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About the program

The mentorship provides five days in a glorious Byron shire location with accommodation and some meals provided, one-on-one mentoring with Marele Day and the company of three other committed writers.  It’s an experience that many have described as life-changing, a time to forge lasting friendships and discover what lies at the heart of your work.

This is an outstanding opportunity to participate in a writing experience that has already proved to be a launch pad for regional writers. Established in 2001, the roll call of past participants who are now published authors continues to grow every year. You can see them all and read testimonials about the residential mentorship experience on our Alumni Successes page.

Key Dates

• Residency dates: 13 – 17 September 2021
• Applications open: Wednesday 2 June 2021
• Applications close: Wednesday 30 June 2021, 11.59pm
• Recipients announced: Monday 16 August 2021

Cost

Application fee is $40

Successful applicants will be asked to make a contribution of $280 each towards their residency.

Eligibility

Eligible writers must:

• Be 18 years of age or over
• Reside in the catchment area (from Tweed Heads to Taree and west to Kyogle)
• Be a current member of Byron Writers Festival. Click here to become a member.
• Manuscripts should be fiction or narrative non-fiction.

Submission guidelines

In a single Word Document or PDF, please collate the following:

• A 200-word statement on why you want to be part of the mentorship, outlining how the mentorship will assist you at this stage of progress. Include any particular issues you wish to address at this stage.
• A 250-word synopsis or description of this project and your intentions for the work in progress.
• The first 40 continuous pages of your manuscript (work must be typed, 12 point, Times New Roman font, double-spaced and paginated. Please also include the title of your work on each page of your manuscript). DO NOT include your name on your manuscript.

Application Process

Before beginning the application form, please have your submission document ready (see submission guidelines above), your current membership number, and your credit card. If you are not yet a member of Byron Writers festival, please click here to become a member.

• Click Apply Now
• Complete the form
• Upload your submission
• Pay the application fee

Read the Terms & Conditions of the program in full here.

Mentorship selection

Three professional writers will judge the entries. The four mentorship recipients will be selected from a shortlist and selection will be according to: suitability of the work for the mentorship scheme; potential of the work; and appropriateness for the development of the writer in the residency context. The judges’ decision is final. Unsuccessful applicants will not be given individual feedback on their submission.

About the mentor

Marele Day has been the mentor for the program for the past nineteen years and will be taking this role again in 2021. Marele is the author of four crime novels – The Life and Crimes of Harry Lavender; The Case of the Chinese Boxes; The Last Tango of Dolores Delgado and The Disappearances of Madalena Grimaldi as well as a collection of crime-comedy stories, Mavis Levack, PI.  Other novels include the best-selling Lambs of God, which was published to international acclaim and since made into a TV series; Mrs Cook: The Real and Imagined Life of the Captain’s Wife; and most recently The Sea Bed.  She is a highly experienced speaker, teacher and mentor, and has won several awards, including the Ned Kelly Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008.

Residential Mentorship property rented through A Perfect Stay