John Mondragon is the co-author of the new young adult novel, The Clash Inside Me, which he wrote with Kelly Albinger. The novel features a young man who is struggling with a complicated mental health disorder: dissociative identity disorder (DID), also known as multiple personality disorder. When a murder takes place in the area, the young man is forced to take a hard look at all of his personalities and face the jarring reality that he could be responsible.
John Mondragon first came up with the idea for the book over ten years ago, when he was struggling with own his mental health as a 20-something. Societal stigmas around anxiety and depression made it difficult to speak openly about his struggles, so he turned to writing instead.
Now, as a father of two young boys, John feels even more inspired to break down those stigmas and let young people know that it is okay to reach out for help. “Speak Up, Speak Out” is the book’s mantra and is featured in merchandise, such as t-shirts, sweatshirts, and yoga pants.
John is a diverse author who speaks three languages, English, Arabic, and Spanish. This history is important to John and it is what inspired him to release the novel in Spanish as Mi Choque Interior, so that language was not a barrier.
While the novel is fictional, John has created an official workbook to accompany the novel. The workbook is a 12-week journey to better mental health and he hopes that it will provide a creative and introspective outlet for anyone that finds it challenging to talk about their struggles. The workbook, as well as the novel, are available in paperback.
You can find out more about John, Kelly, and their books at: https://www.subscribepage.com/theclashinsideme
Follow John on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Mondragon.Author
And Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mondragon.author/
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