HeyJaredMona’s Substack
I’m an award-winning author of YA novels. I share cultural stories and reflections on identity, resilience, writing, and publishing. My work is shaped by loss, love, and the bonds that carry us forward.
- Indexed issues, last 90 days
- 2
- Latest publication
- Sep 24, 2026
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- Earliest in this view
- Jul 16, 2026
Latest issues
The Traditions We Carry: How culture survives... (opens the original)
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Culture often feels ordinary when you’re inside it. I didn’t see my family’s actions as traditions—they were just what we cooked, the sayings we shared, or the celebrations we held. My mother carried the Mexican traditions of her parents, who were born and raised in Guanajuato, Mexico, until their teens, when they married and came to the US. Certain customs, like food, celebrations, and stories, have been passed down from my grandmother’s childhood in Mexico to my mother in California, now spann
The Things We Leave Behind (opens the original)
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Every object tells two stories: The one it lived, and the one we’re asked to let go.What happens after a loved one’s funeral is a stage of grief we don’t talk about much.Clearing out my mom’s house and listing her larger belongings for sale have become a months-long journey. I probably shouldn’t have been surprised. The house held nearly a century of life.My daughter, my sisters and I, joined now and then by my nieces, go through clothing and costume jewelry, holding up pieces of memory through
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