- Author of Red Diana, the gripping new thriller set in San Francisco, available at bookstores as
well as Amazon.com and Kindle.
- This chilling psychological
thriller explores themes like the desire for revenge, the terrible burden of guilt, and the tyranny of unethical lawyers
and corrupt judges. It also focuses on the love between parent and child, the shattering pain of losing a loved one--and
the many routes survivors take to deal with their loss.
Readers have called it "a gripping tale"
for "anyone with a passion for psychological thrillers"; "a tangle of abduction, murder, corruption, and insanity. Enjoy it!"
- Author of A Quicker Blood, the sensational
thriller available at bookstores as well as Amazon.com and Kindle.
Here's the Amazon link:
http://www.amazon.com/Quicker-Blood-Susan-Alexander/dp/1439212791/ref=sr_1_1?
ie=UTF8& =books&qid=1242059850&sr=1-1
Readers have called this story of a burned-out lawyer who
leaves her Wall Street law firm, assumes a new identity, and begins to fear for her life a "page-turner" they "couldn't put down."
- Author of Jealous Mistress, an exciting murder mystery, available at bookstores as well
as Amazon.com and Kindle.
- Here's the Amazon link:
Readers have called this mystery "an engrossing read with a gutsy, likeable heroine";
they were "totally immersed in the story and could not put the book down until they finished it."
All three novels are on the shelves at these bookstores in San Francisco: Books Inc. on Chestnut Street in
the Marina and Browser Books on Fillmore Street (at Sacramento).
Red Diana is also on the shelves at Book Passage in the Ferry
Building, San Francisco; Books Inc. in Laurel Village, San Francisco; Green Apple Books, San Francisco; and Alexander Book
Co. at 50 Second Street (between Market and Mission Streets), San Francisco.
- Author of commentaries in the San Francisco Chronicle, the Chicago Tribune, the
Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, and other publications
- Author of
articles on the law in a wide range of professional and mainstream publications
- Author of travel articles in the Chicago Tribune,
the New York Daily News, the Chicago Sun-Times, the Baltimore Sun, and the Raleigh News & Observer
Some other info about
me:
I'm a graduate of Harvard Law School who has worked as a lawyer in the public interest and has also served as a federal judge’s law clerk, an arbitrator,
a law school professor, and a consultant on legal writing. I also spent several years at three Chicago
law firms.
I now focus primarily on writing. My fiction writing includes
my three novels described above.
My writing
has also appeared in a wide array of publications, including the San Francisco Chronicle, the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago
Sun-Times, The San Francisco Daily Journal, the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, and a host of other professional and mainstream
publications. I was the first editor of The Almanac of the Federal Judiciary, and my short story
“Neglect” was a winner in Chicago Lawyer magazine’s first annual fiction competition.
Recent Author Talks and Other Events
Book launch, October 18, 2018: Books Inc. on
Chestnut Street in the Marina
Author talk, April 18, 2019:
Golden Gate Valley Library, San Francisco
Author talk, July 16, 2019,
Book Passage bookstore in the Ferry Building, San Francisco
Upcoming presentation: Introducing the film "The Woman in Black" at SFMOMA's "Haunted"
film series, August 31, 2019
Upcoming presentation: Member of the
author panel on publishing sponsored by the Harvard Club of San Francisco, September 18, 2019
My Blog
In October 2012 I launched a blog, Susan Just Writes, focusing on "the
passing scene." I've covered issues like health, politics, law, travel, business, and fashion. Some posts
are updated versions of commentaries published elsewhere, but most posts are brand-new and highly topical. I add a new
post to my blog at least once a month.
Some recent
blog posts:
"Have You Measured Your Face Lately?"
"What Shall We Do About Plastic Bags?"
"If You're Getting
Older, You May Be Getting Nicer"
"What'll You Have? A Brewed Awakening
in 2014"
"It's Gonna Be a Bright, Bright, Bright Sunshiny Day"
"Go P'Nuts! Peanut Butter is Actually Good for You"
"Italy Was Amazing, And So Were We"
"Sharing Old Clothes
in Panama City"
"Women's Clothes Should All Have Pockets"
"You CAN Go Home Again"
"Sunscreen--and
a Father Who Cared"
"Hamilton, Hamilton...Who Was He Anyway?"
"Punting on the Cam"
"John
Grisham: Advocating Change via Great Storytelling"
"Let's Lobby
Congress to Pass the Paycheck Fairness Act"
"(Sid) Caesar Reigned
Supreme"
"You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry"
"Down and Hot in Paris and London (with apologies to George Orwell)"
"But Are They Reunion-Worthy?"
