Mona K
Educates and Entertains Little Ones with Whimsical Tales
by Lindsey Giardino
Mona K grew up in the central India town of Bhopal, where she attended an all-girls Catholic school and was exposed to an array of literature forms. Her favorite of those was poetry. So, she started writing her own. A few of her poems even got published in local newspapers.
When it came time to pursue a career, though, Mona chose to follow her analytical calling and eventually earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering and a master’s degree in applied statistics from Rutgers University. “During my initial years, I had the opportunity to work with researchers and was intrigued by the application of statistics in healthcare,” she explains.
Today, Mona enjoys working as a researcher focused on the evaluation of health outcomes related to health technology assessments. “My work as a health outcomes researcher involves generating evidence of the value of a new drug or other interventions,” she explains. “My background in public health and applied statistics provided the perfect foundation for me to land a role in health economics and outcomes research.”
Regardless of where her career has taken her, Mona has carried her love of literature with her and has written two children’s books of her own. The first, The Grumpy Frumpy Croissant, is a story of a grumpy croissant who learns to control his anger by taking deep breaths.
Her most recent book, Emma, the Candy-Loving Porcupine, shares the tale of a sweet porcupine who is happiest surrounded by candy, until the day she takes some without permission.
Mona’s inspiration for writing both books was sparked by the birth of her son.
“I would visit the library with him and browse hundreds of books,” she says. “I found children’s books to be the perfect vehicle for delivering a message with beautiful illustrations and heartwarming stories. This was a very new genre of books that I wasn’t introduced to before.”
She shares that books from authors like Eric Carle and Sandra Boynton especially stood out to her. The first time Mona began penning her own short stories was when her son entered kindergarten. “He provided me with an abundance of content,” she says. “Both my books were indeed inspired by actual events between my son and myself in different settings.”
Mona explains that for her writing process, she’d jot down quick notes of the events on her phone and then form a first draft from there. After, she’d revise the draft multiple times. After her third or fourth iteration, Mona would begin looking for a book illustrator—a process that took close to five months to find the right match.
“The first book’s illustration (done by Korey Scott) was easier compared to the second one,” Mona says. “The illustrator for my second book, Pilar Lama, was based in Spain and there were some logistical challenges that came along with it. But the final product is remarkable. I was very fortunate to present both books as gifts to my son on his 7th and 9th birthdays.”
And while her day job as a health outcomes researcher may not initially seem like it lends to her storytelling, Mona feels it does nothing but. “As a researcher, I work with a lot of data that is presented in various visual modes, helping my clients see the story behind the data,” she says. “I have always believed that a picture is worth a thousand words. That, combined with my mom instinct of identifying characters that will resonate with my child, helps me with my writing.”
When she’s not working as a researcher or children’s book author, Mona is an avid baker who loves making fondant cakes.
Clearly, she’s led a fulfilling life dotted by lots of success thus far. But her proudest moment comes from when she shared her first children’s book with elementary students at her son’s school in 2021. She also shared copies of the book with a Girl Scout troop in Parsippany, New Jersey.
“It was a really heartwarming experience to be able to share my journey as a self-published author with little kids (my real audience),” she says. “I was immensely moved by the response I got from young readers and enlightening them on the book writing process.”
For more information about Mona K and her books, visit monaswhimsicalbooks.com.