And the Mentorship Goes to…

This year we had 18 incredible submissions of Middle Grade and Young Adult novels. Our panel of judges explained that there were some really great stories in the mix, and they had quite a time narrowing down the list. 

Sheela Chari, our mentor, was given the top three applicants and explained that it was hard choosing, as all three were strong and held merit. 

With that, a drumroll please…

Heather Shumaker is this year’s mentorship winner! 

Heather is a Traverse City-based author and proud member of SCBWI. She writes books for both children and adults, concentrating on Middle Grade. Her books include: THE GRIFFINS OF CASTLE CARY (Simon & Schuster BFYR, 2019), a slightly spooky MG adventure, and SAVING ARCADIA, a Michigan Notable Book about Great Lakes land conservation. She’s also the author of two early education books IT’S OK NOT TO SHARE and IT’S OK TO GO UP THE SLIDE. Heather co-coordinates the Up North Shop Talk and is a staunch defender of books, children, nature, and libraries.

As Heather said in her application, “I’ve come to realize that every critique and reader reaction is a gift. I appreciate frank feedback and serious brainstorming. I’d like to work with someone who understands the tender responsibility that comes with kidlit, and seeks to push a story until it’s worthy of a child’s time.”

Heather will work with Sheela from April 10th to November 20, 2026. After their time together, she will have an opportunity to submit to an acquiring editor using one of SCBWI-MI's "golden tickets," which means no slush pile! 

The first-place runner up is Kelsey Gross, who will receive one free entry to the 2026 Critique Carousel. 

Anita Fitch Pazner is the second-place runner up, who has won a $25 gift card to the SCBWI bookstore. 

Thank you so much for our incredible judges for their hard work, and congratulations to all of our applicants! It was a tough competition this year!

Picture book authors get ready - submissions for the 2027 Picture Book Mentorship will open in January, 2027!

Jessica Zimmerman

SCBWI-MI Mentorship Coordinator 

Previous Mentorship Winners Reflect on the Experience

The SCBWI-MI mentorship program began in 2000. The application period for the 2026 novel mentorship with author Sheela Chari opens January 2, 2026 (with the winner announced in April). Today we hear from two previous novel mentorship winners about the experience. Joan Donaldson won the 2022-2023 mentorship and Kristin Bartley Lenz won a mentorship in 2018-2019.

1. How was the experience applying (were you nervous? had you applied before?)?

Joan Donaldson

Joan Donaldson: I had never applied before and didn't expect to win, so I was surprised and thrilled.

Kristin Bartley Lenz: The application process was easy because I already had a finished/revised manuscript that was ready to go, and it was my third time applying for the mentorship with various manuscripts over the years. I was probably quite nervous the first time I applied when I was new to SCBWI, but with each entry, I received encouraging, helpful feedback. I knew that even if I didn’t win the competition, my writing would benefit.

2. How was the mentorship experience itself?

JD: Because I had earned a MFA in creative writing, I had experience working with a mentor. Kelly [J. Baptist] was a terrific critique partner and could also act as a sensitivity reader for my manuscript. She had insightful comments, suggested books I should read, and asked several times if I wanted her to provide even more information.

Kristin Bartley Lenz

KBL: What a wonderful experience! Leslie Connor was my mentor, and she was so friendly and encouraging. The mentorship program has some guidelines, but it’s very flexible, and we set up a routine for critiquing/revising that worked for our schedules. This mentorship came at a difficult time in my writing career. I already had one published novel, but I had recently lost my agent who’d been unable to sell my next novel. Not only did Leslie help with revising my manuscript, but we also talked about school visits and speaking/teaching opportunities, and she was there to cheer me on when I began querying for a new agent. She was open about her own challenges too and gave me a glimpse into the life of a multi-published author, including the ups and downs.

3. How did the mentorship impact/affect your writing/career?

JD: Working with Kelly gave me more faith in my story involving a friendship between a white boy and an African American boy living on a cotton farm. Their families are share cropping. My agent loves my story, but so far no editor has snatched it up.

