Natalka Burian is the author of the new young adult novel Welcome to the Slipstream. She is the co-owner of two bars, Ramona and Elsa, and she lives in Brooklyn.
Q: How did you come up with the idea for Welcome to the
Slipstream and for your main character, Van?
A: Van, or at least a proto-Van, was actually a secondary
character in another novel I was working on. I wanted to keep writing about
her, and realized quickly she needed her own book. That first book never made
it out into the world, but I’m glad Van has.
Q: The book is set in Las Vegas and the Southwest. How
important is setting to you in your work, and do you think this could have been
set elsewhere?
A: For me, the setting is like another character in every
story I write. I love the contrast between Las Vegas and the desert, and found
it to be kind of an irresistible location for Van’s family to end up.
Q: How was the book’s title chosen, and what does it signify
for you?
A: I knew that I wanted to use the word “slipstream,”
because it evokes movement and also Van Morrison! Beyond that, I wasn’t sure of
much. When I was at the naming stage, I played around with a few titles, and
bounced them off of all of my friends and family. Welcome to the Slipstream was
the one that stuck!
Q: Did you know how the novel would end before you started
writing, or did you make many changes along the way?
A: Sort of – I knew I wanted Van to be on a new path of her
own choosing, but I wasn’t entirely sure what that would be for her. It’s still
kind of ambiguous, but I hope I got the sentiment right.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I have a book out on submission now. It's set
in West Virginia, in an insular, psychoactive plant farming
community. It follows the bizarre life of a foster family who mysteriously lose
their youngest member. They appeal to ruthless business associates, suspicious
neighbors, and even the ghostly, powerful earth beneath the battlefield at Antietam,
for the child's return.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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