Author, Selected Misdemeanors: Essays at the Mercy of the Reader
This week on Ira’s Everything Bagel, Ira sits down with acclaimed author Sue William Silverman to dive into her new book, Selected Misdemeanors: Essays at the Mercy of the Reader. Sue explores the art of the flash essay—short pieces that deliver big emotional punch.
She shares why she chose to write 71 compact yet deeply resonant essays, and how transforming her life into art helps her make sense of it. Sue opens up about her “upside-down” sister, her love of metaphor as a universal language, and the difference between sharing intimacy on the page versus in person.
They also talk about the healing power of writing, how she encourages her students to discover their authentic voices, and the importance of emotional truth in creative nonfiction. And yes, there’s room for humor too—as Sue reveals her father-figure fascination with Pat Boone and her “addiction” to Barry Manilow as a kind of higher power.
It’s a lively, revealing, and richly layered conversation about art, memory, and the flashes of insight that illuminate a writer’s life.
Sue William Silverman is an award-winning author known for her fearless explorations of trauma, identity, and personal transformation. She co-chairs the MFA in Writing Program at Vermont College of Fine Arts and has appeared on The View, Anderson Cooper 360, and PBS Books.
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