Welcome, Mom’s Choice readers! Today we were able to get with an extraordinarily talented young author who created the Mom’s Choice Award-winning The Emotions Volcano—the first book in his Emotional Intelligence series. Jomo Jesus Thomas Suriel, age 8, is the book’s author; his father, Jomo Gamal Thomas, illustrated the book; and Sandra M. Clifton is its editor. The author has been featured on MSN.com, EURweb.com, Google News, LI Herald, and About Insider magazine for the success and impact of his emotional intelligence books to promote mental health for kids. Together, father and son create emotional intelligence picture books for children. Two of the books were the number one bestseller on the Amazon charts for Children’s Reference and Education. The author has donated over 300 copies of his books on his mission through GoodReads to promote emotional literacy and mental health awareness. Read on to find out how—and why—this talented young man makes it all happen.

MCA: Jomo-Jesus, we’re delighted that you wanted to share your experiences and thoughts with our readers. Please start us off on how this amazing journey of yours unfolded.

I have been writing books since I was four years old. In 2021, I published Super Happy Kid Defeats the Angries. I am passionate about writing about emotions and feelings in a way that helps other kids understand how to manage emotions. I donate my books to help children understand emotions and I am doing my best to promote positive mental health for all kids, including those who are neurodivergent and on the autism spectrum. I am really happy to have won a Mom’s Choice Award for The Emotions Volcano. I also am grateful to be honored to receive a second Mom’s Choice Award for The Angry Vacuum.

Since the age of 2, I have been homeschooled at the Clifton Academy by Sandra M. Clifton, MBA. I take college courses at StraighterLine. My hobbies include boxing, swimming, running, reading and coding. I also do enrichment courses on investing and food chemistry at the Hofstra University Gifted Youth Program.

MCA: Would you provide our readers with a brief synopsis of the book?

The Emotions Volcano is a rollercoaster of emotions—a children’s book that takes children on an exciting adventure with Sid the Super Happy Kid and his sister, Laura, the Emotions Explorer. The siblings are superheroes and they navigate the challenges of emotions on Planet Mood Swing. The children are thrown into chaos caused by the stress of a math test that is causing the planet’s volcanoes to erupt. Laura and Sid are looking to help the children on Planet Mood Swing manage their stress, thereby teaching valuable lessons about emotional awareness and stress management.

MCA: That’s a great storyline. What inspired you to become an author, and how do your personal background and life experiences influence your writing?

I was inspired by my dad, Jomo Gamal Thomas, because he writes books. He also is the illustrator of my books. I like reading Dave Pilkey’s Dogman books. I write my books with both English and Spanish references. I was born in the Dominican Republic and speak both Spanish and English.

MCA: Was there a specific occurrence that moved you to begin writing this series of books?

I was inspired to write the emotional intelligence books because I was not able to find children’s picture books that dealt with emotions, told by kids and about kids.

MCA: Can you share your creative process? How do you generate ideas and bring them to life on the page?

It takes me several months to write a book. I usually start from an idea and I will do a voice note and then later sketch and write my story.

MCA: What do you hope readers will take away from your book?

I hope that readers will find the book entertaining as well as insightful for children. My goal is to help kids and parents understand their feelings in a fun, adventurous way!

MCA: What do you find most rewarding about the writing process? And conversely, what are some of the challenges you face?

I like being able to tell stories, and it’s fun when the story is illustrated. It can take a long time to come up with the ending for stories.

MCA: Tell us how your books contribute to promoting family-friendly values or enhancing the lives of your readers.

All of my books contain family-friendly values to help children learn emotional literacy, how to manage emotions, empathy, self-awareness, and social awareness.

MCA: Can you share any memorable moments or feedback from readers that have touched you or reinforced the impact of your work?

Kids tell me that my book was fun and that they learned about emotions.

MCA: What advice would you give to aspiring authors who are just starting their writing journey?

I would tell them to read a lot of books for fun and then start writing their own stories.

MCA: As an author, what are your future plans or goals?

I will be doing audio books for The Emotions Volcano, which I initially plan to narrate myself. I am currently working on my next book, The Critical Critters, as the next book in the Sid the Super Happy Kid and Laura the Emotions Explorer series. It will be about positive self-talk, mindfulness, and self-awareness. I plan to have at least 5 to 7 books in the series.

MCA: Jomo-Jesus, it has been a pleasure to speak with you today. We congratulate you on your successes and wish you the very best!