Interview With Mona Shroff Author Of Romance Novels

Interview With Mona Shroff Author Of Romance Novels

Interview With Mona Shroff Author Of Romance Novels

Mona was born in New Jersey and grew up in Bucks County, in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Growing up she was a quiet kid and had few friends but she valued the quality of each of her friends, not the quantity of her friends.

Mona Shroff attended the University of Michigan and graduated with a degree in Biopsychology. Mona continued her education at the Pennsylvania College of Optometry, graduating with her Doctorate in Optometry. Mona married first (and only!) love, Deven, at the age of 25. Deven was a dentist in the army and they spent the next nine years traveling to different parts of the world and country while raising two young children.

What a great novel “then there was you”! Introduce yourself.
I have always been obsessed with everything romantic, so I write romantic stories by night, even though I’m an optometrist by day. When I’m not writing, I love to bake, and my specialty is melt-in-your-mouth chocolate truffles. I also love to ride my bike, and of course, read. Alone time is precious, but I’m just as likely to be raising a glass of wine or my favorite gin and tonic with friends and family. I’m blessed with an amazing daughter and a loving son who have both gone off to college. I live in Maryland with my romance-loving husband and our rescue dog, Nala.

Tell us about your journey as an author.
I have always wanted to write, so when I was in my early forties, I decided to give it a try. I took online classes and learned from the teachers as well as the other students (some of whom are still my friends! My debut novel came from a writing prompt from Writer’s Digest Magazine “Heads we get married, Tails we break up”. I entered contests and I queried for a few years, continuing to learn and edit my novel, then in 2017, I landed my agent, Rachel Brooks at Bookends Literary. A year later, I had a two-book contract with HQN. That was the start of it. I am currently finishing edits on a third HQN book and writing two books for Harlequin Special Edition.

At what age did you start to write?
I wrote my first novel at the age of nine and won the Young Authors Contest. That’s when I knew I wanted to be an author.

Walk us through the process of getting published for the first time. Was it difficult?
So, the process can belong. Once you have a manuscript you feel is ready, write a query letter and synopsis and submit. And keep writing. It took over 50 rejections and a few years before I contracted with an agent.

If you were not an author?
So, I do have a day job, writing is on the side, but I’m trying to make it my main thing.

How do you come up with a storyline? How do you get inspired?
Inspiration comes from everywhere around me. Coming up with the storyline is the hardest part for me. I usually have an idea for a character, and I go from there.

Where do you see yourself in the next couple of years?
Hopefully, I’m still writing and having fabulous success at it!

How long it takes to write a novel?
That depends. My first novel took eight years, the second, three years. But the third one, I wrote on contract, so I wrote that in nine months.

What is a regular day for you looks like?
I usually get up around 6 am with our dog Nala. I write/do promo for a bit, then work out the shower. If I’m not going to the office, I’ll write that day, stopping for lunch, walk the dog, etc.

Which one is your personal favorite?
Right now, I am super excited about Riya and Dhillon’s story which will be out next year – but I’m always excited about the next upcoming release!

Some words for the new writers and your fans.
New writers – stick with it! Keep writing and learning and networking! For my fans – it’s so weird to think I have fans– thank you so much for reading and following me! It’s always satisfying to know that someone out there is enjoying our stories!