make it not hurt anymore. But you can make it beautiful enough so that there’s something to balance it in the other scale. And if you understand that word beautiful as not necessarily pretty, then you’re getting close to recognizing the integrative power of restoring the balance, which is restoring the truth.”—Richard Hoffman
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★★★★★ 5
Great for creating open shelving rather than adding cabinetry
I purchased two of the 24 inch shelves to create a coffee nook in my kitchen. They are very high-quality, attractive, were easy to install, and are sturdy. These shelves are a great alternative to having to add cabinetry to store items.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2025
★★★★★ 5
Sturdy and easy to assemble.
Size: 31.5 Inch, Color: Rustic Brown
Remarkably easy to assemble, sturdy, looks great on my wall. My only complaint is that you can't really hang anything off of the top bracket -- the promotional photos show an item hanging from there, but they've used an item with a very strangely shaped handle to make it work. Booo.
Still, great little shelf. Happy with it.
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Reviewed in the United States on October 30, 2025
★★★★★ 5
Great Spacesaver and looks good too.
Size: 31.5 Inch, Color: Rustic Brown
Bought this to free up counter space and cupboard space. And it does the job perfectly. Easy to assemble and install, but make sure you have another set of hands nearby cause it could be a little tough to install by yourself.
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Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2026
★★★★★ 5
Quality shelf
Love this shelf. Super easy to put together. Strong and sturdy. Used as open shelving in kitchen . Space saving and priced well. Several color options to choose looks like photo
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Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2026
★★★★★ 4
Very sturdy!
Size: 31.5 Inch, Color: Rustic Brown
I absolutely love these shelves. They were easy to put together and hang up and they look fantastic. I ended up having to use extra boards to screw it to the wall just because of the location of the wall stud, but you can't notice it at all, really. They are pretty big , the picture doesn't do it justice. I'm very pleased with this purchase.
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Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2024