Mentorship

Crime Writers Of Canada Mentorship Program

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 2 Comments

Two years have passes since I participated in the CWC mentorship program. I can’t stress enough what a valuable experience having Garry Ryan (writer for the Detective Lane Mysteries and at the time  President of the CWC) work with me on my manuscript.

Here are the rules  from the CWC newsletter.

If you’re an Associate Member with two or more years in good standing with the Crime Writers of Canada and you’re interested in partnering with one of our wonderful volunteers, please contact the CWC (Address in newsletter). They’ll send you all the information you need to get started, and when you agree to the guidelines, they’ll match you up with the mentor best able to help you out. 

If you’re not a member and are Canadian, why not join?  I think I’m a better writer because of it.

Thanks for reading . . .

 

Grammar: How to Learn What You Don’t Know

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 5 Comments

This is what I did.

In 2008 I attended the Humber School For Writers correspondent course. Joan Barfoot was my mentor.

The course is designed so a professional writer works with the student on a manuscript.

I thought I knew all about punctuation and grammar until Joan pointed out I didn’t know how to use a comma.

In my mind, I was using the pesky little mark correctly. But how would I know unless someone else pointed it out to me?

My point. You need someone your trust, who knows grammar and punctuation, to give you an honest review of your talent.

Then . . .

STUDY STUDY STUDY

Perfection doesn’t come for free.

Do you have any tips for figuring out what you don’t know?

Thanks for reading . . .

Don’t Rush The Ending

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 2 Comments

#writetip This week has been a big week for me. I’ m still basking in the joy of completing my novel, Burnt.

If you’ve been reading my blog this week, you know I recently completed the CWC mentorship program, and I want to share one thing I learned from Garry Ryan.

Don’t Rush the Ending.

He told me the reader has been waiting for the final scene so let them savour it.

I think I shorted my ending to get the book finished and not let it drag. I missed the importance of satisfying the reader with a deep and thoughtful final scene.

I’ve now re-written it, and thanks the mentorship program, I think (as usual – in my biased opinion) that it’s much better.

It seems like there is always something to learn when it comes to writing a novel. I guess that’s why people spend a lifetime writing.

Literary Mentors

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 2 Comments

How do you get one? #writetip The Crime Writers of Canada(CWC) offers a mentorship program each fall. To apply all you have to do is send in an application, your bio, a synopsis and ten pages of your novel.

I’ve just been notified that my mentor is David Cole, author of the Laura Winslow Mysteries.

I’m using my third novel, (working title Burnt) for this program. David and I will work together on improving the first 50 pages.

My first experience with a mentorship program was the Humber School for Writers when I had Joan Barfoot as my mentor. I believe this helped me get my manuscript into shape and accepted by my agent, Margaret Hart.

The mentors from CWC offer up their time and knowledge for free, proving the  generosity in the writing community is unbounded. Thanks to David and the other mentors for helping those of us at earlier stages in our careers.

I’ll blog about what I learn and how this program works out for me.

– A very excited mentee signing off for a day of writing.