Merri Hiatt

I don't think I ever spoke with her, and I'm regretful that I won't have the chance. She sounds like she was a wonderful soul. RIP.

When I logged on yesterday and saw her self publishing thread at the top of New Posts, I thought 'I will finally remember to tell her that I love her cover collection in her sig, and I will do this right now.'



I very much enjoyed reading her posts.

I don't even know what to say. Merri was wonderful, kind, and supportive. She will be missed so much.

RIP Sweet Lady, RIP...

This is a shock and very sad. I will miss her thoughtful posts and her spirit.

I am shocked and so sad to hear of Merri's passing. I so appreciated her class and grace and her strong sense of sharing to this AW community. My condolences to her family and to this community for her huge loss.

I have no more words, but I feel there's so much more I want to say.

This is truly shocking when I just logged on and saw her name in the "history" section. I hoped it was for an award or something big. A class act and gave me a lot of support on here regarding self promotion and writing...

She was a beast with the writing. She's churned out a triple figure list of titles and I don't know how she managed it. Real shame and a real loss to the community on here...

This is such sad news. First online friend I lost. Someone mentioned upthread about performing a random act of kindness in her memory. I donated to Kiva.

Hope others will find a way to honor her as well.

I'm so sorry to hear of Merri's passing. I always enjoyed reading about her self-publishing experiences, even though I have no interest in self-pubbing myself. She was classy and kind and helpful to all. My condolences to her family and friends. She will be missed.

AW is a better place for having had Merri a part of it.

RIP.

Old Hack said:

She was a hugely supportive and positive force in our Self Publishing room; she was generous with her praise and encouragement, and never failed to step in and help where she could. And she was passionate about her writing, and about publishing her books in the best ways that she could.

I am really going to miss her.

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I couldn't have said it better, OH. I'll always remember her telling me how glad she was that our paths had crossed on AW. She was one of a kind. It's going to be a little less bright around here without her presence.

I am so sorry to hear this. Merri will certainly be missed. She was so kind and helpful to everyone.

I am stunned and so very upset! Merri was such an inspiration and had such a big heart. She helped me immensely in my writing journey, simply by being herself in her posts. She was always encouraging, practical and, as so many have said, upbeat and optimistic. She will be sorely, sorely missed.

This is awful news - she was always such a sweet, positive voice on AW. RIP, Merri

This is...wow. I only had a bit of contact with her through AW, but had been looking forward to more in the future. Such a wealth of knowledge and experience. She will truly be missed.

MacAllister said:

Merri was an inspiration to all of us. As soon as we hear anything about a service or memorial arrangements, I'll let the community know. Medievalist and I live in the same city as Merri, and we plan to attend the memorial service.

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I'm so glad to know that someone from AW will be there. She would have liked that.

Thank you, Mac.

This is stunningly bad news. I perked up every time I read one her posts on self-publishing. She sure left a legacy behind. And what an enormous body of work. Gads, I'll miss terribly.

tri

Mac, if they're going to have flowers at her memorial service let me know, please.

Old Hack said:

Mac, if they're going to have flowers at her memorial service let me know, please.

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Mac, could people who want to contribute toward flowers make a PayPal donation to AW and specify that it be used for that? That way we could have a bouquet from AW. Or would that bollocks up your recordkeeping and taxes?

I am so sad by this news and in shock.

Merri was always there for me with words of encouragement when I was down and praise when I had good news to share. She has helped me on my self publishing journey in so many ways. I will miss her terribly. She was there for me when I suffered losses of my family and friends last year and I will never forget her kindness.

RIP Merri, you were one of a kind.

An obituary for Merri has been published.

It asks that people make contributions to a charity of their choice, in honour of Merri.

This is so sad I can hardly type. I could really do with one of Merri's naughty rep points now.

Old Hack said:

Mac, if they're going to have flowers at her memorial service let me know, please.

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Yes, me too please. I'd like to contribute some funds.

Also, if at the service there's a place for people to speak informally, perhaps one of you could read some of the postings here? Permission from me for mine.

It's funny, I didn't *know* her, but this news has really shook me. Maybe it's because she was so encouraging to others, maybe because she was honest about her work, or because she had really learned her craft well and was actively writing and publishing - whatever it was, she made a big impression on me. And I'll miss her here.

I just saw this thread and I am shocked.
She was a great member here at AW.
RIP, Merri.