CCA MFA WRITING
San Francisco
Alka Joshi
Alka Joshi is the internationally bestselling author of the Jaipur Trilogy: The Henna Artist, The Secret Keeper of Jaipur and The Perfumist of Paris. Six Days in Bombay is her fourth novel. Her debut novel, The Henna Artist, immediately became a New York Times Bestseller, a Reese Witherspoon Bookclub Pick, an LA Times Bestseller, a Toronto Star and Globe & Mail Bestseller, an Indie Bookstores Bestseller, a Cosmopolitan Best Audiobook, and an Amazon and Goodreads favorite. It was Longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize, has been translated into 29 languages and optioned as an episodic series.
Since its release during the pandemic of 2020, Alka has spoken to over 1000 libraries, bookclubs, bookstores, literary festivals, podcasters, universities and colleges and corporations about persistence, patience and passion and her ten-your journey to overnight success. Because she started her writing career at the age of 62, Forbes selected Alka as one of 50 Women Over 50 who are shattering age and gender norms.
Alka was born in India and came to the U.S. with her family at the age of nine. She has a BA from Stanford University and an MFA from California College of Arts.
Why Did You Choose CCA?
When I was looking for a writing program, I knew I had to find something close to my home. I was running a marketing consultancy and living in Bayview with my husband; I had no plans to move away. My research showed at least three good possibilities: Mills College, SF State and CCA, which was a newer program and only two miles from my home. I could walk or take the T-train or bike there. I interviewed past and current students from each of the programs. I toured the beautiful Studio at CCA and learned that two of the instructors there, Anita Amirrezvani and Tom Barbash, were known to me. I’d read Anita’s beautiful debut novel The Blood of Flowers, and I wanted to write like her. Perhaps she would agree to mentor me? (She did!) I knew of Tom from my Stanford friends who had been in the Stegner Program with him. My decision was easy.
Advice for Current Students?
Anita once told me “Real Writers Don’t Go Out.” I always wanted to create a t-shirt around that because it’s true! So many of my fellow students wouldn’t have their pages done by their workshop deadline or they wouldn’t have completed the assigned reading. I did ALL of it. And it paid off. My goal was to complete a novel at the end of two years, so I was focused. My advice to current students? Pay attention to your teachers. Do all your assigned work and then some. Read what your instructors have written and find a mentor. You’ve invested money in this program, so don’t waste it. Stay in touch with your fave instructors post-graduation. And as Anita said: when in doubt, don’t go out!
What's Next for You?
The third novel in my Jaipur Trilogy, The Perfumist of Paris, releases March 28, 2023 (Mira Books/Harper Collins), so we’re gearing up for the marketing and publicity for that. And—drumroll please—I’m having a limited-edition scent designed especially for the release! I’m also an Executive Producer on the Netflix limited series of The Henna Artist, my debut novel. I’ve been providing character studies, ideas for expanded character arcs/plotlines, and working with the production/writing team. So much fun! I’ve also begun my fourth novel, which is set in 1937 India with a new set of characters, so I need to plan a European/India trip for the research—someone’s gotta do it, right?