Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexandra Fleder.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
In 2023, I had burned out of my fifteen-year career as a litigation paralegal. I was walking dogs and selling produce at the farmers’ market to pay the bills—not where I expected to be after working at several prestigious law firms. I was ambling through life as if it were a funhouse filled with warped mirrors. My then-boyfriend and I had recently started arguing. Every aspect of life felt fraught and filled with folly. I needed some way to take my mind off all that was going wrong. I needed to realign myself with my passion—and that was creative writing.
It started with an online writing class. I wanted to know how to properly write a novel, even though I didn’t have an idea for one at the time. I was only concerned with the mechanics. I’d written a novel before, but I winged it. I crossed my fingers and got lucky; somehow, I magically hit all the plot points, but it didn’t feel easy. So, I signed up for a class called “Introduction to Storytelling Forms.” In the novel writing section, we were required to write an outline for a novel and a first chapter, but I had no idea what to write. In the same moment in time, I was working (at the farmers’ market) with a good friend. When we weren’t helping customers, we were talking about all the conspiracy theory podcasts we’d listened to, or the videos we watched—particularly the ones related to space—like the moon landing and hypotheses about the shape of the earth. We’d show each other the really juicy ones and when we’d get home, we’d try to show our respective partners, but neither were interested.
I recall pulling up a video (about a certain space disaster) on my phone and shoving it in my then-boyfriend’s face. I was so excited to show it to him, but he had the opposite reaction of what I expected from him. Instead of being awed or entertained, he was annoyed! So annoyed, in fact, he told me, “if you don’t stop showing me this [garbage], I’m gonna break up with you!” He has a thick Swiss-French accent which made it more comical. His face had turned red; he was really exasperated and the whole thing was so funny I started laughing. That’s when the idea sprang to mind: This is what I should write the novel about—only I’d up the ante. I’d make it about a husband and wife, and none of it mattered because I was definitely NOT going to write this novel. It was just a fun idea for this class, and since I only had to write a chapter and an outline, I would make a joke out of it—make it over-the-top and ridiculous.
I turned in the first chapter and got some comments from the instructor. Then I let the chapter sit on my desktop for a month or two—because I had no intention of writing this silly novel. It was a joke, nothing more. I wanted to write something literary; something serious, not absurd. But we all know the phrase, “man makes plans and God laughs,” which is exactly what happened here. The story took on a life of its own—it became a thoughtform—and followed me around, poking and prodding me with its lengthy tentacles until I gave in to its demands.
Three chapters in, I realized something magical was happening. This wasn’t just a trivial story—it was a manifesto for women who were feeling lost, drifting off course, and in desperate need of purpose. It morphed into a novel about a woman becoming the most feral version of herself, in the midst of comedy and chaos.
My novel, Joan of the Arcane (She Writes Press), is coming out on August 11, 2026. It’s a story about Joan—a middle-aged once-upon-a-time punk singer turned housewife who gets tangled up in the world of conspiracy theories. It’s a satire of suburban life, and explores themes of authenticity, hypocrisy, and spiritual awakening. It’s also a tale in which the city of L.A. plays itself; a bizarro world where anything can happen.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The main challenge I faced was trying to get it published. I sent it to thirteen different agents and they all said no quite quickly, but because this book had been magical from the beginning, the universe guided me toward the publisher. Last summer I wrote a new book based, in part, on California’s Channel Islands. So, I went there as part of my research. I found an Autumn Equinox cruise from Ventura to Santa Rosa Island. I had this odd hunch I needed to go not just in the name of research, but to make some important connection.
While I was walking on one of Santa Rosa’s pristine white-sand beaches, I met a woman who had a thirty-plus career as an editor and a ghostwriter (we’re still friends!). I told her a little about my book and she suggested I skip trying to acquire an agent and go straight to a certain publisher—She Writes Press. By this point, I was nearly convinced no one wanted to publish such a wild and weird story, but I went for it anyway because one more rejection wouldn’t break me. I had zero expectations. Two months later, I opened my email to see that not only did they want to publish it, but that my manuscript was on the top of their pile. They loved the story and were excited to publish it!
Whatever magical energy had provoked me to write this book had also, clearly, aligned me with the best way to push it into the world. What seemed like a major hurdle became a lesson in faith. The hardest part was trusting that dreams come true when you relax and trust in divine timing—not an easy thing to do.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m obsessed with the city of Los Angeles. All of my writing is a love letter to her, as well as to California. I’m a second generation Angeleno and have always felt a strange sense of being closely connected to this place. Even when I was very young, I recall feeling there was a reason I was born here. At the same time, there are aspects of the city that I don’t like—namely the artificial characteristics of it, which is a major theme in Joan of the Arcane. Joan also despises artifice.
I focus on writing novels based in L.A., and that feature the authentic facets of the city—the native plants and animals, the terrain, the weird weather patterns, the history of the indigenous— all the things that make it a place filled with enchantment. It’s not just about the glitz and glamor of Hollywood. It’s about so much more. I volunteer several times a month with TreePeople or with Friends of the LA River because I have so much reverence for the land, the water, the flora and fauna. I wish more people cared as much too, but it’s nice to know there’s a pretty big community that does care about the city beyond taking selfies in front of palm trees, overdevelopment, and movie cameras. It’s so important we keep and maintain wild places in L.A., especially since our river was trapped in a concrete casket a century ago. We don’t need to add more concrete to a place already notorious for its abundance of asphalt.
I’m also working on an oracle deck using photos I took at Will Rogers State Historic Park in the Palisades before the fire. The trails within that park were sacred to me . . . I thought of the ending to Joan of the Arcane while walking up Inspiration Trail, and chunks of my next novel came from hiking there too. I guess something about being out in nature triggers my creativity. I think it’s the birdsong, the wind rustling through the chaparral, and the rhythm of your own footsteps making tracks in the earth; these sounds create a meditative state that fuels the imagination.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I’ve only just set foot in this industry and am already aware of all the issues with traditional publishing right now. If you don’t have a large social media following, most agents and big publishers won’t want to take a chance on new authors. My publisher, She Write Press, is a hybrid publisher, which puts more power in the hands of authors. It’s a format that’s gaining respect and traction, and I see that kind of model expanding.
I have two more manuscripts that I’m working on getting published (as of the writing of this): one that juxtaposes a modern L.A. woman with the history of an indigenous woman of the Channel Islands. And the other, which I just finished at a writers’ retreat in France, is about a woman who was raised in a cult (in L.A., of course) who gets tasked with infiltrating a present-day cult in order to solve the mystery of a woman’s disappearance. I’m not sure how either of them will get published yet, but I trust that each one will find the right path just like Joan did.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.alexandrafleder.com/
- Instagram: @alexandrafleder
Image Credits
Amina Touray
Annette Leblanc
