Imperfect Rebel · Author Conversation
Ramen, Existential Crises & 85 Minutes with Roie Oknin
Lupe Farkas sits down with the author of one of her best reads ever for a conversation about Koji, routine, silence, writing and the strange courage required to choose what comes next.
The book that became a conversation
Some books end. This one refused to leave.
When Lupe Farkas finished Ramen, Existential Crises, closing the book was not enough. She still had approximately one googlezillion questions about Koji, the ramen restaurant, the silences, the rain, the failed timer and everything Roie Oknin placed between the words.
So she invited him onto Imperfect Rebel.
Roie joins Lupe for the podcast’s first author conversation; an honest, thoughtful and occasionally chaotic journey through the emotional world of his debut novel. They talk about the comfort of routine, the fear of making decisions, the meaning hidden inside ordinary gestures and what happens when everyone around us seems to be moving while we remain still.
Naturally, Lupe decided the conversation should last exactly eighty-five minutes because the noodles in the book cook for exactly eighty-five seconds. Spotify reports one hour and thirty-four minutes, which tells you how successfully that plan went.
“I spent the entire book wanting Koji to move forward. Then I reached the end and realised I was the one who didn’t want to move.”
Inside this episode
Ramen, writing and the lives we postpone
The 85-second timer
Why such a small number carries so much meaning inside Koji’s carefully structured world.
Routine and change
The strange comfort of remaining where we are, even when we know something in our lives must move.
Writing silence
How Roie creates intimacy through pauses, restraint and all the things his characters do not say aloud.
Meeting Koji
The character who made Lupe want him to move forward while selfishly wishing he would remain in the restaurant forever.
The ordinary becomes sacred
Rain, broth, spring onions, a ringing bell and the emotional power of paying close attention to everyday life.
The person behind the novel
Roie’s creative process and the beautiful overthinking that helped bring this tiny ramen restaurant to life.
Meet the author
Roie Oknin
Roie Oknin is a writer, artist and medical student. He holds a BSc in Neuroscience and a BA in Psychology. Ramen, Existential Crises is his debut novel.
The story follows Koji, a twenty-seven-year-old who is one module away from completing his degree in Politics and Government. The remaining module is Crisis Management. It feels appropriate.
For six years, Koji has worked in a tiny ramen restaurant with eleven seats, one dish and a broth whose flame has not gone out in thirty-two years. Then the timer fails, someone from his past enters the restaurant and the careful shape of his routine begins to shift.
Read the book
Enter the ramen restaurant
Ramen, Existential Crises is available in paperback and ebook editions and can also be read through Kindle Unlimited.
Did you stay for the ramen?
Listen to the episode and leave a ramen emoji in the comments. Tell us what would be hardest for you: leaving a familiar life, staying when you know it is time to go, deciding what you truly want or waiting eighty-five seconds for noodles.
Listen to the Conversation
Responses
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