Susan Cain
Susan Cain writes about introversion, sensitivity, and the beauty of bittersweet feelings, and hosts The Quiet Life community of essays and candlelight conversations.
At 100 nudges, fangea sends Susan’s team an official invite.
🔒 Star boosts open once Susan claims this page.
Latest
Susan’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus their backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
Book
TED
Book
Book
Picture bookOverview
- Work
- Author, speaker, and host of The Quiet Life
- Before the books
- Seven years as a corporate attorney
- Breakout
- Quiet and The power of introverts TED Talk, both in 2012
- Subjects
- Introversion, sensitivity, sorrow, longing, and connection
Mini bio
How it started.
Before Quiet, Susan spent seven years as a corporate attorney. In an interview with Ozan Varol, Susan recalled wanting to write from the age of four, then losing touch with that dream during the years in law. Quiet took seven years to write, including a fresh start after candid feedback from an editor.
The quiet breakthrough.
Published in 2012, Quiet made the case for the strengths of introverts in a culture that rewards being outgoing. It became a number one New York Times bestseller, and Susan’s TED2012 talk brought that argument to an audience far beyond the book.
More room for feeling.
Quiet Power brought the ideas to children and teens, with co-authors Gregory Mone and Erica Moroz. In 2022, Bittersweet explored what sorrow and longing can teach us about creativity, compassion, and connection. Oprah chose it for the book club in February 2023.
A place to gather.
Today, The Quiet Life brings readers essays, ideas, and Candlelight Chats with guests. Susan also co-wrote the 2026 picture book Lucky & Norman with family members, turning a memory of children befriending donkeys into a story about love and goodbye.
Creditschronological, newest first
Books and journals
- 2026Lucky & Norman: Saying Goodbye Is BittersweetCo-author with the Cain family; illustrated by Stella Lim
- 2025Bittersweet JournalCreator; partnered with Gretchen Rubin
- 2022Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us WholeAuthor
- 2020Quiet JournalAuthor
- 2016Quiet Power: The Secret Strengths of Introverted KidsCo-author with Gregory Mone and Erica Moroz
- 2012Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop TalkingAuthor
Talks
- 2012The power of introvertsTED speaker
Awards
Quotes
I dream big and have audacious goals, and I see no contradiction between this and my quiet nature.Susan Cain, official About page
Trivia
- Susan says a fear of public speaking once seemed overwhelming, even though giving talks later became part of the work.
- Favorite pastimes include reading, writing, sitting in cafés, traveling with family, and tennis.
- Lucky & Norman grew out of a cherished family memory and was written with five family members.
- In October 2026, Susan told Quiet Life readers about plans to start a formal certificate in depth psychology.
Find Susan
Read Susan’s letters, join the conversations, and follow along between books.
Are you Susan Cain?
Fans built this page. Claim it to connect with them and unlock Star boosts, or request a takedown if you’d rather it not exist.