Mentors Starting July Fifth

F.I. Goldhaber - Poetry (can help in a variety of ways, but would love to assist a starting poet in getting published)

Restrictions:  "No misogynists, racists, white supremacists, homomisiats, transmisiats, Islammisiats, xenomisiats (I refuse to use 'phobic'; they're not afraid, they're just hateful), anti-Semites, or Zionists (and no, those last two do not, as some believe, contradict each other)." 

Note:  "I expect to be hands on. I'm not interested in mentoring someone who isn't going (or doesn't have time) to put in the (considerable amount of required) work." They are extremely liberal politically, so keep that in mind.

F.I. Goldhaber's words capture people, places, and politics with a photographer's eye and a poet's soul. As a reporter, editor, business writer, and marketing communications consultant, they produced news stories, feature articles, editorial columns, and reviews for newspapers, corporations, governments, and non-profits in five states. Now paper, electronic, plastic, and audio magazines, books, newspapers, calendars, broadsides, and street signs display their poetry, fiction, and essays. More than 170 of their poems appear in almost 75 publications, including VoiceCatcher, Outcast, Black Lives Have Always Mattered, Cirque Journal, Raven Chronicles' Take a Stand: Art Against Hate, 11/9: The Fall of American Democracy, Portland Metrozine, Windfall: A Journal of Poetry of Place, Room's Turtle Island Responds, Kosmos Journal's We the World Days of Unity campaign, Connoisseurs of Suffering: Poetry for the Journey to Meaning, New Verse News, Every Day Poets, Soul-Lit, protestpoems.org, Diverse Voices Quarterly, and four volumes of poetry. In addition, F.I. shares their words throughout the Pacific Northwest and on the radio. They appeared at venues such as Wordstock, Oregon Literary Review, galleries, coffee houses, bars, bookstores, record shops, art events, libraries, and community colleges. They give presentations on subjects as diverse as marketing and building volunteer organizations, and taught Introduction to Indie Publishing at Portland Community College and as a weekend intensive. http://www.goldhaber.net/

Methods of Correspondence:  Email (with 24- to 48-hour turnaround time)

~*~

Jennifer Ruth Jackson - Literary and speculative flash fiction (editing, chapbook organization, market research/resource help)

Note:  Jennifer has more experience with speculative flash. 

Jennifer Ruth Jackson is an award-winning poet and fiction writer whose flash fiction has appeared in Lonesome October Lit, Dream of Shadows, The Binnacle, Dark Gothic Resurrected Magazine, and more. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband and is a wheelchair-user.

Methods of correspondence: Email, Twitter DM, Facebook Messenger

Meet the Mentors for 2020

Carey Link - Poetry (editing, submitting, offering feedback, query letters)

Carey Link is from Huntsville, Alabama.  In 2017, she retired from a 16 year civil service career. Carey is currently in graduate school pursuing a degree in counseling.  After she completes her studies, Carey wants to work with clients living with life-altering illnesses and conditions.

Carey has been writing poetry since she was a teenager.  She has published two poetry collections, Awakening to Holes in the Arc of Sun (Mule on a Ferris Wheel) and What it Means to Climb a Tree (Finishing Line Press).  Her poetic sequence, I Walk a Tightrope Without a Safety Net was a finalist in the 2019 Blue Light Press Chapbook Contest.  Carey's poems have appeared in Poem, The Birmingham Arts Journal, Birmingham Poetry Review, WLRH Sundial Writers Corner, Hospital Drive, and elsewhere.

Methods of correspondence:  Email
~*~

Ann Stewart McBee - Short fiction/flash fiction/poetry (story development, putting a chapbook together, submitting, query letters)

Note:  Her emphasis is flash fiction.

Ann Stewart McBee was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She obtained her PhD in creative writing at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. She has published fiction and poetry in Ellipsis, Untamed Ink, The Pinch, and Citron Review among others. Her short story collection titled How Rabbit Went Down and Other Mishaps is available from Hoot-n-Waddle Press. She now teaches English at Des Moines Area Community College, and lives outside Des Moines, Iowa. The limited use of her hands due to Rheumatoid Arthritis does not prevent her from writing in the same way that living in heavy air pollution does not prevent one from breathing.

Methods of correspondence:  Email
~*~

Sarah Krenicki - Short/Flash fiction (submitting, writing/editing, identifying places to submit to)

Note:  She really enjoys speculative fiction.

