Remembering Jill Smokler, creator of Scary Mommy blog

NPR | By Kathryn Fink,

Juana Summers, Mallory Yu

Published June 25, 2026 at 3:52 PM EDT

Jill Smokler, a mother of three, created the blog Scary Mommy in 2008 -- drawing in millions of readers who saw something of themselves in her writings. She died earlier this week at age 48. NPR's Juana Summers talked with writer Lyz Lenz about Smokler's legacy.

Kathryn Fink

Kathryn Fink is a producer with NPR's All Things Considered.

Juana Summers

Juana Summers is a political correspondent for NPR covering race, justice and politics. She has covered politics since 2010 for publications including Politico, CNN and The Associated Press. She got her start in public radio at KBIA in Columbia, Mo., and also previously covered Congress for NPR.

See stories by Juana Summers

Mallory Yu

See stories by Mallory Yu

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