Meet Alexa Babin | Writer & Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alexa Babin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alexa, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I was born and raised in Shreveport, Louisiana, a place that I’m convinced you can only fully understand if you’ve lived there. There’s just something about southern cities and towns. They leave a mark on you, especially if you were raised there. The hospitality and warm soul of my home is definitely ingrained in me – I love hosting and swapping stories with people in a laid back setting. My parents are due a ton of credit here. They’re wonderful people – we’re a very close family. I’m an only child, so it was an interesting mix of getting a lot of parental attention but also learning to entertain myself while my parents were occupied with work. My imagination thrived as a result. I’d create entire worlds in our house and backyard. The possibilities felt endless, and I rarely got bored. I think this has a lot to do with me becoming a writer and a painter.

One of my greatest influences from my upbringing was my involvement in church. I genuinely can’t remember a time I wasn’t around a church community. And while I’ve taken an inventory of what I believe and why as opposed to simply inheriting the faith of my parents, to this day, my faith in Jesus is the center of gravity the rest of my life hinges on. I’d like to think my constant search for and love of beauty comes from my background in church. I’ve seen beauty grow from the most desolate places, and I think my faith gave me the framework to experience life through that lens.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My path certainly hasn’t been an easy or straightforward one. I’ve loved writing and art from a very young age, but it wasn’t until college at the University of Texas at Austin that I realized the type of career I wanted to build. While I haven’t achieved the Big Dream just yet, I’m savoring the twists and turns of my own story.

I moved to Los Angeles in 2017 after I graduated college to pursue a career as a television writer. I didn’t have any job leads or meaningful connections to professionals in the entertainment industry when I moved, so it was a hustle. It still is!

I worked as a swim instructor, barista, and retail associate to pay my rent. Finally, I caught a small break and got hired as a production assistant on The Bachelorette for a couple weeks of filming. That gig led to another, and another, and another. Several months later, this landed me as an assistant to the executive producer of a scripted tv drama series, NCIS: Los Angeles. After that, I landed a highly coveted role as a Writer’s Production Assistant on an upcoming Netflix drama series, Daybreak. It was all going well… until the show got cancelled three months after I took the job.

Back to square one, it seemed. If only I had known that the world would shut down three months later.

There I was in the midst of chasing my tv writing dream when the coronavirus pandemic happened. To keep my sanity, I wrote short stories from real events in my life. It had a grounding effect for me, so I kept at it. Over a span of months, I realized I could make something of all these stories. I realized many of them were about travel.

That’s when the idea for my book, PLACES: Stirrings of the Soul While Exploring, initially hit. I started creating paintings to pair with my anecdotes, and before I knew it, I was self-publishing a book. Being an author was always a dream of mine, but I never intended to see it happen so early in my life. I felt like the world’s scariest event in decades was pushing me to make my little dream a reality. Life is short, and once I had the vision for my book, I didn’t want to waste any time!

While I’m not writing for a tv show just yet, when I look back and consider the effect of a global pandemic and a double strike of WGA and SAG last summer, I feel proud to be where I am, even if it isn’t the final destination. I’m loving the growing pains and trying to take each step as it comes. I plan to keep writing books (I’ve got two more in the works right now!) and stay strong on the path towards becoming a tv writer.

If anything, I want people to know that stories are powerful. Stories reflect and teach us. They remind us we’re not alone in this unpredictable life. I’m in the business of telling stories as a means of discovery and connection, and I hope to have the privilege of doing it the rest of my life.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Wow – this is a hard one! My problem is I fall in love with too many places. That’s probably why I love writing about travel.

I’d kick off the day with a little surf session in Manhattan Beach. We’d soak up the sun, feel the salt in our hair, then grab breakfast at North End Cafe. Or, if I was ready to get back to my neck of the woods, we’d drive up to Venice and enjoy breakfast at Flake. For the afternoon, we’d stroll the Santa Monica boardwalk and maybe sip a cup of coffee at Dogtown on Main Street. For dinner, Casablanca — we’d of course have a margarita because they’re the best on the Westside.

In the following days of the trip, I’d be sure to spend some time in other parts of town. We’d check out The Getty, the Malibu Pier, and do a hike with an ocean view (Temescal or Topanga, perhaps).

In Los Feliz, we’d peruse Skylight Books, have a snack and drink at Alcove, dinner at Little Dom’s, and go to Griffith Observatory at night or see a concert at the Greek Theater.

In Burbank, I’d insist on a coffee at Priscilla’s, a walk through the surrounding neighborhood, and perhaps a studio tour at Warner Brothers. We might pop over to trivia at Idle Hour in NoHo that night or grab a drink at Forman’s Whiskey Tavern and enjoy the cool evening air on the back patio.

So much to see and do…

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Where do I begin? There are so many people who’ve played a role in my success — it truly feels insane to try and narrow this down. So, in the spirit of remembering where I came from…

I’d like to give a shoutout to my parents, Kenn and Lisa Babin, and a few of many wonderful teachers from my time at C.E. Byrd High School who nourished my love of writing and art: Kathy O’Neal, Debrah Guillot, Cathy Sledge, and Bill Gingles. I’m convinced parents and teachers rarely get the credit or praise they are due! Many thanks to the village of folks who helped make me who I am.

Website: www.alexababin.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/lexbabs

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexa-babin-074709107/

Image Credits
Ingrid Bostrom (beach photo only)