Mentorships, bursaries and more

Today we announced the beginning of a few new initiatives that we’re very excited about, here at BFS.

Watch the video announcement on Facebook here:

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=807612791308248

Mentorships

We are launching a new mentorship programme! Right now, we are recruiting mentors from around the publishing industry – if you are a writer, editor, publisher, agent, etc and you think you have the time and skills to mentor a new writer, we would love to hear from you. This is a paid role, and there’s a lot of flexibility in shaping how you organise your mentorship. Please apply by completing the form here: https://forms.gle/6Y1WTVGtMYuXyXoA8

It is our intention to build a pool of potential mentors over June and July, and to be in a position to open applications for mentees sometime during August. Mentees will be required to pay towards the cost of the mentorship, but this will be heavily subsidised by the BFS.

Fantasycon Bursary

As well as being one of the friendliest events in the country, Fantasycon is a wonderful opportunity to meet other writers, readers and industry professionals who love Fantasy. Attending events like this can be great for your career and for your happiness levels. This is why the BFS are sponsoring two places at Fantasycon 2024, held in the Queen at Chester hotel, Chester, from 11th-13th October. Two people will receive a ticket to the convention and two nights bed and breakfast in the con hotel, paid for by the Society. The sponsored people will be responsible for their own travel and meals over the weekend. The application will be open until the end of June. Applications will be assessed by the executive committee and places awarded by mid-July. Apply here: https://forms.gle/e5vWmvW9ccyzVcDA7

Pay It Forward

The BFS is committed to supporting underrepresented and disadvantaged writers. As well as the new initiatives outlined above, we already sponsor a place at our annual writing retreat for someone who would otherwise be unable to afford to attend, we provide free spaces at our online workshops, and we are committed to providing free digital memberships for underrepresented writers. All of this takes money – not to mention the fact that we pay writers, workshop leaders and speakers at our events for their time. So we are asking for your help. If you have found benefit from your membership of the society, or from attending Fantasycon or the other events that we run, please consider paying it forward. Whether that’s a donation of £1, £20 to fund a membership for a disadvantaged writer, or enough to fund a place at Fantasycon, every little helps and we will be eternally grateful.

You can make a donation in our shop, here: Donation to British Fantasy Society – The British Fantasy Society. The price is set at £1 but you can change to quantity to suit your budget and there is a section for notes where you can assign your donation to particular programme should you wish to do so.