"The Old Man and The
Movies"
You can contact me at susanalex@gmail.com
Here’s a current
list of my publications:
Fiction
Three novels:
Red
Diana, a thriller published in 2018
A Quicker Blood, a thriller published in 2009
Jealous Mistress, a murder mystery published in 2011
All three novels are available for purchase on Amazon.com and Kindle.
“Neglect,” a short story published in Chicago Lawyer Magazine (prizewinner
in its First Annual Fiction Contest), August 1993
San Francisco Chronicle Publications
Twelve op-ed/commentary pieces, January 2007-December 2011:
“No butts about it,” January 29, 2007
“A good man is not so hard
to find…if he’s been cloned,” September 16, 2007
“Charitable organizations presume too much,” October 28, 2007
“Why emulate Chicago?,”
June 16, 2008
“High
heels are killers,” July 4, 2008
“Gender equality came via the keyboard,” September 14, 2008
“Toys for boys and girls,” December 24, 2008
“Federal waste we can end,”
January 28, 2009
"Before
you buy, ask: Is it reunion-worthy?" May 12, 2009
"To travel cheaply, sleep on the sofa," July 23, 2009
"Unequal pay harms U.S. women," April 23,
2010
"Politics afflicts
the Christmas tree trade," December 15, 2011
Chicago Tribune Publications
May 13, 1996, “Pension Problems Come Alive, Along with Practical
Guidance” (book review of The Pension Book by Karen Ferguson and Kate Blackwell)
June 28, 1992, “Foul play:
Some games have no winners” (commentary)
October 12, 1991, “How much is a child’s love worth?” (op-ed piece)
April 12, 1989, “Playing by the Rules”
(travel)
September
11, 1988, “Law School Ladies’ Day is No Longer Such a Trial” (commentary)
March 15, 1987, “Intellect Can Sprout in London’s
Bloomsbury” (travel)
November 23, 1986, “Questionable Language: to a Person, We Could Use This Cure For Sexism” (commentary)
March 18, 1986, “It’s
All the Lawyers’ Fault!” (op-ed piece)
March 28, 1982, "Penny-pinching tourists can find many bargains in Paris these days"
(also published in the NY Daily News) (travel)
Chicago Daily Law Bulletin Publications
March 21, 2003, “Author: Racial ‘pathologies’
still plague U.S.” (book review of “Interracial Intimacies: Sex, Marriage, Identity, and Adoption”
by Randall Kennedy)
February 24, 2003, “A case of contempt” (book review of “The King of Torts” by John Grisham)
July 22, 2002, “Searching
for truth; decisions of consequence” (book review)
October 23, 2001, “Structure your writing to make your point”
May 23, 2000, “Sometimes
both sides lose” (book review)
November 19, 1999, “Sexual autonomy as the foundation for a new law on rape” (book review)
August 18, 1998, “Watch
out! Your vacationing relatives may be ‘living with’ you”
March 11, 1998, “Getting tough in fight against pollution”
December 17, 1997, “State
should recognize value of children’s companionship”
March 15, 1996, “Horrific acts spark attorney’s internal debate”
(book review)
January
25, 1996, “Ensuring future security with private pension plans” (book review)
January 9, 1996, “Personal liability under Family Leave
Act”
August
1, 1995, “Insurance case yields ruling on allocation”
June 22, 1995, “Insurer forced to cover sex abuse claim”
June 6, 1995, “Admission withheld, admission
denied”
May 4,
1995, “2d Circuit says it’s reasonable to rely on insurance broker’s coverage statements”
April 27, 1995, “Distinguishing between law
and equity”
April 11, 1995, “Officers escape some liability for failed S&L”
March 30, 1995, “Pollution case weighs personal liability”
September 12, 1994, “Appeals
court rejects bank’s claim for lien”
July 13, 1994, “Judge allows parents to recover in vaccine-injury case”
May 24, 1994, “Court invokes two-part test for
preferential transfers”
Nov. 19, 1993, “Making Adoption Accessible, Affordable and Acceptable” (book review of “Family Bonds”
by Elizabeth Bartholet)
Oct. 20, 1993, “‘Lax business practices’ prove fatal in bank dispute”
May 24, 1993, “United flight attendants on strong
legal grounds”
July 2, 1993, “Courts must do their part in fight against sexual harassment”
February 2, 1993, “Court rules IRAs exempt from a bankruptcy
estate”
January
12, 1993, “Landowners’ indifference’ will not be rewarded: court”
November 2, 1992, “After 4 losses, lenders win in 5th
Circuit”
Some Other Publications
“Legal Writing 101: Some tips on creating a framework that makes your documents clear and easy to understand,”
The Recorder (legal publication in San Francisco) (December 21, 2009)
Book reviews of Unwanted Sex: The Culture of Intimidation and the Failure of Law by Stephen J. Schulhofer appear in 86
