Madeleine Milburn expands mentorship programme for new voices

The Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency is running another six-month writing mentorship programme to champion new voices.

First launched in 2020, the programme has grown in size and ambition, now offering places for eight aspiring authors around the world, with at least half the spaces reserved for writers underrepresented on the nation’s bookshelves. This includes, but is not limited to, writers from an ethnic minority background, LGBTQ+ writers, writers who are disabled or neurodiverse, and those from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

The programme will be split into two parts. The first is a series of online insight sessions, given by editors, agents, international rights and film and TV workers, as well as bestselling authors. These sessions will take place over the course of six months, offering mentees insight into the entire industry process "from pitch to publication, and everything in between".

Its second part, running concurrently but without a fixed time limit, sees each mentee partnered with a Madeleine Milburn literary agent mentor and receiving personalised editorial feedback on their manuscript. Writers will also receive guaranteed representation from an agent, aiming to get the manuscript ready for submission.

Madeleine Milburn commented: “I was completely blown away by the enthusiasm for our inaugural mentorship programme last year, and I am thrilled to open up this opportunity to even more writers this year. We hope to find the best talent around the world, with each mentee gaining valuable insights into the publishing industry and also receiving personalised editorial guidance from a literary agent. We are so excited to help writers shape their manuscripts for global appeal and launch their careers, and we cannot wait to meet our new mentees!”

Writers can apply by emailing mentorship@madeleinemilburn.com with a pitch in the body of their email, ‘including a brief description of the central premise a note on what is special about their idea; its genre; what stage of completion the manuscript is at; and three comparable books in the market today. It should also include a two-page synopsis followed by a first chapter manuscript, attached in a single document.

For full details on how to apply, visit the website. Entries must be received by 5.30 p.m. on 1st July 2021.