Patty Dann is a bestselling writer and the author of THE BUTTERFLY HOURS: Transforming Memories into Memoir, which was was chosen as one of the “Best Books for Writers” by Poets & Writers Magazine. Patty is the author of THE GOLDFISH WENT ON VACATION: A Memoir of Loss, and THE BABY BOAT: A Memoir of Adoption. She has also published three novels, MERMAIDS, STARFISH and SWEET & CRAZY. Her work has been translated into French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Chinese, Korean and Japanese. MERMAIDS was made into a movie, starring Cher, Winona Ryder and Christina Ricci.
Patty’s articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Christian Science Monitor, O Magazine, The Oregon Quarterly, Redbook, More, Forbes Woman, Poets & Writers Magazine, “The Writer’s Handbook,” “Dirt: The Quirks, Habits and Passions of Keeping House” and “This I Believe: On Motherhood.”
New York Magazine named Patty one of the “Great Teachers of NYC.” She earned an MFA in writing from Columbia University and a B.A. from the University of Oregon. In addition to the Fairfield County Writers’ Studio, where she teaches Transforming Memories into Memoir, Patty has taught at Sarah Lawrence College and the West Side YMCA.
Patty lives in New York City.