Guggenheim Foundation

The Guggenheim Foundation appears in Thomas Savage’s career as the source of a grant that helped him write Her Side of It, a novel about an alcoholic writer wrestling with demons. The account links the award to a difficult period in Savage’s life on the Maine coast, but does not specify the grant’s terms or the Foundation’s wider operations.

Grant and Writing

In 1978, a February blizzard washed the Savages’ Maine house off its foundations. Savage later recalled that repairing it cost $25,000. The following year, he received a Guggenheim Foundation grant, which helped him write Her Side of It.

Significance in Savage’s Career

The evidence identifies the Foundation’s role specifically as financial support for Savage’s writing after the costly damage to the family home. It connects the grant to Her Side of It, whose subject—a writer wrestling with demons—offers a marked contrast to the practical crisis of rebuilding the house. The account provides no further details about the award or the Foundation’s other activities.