KBL: My writing career has been bumpy, and I’m still in touch with Leslie who’s been so supportive. I’ll fast-forward to today. I have a new agent and a new publishing contract! The Door Swings Open, my YA novel that won the mentorship competition way back in 2018-19 will finally be published in March 2026.

4. Is there any advice or encouragement you would offer to people applying?

JD: Put your work out there and see what happens. Even if you do not win the mentorship, you can always try again. Plus each time you polish a piece before submitting it, the manuscript sparkles even more.

KBL: Submit your best work that you love and be patient. If you don’t win, you’ll still receive valuable feedback and encouragement from the judges. If you do win, you’ll be spending many months working on your manuscript with no promise of publication, but you’ll grow as a writer and expand your community.

Looking for more information about the mentorship program to help you decide whether to apply? Here's some recent posts on the Mitten that may help: 

Mentorship coordinator Jessica Zimmerman explains the program and what you will receive (even if you don't win) 

Learn more about 2026 mentor Sheela Chari 

2018-2019 mentee Danielle DeFauw gives more reasons to apply

Remember, spots are limited and registration opens January 2. Good luck!

Questions? Email Jessica at scbwi.mi.mentorship@gmail.com

2026 Novel Mentorship

With January right around the corner, I’ve been thinking a lot about New Year’s Resolutions. For those of you out there who are Middle Grade and Young Adult novel writers, boy do I have a suggestion for you!!

Hi! 

I’m Jessica Zimmerman, and I’m the new(ish) Mentorship Coordinator for SCBWI-MI. I took the reins from the incredible Jay Whistler, and am so grateful for the guidance and materials that she left for me as I transitioned into her former role! This year I’ve learned so much about the uniqueness of our Michigan mentoring program, and I’m so excited to share everything I’ve learned with you…right here in this blog! 

First, let’s talk about how the mentorship program works. 

The program is on a three year rotation for genre: picture books, illustration, MG/YA novels. 2025 was an illustration year, with the incredible Penelope Dullaghan serving as the mentor to Marisa Korovesis. The program runs from April to November, so the two of them worked over eight months exchanging materials and feedback four times. 

As Marisa says, “This has been an absolutely thrilling experience. I have learned so much and gained a lot of knowledge and confidence from Penny. It's truly been one of the best experiences of my life.”

   

The 2026 mentorship will be a MG/YA novel mentorship with Sheela Chari! Sheela is the award winning author of several critically acclaimed novels, including KARTHIK DELIVERS, THE UNEXPLAINABLE DISAPPEARANCE OF MARS PATEL series, FINDING MIGHTY, and VANISHED! She holds an MFA from New York University and is a faculty member at the Vermont College of Fine Arts' MFA Program in Writing for Children and Young Adults. You can read more about Sheela right here on the Mitten, where she describes more about her work and background. 

In October I attended her SCBWI-MI webinar on Points of View and I must say, whoever gets to work with her is going to be sooooooo lucky. Sheela’s pretty awesome. 

So now, let’s talk about what you need to do to apply to work with her!

The mentorship website has TONS of information to help you get ready, including formatting details, an example submission, and a robust FAQ, plus my email if you have lingering questions. I’ll put it at the bottom of this post, too, for good measure🙂. 

One of my favorite things about the mentorship program is that EVERYONE gets SOMETHING!

So, here are the prize opportunities:

The winner receives the mentorship, plus a golden ticket submission to an agent or editor. The first and second runners up both receive gold form feedback from the mentor. In addition: The first-place runner-up will receive one free entry to our annual Critique Carousel for any project and the second-place runner-up will receive one $25 gift card for the SCBWI Member Bookstore. But even if you aren’t one of the top three, YOU STILL GET FEEDBACK!

Each submitted manuscript will be judged by three super-secret, super-awesome, anonymous judges. Every single person who registers will receive a paragraph of feedback from each judge, related specifically to the judging criteria: Appropriateness of Style, Development of Plot, Character Development, Pacing, and Overall impression/Originality. 

You read that right: three, unique, specific reviews of your work. What a great chance to improve your writing! Seriously, you don’t want to miss this.

