Mentoring
Mentoring
I offer structured and bespoke mentoring for poets and life writers who are serious about developing their craft and building a sustainable practice.
Our work together may focus on form, structure and technique; developing a cohesive body of work; strengthening revision skills; preparing submissions; or assembling and working towards a pamphlet or book. I also support writers with funding applications and career decisions.
Alongside close editorial feedback, I offer prompts, targeted reading, and practical strategies to help you:
build confidence and critical judgement
establish a sustainable writing practice
overcome stuckness and imposter syndrome
develop your voice and artistic direction
work towards meaningful deadlines
My mentoring is rigorous, collaborative, and tailored to your aims.
Ways to Work Together
For Poets and Life Writers
Conversation Session
A 60-minute session to talk through your writing, ideas, or direction.
No advance reading included.
Fee: £65
Feedback Session
A deeper, more focused session built around your writing.
The feedback session includes:
reading of up to 6 poems or 3,000 words in advance
written feedback
60-minute session
Fee: £130
Feedback Session Block (Four Sessions)
Fee: £480
Poetry Mentoring
Intensive Poetry Mentoring (3 months)
For poets developing a pamphlet, preparing submissions, or consolidating a serious practice
A focused, three-month programme designed to deepen craft, sharpen editorial judgement, and build a coherent body of work.
Includes:
Six 60-minute Zoom sessions (fortnightly)
Detailed verbal feedback in sessions
Written in-text comments on up to 10 poems per month
Brief email check-ins between sessions
Optional submission strategy discussion
This programme is designed for writers ready to commit consistent time and attention to their work.
Fee: £1,080
Or three monthly payments of £360
Poetry Manuscript Development (6-12 months)
For poets assembling a first or second collection, preparing for submission to magazines or publishers, or moving towards professional publication
This is sustained, in-depth mentoring for writers working towards a substantial artistic or publication goal. It offers continuity, accountability, and rigorous editorial development.
Includes:
Twelve 60-minute sessions (monthly or fortnightly)
Ongoing manuscript development
Detailed verbal and written feedback (including editorial notes)
Close reading of a full pamphlet or collection draft
Submission strategy and career guidance (residencies, prizes, positioning)
Fee: £2400
Or six payments of £400
Life Writing Mentoring
Life Writing Intensive
(3 months)
For writers working on memoir, personal essays, or autofiction.
A focused programme to help you shape lived experience into structured, well-crafted work.
Includes:
Six sixty-minute sessions (fortnightly)
Detailed verbal feedback in sessions
Written feedback on up to 3,000 words per session
Support with structure, narrative shape, and voice
Brief emails between sessions
This programme is designed for writers ready to commit consistent time and attention to their work.
Fee: £1,080
Or three monthly payments of £360
Life Writing Project Mentoring (6–12 months)
For writers developing a memoir, essay collection, or long-form project.
Twelve 60-minute sessions
Ongoing feedback on drafts
Structural and developmental editing support
Guidance on shaping a full manuscript
Optional discussion of publication pathways
Fee: £2400
Or six payments of £400
Practical Details
Feedback is limited to the agreed number of poems or words per month. Additional work can be booked at my standard hourly rate.
Work must be sent at least five days before each session.
I respond to mentoring emails within three working days.
Sessions cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice are charged in full.
For 3- and 6-month mentoring, I ask for a short application (a small work sample and brief statement of your goals) before confirming a place.
Josephine Lay, poet and author
‘Kate Potts is an excellent editor. Her work on my manuscript was an enlightening process for me. Kate’s deft touches polished my poems and her critique was gentle and sympathetic to my voice. I'm thrilled with the results and would heartily recommend her as an editor or as a mentor for writers at all stages.'
John McCullough, poet and author
‘Kate Potts is a fantastically astute reader whose insightful critical eye and helpful suggestions have frequently been of great benefit to my development as a writer. Highly recommended.'
