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Wonder and Loss

A Practical Memoir for Writing about Grief

Dr Sam Meekings (Lecturer, Northwestern University in Qatar, Qatar)

$90

Hardback

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English
Bloomsbury Academic
27 November 2025
A braided memoir that interweaves the author’s personal journey through grief with a guide on how to write about it, this book is both Sam Meekings’ raw account of the death of his younger brother and a step-by-step breakdown of the memoir writing process. With a twin focus on how to heal and preserve precious memories whilst exploring the mechanics of writing about the self, Wonder and Loss uses personal story, writing theories, useful strategies and detailed prompts to invite the reader to write alongside Sam on a path that is both painful and profound.

One of the most straightforward approaches to writing memoir put to page, Sam Meekings breaks down the craft of personal narrative into understandable steps and considerations, and provides a sequence of actions and suggestions that are both practical and motivating. Allowing readers to take control of their own stories, this book shares references to related works as well as new theories from the worlds of neuroscience, neurology, psychology and creative writing, translating them into processes writers can use to remember those lost and to rediscover themselves. Compellingly honest and an introspective look at the transformation through grief and loss as it’s written, readers will learn to both honour and record the memories of those they mourn, and to rediscover the person they are and can be.
By:  
Imprint:   Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 236mm,  Width: 158mm,  Spine: 20mm
Weight:   480g
ISBN:   9781350550766
ISBN 10:   1350550760
Pages:   216
Publication Date:  
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Primary ,  Undergraduate
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Introduction Part I: Writing as Discovery Chapter 1: Beginnings Chapter 2: Writing into the Dark Chapter 3: Setting Myself on Fire Chapter 4: Home/Sickness Chapter 5: Ten Ways of Thinking about the Body Chapter 6: Palimpsest Part II: Writing as Transformation Chapter 7: Forgiveness Chapter 8: Metaphor Chapter 9: Embracing Failure Chapter 10: Transformations [Midpoint Self-assessment] Part III: Writing as Renewal Chapter 11: Fable and Myth Chapter 12: Personal Ecology Chapter 13: Writing the Unknown Chapter 14: Returning to Childhood Chapter 15: Dreams and the Unconscious Part IV: Writing as Magic Chapter 16: Talking with Ghosts Chapter 17: Pleasures and Passions Chapter 18: Poetic Tools Chapter 19: Summoning Chapter 20: Endings Conclusion Additional Resources Annotated Bibliography Index

Sam Meekings is Associate Professor of Creative Writing at Northwestern University in Qatar. He is the author of Under Fishbone Clouds (2011, called ‘a poetic evocation of the country and its people’ by the New York Times), The Book of Crows (2012), and The Afterlives of Dr Gachet (2018). He has a PhD in creative writing from Lancaster University, UK, and has taught writing at NYU (Global Campus) and the University of Chichester, UK. He is co-editor of the volumes The Place and the Writer (2021), The Scholarship of Creative Writing (2024) and The Creative Writing Workshop in the 21st Century (2026), all with Bloomsbury Academic. He researches the intersections of trauma and narrative, and the practices and processes of digital storytelling.

Reviews for Wonder and Loss: A Practical Memoir for Writing about Grief

There are many powerful grief memoirs and even more books about the craft of writing, but Wonder & Loss is the first book to help readers as they struggle with grief and write their own stories about love and loss. Sam Meekings shows, in fascinating detail, that the story of his younger brother’s early death is different from writing the story itself. Both stories are hauntingly brought to life in this beautifully written and memorable book. * Jeffrey Berman, Distinguished Teaching Professor, University at Albany, SUNY, USA * A captivating approach to a universal yet entirely personal subject. * University of Oxford *


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