I’m so excited to be coordinating this program and can’t wait to see the manuscripts that come in! Registration for the mentorship opens on January 2nd, 2026 and closes on January 11th. There are only 20 spots, so get those manuscripts ready!!!

See you soon, and Happy New Writing Year! Let’s help you reach your goals!

Questions? Email Jessica at scbwi.mi.mentorship@gmail.com

Jessica Zimmerman (she/her) is a mom, author, educator, and empowerment coach. She loves reading, writing, running (or walking), hugging trees and being in the sunshine. She holds degrees in education from Central Michigan University and the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and has been a public school teacher for twelve years. She was the Michigan World Language Elementary Teacher of the Year in 2024, and currently serves as the Mentorship Coordinator for SCBWI-Michigan.

Jessica’s first book, Drinking from the Fire Hose: A Survival Guide for First Year Teachers was independently published in 2024 and is available on Amazon. She recently completed a project with the Cereal City Sunrise Rotary Club, writing a picture book called Ben’s Diabetes Journey to raise awareness about childhood diabetes, which will be independently published soon. You can join her monthly at Willard Public Library in Battle Creek, Michigan for Bilingual Storytime with “Maestra Zim.”

Jessica’s life goal is to help everyone love themselves, love their people, and love the planet. You can learn more about her at jessicazimmermanbooks.com.

Because of Mentorship Moments By Danielle DeFauw

Editor's Note: Danielle DeFauw won the SCBWI-MI Mentorship in 2018-2019 for her book Victory Stumbles (Non-PAL novel category).

There are moments we hold onto as writers, moments we know we are meant to share our stories, moments we know that no matter how many “no’s” we receive, we will always say yes to our characters and their experiences to impact our readers. A moment that centers my writer’s heart is the day I received a very special phone call from Ann Finkelstein, former SCBWI-MI Mentorship Coordinator, who shared with me that I won the 2019 SCBWI-MI Chapter’s Non-PAL mentorship writing contest with novelist Kelly Barson. As my heart quickened, my mind remembered how I had applied to the mentorship at a very low point in my writing journey, thoroughly believing I did not have a chance.

I took the chance anyway because of a moment of encouragement.

Feeling very defeated after a sleuth of rejections, I thought I might give up on my dream of becoming a published children’s book author. Then, I met a student who changed my life. As a professor of reading and language arts at the University of Michigan – Dearborn, Robin Wilson was in my elementary writing methods course during Fall 2016. I still have the email she sent me on January 20, 2017, letting me know she thought I should submit my writing. I submitted by the March 2017 deadline and, over a year later, on August 31, 2018, I emailed Robin to thank her for her encouragement and suggestion that I apply.

It was such a proud moment to learn I had won the mentorship!

The amount of growth I experienced in 2019 with Kelly Barson as my mentor still astounds me. For our first and only in-person meeting, she and I met at the Westgate Branch of the Ann Arbor District Library, and she told me we should divide the year in half to go through my completed work in progress twice. My June 30th birthday wish came true as I finished my first full pass through the manuscript with Kelly. I continued to revise and resubmit throughout the second half of 2019 and made Victory Stumbles—an upper middle grade, contemporary fiction, 52,000-word novel about grief-stricken, twelve-year-old Sarah who must choose between obeying her alcoholic father and keeping the dog she loves—even stronger.

In 2019, I learned that the most exciting part of the writer’s journey is that we never know how much stronger we can write.

In October 2021, Suzie Townsend, Vice President of New Leaf Literary & Media, Inc., selected Victory Stumbles as one of two full manuscripts she reviewed for the Pacific Coast Children’s Writers Novel and Retreat Whole Novel Critique. Suzie’s feedback informed the next revision of the manuscript. As Katherine Paterson stated, “I love revision. Where else can spilled milk be turned into ice cream.” That revision process brought more success! On April 14, 2024, I won the SCBWI-Marvelous Midwest Conference writing contest.

Tiara Kittrell, Editor, Putnam Young Readers, Penguin Random House selected my first five pages of Victory Stumbles and is currently reviewing the full manuscript!

