What we do

We offer a range of programmes and courses for children’s writers, to help you develop your craft and industry knowledge at affordable prices.

#WriteMENTOR SUMMER Programme

Our summer programme is a voluntary, and free to apply to, 4 month mentoring period with an agented/published children’s writer, which culminates in an agent showcase.

15 week Courses

Led by Maz Evans (MG) and Lauren James (YA), these intense courses are designed for competent writers to take their work to the next level.

With course notes, feedback on up to 30k of your work, and a 1-2-1 tutorial with the course leader.

Children's Novel Award

Our novel award is for all unpublished and unagented writers of all childrens fiction, from PB to YA.

£10 Entry and up to 30 FREE entries for low-income writers.

ONLINE SHORT COURSES

From our 4 week PB course to our 6 week MG/YA course and our 5 week Preparing for Submission course, we have all the children’s writing courses you need.

With visiting agents, weekly workshops and tutor feedback on all tasks.

WOW-CON

WOW-CON is an all-online writing conference for children’s writers.

With speakers, workshops, agent 1-2-1s and our WOW-PITCH contest, it’s well worth the £10 ticket!

Writing Weekends

We are proud to announce that in 2020, we will be brining writing weekends to you!

With workshops at nearly 50 locations across the UK/IRE, you’re bound to find one local.

With 4 workshops, 10 hours of free writing time and an industry expert 1-2-1 at a quality venue. We also offer payment plans for those who need to spread the cost.

SPARK Mentoring

Our paid for mentoring is perfect for those who need a little help as they draft, or who need extra developmental help on a completed manuscript.

We have a range of mentors involved and with our regular industry expert chats and blog posts, anyone can join our community.

Starting at £10 a month.

Want a free craft guide?

With the following covered:

THE QUERY LETTER

THE SYNOPSIS

OPENING PAGES

STORY STRUCTURE

CHARACTERISATION

CONFLICT

DIALOGUE

GENERAL ADVICE

PICTURE BOOK ADVICE

Click Here

Writing Weekends with top, published authors and agents

Concession prices available.

CODE: WWW40

Helping children’s writers move along that metaPhorical ladder

MENTEES

signed with agents

publishing deals

Cups Of Coffee

Pitching, new ideas and hooky concepts by Carolyn Ward and Emma Finlayson-Palmer

by | February 10, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

This week's content post comes via a vlog from Carolyn and Emma. https://videopress.com/v/AVDZUruf
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Staying motivated one writing routine at a time by Chio Zoe

by | June 9, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

  Let’s face it, some writers don’t write full time. The common case scenario involves working a fixed hour job, taking care of your home, dropping kids off at school, dealing with bills, trying to do all the extra lifting to get the writing and reading community...
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Inciting Incidents and the ‘New World Order’ — Conflict’s Big Moment by Julie Marney Leigh

by | May 19, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

After this week’s fantastic craft chat, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about inciting incidents in my favourite books. It’s usually ‘the’ moment — the one that hooks me into the story, and makes it impossible to stop reading.  Which is no mean feat, because it...
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6 WAYS TO MAKE YOUR WRITING PAY by Simon James Green

by | May 5, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

When I was writing my first novel, Noah Can’t Even, and spending time and money trying to get it ready to submit to agents, I often wondered if I’d ever really make any money back doing this. Sure, having a book published would be a dream come true, and cause for...
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In an age of tl;dr, how to hook your reader … by Emma Read

by | April 28, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

Concerning Hooks The beginning to arguably one of the best books ever written is a twenty-page prologue ‘Concerning Hobbits’.It goes on to provide some fascinating insights into pipe-weedand extensive notes on administrative districts of the Shires. It’s a wonder...
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Maintain the tension: Huffing and puffing your way through a saggy middle! by Lindsay Galvin

by | May 27, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 1 Comment

Today’s post was inspired by a workshop I’ve run in schools that links traditional tale plotting to story writing. A common problem in books is a meandering middle. The character has been sent on their adventure to solve their story problem and their problem worsens...
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First Things First by Lindsay Galvin

by | April 21, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

This is the first line to my book The Secret Deep. Forgive me for starting this post with my own writing, but it is relevant, I promise. I rewrote the entire opening of my debut hundreds of times, over the course of nearly five years. And it was worth it because I’m...
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Sub that Book Baby! by Marisa Noelle

