Mona Liza Santos

Award-Winning Children's Author & Emotional Literacy Advocate

Mona Liza Santos is an award-winning Filipina-American children’s author, publisher, and founder of World Love Press, a purpose-driven publishing imprint dedicated to emotional literacy, kindness, confidence, and cultural representation for children. Known for creating heartfelt stories that blend compassion, imagination, and meaningful life lessons, she has become a growing voice in children’s emotional wellness literature.
 
Mona began her writing journey during the 2020 pandemic while creating comforting stories for her son during a time filled with uncertainty and change. What started as a deeply personal act of love soon evolved into a global mission to help children feel seen, safe, valued, and empowered through storytelling. Her ability to transform difficult emotions into gentle, age-appropriate lessons has resonated with families, educators, therapists, and schools around the world.
 
She has since authored more than 40 children’s books across multiple genres, including rhyming picture books, mindfulness stories, self-love books, cultural stories, journals, and emotional wellness titles. Her books explore themes such as empathy, resilience, self-worth, inclusion, identity, courage, and emotional healing while encouraging children to embrace who they are with confidence and compassion.
 
Her debut book, Mama, I Love You, received the Mom’s Choice Gold Award and helped establish her as a rising presence in children’s publishing. Mona’s work and advocacy have also been featured by the San Diego Union-Tribune, Authority Magazine, Canvas Rebel, SD Voyager, and International Business Weekly.
 
Born in Chicago and raised partly in the Philippines by her grandparents before returning to the United States, Mona draws inspiration from her Filipino heritage, multicultural upbringing, motherhood, and travels to more than 70 countries. These experiences continue to shape her storytelling by bringing warmth, cultural depth, and global understanding into the worlds she creates for young readers.
 
In addition to writing, Mona is the founder of National Intentional Kindness Day and Heritage and Heart Day, created to encourage empathy, inclusion, cultural pride, and meaningful human connection within schools and communities. Through her books, advocacy, and mission-driven work, she hopes to help raise a generation of emotionally strong, compassionate, and confident children who understand that their voice, identity, and kindness matter.
 
Above all, Mona believes stories have the power to heal, connect, and change lives. Her mission is simple yet lasting: to help children grow up knowing they are enough exactly as they are.