On the cusp of Molly McCloy’s 1993 college graduation, she wrote her father a letter, asking him to apologize for nine instances of mental, verbal, and physical trauma. In her memoir, Nine Grudges: The Spiteful Origins of the Happiest Dyke on Earth (Red Hen Press, 2026), she revisits each of these nine grievances before working up the courage to mail the letter. Then, to her surprise, Dad writes back. McCloy’s book received the 2023 Quill Prose Award from Red Hen Press, and Pipeline Media Group selected the memoir for its 2023 Book Pipeline Unpublished Prize in Nonfiction. McCloy, a gifted storyteller and performer, is also a four-time Moth StorySLAM winner. We first met as Lambda Literary fellows in 2014, and what a privilege to witness the evolution of the project from powerful solo show to deeply moving debut memoir—a father-daughter redemption story for all of us.
CQ Quintana
What made you decide on the structural frame of “nine grudges” for the memoir?
Molly McCloy
So I started writing a letter. I wanted my dad to apologize for some things, and I couldn’t think of a tenth one at the time!