# Ep 32: Writing at 80, being Jewish in the South, & family complexities

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/journey-of-the-art-7113065/ep-32-writing-at-80-being-jewish-in-the-south-family-complexities
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/journey-of-the-art-7113065/ep-32-writing-at-80-being-jewish-in-the-south-family-complexities.md
Podcast: [Journey of the Art](https://stenobird.com/podcast/journey-of-the-art-7113065)
Published: 2025-10-22T12:30:00+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/journey-of-the-art/episodes/Ep-32-Writing-at-80--being-Jewish-in-the-South---family-complexities-e39sfl3
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/f62876d8/podcast/play/110034019/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2025-9-22%2F409733542-44100-2-e68b92dd8cf47.m4a
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/journey-of-the-art-7113065/episodes/ep-32-writing-at-80-being-jewish-in-the-south-family-complexities
Duration seconds: 3070

## Resource

I’m truly honored to share this episode with Summer Brenner, fiction writer, poet, and the oldest guest on the show (Summer turned 80 this year)! In this episode, we step back in time to the 1950s through her memoir, DUST. We discuss her encounters with racism and being Jewish in the South, caring for her brother who suffered from schizophrenia, dealing with her father’s suicide, other complexities with her family, and her thoughts on writing for over fifty years. As I said on the show, this episode was as meaningful as I hoped it would be, and I hope you find it as meaningful too. Show highlights 00:00 – Introduction 02:08 – Summer on turning 80 03:33 – On discovering writing and poetry 7:15 – On freedom and happiness 09:25 – Looking back after fifty years of writing 11:47 – The impact of encountering racism on her life and her writing 17:05 – On her father and his influence on her writing 21:28 – On leaving to live and caring for her brother later in life 30:36 – The hardest part of the book to write 34:33 – Writing about family complexities and the family’s response 42:08 – On being a multidisciplinary artist and finding fulfillment 46:17 – Her secret to staying on the journey of the art _____________________ Listen on Spotify : https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/journey-of-the-art _____________________ Guest’s links Buy DUST: https://www.amazon.com/Dust-Summer-Brenner/dp/1959556460/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=uPJ8A&content-id=amzn1.sym.a7785aa2-ac28-4769-b3eb-cff7b9738627&pf_rd_p=a7785aa2-ac28-4769-b3eb-cff7b9738627&pf_rd_r=140-8988532-3141708&pd_rd_wg=OtiJq&pd_rd_r=29f6d760-a810-4611-8e6f-4baae3cfc550&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk Visit Summer’s website: http://summerbrenner.com _____________________ Host’s links Find out more about the show: http…

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