Catching up with 2019 Editor-Writer Mentee Samuel Kóláwolé

Last year, our 2019 Adult Fiction Mentee Samuel Kóláwolé embarked on a journey with Editor Amber Oliver. He's learned how one story can give birth to other stories and we are excited to hear from him. Read more about his journey in the program and watch his 60-second questions video below:

1) What surprised you about your writing or yourself during your mentorship?

How many more stories I had in me, how one story can give birth to other stories. How one closed-door can open many other doors   2) On a long day of writing or querying, what sage advice from your Editor-Mentor will be floating around in your mind?    What’s at stake here?   3) Will you share with us what you've been working on? Give us the one-line pitch of your manuscript.   I am back to short stories now after two novel projects. I love writing short stories and I hope to have enough good ones for a collection someday. I also have an idea for a third novel, which is a follow up to the second novel.     4) What's next for you and your writing career?   I’ll be pursuing a doctorate in creative writing in the fall and will hopefully write and publish more. I sold my second novel The Road to Salt Sea to Amistad/HarperCollins in January which I am really excited about. The Editor– Mentorship Program served as a springboard for the sale of the novel and I am forever grateful.