Sarah Krenicki writes short speculative fiction and has made attempts at poetry. Her fiction has been published in Syntax and Salt, Gemini Magazine, and Lumina. She studied English and Creative Writing in college and after a brief stint in insurance marketing, found her way to the nonprofit world. She lives in a yellow house with her husband and two noisy black cats, and she overthinks everything, including/especially this bio. Pisces/Slytherin/INFP, for those who want to optimize compatibility.

Methods of correspondence:  Text, email, Facebook or Google Video chat
~*~

Su Zi - Literary and academic writing in a variety of forms (editing, development, chapbook organization)

Note:  This mentor will not read erotica or anything with killing of any kind.  She is also not fond of "genre" work.

Su Zi is equal parts writer, artist, and badass eco-feminist.  She holds an MA in English and has published in such places as Driving Digest, Exquisite Corpse, and Blue Heron Review (where she was nominated for The Pushcart Prize).  She resides in Florida with her horses, dogs, cats, and turtles where she runs The Red Mare Chapbook Series.  Her newest collection #100TPC (Alien Buddha Press) was published in March.

Methods of correspondence:  Twitter DM (another method may be agreed upon later)
~*~
Mentor for teenagers:

Jennifer Ruth Jackson - Literary and speculative flash fiction and poetry (editing, chapbook organization, market research/resource help)

Note:  Jennifer has more poetry published than fiction.

Jennifer Ruth Jackson is an award-winning poet and fiction writer whose work has appeared in Red Earth Review, Banshee, Strange Horizons, Star*Line, Apex Magazine, and more.  Her literary chapbook Body:  Blessed & Bitter is forthcoming from Dancing Girl Press.  Blighted Feast, her short horror collection, is to be released by The Poet's Haven.  She lives in Wisconsin with her husband and is a wheelchair-user.

Methods of correspondence:  Email, Twitter DM, Facebook Messenger

Meet the Mentors for 2019!

Su Zi - Literary and academic writing in a variety of forms (editing, development, chapbook organization)

Note:  This mentor will not read erotica or anything with killing of any kind.  She is also not fond of genre work.

Su Zi is equal parts writer, artist, and badass eco-feminist.  She holds an MA in English and has published in such places as Driving Digest, Exquisite Corpse, and Blue Heron Review (where she was nominated for The Pushcart Prize).  She resides in Florida with her horses, dogs, cats, and turtles where she runs The Red Mare Chapbook Series.

Methods of correspondence:  Twitter DM (another method may be agreed upon later)
~*~
Ann Stewart McBee - Short fiction/flash fiction/poetry (story development, putting a chapbook together, submitting, query letters)

Note: Her emphasis is flash fiction.

Ann Stewart McBee was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She graduated with a PhD in creative writing at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, where she taught undergraduate composition, creative writing and literature. She has published fiction and poetry in Ellipsis, Untamed Ink, The Pinch, Citron Review, and At Length among others. Her short story collection titled How Rabbit Went Down and other Mishaps is available at Hoot-n-Waddle press. She now teaches English at Des Moines Area Community College, and lives outside Des Moines, Iowa with her husband and a smelly terrier.

Methods of correspondence:  Email
~*~
Carey Link - Poetry (editing, submitting, offering feedback, query letters)

As part of a military family, Carey Link has had the opportunity to grow up in many places across United States and Germany. Carey has resided in Huntsville, Alabama for the past 20 years. In 2008, Carey completed a B. A. in psychology from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. In 2016, Carey retired after 16 years of working in civil service in the Civilian Personnel Advisory Cener (CPAC) and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) at Redstone Arsenal.

Carey has been writing poetry since she was a teenager. Carey has published a chapbook What it Means to Climb a Tree (Finishing Line Press) and a poetry collection Awakening to Holes in the Arc of Sun (Mule on a Ferris Wheel).

Methods of correspondence:  Email
~*~
S. Baer Lederman - Novels/Short fiction/Essays (copy editing, submitting, novel/story development, novel/story editing, essay editing/writing)

S. Baer Lederman hails from Rhode Island, but considers himself a Midwesterner at heart. Since finishing his Navy service, Baer has focused on writing, receiving his MFA from Roosevelt University in 2016. Baer’s fiction has appeared in Entropy, Chicago Literati, Dapper Press, and Nebo. He’s been featured as a finalist in Slippery Elm’s 2015 Prose Contest, Scribes Valley 2015 short story contest, Providence Journal’s H.P. Lovecraft short story contest, as well as the NOLA Literary Festival’s 2018 Tennessee Williams short story contest. Baer has been awarded an artist in residence positions at SAFTA in Tennessee and the Ucross Foundation in Wyoming. He recently completed his first novel.

