Alexandra Pierson (born August 4, 1995), known professionally by her

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

Alex Aster, is a Colombian-American

young adult In medicine and the social sciences, a young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence, sometimes with some overlap. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages ...

author. She is best known for the young adult fantasy romance series ''Lightlark'' and the middle grade fantasy series ''Emblem Island.''

Early life

Pierson was born on August 4, 1995, to Keith and Claudy Pierson. Her parents are the co-owners of Keith Pierson Toyota in Jacksonville, Florida. Alex started writing books when she was thirteen, querying numerous publishers before landing a publishing deal shortly before her graduation from college. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2017.

Career

Aster wrote six books before her first

book deal A book is a structured presentation of recorded information, primarily verbal and graphical, through a medium. Originally physical, electronic books and audiobooks are now existent. Physical books are objects that contain printed material, mo ...

. She published her first book, ''Curse of the Night Witch,'' in 2020, followed by its sequel in 2021. The series was inspired by her Colombian heritage and the stories her grandmother would tell her; however, the series did not receive the level of commercial success she had hoped for. In the months before the release of her next book, ''Lightlark'', she posted a TikTok promoting the story’s concept, which soon went viral and lead to a publishing deal for the novel. The book received a first print run of 200,000 copies and sold over 24,000 copies in its first week, making it a ''New York Times'' best seller. The novel’s success further led to a movie deal with

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

and Temple Hill, with Aster executive producing. Aster was named on the ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 list in 2023. Aster's adult debut, ''Summer in the City'', released in March 2025. In its first week of release, the novel hit the ''New York Times'' Best Seller lists for print and ebook fiction and hardcover fiction.

Works

''Emblem Island'' series *''Curse of the Night Witch'' (June 9, 2020) *''Curse of the Forgotten City'' (June 8, 2021) The ''Lightlark'' Saga *''Lightlark'' (August 23, 2022) *''Nightbane'' (November 7, 2023) *''Skyshade'' (November 12, 2024) Standalones * ''Summer in the City'' (March 25, 2025)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aster, Alex 21st-century American novelists American women novelists University of Pennsylvania alumni American children's writers American women children's writers 21st-century pseudonymous writers Pseudonymous women writers Living people 1995 births