Francesca Lia Block’s L.A.

Our L.A. series

Los Angeles has a literary high priestess and it’s Francesca Lia Block. If you already know who Francesca is, this will come as no surprise. Los Angeles is intertwined in every intro that ever has been written about her. She is a L.A. cult hero/icon. She has written over 25 books all imbued with the magic that she exudes. Her book Weetzie Bat was a cultural phenomenon, Weetzie, Dirk, Duck, My Secret Agent Lover Man and more exploring the whimsical Los Angeles. The first page is filled with places you can actually go to.

I didn’t discover the magic of FLB’s books until after I moved to L.A. at 21. My friend Elizabeth and I were shelving books at Vroman’s Bookstore where we worked and she said, “YOU haven’t read THIS??” And she put a copy of *Weetzie Bat* in my hands. Of course I loved it. **Seeing Los Angeles through Weetzie’s eyes is like a magic spell. One that makes you see the beauty.**

Weetzie Bat shaped how I saw Los Angeles. Years later I realized I could actually take writing classes from Francesca. I have ever since. Now I’m lucky to call her my writing mentor and friend.

For our adventure, I met her at the Village Well bookstore in Culver City. She teaches here most days. Saturdays she has her morning pages session. Perfect way to start the day.

Francesca is gorgeous inside and out. Long brown hair. A cool jeans and teeshirt style. Her lovely smile just welcomes you in. I sat down and we caught up a bit as she pulled out two tarot decks. We started with a card reading to get the mind going, nothing very serious but for fun and inspiration. We wrote together for the rest of the hour feeding off of each other’s creative energy.

After our writing session, she was full of amazing ideas for our exploring time. “Let’s go for a drive,” I said.

I met her at her home, the faerie cottage. Just the type of place you would expect her to live. I had been there a handful of times before at writing workshops. But one time period always sticks in my mind. It was January 2018, I was still very much in the worst time of my life, traumatized and constantly living at the edge of anxiety if not falling off the cliff. Francesca encouraged me to come to her house and take her memoir workshop. But I didn’t have childcare. Francesca said, “Bring them. They can hang out with my dogs and jump on the trampoline in the backyard.” So I brought my girls and I got my couple hours of healing time a week. I had already written so much of my traumatic experience that it felt like this was the next step toward healing. I don’t know what I would have done without that workshop and those people in it. I felt so supported and loved.

And now I’m years past that workshop. Funny how time folds in on itself and feels like eons away at the same time. She hopped in my car (a Mazda, not as cool as Dirk’s red ‘55 Pontiac, but it is red). And then we go on our own Weetzie adventure.

We drove through Beverley Hills past the Electric Fountain, known for multi-soda-pop-colored lights. We mused about how Beverly Hills had a fancy but worn way to it. A lot of L.A. is like this. It’s been said that in her writing she created her own Shangri-L.A.

We drove down the Sunset Strip, where Weetzie and Dirk would frequent. The Whiskey, Carney’s restaurant, The Viper Room (where we both have never been), Coconut Teaszer (where we both went many times, but was no longer there). It didn’t feel as magical as it used to. She pointed out where Schwab’s Pharmacy and Soda Fountain used to be. It’s where stars used to be discovered and she made a short film with her friend and her dad.

We drove over the hill toward the valley. Francesca grew up there with her mom, a poet who worked in the studios, and her father, a painter, writer, and known for his visual effects in films. He eventually was blacklisted for going to socialist meetings.

Here the magic picked up for her. The Mt. Olympus neighborhood. All the streets are named after gods and goddesses. We continued over the hill and drove past where the house she grew up in used to be. Laura Canyon is such a beautiful area. She told me how after her father died she passed a large lot on this street and a white horse appeared and pressed its snout against the fence. A powerful moment. This is what I mean. A white horse quite literally in the middle of the city. L.A. never ceases to amaze me. We passed the lot that used to be Joni Mitchell’s home. Only a pile of stones like an altar are left. Growing up in the valley Francesca didn’t want to stay. So she would go over the hill to the magic place, Hollywood.

In the 80’s She worked on Melrose at Grau, owned by Claudia Grau, that had one of a kind clothing made from things like upcycled Kimonos. Francesca told me about her run-ins with Patricia Arquette. Once Francesca saw her on the side of the road with her broken down car, one day Patricia came into Grau before she was famous, another time she saw Patricia, her baby (in matching elf hats) and Rosanna Arquette and Ellen Barkin at The Source, a health food restaurant on the strip, on the day Weetzie was published in April 1989. They signed the invitation “To Weetzie Bat” . Hollywood is a weird kismet place.

Also on Melrose, Francesca frequented a vintage store called Cowboy and Poodles that sold 50’s clothes that had never been worn. What an incredible time to be on the Melrose scene. New Wave and punk fashion. She fondly remembered her taffeta prom dress and black pumps. I bragged about a good thrift store find recently, a white tulle Betsy Johnson dress with that wild punk edge. She also had a white Betsy Johnson dress of the strapless variety. Maybe a night on the town is in order… Not that I stay up past 9 anymore. We drove down Melrose and lamented that it wasn't the same. We knew Melrose from different times. Hers from the 80’s and mine from the 90’s, but both agreed it was even more different now.

We continued through Fairfax district, The Original Farmer’s Market and Dirk’s apartment. The real Dirk who has unfortunately now passed away.. “Got into a lot of fun trouble with him,” she said.

We drove through mid-city heading back to her side of town. We bonded over the small robots who deliver food and our annoyance of the Waymo that blocked traffic. Further proving that babies of anything are adorable (Does this mean they grow up to be Waymos?).

As a writing teacher, Francesca is kind and generous and has this way of coaxing a story out of you by just asking a question. FLB is brilliant at using setting in a story. Weetzie Bat being only one example. Another one I’d recommend is House of Hearts that takes you to the Salton Sea.

If I could go back in time it might be to the 80’s and hanging out with Francesca on Melrose, meet Dirk, go to Canters, dance at Rage.

Seeing Los Angeles through Francesca’s eyes is also like a magic spell. One that makes you see the beauty but not without the reality.

Francesca, how long have you lived in L.A.? I was born here! I moved away for school at UC Berkeley, briefly to San Francisco and then to Joshua Tree but otherwise I’ve lived here always. I did consider moving to New York and I still fantasize about it ( I LOVE New York; please see below) but otherwise I haven’t really thought about moving.

Where have you lived in the city? San Fernando Valley (Studio City), Santa Monica, Hollywood Hills, Mid City (Melrose area, Fairfax area, Miracle Mile ), Palms and Culver City.

What do you love about L.A.? That my friends and family are here! I also love: the diversity, the pink skies, the jacaranda trees, the weird little houses, the canyons running through the urban setting, the old Hollywood landmarks, the continually expanding literary scene, the bookstores, the music venues and dance clubs, the proliferation of matcha everywhere, the varied cuisine.

What do you think is a misconception about L.A.? That New Yorkers don’t like it! :) The ones I know like it!

How would you encapsulate your L.A. experience in just a couple sentences? From Weetzie Bat: “'You are my Marilyn. You are my lake full of fishes. You are my sky set, my 'Hollywood in Miniature,' my pink Cadillac, my highway, my martini, the stage for my heart to rock and roll on, the screen where my movies light up.'”

Nadine Nettmann’s L.A.