I fully understand that the road to publishing is riddled with no’s. I certainly can relate to writers who may be questioning whether or not they should apply for this mentorship. With everything that makes me “me,” I encourage writers with works in progress to ignore any nagging “no’s” keeping them from taking their chance to apply. Each of us, as aspiring writers, understands it will take one yes from our future agents agreeing to represent us and/or our future editors agreeing to publish our books. At that point, there will be multiple yes’s, but only one yes truly matters right now.

 

Your YES right now to your work matters more than any future yes’s. Apply for the mentoring and seize your moment.

____________________________________________________________________

Reminders about Upcoming SCBWI-MI Events

• Fall webinar with Cate Berry- Nov. 12th at 7:00 pm Registration period: Oct 22-Nov 12
• Mentorship program applications for the 2026 novel mentorship with Sheela Chari open in January.

SCBWI-MI Illustration Mentorship 2025 FREE Webinar

What: SCBWI-MI Illustration Mentorship 2025: Understanding the Changes, and How to Apply

Date: Wednesday, October 16, 2024

Time: 7:00-8:15 p.m.

Registration fee: FREE! 

We’ve been talking about the upcoming illustration mentorship for months now, but with all the other amazing opportunities our region offers, we thought it might be time for a reminder. 

Join Mentorship Coordinator Jay Whistler for a FREE webinar about the upcoming illustration mentorship. Jay will explain how and why the mentorship has changed, discuss the new features and guidelines, talk about getting ready to apply, and share the mentorship schedule. There will be plenty of time for questions as well. If you can’t join us, the webinar will be available to watch on your schedule until the end of the registration period, currently scheduled for January 2-17, 2025.

This is a great first step if you are considering applying. In November, you can attend a webinar with our mentor, Penelope Dullagan, in which she walks you through creating endpapers for picture books. It will be a good way to see how Penny teaches and decide if she is a good fit for you and your illustration goals. 

For more information about the webinar, click here. 

To learn more about the mentorship, click here.

Jay Whistler is the current Mentorship Coordinator, and the author of two middle-grade books, an adult short story, and a soon-to-be-published YA short story. In a previous life, she was an acquisitions reader for three literary agencies, a submissions reader for several literary journals, and a college writing instructor for 16 years. Though currently on hiatus, she is also a developmental editor for other authors. 

Learn more about Jay here.

 

 

Meet Penelope Dullaghan, the Illustration Mentor for 2025

By Jay Whistler

I’m sure many of you have been wondering about the mentorship, which we usually begin promoting in the spring, with registration in June. Have no fear, the mentorship is still on! But we’ve been working on revamping it, making it even better. While there will be more information on the website soon, here’s the gist: 

• The same one-on-one mentorship we’ve always had

• The same detailed feedback from judges we’ve always had

• A new timeline–the whole thing in the same calendar year

• New perks for the winner and the first- and second-runners up

• Registration begins January 2, 2025

• Winner announced at the end of March, 2025

• Mentorship begins April 1, 2025 and ends November 22, 2025

Penelope Dullaghan

Our 2025 Mentorship will be for illustrators, and our mentor will be Penelope Dullaghan, illustrator of over a dozen picture books, plus middle grade, YA, and adult book covers. If you’re interested in applying for the Mentorship, consider registering for our upcoming Summer Camp intensive with Kaz Windness to help you whip your picture book storyboard into shape! And be sure to check our mentorship website pages often. We’ll be posting new information throughout the summer, including submission instructions, FAQs, registration information, relevant webinars, and the full mentorship schedule. 

Now, meet your mentor!

How did you get started as an illustrator?

I started my career working as an advertising art director. I often hired illustrators to work on campaigns with me, and I loved the creativity and vision they brought to the work! It was then that I realized I’d rather be doing the art than directing the art. So I started doing loads of illustration, built up a portfolio, quit my job, and became a full time illustrator. At the time it felt like a brave (scary!) thing to do. Looking back now, I’m so glad I found the courage to make that leap - I’ve been working as a freelance illustrator now for 20 years and love it.

What do you like best about illustration? What do you like least?

