Kamala Thiagarajan, Freelance Science Journalist
On this episode Mark Simon is joined by Kamala Thiagarajan.
This will be a little different for us. Kamala is a science journalist who spent part of her childhood in the United States and is now based in Madurai, South India. She won The June Biedler Prize and a Solutions Journalism Award for outstanding reporting on cancer in 2025. She's also reported extensively on COVID in India. Sometimes she reports on human rights and culture. Kamala has had bylines in the New York Times, The Guardian, on NPR, and the BBC. She's also a contributor to the new book from The Open Notebook, The Best Science Stories And How They Work.
Kamala was recommended to us by Sandeep Ravindran, a recent guest who is the president of the National Association of Science Writers.
Kamala talked about freelance writing life and provided examples of the kind of stories she's covered. She explained the challenges of doing science writing in India, commented on the state of science writing in the United States, gave strategies for dealing with work stress, and explained how she mentors other journalists.
Kamala's salutes: The Open Notebook & The American Association For Cancer Research
Interview on FreedomWithWriting.com
Kamala's Seaweed Diver Story
Kamala's story about blind women helping catch breast cancer
https://www.npr.org/sections/goats-and-soda/2024/09/08/g-s1-15690/breast-cancer-tumors-women-blind
Kamala A Day In The Life Story
https://www.theopennotebook.com/2025/03/04/a-day-in-the-life-of-kamala-thiagarajan/
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