Methods of correspondence:  Skype or email
~*~
Drew S. Cook - Poetry (editing, arranging a collection, submitting, fundamentals of poetry reading/performance)

Drew S. Cook is a native of the Ouachita Mountains, and the sights and sounds of that region continue to influence his writing. Over the course of his life, he has been many things, including an expert in obsolete operating systems, a student of literature and writing, and a Bipolar I. Drew's MFA in creative writing from the University of Central Arkansas will be/was conferred in 2018, and he begins/began doctoral studies at the University of Louisiana Lafayette that same year. His poems have appeared in Nimrod, Pleiades, and elsewhere, and he is a former co-executive editor at Trio House Press.

Methods of correspondence:  Email, Facebook, or Discord. 
~*~
Sarah Krenicki - Short/Flash fiction (submitting, writing/editing, identifying places to submit to)

Note: She really enjoys speculative fiction.

Sarah Krenicki writes short speculative fiction and has made attempts at poetry. Her fiction has been published in Syntax and Salt, Gemini Magazine, and Lumina. She studied English and Creative Writing in college and after a brief stint in insurance marketing, found her way to the nonprofit world. She lives in a yellow house with her husband and two noisy black cats, and she overthinks everything, including/especially this bio. Pisces/Slytherin/INFP, for those who want to optimize compatibility. 

Methods of correspondence:  Text, email, Facebook or Google Video chat

Applications for Mentors Open Today!

Disabled and neurodivergent writers, today we open for applications from volunteer mentors for our 2019 term! Established writers will agree to work with emerging ones in our community during the months of August and September.

Things you need to know:

1.  This program can't pay anyone involved.
2.  We'd like at least one mentor for teens this year.
3.  We try to check out everyone before accepting them. (No bigots, liars, etc.)
4.  Everyone participating should write in English. No geographic restriction.
5.  This program is for disabled and/or neurodivergent people only!
6.  Applications are due March 31st.

An overview of the program is here.
For application questions, please click this.
We have a FAQ page here.

Thank you for considering our program!  Without our hardworking mentors, this wouldn't exist.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. We can be reached via email (handyuncappedpen@gmail.com), on Twitter (@HandUnPen), or in the comments below.

Mentors May Choose Two Applicants

This is part of an email I wrote. It should clarify the position of a writer mentoring more than one person. Note: Mentors don't have to take on more than one mentee.
~*~*~*~
I always thought all of my mentors would just pick one mentee. But, if some of you truly want a second mentee, you should be able to.

A few points if you'd like more than one mentee:

1.  Only pick two people at most. One will be your "definite" and one will be your "maybe".

2.  If, after all mentors select their "definite" applicants your "maybe" is without a mentor, you can approach your "maybe" and offer to mentor them.

3.  Make sure you have the stamina to take on two people for the duration! I want everyone comfortable and working at their best.

4.  Please let your "definite" applicant know you want to take on a second applicant before you do so. Your "definite" can't tell you what to do. It's a courtesy.

If you happen to be excited about a potential mentee's application and are certain you want them as your "definite", you don't have to wait until the end of the submission window. I'll just let the other mentor know the applicant has found a partner.

Application Window for Mentees Opens, Articles, etc.

Mentee applications are accepted from today (May 11th) until 11:59 CST on June 11th. If you need the application in a different format, please let us know. We have six talented mentors spanning a variety of genres waiting for your submissions!

The program also has its own hashtag:  #HUPmentorProgram
~*~*~*~
Electric Lit asks What Does It Mean to Be a Disabled Writer?

Finding Communion in Disability Poetics (an essay) is up at Ploughshares.

From @DisVisibility AKA the amazing Alice Wong:  Call for entries! 2018 application period now open for disability reporting contest.  
Also, the next #CripLit Twitter chat is on the 19th!

Leigh Bardugo was interviewed by Writer's Digest in February.

And, from @ArtfulSpoons:  "There is a new hashtag out there for disabled artists to share their work! #ArtistsOnDISplay by @hijade2madre. Check it out and use it the next time you post your work to twitter!"

Mentee Application (2021 Edition)

Notes and Eligibility (application questions begin after this section):

All mentees must be neurodivergent or disabled.

Only people 18 and over can pitch general mentors, but there might be a teen mentor for poetry and speculative flash fiction... depending on the term.

