Susan Isaacs
A best-selling novelist who reinvented the suburban mystery, placing whip-smart, relatable heroines at the center of deadly and deliciously witty plots.
Born 1943 (age 83)·American novelist·Birthday: December 7·The Silent Generation
Biography
Susan Isaacs began her career not in a writer's garret, but in the editorial offices of *Seventeen* magazine, an experience that honed her eye for detail and voice. Her leap into fiction produced 1978's 'Compromising Positions,' a seismic shift in the mystery genre. It featured Judith Singer, a bored Long Island housewife turned amateur sleuth, whose sardonic observations about marriage, suburbia, and sex were as compelling as the murder plot. Isaacs proved that domestic life could be a rich field for suspense and social satire. She consistently created intelligent, often funny female protagonists who used their everyday skills to navigate extraordinary danger. Beyond her novels, she has served as a vocal advocate for writers' rights and a sharp cultural commentator, her essays dissecting politics and society with the same precision found in her fiction.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Susan was born in 1943, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Susan Was Born
The biggest hits of 1943
#1 Movie
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Best Picture
Casablanca
Susan's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1943Born
Allies invade Sicily; Battle of Stalingrad ends
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,290Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I've Heard That Song Before" — Harry JamesBest Picture: Casablanca
1948Started school
Israel declares independence; Berlin Blockade begins
Gas: $0.26/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Twelfth Street Rag" — Pee Wee HuntBest Picture: Hamlet
1956Became a teenager
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1959Could drive
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1961Could vote
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1964Turned 21
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1973Turned 30
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1983Turned 40
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1993Turned 50
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
2003Turned 60
US invades Iraq; Human Genome Project completed
Gas: $1.59/galHome: $146,000Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"In Da Club" — 50 CentBest Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2013Turned 70
Edward Snowden reveals NSA surveillance programs
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $152,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Thrift Shop" — Macklemore & Ryan LewisBest Picture: 12 Years a Slave
2023Turned 80
ChatGPT goes mainstream; Israel-Hamas war begins
Gas: $3.52/galHome: $361,600Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Flowers" — Miley CyrusBest Picture: Oppenheimer
2026Age 83 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Her debut novel, 'Compromising Positions,' was a critical and commercial success that she adapted into a 1985 film starring Susan Sarandon.
- Served as the first female president of the Mystery Writers of America from 1986 to 1987.
- Was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for her 1991 novel 'Shining Through,' a World War II romantic thriller.
- Has seen multiple novels adapted for film and television, including 'Hello Again' and 'After All These Years.'
Did You Know?
Before becoming a novelist, she worked as a senior editor at *Seventeen* magazine.
She has written political op-eds for publications like *The New York Times* and *The Los Angeles Times*.
Isaacs is a longtime resident of Long Island, the setting for many of her novels.
She served on the board of the nonprofit organization Poets & Writers.
“I think all fiction is a branch of suspense fiction. You turn the page to see what happens next.”