I enjoy the freedom most. I can be selective about the work I take on (ensuring it aligns with my values and schedule), and when I work on it (if I get on a roll, I can work all day long until the energy wanes). I also love the freedom to work from anywhere. The flexibility of being an illustrator really suits me.

The thing I like least is dealing with the contracts and compensation. But luckily I have a rep who handles the bulk of this for me.

Describe a typical day illustrating, or what does a typical day look like versus how you wish it looked?

My day begins early. I like to get up before the sun and practice yoga, meditate, read, journal, and go for a walk to get myself clear. When my mind and body feel spacious, work comes easily, so these practices are a non-negotiable for me. Then I put my devices on focus-mode and get to work on the project at hand. I work until I feel like I’m no longer tapped in and doing my best work, and then I stop. Lastly, I tidy my studio so the next day, everything is in its place and ready to roll when I am. 

How would you describe your illustration style? Your mentoring style?

My style is guided by simplicity, color, and joy. I enjoy getting curious about the magic of the idea and trying to convey that magic visually.

My mentoring style is shaped by the person I’m working with. Everyone is different, so I like to meet people where they are, celebrating what feels good to them, and working with them to improve the parts that feel more difficult. I enjoy looking at all aspects of life and optimizing each one so that clear, strong work is inevitable. I believe everything we do, see, read, and talk about - all of it - shapes what we create.

Which of your books was the most fun to illustrate? Why?

Hmm. This one is tough because I’ve enjoyed all my books! If I had to choose, I think “Thank You, Day” was my very favorite though, because I gave myself strict color parameters and it was fun working within that limitation.

When you’re reading for pleasure, what illustration features typically impress you the most?

I really like illustration that makes me look at the world differently or that opens me up to the magic of everyday life.

What brings you joy?
Everything! The way the sunlight filters through the windows differently in each season. Feeling the warm, sudsy water as I wash the dishes. Breaking a sweat while hiking with my dog. Browsing at the library or a used bookstore with nothing particular in mind, waiting for a new book to introduce itself. Laughing with my teenager. Basically, I feel joy when I’m open to what is actually happening - it feels like a sweet buoyancy in my heart. 

What inspires you?
Walking. Long, solo walks when you can allow your mind to wander - this usually leads to new thoughts and ideas. Also right now, I’m particularly inspired by my family. My teen, Veda, creates constantly - trying stuff, testing new ideas, experimenting with formats and mediums, and working as bravely as I’ve ever seen anyone work. And my writer husband, Colin. He is on top of his game at work, connecting ideas and writing with calm, kindness, and clarity. It really inspires me to be brave, be kind, and be open.

If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

This question is way too hard. I’d like to go everywhere and see all the things!

If you could have dinner with any person throughout history who would it be? What would you discuss?

Another question asking me to narrow down to one… These are tough! I’d love to spend time and talk with so many people - Marcus Aurelius, Thich Nhat Hahn, Rick Rubin, Georgia O’Keefe, Paul Klee, Modigliani, Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King Jr., Buddha, Henry David Thoreau. If I had to choose one person, though, I think I’d most like to have dinner with author, psychotherapist, and Buddhist teacher Sylvia Boorstein. Her words and ways of being have influenced my life so much, and I’d just like to sit with her and listen to her stories and hear her infamous giggle.

How do you feel your mentorship is likely to help an emerging illustrator?
My hope is that I can help an emerging illustrator feel confident in their choices, clear in their vision, and centered in their own work.

Can you tell us about any upcoming projects? (Or, if you want to keep things close to the vest for any reason, perhaps you can share about a project you've always wanted to do or a project you wish you had worked on.)

Right now I’m working with the Indiana State Museum on a project called “Good Night Forest.” It’s all about nocturnal life in the woods. So I get to create a world of stars and moons, creatures with bright, glowing eyes, and delights that will spark a kid’s imagination about what happens after dark! It’s super fun!

 

Jay Whistler (she/her) is the SCBWI-MI Mentorship coordinator. She writes picture books, middle grade, YA, and short stories. She is a rabid fan of the Oxford comma, an avowed grammar nerd, and suffers from tsundoku (but is it really suffering? She thinks not.) You can learn more about Jay here.