“As a native Austinite and 7th generation Texan, I love the vibrant diversity, history, and unity of WLT and look forward to building deeper relationships with other writers, editors, and publishers through the Texas writing community.”
–Lauren Flake
A member of the Writers’ League since April, Lauren Flake lives in Buda.
Scribe: In what genre(s) do you write?
Lauren Flake: I primarily write religious and children’s nonfiction, but I’m thinking about diving into children’s fiction.
Scribe: What authors would you like to have a drink with, and what beverage?
LF: I adore Canadian author and minister Sarah Bessey, as well as down-to-earth, Oklahoman cookbook author and TV personality Ree Drummond, but my ultimate picks would be the late John Steinbeck, C.S. Lewis and Edgar Allan Poe. Coffee or beer (or margarita) would depend entirely on the time and place.
Scribe: If you were stranded on a deserted island, what book would you want to have with you to keep you sane?
LF: Hmm…This one’s probably a tie between John Steinbeck’s East of Eden and Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness.
Scribe: What have you learned from your association with the Writers’ League?
LF: As a native Austinite and 7th generation Texan, I love the vibrant diversity, history and unity of WLT and look forward to building deeper relationships with other writers, editors and publishers through the Texas writing community.
Scribe: Where do you see your writing taking you (or you taking it) in the future?
LF: I recently wrote, illustrated and self-published my first children’s book for grieving preschoolers and plan to pursue the traditional publishing route with my next book, which I’ve written for women struggling with grief or depression.
Scribe: Here at the Writers’ League, we love sharing book recommendations. What’s one Texas-related book that has come out within the past year that you couldn’t put down?
LF: Last summer I was on the launch team for my Buda “neighbor” Jen Hatmaker’s For the Love: Fighting for Grace in a World of Impossible Standards.
I read the whole book in less than 48 hours—laughing and crying my whole way through her heartfelt but hilarious discussion of just about everything—from marriage and motherhood to mission trips and ministry. For the Love ended up on The New York Times bestseller list for Religion, Spirituality and Faith.
Scribe: Is there anything else about you that you would like to share with the world? An opportunity for blatant self-promotion!
LF: My debut children’s book, Where Did My Sweet Grandma Go?: A Preschooler’s Guide to Losing A Loved One, gently guides little ones and their parents into meaningful conversations about death, grief and eternal love. The book, which started out as a love letter to my own young daughters, features original artwork by myself and my mother, Dixie Benton Stucky, who died of early onset Alzheimer’s disease. More information about this project is available at laurenflake.com.
In addition to writing, I also enjoy raising funds and awareness for my favorite local nonprofits–including Alzheimer’s Texas, The Salvation Army Austin, and United Way of Hays County–at loveofdixie.com. My #TexasStrong shirts raised nearly $150,000 last year for central Texas flood relief and are now raising money for statewide disaster recovery.
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Thanks, Lauren!
If you’re a Writers’ League member and you’d be interested in being interviewed for our Meet the Members feature, email us at member@writersleague.org for more information. It’s a great way for other members to get to know you and for you to share a bit about what you’re working on!
