Did you know that Marion Roach Smith spends more of her time teaching others how to write rather than writing herself? Smith has published a total of four books, including The Roots of Desire: The Myth, Meaning and Sexual Power of Red Hair and The Memoir Project, her guide for memoir writing. Smith enjoys sharing her knowledge of writing with the community: It seems that she has found her calling in the encouragement and initiation of others to pursue their own writing. Smith’s commitment to inspiring others to write their stories, and giving them the know-how to do it well, is part of what earned her the title of Literary Legend.
Marion Roach Smith was honored as a Literary Legend at the 2016 Literary Legends Gala. She identifies as an author, memoir coach and teacher of memoir writing. She has published four of her own books and co-written a book with Michael Baden. Smith works as an instructor at the Arts Center of the Capital Region in Troy, New York, and teaches a class called “Writing What You Know” where she teaches about writing memoirs. She has written for The New York Times Magazine, Prevention, Vogue, Good Housekeeping, The Los Angeles Times, and more.
