Last year, Write Mentor changed my life. I was a mentee in the program’s inaugural year under Brandy Woods Snow, and with her help, I was able to get my manuscript in shape to get a publishing contract! This year, I am THRILLED to mentor someone else and pass along what I’ve learned.
EXPERIENCE:
What can I bring to a mentor/mentee relationship? Enthusiasm! My potential mentee can expect me to scream about their story at every chance. Besides that, my writing strengths are prose, dialogue, and voice.
I graduated from Brigham Young University in 2012 with a B.A. in Communications. My YA contemporary romance novel, THE ART OF FALLING IN LOVE, debuts with Literary Crush Publishing in Summer 2020. I am also a ghostwriter for the romance serial app, Radish Fiction.
MENTORING:
Writing and publishing can be a lonely and exhausting thing. If you are chosen as my mentee, I will be your long-term fan and friend. My mentee can expect:
1. A welcoming phone call/Skype call/email (your choice!)
2. A detailed edit letter
3. In-depth line edits
4. Edits/tweaking until you’re happy with your final draft
5. Help with your query letter and synopsis
6. If you’d like, support and assistance with the querying process
WISHLIST:
***Sexual assault and suicide are important subjects that should be written about/read about and discussed. However, I am not the right mentor for these topics.***
Now to the fun part! Since I write and read primarily Young Adult contemporary, that’s what I’ll be looking for from my mentee. Romance doesn’t have to be the only focus, (it shouldn’t be!) but your MS should have a heavy dose. In addition to contemporary, I’m also willing to look at YA contemporary fantasy with a romance plot line, as long as the story is rooted in the real world and the fantasy aspects are minimal.
In YA contemporary, I’d love a book that feels like any of the following:
-Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett
-Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett
-The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson
-To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han
-Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
-Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch
-From Twinkle with Love by Sandhya Menon
-Listen to Your Heart by Kasie West
-The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
In YA fantasy, I’d be willing to look at something similar to these:
-The movie About Time
-The Raven Cycle series by Maggie Stiefvater
-The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
If you have any questions about my wishlist or anything else related to Write Mentor, please feel free to reach out to me here on my website or on twitter at @haleighwenger.
Haleigh Wenger 