by | June 25, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

  So you’ve written a book, you’ve had beta readers and CPs look at it, you’ve queried it to every last agent in the Writer’s and Artist’s Handbooks, even that one that who’s on a sabbatical to Antarctica, and now you have an agent. (Or maybe you plan to sub to...
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#WriteMentor Spark mentoring: A Blog Post by Camilla Chester

by | February 26, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

Who?I’m Camilla Chester, a near-miss, now self-published Children’s Author of three middle grade books; Jarred Dreams, EATS and Thirteenth Wish. I am also, one month in to being mentored through the #WriteMentorSpark scheme and I can definitely see the benefits of...
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All the Feels – Five Steps for Creating Emotional Characters By Julie Marney Leigh

by | August 25, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

Before they begin writing their book, some writers see the setting. They see the place dancing with possibilities in front of their eyes. Some writers know the plot. They know exactly what will happen at the major narrative turning points and the tension that will...
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FINDING YOUR GREAT BOOK IDEA by Emma Smith-Barton

by | February 3, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

FINDING YOUR GREAT BOOK IDEA A great book starts with a great idea. A spark, if you will. That idea needs to be enough to sustain a whole novel, to tell a full and compelling and complete story. It also needs to be interesting enough to keep you committed throughout...
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Social Media Pros & Cons by Marisa Noelle

by | March 3, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

To Tweet or not to Tweet – That is the Question In today’s world of writing, an author is not merely sat alone at a desk pouring over a typewriter and using Tipex and backspace to make corrections until the lonely hours of the night. No log cabin retreats with...
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How to keep writing when you have mental ill health – 6 Practical Tips by Kathryn Clark

by | August 18, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

Alongside therapy, medication, and exercise, many people find writing can help to manage their mental health. But there’s a catch: How do you write when depression means just getting out of bed is too hard? Or OCD has you stuck in a loop of some tedious behaviour? Or...
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Get a routine, get motivated! By Emma Smith-Barton

by | June 3, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

You dream of becoming a professional writer, but in an industry where hard work goes hand in hand with rejection and there’s little, if any, instant gratification, how can you stay motivated to fulfil your dream? Where it all started... I was eleven when I decided I...
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FIVE WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA BRAND by M. Dalto

by | March 24, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

It doesn’t matter who you are, where you are, or what you write- as an author you want- nay, need- a social media presence. And not because you need an outlet to spam your book-selling links once they’re available… to be honest, this is the last reason you should want...
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The Road to Publication by Emma Smith-Barton

by | July 22, 2019 | #WriteMentor, #WriteMentor Spark, General, Slider | 0 Comments

“I’ve got an agent! What now?” Before I got my publishing deal, my focus was always on getting an agent. That was the goal, the dream, and I didn’t really think of much beyond that. Back then, in my mind, getting an agent meant getting a publishing deal. But now I...
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Openings and Hooks by Chio Zoe

by | April 14, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

In with a bang Welcome to the new age of short attention spans and immediate gratification. You know what I’m talking about. With so much information out there to see, no one has the time to wait for you to get to the point. Now gone are those days of slow starting...
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#PitchWM

by | March 3, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark, MG, YA | 0 Comments

When: Sunday 3rd March until Friday 8th March 5pm GMT. Where: On Twitter, in reply to the pinned tweet on the @writementor account. How to enter: reply to the pinned tweet, with your best twitter pitch (one per person) using the #PitchWM hashtag. You must also RT the...
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WRITING IS LIKE FISHING by Carolyn Ward

by | March 31, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

Yep – really! If you want to catch yourself a fish, you need a rod, a whole lot of patience, and maybe a bag of maggots.  But before you even get to the river you need to make sure your hook is hooky enough, or you won’t even catch a cold. Too often writers grind...
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Pantsing, Plotting… or Plantsing: Finding Your Planning Process By Jodi Herlick

by | March 10, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark | 0 Comments

Ah, the age-old question every writer is faced with: Are you a plotter or a pantser? Do you painstakingly outline every scene before you begin writing or do you take a vague idea, sit down, and pound it out without any forethought, flying by the seat of your...
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DO IT THE WRITE WAY By Emma Finlayson-Palmer

by | August 4, 2019 | #WriteMentor Spark, General | 0 Comments

In this blog I’ll be discussing some of the benefits of creative writing for your mental health and alleviating stress. Writing and being creative has provided an outlet for many people across the ages. Creative writing can be a journey of self-discovery and a release...
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A Room With a View – Writing Spaces – Emma Finlayson-Palmer

