Q&A with Sarah Flocken

  

 

 

Sarah Flocken is the author of the new novel Be Well. She is also the owner of SLH Communications, a PR consultancy in San Diego, California. 

 

Q: What inspired you to write Be Well, and how did you create your character Ann?

 

A: Be Well actually originated in the fall of 2019, during an online class through UC San Diego Extension called “How to Start a Novel.” We were given an exercise one day in which we had to write down as many things as we could think of in two minutes that inspired us, interested us, or generally held our attention.

 

We had to be as specific as possible (i.e. instead of “magic” write “Magic: The Gathering” or “an opening act magician at Magic Castle in Los Angeles” or “a vengeful wizard practicing dark magic”). This was actually fairly easy and extremely fun for me, because I have a deep background in improv comedy, where you are encouraged to be as specific as possible in your made-up scenework.

 

Then, we were told to circle the top three list items that jumped out at us. The items I circled were “the Gem & Mineral Hall at the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History,” “heat ripples on asphalt during summertime in old Los Angeles,” and “the feeling of showering after a long, sweaty run.”

 

I sketched out the initial premise, the main character Ann, and a rough outline for Be Well from there. Ann, the awkward young college graduate who hurtles straight into the Great Recession-ravaged economy of 2009, is based in part on my worst impulses when I was 22, under-employed, and living in L.A.

 

By the way, you’ll have to read the book to see which of those three list items made it into the final published version of Be Well.

 

Q:  Is the Sagebrush collective in the novel based on a real organization?

 

A: Sagebrush is an amalgamation of every workout group, healer, holistic wellness collective, and yoga studio I have ever encountered. The structure is loosely based on a place I have actually been to in California, but I had to change enough that they wouldn’t sue me. I really don’t want to get sued.

 

Q: The author Candice Wuehle said of the book, “With razor-sharp humor and an uncanny eye for millennial absurdity, Sarah Flocken captures the particular cocktail of hope, humiliation, and existential dread that defined coming of age in 2009.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: I love this review so much. Candice Wuehle’s writing is, per The Wall Street Journal and Publishers Weekly, “gonzo” and “bonkers,” and to me those are truly aspirational descriptors for my own book. Candice is an incredible author, and everyone who might even consider reading Be Well should go out and buy Monarch and her latest, Ultranatural.

 

As an elder millennial (born in the late 1980s) I personally agree that there was a *lot* of absurdity during our formative years. We also came of age against a backdrop of multiple “once-in-a-lifetime” events such as wars, recessions, pandemics, etc., So yes, “hope, humiliation, and existential dread” would be the name of our generation’s concept album.

 

Q: Did you know how the novel would end before you started writing it, or did you make many changes along the way?

 

A: I had a vague idea that something big had to happen, but I honestly “pantsed” the first draft of Be Well. I wrote until I figured out the ending, painting myself into a lot of corners along the way. Before publication, Be Well went through 13 rounds of revisions, including multiple “back-down-to-the-studs” rewrites.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: Right now, I’m in the process of revising a manuscript for my second novel. This one, an idea that actually came to me in the shower, is a bit cliché but true.

 

Basically, the premise is “disgraced young Republican staffer is appalled by the billionaire running for president, and decides that the only way to save the country is to resurrect her dead senator grandfather with the help of her mortician high school best friend.”

 

That gives you an idea of where my head goes while I’m exfoliating.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: In addition to being an author, I'm also a public relations professional, comedian, improviser, and pun contest host (yes, it's a thing) with performance credits worldwide. Los Angeles will always hold a piece of my heart and blood pressure, but San Diego is the place I call home. 

 

If you'd like to learn more about me as an author, you can visit www.sarahflocken.com

 

If you'd like to learn more about my PR business, you can visit www.slhcommunications.co 

 

If you're a word nerd, and want to know what this competitive punning business is all about, follow @sandiegopundemonium on Instagram. It's not just a thing in San Diego, it's a thing nationwide, so you might have a pun contest near you! And yes, there are puns in Be Well. 

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb