We often tell the story of Summer Grimes, whose sixer was selected as the most all encompassing and slapped on the front cover of our little literary effort. For almost a year she ignored my congratulatory emails. In this email, she explains why, then hops right aboard the good ship Six:
“Dear Rachel,
I am completely […]

I’m a devoutly lapsed Jew. But that doesn’t mean I’m completely without religion. Once a year, I put on a green sweater and go to Easter services with my wife. Even though Jesus isn’t my main man, I do find the music and spirit of the place, well, uplifting.
“Darling,” my wife asked a few […]

After being blown away by six-word submissions from people across the country, we began to put out feelers for contributions by slightly better-known writers. We loved the idea of the memoirs of famous and not-so-famous folks stuffed together in a joyous grab bag of stories. The very first day, I came home from work and […]

The above six-word life story comes from Joanna Brody. Heady stuff to begin with, right? Then she emailed me trying to retract it; there had been medical complications and their last hope had fallen through. I encouraged her to keep the memoir anyway, explaining that it was an honest slice of her life. Then she […]

Scott O’Neil had lifelong battles with depression and suicidal feelings, until in 1982 he made a mind-over-matter decision to change his life, as voiced by his six-word memoir above. When he felt better, he began volunteering at a suicide hotline. He was excited to be included in this book, but had a lot of anxiety […]

In celebration of the upcoming release of the book—Feb. 5, our own Super Tuesday—Rachel and I are spinning out a few “story behind the six” tales. Rachel, who has been the one most contributors have gotten to know over the past year (and to whom they’ve sent photos, origami, and I suspect marriage proposals), can […]