Into Sanity

In this remarkable collection, 22 writers describe suicidal despair or mania—or coming to terms with a generational legacy of mental illness. Into Sanity includes personal essays by contributors from all over the United States and a preface by Mark Vonnegut, who judged the contest at Talking Writing magazine that sparked these true stories.

The media has paid more attention to suicide risks and depression in recent years, especially after the death of well-loved celebrities. And yet, mental illness remains misunderstood. Into Sanity offers the lived reality. These writers underscore why the stigma makes mental illness so hard to talk about—and why it takes courage to speak up.

Introduction - Living in Between • Martha Nichols ix

Preface - Telling the Truth to Save Your Own Life • Mark Vonnegut xxi

Snapshots

Unleashed • Jane McCafferty 3

Try Ending This Way • Beth Richards 15

Hurricane Warnings • Martha Nichols 27

Descent

Night Fishing • Sara Hubbs 35

Dog College • Greg Correll 47

Beauty Marks • Rae Alexandra Underberg 57

Spring Harbor, Again • Kristine Snow Millard 71

Family

Storms of the Circus World • Lorri McDole 83

Locked Doors • Amy McVay Abbott 93

What If • Madeleine Holman 101

Paige • Drew Ciccolo 115

Arrival

Climbing the Walls • Joanna Brichetto 129

Loose Associations • Carl Bowlby 137

Plucking and Preening • Linda Saslow 147

The Longest Walk • Kim Triedman 155

Witness

Confined to Quarters • Marianne Goldsmith 167

Camera Obscura • Rebecca Schumejda 177

Sacred Touch • Julie Evans 189

Legacy

Hoard • April Newman 201

Nine Photographs • Joe Vastano 211

Not Whistling Dixie • Maureen Sullivan 221

Dispatches from the Land of Well • Jamie Passaro 231

Epilogue

Why Going Crazy Isn’t Just a Good Story • Martha Nichols 243

Contributors’ Notes 255

About Talking Writing 265