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More About Namita Moolani Mehra (She/Her)

Namita Moolani Mehra is an award-winning children’s book author and the founder of Indian Spicebox, a social-impact food business that has sold thousands of spice box kits globally, and funded one million meals for underprivileged children in India. Namita writes stories about food, family and culture. Her published books include The Festival of Lights, The Greatest River, Veena And The Red Roti, The Light Within You, and Anni Dreams of Biryani. She has also written children’s cookbooks, The Magic Spicebox and Superfoods for Superheroes.

Namita is agented by Naomi Davis at BookEnds Literary. She regularly visits international schools and has participated in multiple literature festivals as a speaker.

Namita is the assistant Regional Advisor for SCBWI Singapore and a long-standing 12x12 member. She is an active member of a picture book critique group that meets every week in-person since 2018!

Namita lives in Singapore where she crafts culinary experiences like cooking classes and street food pop-ups. She has over 15 years of corporate work experience in the US and Singapore where she worked in advertising and in creative and marketing roles at companies such as Ogilvy and Facebook (Meta). Namita is a third-culture kid and Singapore is her fifth country of residence. She has two children ages 7 and 13 and a fur baby who helps make writing feel less lonely.

You can find Namita online at:

https://www.namitamehra.com

Instagram

Namita’s strengths include…

Building a brand
Marketing yourself and your work
Researching and finding the agent that's right for you
Asking the right questions
Working with illustrators
Collaborating and co-creating
Helping to find the heart of your story
Character development
Giving your characters agency
Helping you find and tell the story only you can tell
Finding the balance between marginal and universal
Lyrical language
Food and family stories
School visits
Public speaking and panel presentations

What Namita is looking for…

Namita is looking for a mentee who is pursuing a long-term career in traditional children's publishing and actively working on their craft.

She is especially looking for fiction picture book writers from diverse backgrounds looking to create greater representation with their stories and characters, so that more children feel seen.

Namita would love to work with someone who is willing to do the work and relentlessly revise. Someone who is open to honest feedback, and ready to understand the business and marketing side of things . . . and be strategic!

A Note from Namita:

“I love catchy titles! I am big on titles and can help you with yours. For marginal voices and stories about specific cultures, I want to know you are from that culture and that you are the best person to write this story. I love lyrical stories with heart and have a special soft spot for a good author's note that shows your personal connection with the story. I want to feel right away that YOUR STORY MATTERS!

Some tips: Please don't worry too much about word count- many of my manuscripts are 750 words, we can cut down together but definitely try and keep it below 800 words. Also when it comes to art notes--- try and keep them few and far between so your text really shines through and stands on its own. Art notes should be action notes. You don't have to paginate but I would like to see where you think the natural breaks/page turns are (you can do this by spacing)”

Namita’s Picture Books:

*The Festival of Lights: A Lift-the-Flap Diwali Celebration*, written by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Darshika Varma

*Anni Dreams of Biryani*, written by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Chaaya Prabhat

*The Greatest River*, written by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Khoa Le

*Veena and the Red Roti,* written by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Beena Mistry

*The Light Within You*, written by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Kamala Nair

*Superfoods For Superheroes*, written by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Cecillia Hidayat

If Namita created a Visual Wish List, it would be made up of…

*Unless otherwise stated, the below serves as a wish list only. Each mentor is excited about the opportunity to find a manuscript they can’t stop thinking about. Please apply if you think you’d be a good fit.