Bridging
Literary
Divides

Creative writing mentoring
in Scotland

Presented By Arkbound Foundation

Welcome to Bridging
Literary Divides

Bridging Literary Divides aims to provide tailored 1-1 mentoring for disadvantaged and under-represented writers by experienced authors and literary agents.

The aim of the programme is to empower people through writing and to increase literary representation of authors from socially disadvantaged backgrounds.

By pairing up mentees with experienced authors and literary agents, we aim to boost their confidence and develop their writing skills to publishing standard. At the same time, the mentoring expands mentees’ writing portfolios by supporting submissions to competitions, magazines and other creative outlets. One of our mentees’ novels from the successful 2021/22 six month trial of the program was published by her mentor’s publisher (Jasami Publishing) in October 2022. All of our mentees are published on the dedicated blog at the end of the programme. To see some of what our writers have worked towards click here.

Our 2023 programme is now closed and we are no longer recruiting applicants.

However, Arkbound Foundation is running Our Economy and Creative Writing, a free workshop series in Govanhill, Glasgow on Saturdays in July and August 2024. We’ll focus on creative writing, as well as discussing ideas about how the economy can work better for everyone. For more information, email romystjohn@arkfound.org or apply via our application form here.

About Us

Background

Bridging Literary Divides is a programme run by the Arkbound Foundation, a charity based in Glasgow. Our purpose is to support people from a range of diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds develop their writing and get published.

We ran a 6 month trial of the programme across 2021 and 2022, and have recently acquired additional funding from Creative Scotland to run a 10 month long version of the programme for 2023.

Since being founded in 2015, Arkbound has published an impressive selection of works from marginalised voices, demonstrating our vital contribution to an industry that is well known to struggle markedly with equalities.

We have also previously delivered successful mentoring initiatives in both creative writing and journalism (the latter of which was a lead project funded by the Council of Europe). Through our workshops and mentoring, we have reached people who would otherwise be excluded and communities who face multiple levels of deprivation – building skills, improving capacity and creating new opportunities.

Our ethos is one of sharing and collaboration, which has allowed us – despite being a small charity in receipt of minimal funding – to deliver a range of projects, from tree planting to national writing competitions. As well as supporting books that cover important social and environmental themes, we like to creatively explore ideas outside of the mainstream, including new socio-economic models (www.arkbound.ac.uk) and grassroots initiatives that build on local resilience and self-sufficiency.

The Programme

The Bridging Literary Divides creative writing mentoring programme is funded with the support of Creative Scotland and pairs aspiring writers with experts in the literary field, from creative writing professors and authors, to literary agents. Each mentee will meet with their mentor between 3-6 hours a week and will receive 1-1 tailored support throughout the program. There are no set expectations for mentees: some need help with finessing their writing skills; for others it is around building confidence and contacts in the industry.

Over time we encourage and support mentees to build their writing portfolios, whether this is submitting to competitions, other media, or working on a book proposal with an agent or publisher. Working with their mentors, mentees can hone their writing skills and gain knowledge of the publishing industry. Through the program, we have seen mentees become published authors, freelance writers, journalists, editors and proofreaders.

The programme is open to anyone living in Scotland aged over 16, who identifies as experiencing social exclusion or being from a disadvantaged background.

Our Mentors

The eight mentors for this project are published authors, editors/publishers and experienced literary agents. We are careful to ensure that mentors don’t just have professional literary and publishing experience, but also a background in tutoring individuals, both from disadvantaged circumstances and otherwise. Arkbound ensures that our mentors are fully supported and managed by our core team. As part of our training for the group, we provide an introduction to, and digital training of our safeguarding policy and working with vulnerable adults. Our mentor group for the upcoming 2023 program consist of:

Matthew Azoulay is proud to take the name of the published and award-nominated surrealist poet Daphnee Azoulay, whom he is now married to. He has been writing creatively with a passion since pre-school. He is proficient in writing short stories and poetry, as well as serious political and activism-themed articles and blog posts. He loves mentoring other writers, partly because they teach him to be a better writer and partly because he is determined to help democratise the publishing industry.

Matthew Azoulay

Jim works as a fiction editor through his company, Novel Gazing. Throughout his career, he has tried to apply his knowledge and experience to support aspiring authors and promote diversity in publishing. Bridging Literary Divides gives him the opportunity to continue to share skills and expertise with talented authors.Jim works as a fiction editor through his company, Novel Gazing. Throughout his career, he has tried to apply his knowledge and experience to support aspiring authors and promote diversity in publishing. Bridging Literary Divides gives him the opportunity to continue to share skills and expertise with talented authors.

Jim Dempsey

Michele’s personal and professional ethos is a commitment to community as evidenced in her teaching and volunteer work. A published author, her varied interests include short stories, poetry, novels and co-authoring a new children’s book. Her dedication to assist new writers in improving their writing abilities and expanding publication opportunities is the reason she established Jasami Publishing.

Michele Smith

Sam Dodd is a community facilitator, writing mentor, editor, and researcher; Co-Founder & Project Manager at CityLife Stories, an intergenerational community engagement life writing project which pairs young writers with urban elders to uncover stories; and across the last decade has worked at multiple literature charities including English PEN, Free Word, First Story, The Poetry Society, and Prison Reading Groups. Her areas of work and interest are writer development, underrepresented stories, public libraries, city farms, spatial justice, and community histories; her genre specialities are biographies, autobiographies, memoir, life writing, fantasy fiction, and creative non-fiction. She has a BA in Creative Writing and MSc in Library Science.

Sam Dodd

Janis holds a MA in creative writing & personal development. She has eleven books published, most for children and one for adults. After running classes for North highland college, she now works for Edinburgh university (COL) centre for ongoing learning. She runs evening classes and short courses. Janis also mentored in our Power of the Pen project.

Janis MacKay

Rodge Glass’s debut novel No Fireworks (Faber, 2005) was nominated for four major awards including the Dylan Thomas Prize. This was followed by another novel, Hope for Newborns (Faber, 2008). Alasdair Gray: A Secretary’s Biography (Bloomsbury, 2008), gained widespread critical acclaim and received a Somerset Maugham Award in 2009. His novel Bring Me the Head of Ryan Giggs, was published in 2013 by Serpent’s Tail, the same year as his short story collection Stories for the EasyJet Generation (Freight, 2013). Glass was co-author of the graphic novel Dougie’s War: A Soldier’s Story, also nominated for several awards, and has recently published several essays from forthcoming memoir Joshua in the Sky. He is an experienced editor of over twenty published novels and short story collections and is the Convener of the MLitt in Creative Writing at the University of Strathclyde. In 2022, he was Convener of the 2nd International Alasdair Gray Conference in Glasgow. His next book is Michel Faber: The Writer & his Work (Liverpool University Press, 2023).

Rodge Glass

David Gerow is a Glasgow-based writer of plays and prose. His stories have appeared in numerous literary journals, including Gutter, Hobart and The Malahat Review, and been shortlisted for the Bridport Prize, while his plays have been staged throughout Scotland. He is a doctoral student in Creative Writing at the University of Glasgow. He loves working with other authors to improve their craft and welcomes the opportunity to be of service to a developing talent.

Dave Gerow

Bridging Literary Divides

Creative writing mentoring in Scotland