Soar with Southern Breeze's Mentors!

Oh, for a Mentor!

If that thought has crossed your mind, this may be your chance! The Southern Breeze mentorship program provides 8 months of back and forth discussion and direction for lucky writers.

Drumroll please \.\.\.\.\.\.\.  Our illustrious mentors for 2018 are:

For Young Adult writers, Janice Hardy, awesome author of a teen fantasy trilogy, The Healing Wars, has come on board. So, if you love dragons, magic, creating worlds, and names like Aeryn or Taureil, this could be a perfect fit! Of course, you don’t have to write fantasy to apply for this YA mentorship. Plot, structure, characterization and voice cross all types of writing.

We have three terrific middle grade mentors – Kami Kinard, Lisa Lewis Tyre and Jamie Dodson.

Kami write humorous novels, which is so hard!  Her books The Boy Problem and The Boy Project are with Scholastic Publishers. She is well published in shorter formats as well. If you need to exercise your funny bone, Kami is the mentor for you!

Lisa writes contemporary stories with strong characters. LAST IN A LONG LINE OF REBELS and Hope in the Holler, with Nancy Paulsen Books, both garnered excellent reviews. Lisa masterfully weaves historical details into her writing.  Learn from a master!

Jamie writes the Nick Grant Adventure series and other histrical fiction. He also published nonfiction magazine articles. If you love to blend fact with fiction, he could be a terrific mentor for you!

Two picture book authors are available as mentors – Tracey M. Cox and Jo S. Kittinger.

Tracey has eleven books with Guardian Angel Publishing, so if you are interested in that company, Tracey can provide the inside scoop. Additionally, she has two books with other publishers. Non-rhyming picture books are her specialty. Tracey is both an author and illustrator, so she can offer you a unique perspective!

Jo is offering to mentor both picture books and easy readers, so if you like to write both, she’s the one for you. Fiction or nonfiction, rhyming or not, she is open to a wide range of picture book styles. Jo has published over 25 books with traditional publishers. Her latest book is ALABAMA, in the MY UNITED STATES series through Scholastic.

This year we have four fabulous nonfiction mentors – Avery Hurt, Heather Montgomery, Jennifer Swanson, and Jodi Wheeler-Toppen. Nonfiction is often overlooked, but offers greater opportunity for publication.

Avery often writes about science, social studies and science fiction, but her interests are broad. She has authored over a dozen books for children and young adults. She is one of the authors of the Weird But True series from National Geographic Kids Books, plus a regular contributor to magazines. This broad experience makes her an appealing mentor for many!

Heather gets kids excited about nature and often incorporates the yuck factor to draw their attention. She has over a dozen books with major publishers. Her latest is SOMETHING ROTTEN: A FRESH LOOK AT ROADKILL. An award-winning educator, Heather knows how to offer constructive direction. Picture book or Middle Grade non-fiction writers would benefit from her expertise.

Jennifer loves science, evidenced by over 30 nonfiction books. She has received excellent reviews and accolades for her work. SUPER GEAR: NANOTECHNOLOGY AND SPORTS TEAM UP was named an NSTA Best STEM book of 2017 and got a starred review in Booklist. So, if you are a science geek, Jennifer would be a perfect mentor for you.

Jodi loves to experiment as her books reveal. Her love of science is contagious! As a former teacher, Jodi knows how to communicate and direct others to improve in their work. Jodi has over 10 books with major publishers, including National Geographic Kids, Capstone and NSTA Press. Jodi can help you make science exciting and understandable.

A magazine article or story is often the first publishing credit an author receives. But magazines are not only a stepping stone on the path to book publishing. Magazines offer rewarding exposure and income for writers. Johnna Stein is offering to mentor an author for magazine writing.

Johnna is a former teacher and loves helping others advance, whether it be as a writer, a reading coach or advocate. She has multiple publishing credits and would love to help you on your path to publication.

Learn more about the mentorship program and access the application form at the Southern Breeze website.

TIME IS SHORT! APPLICATION DEADLINE IS February 25. Mentors will be announced in early March and the relationship will run through October.

Jo Kittinger is the Southern Breeze SCBWI Mentorship Coordinator. When she's not writing picture books, she's busy reading 'em to her grands. If you have questions about anything mentorship-related, she's the one to contact!