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YOUTH MENTORSHIP PROGRAM

Basic Details:

Applications open: September 9, 2024

Deadline to apply: October 18, 2024, 5pm AT

Mentorship period: February 3-March 28 2025

For Nova Scotians between the ages of 14 and 18.

About the Youth Mentorship Program

 

The second annual AfterWords Youth Mentorship Program will pair two professional Halifax writers with two Nova Scotian writers between the ages of 14 and 18 inclusive, for a six-week virtual mentorship in February and March 2025. One of the two youth mentorship spots will be reserved for a Black or Indigenous Nova Scotian.

Each mentor will meet with their mentee online for six one-hour sessions. Mentors will also be available for up to six extra hours for reviewing their mentee’s work and offering encouragement and critical feedback, and all applicants to the program will receive two free virtual writing workshops in early 2025, as well as two free tickets to an AfterWords Literary Festival event. 

The two mentees will also be invited to give a short reading alongside their mentors at an AfterWords event with reading fee, travel and accommodations fully covered.

Application Deadline: October 18 2024, 5pm AT

2024/25 Mentors: We are very excited to have Rebecca Thomas and Chad Lucas as our mentors for our second annual program! ​

Rebecca Thomas is an award winning Mi’kmaw writer of things. Sometimes they are poems, sometimes they are childrens’ books and sometimes they are love notes for family and friends. But they are always done with purpose and intention. She is a registered band member of Lennox Island First Nation in Epekwitk. Her ultimate goal is to take up space as an Indigenous woman in a world where they aren’t as valued or worthy as other groups of people. Rebecca dares you to tell her to be smaller and see what happens. She has been the Poet Laureate of Halifax and caregiver to her father who is a survivor of the Shubenacadie Residential School. She has performed with the Halluci Nation, Symphony Nova Scotia, and has spoken and lectured at conferences and coffee houses from coast to coast. Her first book I’m Finding My Talk has been shortlisted for the First Nations Community Reads Award. Her most recent collection of poetry called I place you into the fire was listed as one of CBC’s top 20 books of 2020. Her book Swift Fox All Along was a finalist for the 2020 Governor General’s Award for children’s literature. She has an upcoming children’s book called Grampy’s Chair set to be released in September of 2024. She pays her bills by helping students who are overwhelmed with life and studies as a Student Services Advisor at the Nova Scotia Community College.​

Chad Lucas is the author of Thanks A Lot, Universe; Let The Monster Out, and You Owe Me One, Universe, all of which have received praise and acclaim, including the Ann Connor Brimer Award, a Cybils Award Finalist, a nomination for the Red Maple Award, a nomination for the MYRCA Northern Lights Award, the Texas Library Association Lone Star Reading List, and starred reviews. His next novel, The Vanished Ones, releases in January 2025.

Eligibility and Application Guidelines

Eligibility Criteria

To be considered for the AfterWords Youth Mentorship Program, writers must meet the following criteria.

  • You must be a permanent resident of Nova Scotia (i.e., you have lived in Nova Scotia permanently for at least one year)

  • You must between the ages of 14 and 18 inclusive on December 31, 2024.

  • You must be available to participate in the program’s six virtual one-hour meetings (conducted by video chat in February and March), as well as the program’s wrap-up event, an in-person public reading in April, 2025 (where both mentees and both mentors will read from their work).

Application

In order to apply, you must fill out the form listed at the bottom of this page (the form will be linked on this page starting on September 9, 2024). The form will ask for the following information: your first and last name, your address, and your age. It will also ask you for the following:

  • Self-identification: We encourage you to briefly self-identify (recommended: one or two lines) if you belong to any communities that are marginalized on the basis of race or ethnicity, gender or sexuality, or ability or disability. AfterWords reserves one mentorship each year for Black and Indigenous Nova Scotians. Your willingness to self-identify can help us offer mentorships in a more equitable way. We will not share the details of your self-identification beyond the small group of three adjudicators (the mentors) plus two festival staff. 

  • Letter of Intent: Your letter of intent can be up to 500 words telling us a bit about you and your writing. It should answer each of the following questions (but need not be limited to them):

    • Why is writing important to you?

    • How long have you been writing?

    • How often do you write?

    • Are you prepared to put time and energy into becoming a better writer?

    • What would you like to learn from working with a professional writer

  • Writing Sample: a sample of a work-in-progress of up to 2000 words (for prose) and up to 6 pages (for poetry). (Please double-space for prose, single-space for poetry, and use 12-pt Times New Roman or Arial font). 

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Application Form: You can fill out the application form here. Please be sure to apply on or before the application deadline of Friday, October 18, 5pm AT.

Assessment Process

After applications have been processed to ensure they are complete and eligible, they will be shared with a peer assessment jury of three professional writers contracted by AfterWords.

All applicants will be notified of their application results by mid-January.