Mentees may not have an agent of any kind, published full-length books in their applied-for genre, or a current mentor. *Self-published books might be a different story.*

If a mentee has traditionally-published books in a genre, they can't apply to a mentor of that genre.  Mentees can have up to two books published in an unrelated genre... no more.  Mentees must disclose published books on their applications.

Mentees may hold advanced degrees.  If your major (or minor) was in creative writing, literature, or other related fields, you must have obtained your degree at least twelve years prior your application to the program.  Unrelated degrees have no time restrictions.

A writing sample (of the project or genre you want mentoring in) must be included with the application. *Up to ten pages of double-spaced prose or five poems.*

If able, please attach documents as PDF to:  handyuncappedpen@gmail.com
Questions should be sent to us via email, in blog comments, or on Twitter @HandUnPen
~*~

Mentee Application

Name:

Pronouns:

Email:

Website/Social media:

Age (for those under 18):  

Any degrees or publication credits?

What is your disability/neurodivergence?  Can our mentors know?

Describe what you want mentoring in (submitting poems, fantasy novel editing, etc.)

What are you most hoping for in a mentor besides competence and help?  Do you want a cheerleader, someone who imposes strict deadlines, something else?

Which mentor(s) would you like to pitch?

Why choose this program over a different method of help, mentorship, research, etc.?

What are your preferred methods of correspondence?  Email? Skype? Facebook? Phone calls?  Something else?

Is there anything else you'd like your potential mentor to know?

Meet the Mentors for 2018!

Ann Stewart McBee - Short fiction (story development, putting a chapbook together, submitting, query letters)

Ann Stewart McBee was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She graduated with a PhD in creative writing at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, where she taught undergraduate English and served as an editor for cream city review. She has published fiction and poetry in Ellipsis, Untamed Ink, The Pinch, and Citron Review among others. She now teaches composition, creative writing and literature at Des Moines Area Community College, and lives outside Des Moines, Iowa with her husband and a smelly terrier. The limited use of her hands due to Rheumatoid Arthritis does not prevent her from writing in the same way that living in heavy air pollution does not prevent one from breathing.

Methods of correspondence:  Email
~*~*~*~*~
Carey Link - Poetry (editing, submitting, offering feedback, query letters)

As part of a military family, Carey Link has had the opportunity to grow up in many places across United States and Germany. Carey has resided in Huntsville, Alabama for the past 20 years. In 2008, Carey completed a B. A. in psychology from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. In 2016, Carey retired after 16 years of working in civil service in the Civilian Personnel Advisory Cener (CPAC) and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) at Redstone Arsenal.

Carey has been writing poetry since she was a teenager. Carey has published a chapbook What it Means to Climb a Tree (Finishing Line Press) and a poetry collection Awakening to Holes in the Arc of Sun (Mule on a Ferris Wheel).

Methods of correspondence:  Email
~*~*~*~*~
Cinthia Ritchie - Memoirs/Essays/Literary Novels (editing, submitting, chapbook organization, query letters, novel development)

Cinthia Ritchie is an Alaska writer, ultra-runner, huge dog lover and two-time Pushcart Prize nominee. Find her work at New York Times Magazine, Evening Street Review, Sport Literate, Rattle, Best American Sports Writing, Mary, Into the Void, Clementine Unbound, Deaf Poets Society, Forgotten Women anthology and others. She's a 2013 Best American Essay notable mention, and her first novel "Dolls Behaving Badly" was published by Hachette Book Group.

Methods of correspondence:  Email or Facebook
~*~*~*~*~
Drew S. Cook - Poetry (editing, arranging a collection, submitting, fundamentals of poetry reading/performance)

Drew S. Cook is a native of the Ouachita Mountains, and the sights and sounds of that region continue to influence his writing. Over the course of his life, he has been many things, including an expert in obsolete operating systems, a student of literature and writing, and a Bipolar I. Drew's MFA in creative writing from the University of Central Arkansas will be/was conferred in 2018, and he begins/began doctoral studies at the University of Louisiana Lafayette that same year. His poems have appeared in Nimrod, Pleiades, and elsewhere, and he is a co-executive editor at Trio House Press.

Methods of correspondence:  Email, Facebook, or Discord. 
~*~*~*~*~
S. Baer Lederman - Novels/Short fiction/Essays (copy editing, submitting, novel/story development, novel/story editing, essay editing/writing)

S. Baer Lederman hails from Rhode Island, but his years at the University of Michigan taught him that he is a Midwesterner at heart. Since finishing ROTC and his Navy service, Baer has focused on writing. He recently completed his MFA at Roosevelt University in downtown Chicago. Baer’s fiction has appeared in Entropy, Chicago Literati, Dapper Press, and Nebo. He was named a finalist in Slippery Elm’s 2015 Prose Contest, the Scribes Valley 2015 short story contest, and the Providence  Journal’s 2016 H.P. Lovecraft short story contest, as well as the NOLA Literary Festival’s 2018 Tennessee Williams short story contest. Baer has also been awarded artist in residence positions at the Ucross Foundation in Wyoming as well as Sundress Academy for the Arts in Tennessee.

Methods of correspondence:  Skype or email
~*~*~*~*~
Sarah Krenicki - Short/Flash fiction *especially speculative* (submitting, writing/editing, identifying places to submit to)

Sarah Krenicki writes poetry and short speculative fiction. Her shortest of these stories can be seen on 50 Word Stories, while her slightly longer work has been published in Syntax and Salt, Gemini Magazine, and Lumina. She studied English and Creative Writing in college and after a brief stint in insurance marketing, found her way to the nonprofit world. She lives in a yellow house with her husband and fluffy black cat, where she overthinks everything, including/especially this bio. Star sign/Hogwarts house/Alignment available upon request, because shouldn't mentees have the right to learn this sort of thing?

Methods of correspondence:  Text, email, Facebook or Google Video chat

Mentor Program FAQ

This will be expanded as needed.
Contact us on Twitter @HandUnPen or via email handyuncappedpen@gmail.com if you have more questions.

Do I quality as disabled or neurodivergent enough?

Do you have a good reason you claim the disabled and/or neurodivergent labels for yourself?  If so, you probably qualify.

Can I apply as a mentor in one genre and a mentee in another?

If you fit requirements for both, you can apply to be both. Your status as either will be looked at individually.

How much money does the program cost?

The program is free.  Mentors are volunteers who wish to help other disabled and/or neurodivergent people succeed in their literary goals.

What happens if a mentor or mentee becomes ill or injured and can't participate?

Mentors can post that they're open to applications again if their mentee is unable to finish the term (should they choose).

Mentees are allowed to pitch to other available mentors immediately.

What if I apply as a mentee and don't get picked?  

If you meet the eligibility requirements, you can try the same mentor again (during another term with a different writing sample) or pitch other available mentors immediately.

I'm 16.  Can I apply? 

We have a mentor for teen poets and speculative flash writers. "Teens" are defined as people ages thirteen to seventeen. Hopefully, we will add more in the future. 

I'm not American.  Can I apply?

Yes!  Anyone writing in English can apply.

Are the people picking mentors and the like going to be mentors themselves?

Yes (this changed in 2020).

Why isn't the program open year-round anymore?

I'm a solo operator and lack the energy to keep everything spinning all year. I hope this is a good compromise.

So... "multiply marginalized" writers are "especially encouraged" to apply.  I'm a straight, white male.  Why aren't you welcoming me?

We want our mentor program to reflect our community.  It means my straight, white dudes are welcome.  It means my Asian enby folx are welcome.  It means anyone who works on their craft and is disabled and/or neurodivergent is welcome.

Unless you're a pompous jerk, that is.  Why is saying other people are "especially encouraged" to apply mean you aren't "encouraged"?  Think on that a bit and get back to me.

What if my mentor/mentee is threatening or abusive?

We will investigate any allegations we receive.  Abuse, bigotry, and harassment are not allowed here!

Mentor Application (2021 Edition)

Contact me via email:  handyuncappedpen@gmail.com
Or on Twitter:  @HandUnPen

Notes before starting:  All mentors must be disabled and/or neurodivergent.

If you have a CV, please send it.  

Mentors and mentees will be in contact twice a week (minimum). This is a volunteer program.  Anyone in the world can take part.

All mentors will have their photograph (optional) and information put up on the blog so potential mentees can read about them.  If you're selected as a mentor, you will be sent a preview to okay before your entry is up.

Please send attachments as a PDF file, if possible.

If you've mentored in our program and want to do so again, just email us with any updated information and tell us you want to!

Mentor Application for The H.U.P. Mentor Program

Name:

Pronouns:

Email address:

Website/social media:

Highest level of education completed:

Publication credits:

When would you like to mentor? We have two terms a year: February 1st to April 30th and August 1st to October 31st.

Do you work/have experience as an editor, sensitivity reader, teacher, or mentor?  If so, tell us about it.