by | August 15, 2018 | General | 1 Comment

I'm writing this whilst on a family holiday to Scotland. My room with a view for the week looks out across the Beauly Firth at Inverness. Stunning views, inspiring scenery, I'd like to pack it in my bag and take it home with me. So how do I create the next best thing,...
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Are you ready to be a writer? by Clare Helen Welsh

by | September 9, 2019 | #WriteMentor, General | 1 Comment

It is widely considered that almost everyone, at some point in their life, will want to write a book. For me that happened in 2013. With no experience, no obvious talent, no clue what I was doing (!) …I began my writing journey after putting it on a ‘bucket list’ of...
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Bath Novel Awards by Melissa Welliver

by | September 19, 2018 | General | 0 Comments

Thursday 13thSeptember in 2018 was a doubly fabulous day for me. Number one, because it was my lovely Dad’s 65thbirthday (hi, Dad!) and number two, because I was lucky enough to longlist for the Bath Novel Awards and subsequently get invited down to the awards...
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How to win the #WriteMentor Children’s Novel Award by Alexandra Page

by | October 13, 2019 | #WriteMentor, General, Mentee News, WriteMentor Children's Novel Award | 0 Comments

Alexandra Page was the #WriteMentor Children's Novel Award winner for 2019. We chatted to her after winning here. Below, she gives her best advice to those hoping to enter this year and become the 2020 winner. Full details of the 2020 award here. Things to do Focus on...
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How to almost win a novel competition by Kathryn Lougheed

by | October 6, 2019 | #WriteMentor, General, WriteMentor Children's Novel Award | 0 Comments

How to almost win a novel competition I can’t tell you how to win the WMCNA, partly because I was a runner-up but also because there’s no magic formula and what works for one writer is useless to the next. But my book, WHISPER PIER, did land me an agent through the...
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An insider’s perspective on literary agents by Aisha Bushby (Part 1)

by | September 29, 2019 | #WriteMentor, General, Uncategorized | 0 Comments

Let's talk about Literary Agents. I remember interning at a literary agency for the first time and being in awe of the seemingly super-human agents who floated around the office as if on air. I attended meetings where they discussed rights, and territories - and...
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Brandy Woods Snow – MEANT TO BE BROKEN – Author Interview

by | September 3, 2018 | General, Mentor Books | 0 Comments

1. Congratulations on having your novel published. Tell us a little about the novel. Thank you! MEANT TO BE BROKEN is a YA contemporary romance that explores the thin line between truth and lies in a small town in the Deep South. It is a story about a reluctant...
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The Anxious Author Part 2 – The First Draft by Lindsay Galvin

by | October 14, 2019 | #WriteMentor, General | 0 Comments

This is the follow up post – the second in a #writementor series exploring mental health, particularly anxiety, in the context a writing career or creative life. In the first post I described my experiences as I was diagnosed with Generalised Anxiety Disorder and...
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The Anxious Author by Lindsay Galvin

by | September 22, 2019 | #WriteMentor, General | 1 Comment

Apologies this doesn’t have quite the lighthearted tone of my other posts. It’s also too long. But I’m not anxious about that. This is important to share. I am an anxious author. Big deal, a lot of us are. What with the cycle of hope, rejection, waiting — oh the agony...
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PICTURE BOOKS: How to distinguish the good ideas from the not so good by Clare Helen Welsh

by | October 6, 2019 | #WriteMentor, General | 0 Comments

PICTURE BOOKS: How to distinguish the good ideas from the not so good If you dream of having your picture book published, a standout idea is key. Writing is a skill and skills can be crafted and learned. But without a unique concept your story is unlikely to standout...
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Never Give Up. Never Surrender.

by | October 1, 2018 | #WriteMentor, General | 0 Comments

Every time I finish a book—at least to the point where I feel like I’m ready to send it off to my agent (or, in the past, begin querying)—I think I’ve got a handle on this whole writing process. I’ve written something, and I think it’s pretty darn good. What happens...
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The Road to Publication by Emma Smith-Barton

by | July 22, 2019 | #WriteMentor, #WriteMentor Spark, General, Slider | 0 Comments

“I’ve got an agent! What now?” Before I got my publishing deal, my focus was always on getting an agent. That was the goal, the dream, and I didn’t really think of much beyond that. Back then, in my mind, getting an agent meant getting a publishing deal. But now I...
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#WriteMentor 2018 Mentee Feedback Questionaire

#WriteMentor 2018 Mentee Feedback Questionaire

#WriteMentor 2018 Mentee Feedback Questionaire

#WriteMentor 2018 Mentee Feedback Questionaire

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