American Bar Association Journal 86 (August 2000); Chicago Daily Law Bulletin (Nov. 19, 1999); Los Angeles Daily Journal
(Dec. 28, 1999); San Francisco Daily Journal (Dec. 28, 1999)
Book reviews of We Love Each Other, But by Dr. Ellen
Wachtel appear in Chicago Daily Law Bulletin (May 23, 2000); Los Angeles Daily Law Journal (June 13, 2000); San Francisco
Daily Journal (June 13, 2000); 22 Pennsylvania Family Lawyer 73 (Dec. 2000)
“You’re a lousy dentist!” November
1998 (focus: defamation), in the ADA Legal Adviser: A guide to the law for dentists, a monthly newsletter published by the
American Dental Association
The high cost of getting old, August 1998 (focus: long-term care insurance), in the
ADA Legal Adviser: A guide to the law for dentists, a monthly newsletter published by the American Dental Association
One patient’s
tale of trouble, November 1997 (focus: insurance coverage), in the ADA Legal Adviser: A guide to the law for dentists,
a monthly newsletter published by the American Dental Association
Do you want a perfect lawn or a healthy family? Pioneer Press
Forum, May 30, 1996
Mozart and the Abuse of Women, Today’s Chicago Woman, April 1996
Granada Memories Will Live On (commentary),
Chicago Sun-Times, March 5, 1990
Symbolic Synagogue (travel article about Touro Synagogue in Newport, Rhode Island), Raleigh News &
Observer, January 1, 1989
Legal London: A Brief Walk Lets Visitors Judge Its Historical Treasures (travel),
Baltimore Sun, Jan. 18, 1987
Legal London: A World Rich in History (travel), Chicago Sun-Times, June 15, 1986
A Walking Tour of Legal London: The Inns
and Outs (travel), Raleigh News & Observer, May 18, 1986
Everything you always wanted to know about the federal judiciary
(but didn’t know you could find in a book), Washington University alumni publication, 1985
Penny-pinching tourists can find many bargains
in Paris these days, Chicago Tribune, March 28, 1982 (also published in the New York Daily News, 1982)
Travel article about the Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde,
Denmark, New York Daily News, 1982
Articles in professional journals
Book review, 86 American Bar Association Journal 86 (August 2000), reviewing Unwanted Sex: The Culture of Intimidation and the Failure of Law by Stephen J. Schulhofer
Preemployment Inquiries and Examinations: What Employers
Need to Know About the New EEOC Guidelines, 45 Labor Law Journal 667 (1994)
Book Review, 17 Illinois Family
Law Reporter 159 (July 1994), reviewing Elizabeth Bartholet, Family Bonds: Adoption
and the Politics of Parenting (1993)
The Fourth Circuit decides that ‘indifference’ will not be rewarded, March 1993, Environmental Control Law (Illinois State Bar Association newsletter)
Twenty Tips for Associates, 7 CBA Record 24 (Feb. 1993) (with
Elias N. Matsakis), reprinted in 34 Law Office Economics & Management 143 (1993) and selected
by the editor to appear in LOEM Manual at sec. 18.07 (1993 update)
Hoffman Homes decision limited USEPA’s power
to regulate isolated wetlands, September 1992, Environmental Control Law (Illinois State Bar Association
newsletter)
A Fairer
Hand: Why Courts Must Recognize the Value of a Child’s Companionship, 8 Thomas M. Cooley Law Review 273
(1991)
Book Review,
62 Kentucky Law Journal 1161 (1974)
Business-Sponsored Mechanisms for Redress and Arbitration, in Staff Studies Prepared
for the National Institute for Consumer Justice (1973)
The Captive Patient: The Treatment of Health Problems in American Prisons, 6 Clearinghouse Review 16 (May 1972), reprinted in Medical and Health Care in Jails, Prisons,
and Other Correctional Facilities: A Compilation of Standards and Materials (American Medical Association, Commission
on Correctional Facilities and Services, 1973)
Legal Analysis of Problem Situations, in Freya Olafson, Confidentiality: A Guide for
Neighborhood Health Centers (Monograph No. 1, Neighborhood Health Center Seminar Program, 1971)
Abortions for Poor and Nonwhite Women: A Denial of
Equal Protection?, 23 Hastings Law Journal 147 (1971) (with Alan Charles)
The State of Emergency
Medical Services Under the Highway Safety Act, or Don’t Be Caught Dead in an Ambulance, 5 Clearinghouse
Review 72 (June 1971)
A Child of a Different Color: Race as a Factor in Adoption and Custody Proceedings, 17 Buffalo
Law Review 303 (1968)
Editing
Editor of the Almanac of the Federal Judiciary: Profiles of All Active United States District Court
Judges (1984-85)
Editor and author of articles in the ADA Legal Adviser (newsletter published by the American
Dental Association; winner of the 1998 Silver SNAP award) (1996-98)