My guest this week is journalist and author Susannah Cahalan. Susannah’s first book, "Brain on Fire," about her experiences with a very rare autoimmune disease that was misdiagnosed as mental illness, was a #1 NY Times bestseller, sold over a million copies, and was made into a Netflix original movie. Her second book, "The Great Pretender," was named a best book of 2020 by Time, The Guardian and The Sunday Times. And her newest book is "The Acid Queen," which tells the fascinating story of Rosemary Woodruff Leary, who is best known as the wife of LSD pioneer Timothy Leary, but who played a major role in bringing psychedelics into the mainstream.
NPR called Susannah "one of America's most courageous young journalists." She’s been profiled in the New York Times, featured as an answer on Jeopardy!, and appeared as a guest on The Today Show and Fresh Air, among many others.
What I loved most in this episode was hearing about how Susannah’s process has evolved from something that was very structured, even rigid, into something that’s way on the other end of the spectrum, that involves candles made by witches and doing what it takes to open up a “magical circle” where you can engage with the work on a deeper level.
We covered:
- The side effects of growing up in a house where the grown-ups read newspapers
- The gossip column she started for her high school paper
- Interning at The New York Post as a 17-year-old
- The rare autoimmune disease she experienced in her 20s that was initially misdiagnosed as mental illness, and the fascination with consciousness it fostered
- Adapting to the large amounts of time you spend alone as a writer
- Resisting the lure of spending too much time alone and in your head
- The mix of speaking, ghostwriting, and side projects that supplement the income she makes writing books
- Her biggest speaking fail
- Her transition from structured–even rigid–writing routines to something way more woo woo
- The steps she takes to open up a “magical circle” when it’s time to write
- The shop in New York City that she gets to create special candles for each project (I’m so in–check the show notes on Substack for a link)
- Why writing in the mornings and interviewing and editing in the afternoons works for her
Visit Susannah on Instagram @susannahcahalan or at susannhacahalan.com.
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices