Meet One-On-One with a GrubStreet Instructor
Ask a Writer Mentorship offers writers 25-minute one-on-one appointments with a GrubStreet instructor to ask focused and specific questions about the writing craft and a writing career. These appointments are tuition-free and open to all writers at any level, with an additional focus on community members with financial needs and from historically under-represented groups.
How to Book Your Appointment
A new scheduling process for the 2026 Mentorship Program will make booking sessions easier. Instead of pre-set appointment slots, mentees can now select their preferred mentor and directly schedule a mutually convenient time.
How to Book Your Appointment:
- Browse the list of mentors: consider picking a few backups in case they fill up.
- Complete the appointment request form. If your chosen mentor offers both in-person and remote options, please be sure to make the proper selection.
- Wait for a few days for the Mentor to email you with suggested appointment windows. Please respond promptly to secure your appointment time.
- After your meeting, please complete the survey. The aggregated information helps us report back to our generous funders who make this program possible, while also fueling our future fundraising efforts to maintain and expand the program in the future.
The full outline of the scheduling process can be found via this link.
Questions? Please contact [email protected].
Mentorship Appointments Schedule 2026
Mentorship appointments are now available from May to July 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost for an Ask a Writer Mentorship appointment?
Thanks to our generous donors and members, Ask a Writer Mentorship appointments are free to students. We also hope to grow this program in the future. As we are compensating mentors for their time, it’s important that students turn up for their appointments. If you can’t make it for an appointment after signing up, please email [email protected] so that we can release the appointment and someone else can use the time.
Where will Ask a Writer Mentorship appointments be held?
Ask a Writer Mentorship appointments take place either in person at the Boston Seaport or remotely on Zoom or GoogleMeet, depending on the Mentor preference. You should receive your meeting link and location directly from the instructor. If you’re meeting in-person at Boston’s Seaport, you can come to GrubStreet’s second floor office and just ask the front desk for a room location or wait for your mentor to arrive while waiting in the community lounge space. Feel free to have a complimentary tea or coffee while you’re there.
What’s the best way to use these appointments?
We suggest that students prepare a list of questions in advance. It’s best to keep your questions focused and specific, like: “I am having X challenge with my plot/protagonist and have tried these things without breaking through. Do you have suggestions for how I can try to resolve this?”
Students must submit their questions in advance to help their mentor prepare. This will make the meeting more productive.
Please note that the 30-minute appointments are actually 25 minutes; the last 5 minutes are to allow time to transition from one appointment to another.
Can I use my appointment time to get on-the-spot feedback on manuscript pages?
If you choose to use your time for this, sure! However, given that the appointment is for 25 minutes, it may be challenging to get meaningful feedback within this structure. The mentor is not being compensated for any outside work before or after these appointments, and we don’t expect or require them to complete any projects outside of the appointment times. For draft reviews, you might want to use GrubStreet’s new Draft Feedback program. Since it’s new, it’s a tuition-based program but we are hoping to fold in scholarships into the future.
How many appointments can I sign up for?
Please sign up for only ONE appointment. If there is a surplus of appointments, they’ll be promoted through our newsletter and on the website, and we’ll also reach out to those with existing appointments.
What if I miss my appointment or arrive late?
If you know you will be late or can’t make your appointment, please immediately let your Mentor know via the email contact information they’ve established with you when scheduling your meeting. You can then work with your Mentor to adjust or reschedule. Last-minute cancellations or no-shows typically cannot be rescheduled. If an unexpected emergency arises, we’ll do our best to reschedule, though we can’t make guarantees.
If unfortunately, you miss your appointment, more Mentorship appointments might be offered later this year, and you can sign up again.
What if I have a suggestion or feedback about my appointment or the Mentorship program?
Everyone will receive a survey within a week of their appointment. If you would like to submit feedback outside of a survey, please write to [email protected].