Richelle Gratton is a Canadian writer with a passion for telling honest, human stories. A graduate of Print Journalism, she brings a journalist’s curiosity and attention to detail to her creative work, blending personal experience, research, humour and reflection.
Her writing often explores the complicated, imperfect parts of being human, from identity and mental health to the strange observations found in everyday life. She is especially drawn to autobiographical writing and personal essays that find humour alongside vulnerability.
In 2025, Richelle independently published the children’s picture book, Different is a Dandelion. Her latest book, After the Blur, marks a move into adult narrative nonfiction, exploring sobriety not as a simple before-and-after story, but as the process of understanding what lies beneath our coping mechanisms and learning how to build a life without them.
Richelle lives in Ontario, Canada, with her much-loved pup, Zoe, and continues to work on new stories across nonfiction and fiction.
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After the Blur is a deeply personal exploration of what happens after you stop drinking and begin facing the parts of yourself alcohol once helped you avoid. Through honest reflection and lived experience, Richelle Gratton explores cravings, shame, mental health, sober fatigue, the science of alcohol, and the complicated realities of recovery. Rather than offering a step-by-step guide to sobriety, After the Blur asks a different question: Why did alcohol feel necessary in the first place?
At its heart, After the Blur is about understanding why we reach for alcohol in the first place and what we discover about ourselves when we finally stop running. It is about learning to meet the wounded parts of ourselves with compassion instead of punishment and finding peace in a life that does not have to be perfect to be worth living.
Compassionate, candid, and free of judgment, this book is for anyone questioning their relationship with alcohol, navigating life without it, or searching for a version of recovery rooted not in perfection, but in understanding, self-compassion, and peace.
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Different is a Dandelion follows an observant child who experiences the World in his own unique way. Through poetic words and tender watercolour style illustrations, this gentle story celebrates neurodiversity, sensory experiences and the quiet beauty of being yourself. This book invites readers to see difference not as something to fix, but something to understand and cherish.
Perfect for children ages 3 – 7, Different is a Dandelion offers comfort and connection to families navigating autism, sensory sensitivities or simply looking to celebrate individuality. A beautiful read for bedtime, classrooms or meaningful conversations.