More Information ... Click on the titles below to read about the different aspects of our unique mentorship services. Where Do We Begin? The first step is to contact us, by email, at:   admin@olvarwood.com.au   We'll send you some information and a form to fill out detailing your skills, experience, resources and dreams (you can also download the form from HERE).   Once you've filled in the form and supplied us with details about your current writing practices, as well as some samples of your work, we'll contact you to set up a meeting. The intial meeting is an obligation-free opportunity for you to ask questions, to make suggestions, to ask for what you need and for us both to see whether we're a 'good fit'.   The first meeting, and coffee, is on us. Starting From Scratch If you're starting your mentorship at a time when you've got an idea for a project, but not a completed draft, you will be able to launch straight into your mentorship. You might have a handful of chapters, or none, some research and notes, an outline, or just an urge to write. If this is where you are at, your mentor will focus on helping you with the kinds of issues typical at this initial drafting and early writing stage: planning, genereting a research plan, dealing with writers' block, getting those words on the page, developing characters, finetuning your style, and so on. Starting With A Draft If you're starting your mentorship with a completed, or almost completed, full draft that you want help with, we recommend that before you begin your mentorship you have your work appraised. You will be asked to submit your full manuscript in hardcopy. We will take around four weeks (depending on the length of your manuscript) to read and assess your work. You will receive a comprehensive, written evaluation of the manuscript, including a suggested plan or timeline for the consequent mentorship.Appraisals are not included in the cost of a mentorship. Appraisal of a full manuscript starts at $400.00 for 40,000 words. For more details about appraisals, please CLICK HERE. Mentorship Agreement Shortly after the first, free meeting with us, we will email you a draft mentorship agreement, which will include a clear statement of the mentorship's goals, your responsibilities as the writer, and the mentor's responsibilities. You'll work at finetuning this agreement as the foundation of a mutually-agreeable professional relationship between you and your mentor designed to help you achieve a set of clearly-defined outcomes within a set timeframe. Rates Rates for three and six-month mentorships are based on 2 hours per week of the mentor's time, at $50.00 per hour. The Manuscript Development Program is a more structured program for developing a full novel or non-fiction book. Three months: $1250.00 Six Months: $2400.00 Manuscript Development Program (12 months of peer and individual support writing your book, including three retreats): $6000.00 Friends of Olvar receive a 15% discount. QWC, ACTWC and NRWC members receive a 10% discount. Can You Get My Work Published? Obviously, we cannot guarantee that you will get published just by taking part in our mentorship program. So much depends on you: not just how far along on your journey as a writer you are to begin with, but how much you put into the mentorship yourself.   However, we do enjoy excellent working relationships with a number of leading literary agencies and publishers, and can offer advice and make recommendations if we feel that is suitable. We cannot damage these relationships by recommending work that is not yet of a publishable standard. What we can guarantee you is an insight into the industry – such as the importance of a book’s marketability or the role of a Commissioning Editor, the process of approaching agents and publishers, how to write approach letters and so on. Funding Although Olvar Wood Writers Retreat does not supply or receive funding itself, you can apply for funding to support your visit to Olvar Wood through the state-based arts funding organisations listed below. If you are a postgraduate student at a university, you can apply to use your discretionary funds to attend a retreat or workshop. We are happy to provide letters of support or other documentation for your application upon request:   Arts Queensland ArtsNSW ArtsSA ArtsNT ArtsWA ArtsTAS ArtsVIC

" I want you to know I’d be happy to pay you twice over. I’ve loved working with you. The experience has been a pleasure for me too. Your edits, notes, comments and feedback are inspiring and unbelievably helpful. I’ve learned so much." (L. Keneally) "I have wrestled with this beast – being chapter one - for three years and these last six weeks. But I have made the breakthrough, courtesy of you. Thank you for your enduring patience…" (D. James) "Thank you for your careful work for me. I appreciate your toothcomb approach to this work." (R. Nichols) "I want to write. I want feedback, real feedback - the good, the bad and the ugly. I want the tough stuff delivered to me personally, I want someone to guide me and not be hindered by marks, or the suspicion of favouritism. I want to work with someone I can relate to, someone who respects me even though I don't know the academic terms or correct comma usage. I want someone who can see my dream and yet not be afraid of being honest if my dream may not be a publishing reality. I want to be allowed to explore my creativity even if it's a painstakingly slow process. I want to feel safe as I put myself out there for crtitique. I want to develop my skills as a critter.   I want the opportunity of doing what I've always wanted to do with people who I respect and feel safe with.    I'm not at uni (anymore), I'm at Olvar Wood." (A. McKenzie - MDP Participant)