Mentorships

Applying for mentorships is a good way to get some advice from another author. Check out https://www.asauthors.org.au/mentorships/ and https://www.writermentors.com/ and https://writersvictoria.org.au/mentorships/

I’ve had some feedback from other readers – though the advice seems to be focused on spelling and occasionally some rewording of a few sentences. I’m hoping a mentorship will provide some structural advice and some tips on what would make it more likely to be published commercially.

Apply for a Grant

Applying for a grant makes me feel like a true creative.

To apply for the individual grant with Arts Tasmania I needed two letters of support. This was serious, I was going to have to admit to people that I didn’t know that I was writing and aspiring to be a published writer. Here is a list of some other things to apply for as an emerging writer

Here are some interesting grants/opportunities that I have found so far:
Arts Tasmania individual and groups
Arts Tasmania Education Residencies
Richell Emerging Writers Prize
Libraries Tasmania Fellowship

As Lawrence from my writer’s group said yesterday, ‘I feel like a true writer, I’ve got my first rejection.’ I wasn’t successful with the Arts Tasmania grant nor the Richell Emerging Writer’s prize. I’ll put in for a couple more next year as I am still keen to have some editorial advice from someone who has written a published book.

Join some other groups of Authors

I joined the Fellowship of Australian Writers Tasmania – northwest earlier this year and have shared the manuscript with them. They have given me some good advice but mostly encouragement and support. I’ve also talked about my research and novel project with the Penguin History group and they were interested in it. I was relieved – people with local and particular interest in history and writing are supportive. Not sure that will equate to a best seller but its a start.

Is it a distraction from writing attending these groups? Sometimes I think it is, other times its a boost to my self confidence.

I’ve joined up with the Australian Society of Authors and it feels good to be connected to the wider group of authors and be thinking about when I am published (not if!). There’s a good bit of advice on contracts, copyright and making sure you get paid.