Marijane Meaker, the author of more than 60 books and the founder of the Ashawagh Hall Writers Workshop, died of cardiopulmonary arrest at home on Deep Six Drive in Springs on Nov. 21. She was 95, and had lived in the hamlet for the past 60 years.
Alleen Pace Nilsen, in her book "Presenting M.E. Kerr," discussed the persistence and strength of Ms. Kerr (one of Ms. Meaker's various pseudonyms) in portraying the underdog in her work. Tolerance, prejudices, denial and acceptance of different kinds of people with different backgrounds, beliefs, lifestyles, and socioeconomic status were frequent concerns in all her books, by both M.E. Kerr and Mary James, according to Ms. Nilsen.
Ms. Meaker's pen names were Vin Packer (mystery and crime), Ann Aldrich (lesbian nonfiction), Mary James (younger children), M.E. Kerr (young adult), M.J. Meaker (nonfiction), and Marijane Meaker (novels and biographies).
Among her best-loved books, according to Zoe Kamitses, a writer and friend, are "Shockproof Sidney Skate" by Marijane Meaker, "Dinky Hocker Shoots Smack!" and "Gentlehands" by M.E. Kerr, and "Take a Lesbian to Lunch" by Ann Aldrich. "Spring Fire" by Vin Packer has been credited with beginning the genre of lesbian pulp fiction.
As Marijane Meaker she wrote "Highsmith," a memoir of her two-year affair with the psychological crime thriller writer Patricia Highsmith, author of "Strangers on a Train" and "The Talented Mr. Ripley," among others. Ms. Meaker figures prominently in the recently released documentary "Loving Highsmith," which is now streaming on several platforms.
Marijane Meaker was born in Auburn, N.Y., on May 27, 1927, to Ellis R. Meaker and the former Ida Jonick. She grew up in Auburn before attending boarding school at Stuart Hall in Staunton, Va. One of the books she noted reading and being moved by as a child was Carson McCullers's "The Member of the Wedding."
After a year at Vermont Junior College, she attended the University of Missouri, where she graduated in 1949 with a degree in English literature. From there she moved to New York City, where she sold her first article under the name of Laura Winston to Ladies Home Journal.
Once established as a writer under various pseudonyms, most notably as the mystery writer Vin Packer, she was encouraged by Louise Fitzhugh, a friend and author, to launch her career as a writer of young-adult fiction.
"Dinky Hocker Shoots Smack!" was her first book as M.E. Kerr. Published in 1972, it was named one of the 20th century's 100 most significant books for children and young adults by School Library Journal in 2000.
Ms. Meaker was awarded an honorary doctorate from Southampton College, and her many awards included the American Library Association's Margaret A. Edwards Award for her lifetime contributions to young-adult literature. In 1995 The New York Times Book Review called her "one of the grand masters of young-adult fiction."
"Ms. Meaker's books feature complex characters that have difficult relationships and complicated problems, who rail against conformity, and who often suffer unpopularity," said Ms. Kamitses.
"I remember being depressed by all the neatly tied-up, happy-ending stories, the abundance of winners, the themes of winning, solving, finding -- when around me it didn't seem that easy," Ms. Meaker said of her approach. "So I write with a different feeling when I write for young adults. I guess I write for myself at that age."
In addition to the Ashawagh Hall workshop, whose members produced 20 published novels, she was a founding member of the East End Gay Organization.
Ms. Meaker has no primary survivors. However, "She leaves behind a legion of loving readers and friends who have been positively altered by her writing and her presence in their lives," Ms. Kamitses said.
Donations in her memory have been suggested to the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons at arfhamptons.org. No service has been planned yet, and the dispersal of her ashes will take place at a future time.
