Fran Dorricott

OVERVIEW
I’ve had so much support during my writing journey and made some really fantastic friends – and I really want to pay it forward. I feel like I made a lot of small mistakes on the road to publication that I didn’t need to make, including my inability to celebrate a lot of the milestones due to massive imposter syndrome. I’m here to support my mentee in both the physical craft of writing and also in their emotional experience! I want to be both a Cheerleader Mum and an Eat Your Vegetables Mum.

Although I had a lot of support during my quest for publication there was often a distance between myself and my mentors (because often they were mentoring more than one person). A lot of my early meltdowns and my fear of celebrating important moments during my journey could probably have been avoided if I’d had a mentor I was closer with, and who I wasn’t afraid to talk to. So that’s exactly who I’d like to be for you! I’ve been writing novels for half my life, and it’s often a very solitary experience. Sometimes what you need more than all of the how-to guides in the world is just somebody you can message and say “please pull me back from this terrible meltdown I’m about to have because X didn’t work out the way I planned”. But I’m also here for any plot or character issues, big or small.

I’m a bookseller by day, so it goes without saying that I like books. But, honestly, I LOVE books. Like, I eat, sleep and breathe books. I go to work, sell books to customers, come home and read and write them. I love making new writer friends – talking about books, especially my FRIENDS’ books, is one of my favourite things in the world! I’m also really into discovering new favourite things, especially if they’re book related.

I adore dark fiction, anything that verges on the taboo (but which treats it sensitively), and anything queer. I’m definitely more of a fan of creepy than gory, love stories about siblings and female friendships, and bonus points if there are f/f relationships or witches! I’m more than happy to work on fantasy or crime/thriller (or both!) but whatever happens I’ll be looking for a strong hook, even if it needs some unearthing.

My own writing tends to focus on character as much as plot. I love reading character-driven novels with morally complex protagonists, as well as anything gothic, creepy, or a little bit magical. Romance isn’t key, nor is f/f, but I adore both of those things. I wish I’d had a mentor who understood my desire to write books with f/f central relationships, so if you’re looking for somebody to support you through that experience, I’m your gal.

• Fantasy
• Mystery/Thriller
• Historical
• Magical Realism/Fabulism
• #ownvoices
• LGBTQIA
• Urban/Contemporary Fantasy
• Horror

I’m a huge fan of psychological anything. Thrillers, horror, fantasy… You name it! As long as there’s a hint of the gothic fear of the human mind, I’m here for it.

For fantasy, I am not always convinced by urban/contemporary fantasy, but the stuff I love I REALLY love. I’m happy to read books about witches/vampires/fae, especially if there’s a different twist to it (f/f witches and vampires? Yes please!)

For crime I’m not a fan of police procedurals of any kind, and like my crime to have as little police intervention as possible, but otherwise I love anything that’s got a really strong sense of place and atmosphere.

I love morally grey characters and downright villains best of all. I’m a huge fan of enemies to lovers and monster romance (I’m thinking more psychological monster than physical, but my mind can be changed!), and I absolutely adore gothic settings like crumbling old houses or secluded country estates. If you could give me a crime/psychological suspense vibe ADDAMS FAMILY book I’d sell my soul to help you with it. And once again, if there are witches, I’m in. I just really, really love witches.

I WILL PROVIDE:

• Edit Letter (Big Picture developmental feedback)
• Line edit (dropping notes into a Word Document)
• Freestyle in chat

WORKING STYLE
The most important thing I believe about any sort of mentorship is that I want to listen to the kind of feedback and help you want to receive. But having said that, my personality means that I will always be very friendly and approachable and we will work best if we get on well as friends too. This isn’t a prerequisite of course, but if that’s the sort of mentor you want, I’m the one for you! I want to be the kind of mentor you can approach if you need a bit of a pep talk as much as if you’re really struggling with a scene. I’d love to check in semi-regularly using something like discord or slack, but would be more than happy to step back while you edit/redraft if that’s what you needed. I can read whole drafts or individual chapters, but in later stages I should only need to read directly what you’re working on as you work on it.

I’m definitely more of an email/chat girl than a phone call girl though.

In terms of critique, I will read through a complete draft leaving notes in the document with my first impressions (both things I love and things I think need a little work), and then I’ll write an edit letter with a broader-scale structural-focused slant. During this time I will want my mentee to feel comfortable communicating with me about the points I’ve raised so we can work out the best way forward, whether through private discord/slack or regular email.

IDEAL MENTEE
My ideal mentee is somebody who is taking their writing journey seriously, who wants to work on their novel so that it is ready for query or submission and who isn’t afraid of the hard work that it might entail. I might be tough but I’ll always provide a virtual cookie for hard work! They would be willing to listen to feedback, but also willing to discuss with me if they don’t agree (we’re not always right!). Above all, I want my mentee to be enthusiastic and honest with me, both about their goals and about the things they thought they could get away with in their manuscript but which still need work.

SEND ME:

• Psychological thrillers/mysteries with complex protagonists and evocative settings.
• Noir with a feminist slant.
• Dark fantasy, the creepier & more gothic the better!
• f/f or anything LGBTIA+! (I’m a fan of ace/aro). Bonus points if coming out isn’t the focus. (I totally support #ownvoices writers but if you don’t want to openly identify as such, that’s cool too!)
• Horror with a psychological bent, bonus points if it’s a WHY book, not just a who/what book. Like how at the end of The Others you find out WHY Nicole Kidman and her creepy-ass kids are as weird as they are.
• Retellings of any kind, but especially classic novels/myths/legends/fairy tales! Preferably there would be some kind of twist on the original story.
• Historical fantasy (especially eras that are less commonly written about, but also I love Victoriana settings and anything set in America or England). I love southern gothic, the 1920s, the 1950s
• Boarding schools or old houses/country manors.
• WITCHES. (Please, please give me witches. The bloodier and queerer the better.)
• Sisters or female friends. Especially if they’re a bit twisted.

DO NOT SEND ME:

• Sci-fi. If there’s too much tech involved, I’m not here for it.
• Abuse on the page. Nothing too visibly violent please! A bit is fine, but don’t go too far, especially in crime.
• Urban fantasy without witches (I’m really only into contemporary fantasy for the witches).
• Pure romance.
• Young YA (I know there’s a big debate about this, but I’ve got the best vision for books with characters who are probably 15+).
• WWI or WWII stories (I love historical fiction but these war-time periods just don’t do it for me right now).
• Pet deaths.

FAVES
Books:
– Fingersmith – Sarah Waters
– The Binding – Bridget Collins
– Sharp Objects – Gillian Flynn
– Behind Her Eyes – Sarah Pinborough
– Six of Crows – Leigh Bardugo
– One of Us is Lying – Karen McManus
– The Diviners – Libba Bray
– Vicious – V. E. Schwab

TV:
– Charmed (original series, an old favourite)
– Law and Order: SVU
– Pushing Daisies
– The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
– American Horror Story (Murder House, Coven, Apocalypse especially)
– Veronica Mars

Films:
– Practical Magic
– Addams Family Values
– The Craft
– The Others
– The Skeleton Key
– Crimson Peak