Suzanne Owen

My guest this week is Suzanne Owen, Reader at Leeds Trinity University, who used to be our External Examiner for Religious Studies at Kent. Suzanne talks about how she is always excited to see what other institutions are doing and we learn about how walking is a counterpoint to her day. 

We learn about Suzanne’s creative writing work and whether she can ever publish it. We talk about the different skills involved and how it can be like being a detective.

Suzanne was, back in the 1980s, a DJ in San Francisco. She was studying radio technology at the time and played punk and new wave.

She has researched indigenous traditions and was once a tutor in Canadian Studies. Suzanne’s first post in Leeds Trinity was in World Religions and she talks about why she is critical of the category.

When she was 5 years old she had an encounter with a wolf and no one knew she was missing or seemed to care, and Suzanne reflects on how this turned her into an outsider and a non-conformist, even an anarchist. She joined the Theosophical Society in Edinburgh, which helped develop her interest in the study of religion.

Both of her parents were music fans, and Suzanne reveals that ‘London Calling’ by The Clash completely grabbed her. She also played bass in a punk band in her last year at high school and subscribed to the Stranglers fanzine.

Suzanne talks about non-attachments to things and how Facebook is a repository of her life. We also learn why she didn’t follow a career in photography. We talk about our subject areas being under pressure and how having an interest somewhere else that can sustain us is so important.

Suzanne has never been tempted to go to a school reunion and we learn what her younger self would have wanted to do.

Towards the end of the interview, Suzanne reflects on how she was a latchkey kid which meant she had adventures in the hills, but she also felt neglected and she was bullied. This has made her feel more independent and any nostalgia she feels is that she had that space. We learn why today the present is the best place to focus, while looking at the past as sources of creativity.

Please note: Opinions expressed are solely those of Suzanne Owen and Chris Deacy and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of Kent.