Anna Louie Sussman: Stories Change and Evolve
In this interview, author Anna Louie Sussman discusses the six years of research and interviews that went into her new nonfiction book, Inconceivable.
A formerWall Street Journal and Reuters reporter, Anna Louie Sussman is a contributing Opinion writer at The New York Times. Her work has also appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Review of Books, The Guardian, New York Magazine, The Cut, MIT Technology Review, Elle, and numerous other publications. She has reported from two dozen countries and is the recipient of numerous grants, fellowships, and awards. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
In this interview, Anna discusses the six years of research and interviews that went into her new nonfiction book, Inconceivable, her hope for readers, and more.
Name: Anna Louie Sussman
Literary agent: Melissa Flashman, Janklow & Nesbit
Book title: Inconceivable: The Impossibility of Family in an Age of Uncertainty
Publisher: Dey Street Books
Release date: September 8, 2026
Genre/category: Nonfiction/Current Affairs
Elevator pitch: Around the world, people report wanting to have more children than they ultimately end up having. This book investigates the myriad reasons why having a family has come to feel so out of reach.
What prompted you to write this book?
When I was 34, I froze my eggs after several years of saving and, thankfully, getting a Christmas bonus. As I considered what I might one day do with these eggs, I was struck by how challenging it felt to become a parent—how little support Americans get, and how stressful and competitive and almost unpleasant parenting is made out to be. As I started reporting on what became my “reproduction” beat, I found that pretty much everyone I spoke to felt the same way, and numerous surveys have found the same sentiment, in the U.S. and in many other countries, too.
At the same time, the demographic research I read never captured the complexity and the nuance of people’s thinking about whether and why to create a family. I always say there are as many reasons that people do or don’t have kids as there are people, and I wanted to bring their stories, their voices, to the fore.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
I started thinking of this as a possible book in 2018 or 2019. I remember spending a week in a cheap and utterly lovely hotel in the Swiss Alps, where I’d gone for a work trip, hiking in the morning and working on a book proposal in the afternoons and evenings. When I got back home to New York City, I spoke to a few agents, but one wanted it to be more of a memoir, and another told me I had to write a viral essay before she could sell it, to which I mentally responded, “Sure, hold my beer.”
It turns out she was correct. I got very lucky; I got an assignment from The New York Times Opinion section to write an essay expanding on one of the book’s core ideas, which is that our inhumane and individualistic version of capitalism is fundamentally at odds with a more interdependent, sustainable, and caring way of living would make creating new human beings feel possible. The essay was well-read, and my agent sold the book in early 2020.
After that it took another six years to finish; I had spurts of productivity—for example, when I got to go to writing retreats, and periods when I had to put the book aside and report other stories or do writing for non-journalism clients. There were other interruptions too: I moved apartments and—spoiler—became a parent myself!
While the basic idea didn’t change over those years, each story added new layers and nuances. I read tons of books, came across new research, spoke to dozens more people, and all of that—new information, ideas, voices—informed the final product.
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
The person who acquired the book left the publishing house maybe a month or two after we had signed the contract. I think maybe I had an idea that there’s this sacred writer-editor relationship, and I know that of course some people do have that. But I didn’t realize there was so much turnover in publishing!
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
There would be no book without the people who were gracious enough to share their stories, and who took the time to speak with me many times over the years. Over the years, though, things happen. Stories change and evolve. There was one person in the book who readers of early drafts found especially moving, but after spending a lot of time interviewing him and his wife, their marriage encountered difficulties and she no longer wanted to participate in the book. I had to remove that entire story and find a new person to feature in that chapter. While that was disappointing for me, it was obviously nowhere near the emotional upheaval that the two of them were facing. If for some reason either one of them is reading this, I hope they have each found peace.
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
I hope readers will understand that they’re not alone in feeling like modern capitalism is making it harder to have meaningful relationships, whether those are friendships, romantic relationships, and, of course, the parent-child relationship. There are headlines every day about a “baby bust” (trust me, every day; I get Google alerts for that phrase), but I find those panicked headlines totally miss the point. This is not a story about human numbers. This issue matters because it is a story about love, and the many loving relationships that are not formed because of the messed-up economy and world that exists around us—and that we have the power to change.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
I don’t think there is any substitute for time and effort. The more research and reporting you do, the better informed you’ll be. The more times you print out and revise your drafts, the better they will read. This is a little pedantic but: Don’t try to edit yourself on a screen. Invest in a good printer and a box of red pens. I once saw a tip to change the font of your document when you print out your drafts to give you more distance from the material. Then markup those weird font printed versions. It’s shocking how easy it is to miss things when they’re on a screen.