What is your disability and/or neurodivergence?  (Share as much as you're comfortable with.) Is it okay to share this publicly?

If you have a specific connection to another community or marginalization, what is it?  (Are you nonwhite, part of the QUILTBAG umbrella, not Christian, etc?) You do NOT have to answer.  If you belong to a community, but aren't out publicly, say "no".

Which types of writing do you work best in?  Poetry, journalism, memoir, flash fiction, novels, something else?  Pick two at most.

Do you work in a specific genre (speculative poetry, romance novels, travel writing, etc.)?

Which aspects of writing or publishing do you feel you can guide someone in?  Writing query letters, pitching periodicals, novel development, submitting to literary magazines, editing essays, putting a poetry chapbook together, or what?

What are your preferred methods of correspondence?  Email? Skype? Facebook? Phone calls?

Why do you want to be a mentor in this program?

Do you need any content warnings on the writing samples or projects potential mentees submit?  Are there topics you absolutely will not read about?
(If so, and you're picked as a mentor, you and I will figure out how to best address it.)

Is there anything else you want us (or possible mentees) to know?

The Mentor Program: An Overview (2021)

We need applications from disabled/neurodivergent writers with multiple marginalizations. Please, please apply. We want this to be an accurate representation of our community!

General:

The H.U.P. Mentor Program will give promising new/emerging disabled and/or neurodivergent writers one-on-one attention from an established disabled and/or neurodivergent writer in their field. The mentee doesn’t have to have a completed, novel-length manuscript to polish, but can also ask to be mentored on querying agents, writing a book proposal, submitting to literary magazines, revising short stories, pitching articles, etc.

Mentors and mentees must agree to a minimum of two interactions a week. All correspondence will be done via phone, e-mail, Skype, Facebook, etc. Mentors and mentees will list on their application which methods of correspondence work best for them.

Schedules and How Things Work:

This program is free and open twice a year: February 1st to April 30th and August 1st to October 31st. Applications for new mentors are always open.

We will try to have two mentors (minimum) in different genres available, but we can’t guarantee it. 

Mentors who are available to be worked with will be listed as such (the page will be kept updated). Each mentor will have their own information link for quicker access by applicants.

Mentees can pitch to any or every mentor available at the time of application, even if there are more than two (provided they work in compatible genres). Mentees will still only work with one mentor unless something happens. The term will now be eight weeks in the program instead of a set date, starting the week after students are accepted into the program. If a mentor’s term will end before the eight weeks are over, the pairing can decide to finish it out or other plans can be made.

Mentors will try to review applications as swiftly as possible, but please remember they have other obligations.

Mentors:

Mentors must have some type of publication history (it doesn’t have to be a published book, magazine contributions are fine) and/or three years of teaching or professional editing experience… minimum. No degree required! If you’ve been a mentor to other writers before, please mention it. If your editing business has lead to a client getting a book deal, let us know! Self-published authors will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Mentors will be asked what types of writing they have experience with. They will also be asked what aspects of writing and publishing they’re “good at” and which parts they hate. If a poet is a pro at submitting but can’t help organize a chapbook, tell us! The more specific you are, the better.

Mentors can pick more than one student at their discretion. They do not have to choose anyone if they don’t find a suitable fit for what they offer.

Mentees:

No one applying to be a mentee should have published full-length books in the genre they’re applying in, a current mentor, or an agent. (Self-published books might be permissible, depending.)

As of 2020, mentees may hold advanced degrees. If your major (or minor) was in creative writing, literature, or other related fields, you must have obtained your degree at least twelve years prior to the starting date of the program. 

Unrelated degrees have no time restrictions.

A writing sample in the genre you’re seeking a mentor in is required along with the application. Five to ten pages of prose (double-spaced) or three to five poems will suffice.

Mentees should have a clear goal in mind when applying and should state the goal: A cozy mystery polished, pitches to magazine editors refined, query for a memoir ironed out.

If a mentee doesn’t get chosen, they can try again with other mentors (or different projects with the same mentor during the next open period.

Miscellaneous:

Application questions can be emailed as an attachment or questions can be pasted in the body of an email. If someone needs another method, I’ll try to oblige.

I understand certain people hope to work with someone with a similar disability or neurodivergence, but that won’t always be possible. Not every genre of writing will have mentors with every disability or neurodivergence.

I considered giving mentee applications to mentors stripped of personal information. But, that won’t guarantee everyone gets a fair shot… having a rich diversity of people will.