Aliza Kelly on Why “There Are No Coincidences”

For as long as she can remember, Aliza Kelly has had a vision. Not about the future, but a very specific place: “I have this relentless dream that one day I’m going to walk into an old mansion and find the hidden laboratory and stumble upon all of these books with alchemical recipes in them and magic spells and potions,” she tells POPSUGAR. “This has been going on for decades, and it won’t stop. So I realized I had to make it myself.”

And so she did. Kelly — otherwise known as “your witchy bestie,” dating app Bumble’s resident astrologer, and “the Morticia Addams of NYC” — just published her fourth book and accompanying manifestation deck titled “There Are No Coincidences” ($30). The end result, with its “old textbook” feel and a sort of “encyclopedia quality,” is just the aesthetic Kelly imagined.

“There Are No Coincidences” offers a new way to look at the fated, kismet, meant-to-be moments in your life — plus, how to find the meaning inside your normal or mundane moments. In the 44-card manifestation deck and guidebook, Kelly brings awareness to the various daily encounters and experiences that hold hidden universal meanings. She also teaches you how to interpret them with regard to your own life. The deck is a tool for manifestation, self-reflection, and mindfulness in a similar way as tarot, astrology, or a self-help book can.

TANC isn’t just the title of the book or easy acronym, though — it’s also a word on its own. “You could almost say it instead of ‘jinx’ when you say something at the same time,” she explains. “It becomes a TANC moment.” In Kelly’s mind, these destined moments are, in fact, signs you should tune into, and which can help guide you through a more intentional and fruitful life.

It may sound like a stretch, but it becomes all the more impactful when you consider examples from IRL. After chatting with Kelly, I thought back to my own TANC moment: I hit it off with someone on a New York City bus, but we neglected to swap phone numbers (or even full names), and went separate ways. Months later, we bumped into each other in what turned out to be our mutual apartment building and became fast, lifelong friends. We coincidentally were both going through breakups at that exact moment, bonded over that fact, and became each other’s main support system and veritable significant other. We were exactly what each other needed at that moment. I’ve long considered it a rom-com-worthy meet cute, but now I know better: It’s TANC.

Whether you’ve lost something only to find it later in a meaningful place later, bumped into your ex on the subway at the worst/best moment, or been served an all-too-relevant Instagram ad (oh wait, that one might just be the algorithm), you’ve probably experienced a TANC moment too. Allow my chat with Kelly, below, to convince you to start paying attention.

POPSUGAR: What brought you to this idea of “there are no coincidences”?

Aliza Kelly: When…