I really like knowing my neighbors, and this particular neighbor I met in 2016. Alka and I share a fence line, and in May, I can pick the most delicious plums from her tree, which overhangs into our garden.

I’ve been fortunate to watch Alka Joshi go from writer to published author—four times over! Alka’s debut novel The Henna Artist was published in a bleak moment: March 2020. But she made the most of her virtual book tour, and has gone on to speak to over 1000 book clubs in the past five years! It’s such a joy to meet writers early in their careers and be on the ground floor of their transformation—it’s something I especially love about running the retreat.

In this podcast, Alka and I talk about her journey to publish The Henna Artist (hint: there were a LOT of drafts), the original title (reveal: Alka is bad at titles!), and how AI can never create a backstory as authentic as your own (thank goodness). We also discussed Alka’s marketing background and how that has been instrumental to her understanding the importance of saying yes and how word of mouth moves far more copies than any advertising campaign ever could.

I hope you enjoy listening to Alka’s inspiring story!

Thanks for your interest!

Heather

Northern California Writers’ Retreat, founder + director