One-to-One Mentoring for Writers: Growth, Motivation and Inspiration

To be a writer is more than word count and hours – it’s a way of uncovering what matters.

Mentoring sessions are held by me, Shaun Levin. My one-to-one mentoring is designed for writers ready to listen more closely to their own voice, deepen their work, and explore writing as both a daily practice and an art form.

What I Offer

Each mentoring session includes:

• A one-hour consultation on Zoom
• In-depth feedback on a short story or novel extract (up to 5,000 words, with flexibility for longer works across multiple sessions)
• Practical next steps to strengthen your voice, style, and structure
• Ongoing support between meetings (for multi-session bookings)
  

Writers leave each session with:

• A clear plan for development
• Focused feedback on stylistic elements such as point of view, pacing, voice, or the layering of scenes
• Greater confidence in their direction and their own voice
  

Often, with writers who’ve completed a draft, I begin by reading the work in full to identify the clearest path through the story. Sometimes that means adding layers and complexity; sometimes it means stripping the narrative down to its essence. In both cases, the goal is to let the writing become the strongest version of itself.

How I Work

I’ve worked with writers at all stages of their writing lives: from those making the transition from journaling to shaping short stories and novels, to established novelists working under the pressure of deadlines.

One of my strengths as a mentor is being able to see the larger structure of a work-in-progress. I help writers identify the most natural and workable narrative shape for their book, so they can focus their energy on creating a deep and meaningful work. 

Mentoring has also shaped me as a writer and artist. A good mentor has been a witness to my work as it unfolds — noticing connections, strengths, and resonances that might have taken me months to recognise alone. The best mentors have helped me strengthen my own voice, refining what I was already doing well, while encouraging me to go further. That’s the approach I bring as a mentor: to see what is strong and alive in your work, and to support you in deepening and refining it.

Who This Is For

This mentoring is ideal for writers who are:

• Working on a first manuscript or collection
• Refining a draft for submission or publication
• Returning to writing after time away
• Exploring the rich territory between memoir and fiction
• Developing work in literary fiction or creative non-fiction (I don’t generally work with genre fiction)

My passion is for writing that engages deeply with the self and the world — at the meeting point of the external and interior. Writers who continue to inspire me include Janet Frame, Zora Neale Hurston, Sergei Dovlatov, Jamaica Kincaid, Bernard Malamud, and Marguerite Duras. Together, we’ll look closely at the writers who light a spark for you, and consider how to make more space for their influence in your practice.

Publishing & Submissions

Having published books and short stories with mainstream and independent publishers — and as a strong believer in self-publishing — I’ll be happy to work with you to explore the different options for getting your work into the world.

I will encourage you to submit to journals and anthologies, and work closely with you to select the best and most appropriate places to send your writing.

Mentoring for Writing Tutors

I’ve led creative writing workshops in art galleries, libraries, restaurants, literary festivals, and online. I’ve taken writers on journeys through parks, cemeteries, zoos, and even on a boat. I believe inspiration is everywhere — and the more widely and attentively we write, the richer our creative toolkit becomes.

When working with tutors, my focus is on helping you transform your passions into writing-related activities and workshops. My philosophy is rooted in teaching observation: learning how to notice and transform the world around us into material for stories.

Together we can:

• Develop workshop ideas rooted in your passions
• Shape them into engaging and practical activities
• Explore how to approach organisations as a facilitator
• Debrief after your workshops to reflect and refine

Next Steps

If this way of working resonates with you, I’d be glad to hear from you. Whether you’re starting out with your first story, shaping a draft into a book, or looking to situate your writing more fully in your life, mentoring can offer you companionship, clarity, and a renewed sense of purpose.

If you have any questions about any of the mentoring options, please do get in touch with me via shaun@shaunlevin.com or through this form.

About me: Shaun Levin is the author of Snapshots of The Boy, A Year of Two Summers and Seven Sweet Things, amongst other books. His series of writing guides, The Writing Notebooks, are devised to support writers in taking on a book-length project. He is the creator of Writing Maps and set up The A3 Press, an independent chapbook press, as well as Treehouse Press and Chroma magazine. Shaun has been teaching creative writing for over twenty years and has worked closely with thousands of writers at all stages of their writing journey.