Djed Press is created on the colonised lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation. Sovereignty has never been ceded. This land has always been, and always will be, Aboriginal land.

Editorial Mentorship 2021

We’re delighted to announce the inaugural recipient of the Djed Editorial Mentorship program: Jamali Bowden!

Jamali is an Australian-born Afro-Anglo mixed-race queer creative who currently studies writing in Naarm.

“As the child of two mixed parents, we have been constantly alienated from our culture, and much of the way I relate to my Blackness is in reclaiming it through creativity.

Using one’s own voice needn’t always be serious; I think one of the most valuable things that it can do is grant the freedom to be who you are, both silly and serious, thriving and struggling, joyful and mournful. We are not one story.”

Image of a young, mixed race Afro-Anglo young man. He's wearing a black beanie, black top, and glasses. He's smiling and looking directly at the camera.

The Program

The Djed Editorial Mentorship program is a 10-week comprehensive overview of editing and publishing, aimed at training an aspiring editor with little to no experience in the field.

In 2021, all sessions will be held online.

12 Apr: Week 1 – Intro to Djed (approx. 2 contact hours)

19 Apr: Week 2 – Intro to editing  (approx. 5 contact hours)

Editing 101 with Hella Ibrahim

Hella is the founder and Editorial Director of Djed Press, among many many other things.

Editing Ethics Masterclass with Dr. Tresa LeClerc

Tresa is a writer and academic; she teaches in the writing, publishing and editing program at the University of Melbourne, and lectures in pop culture at RMIT.

Accessibility Matters Masterclass with Carly Findlay OAM

Carly is an award-winning writer, speaker and appearance activist. She also works part time as Access and Inclusion Coordinator at Melbourne Fringe. She has a Masters of Communication and Bachelor of eCommerce. Carly identifies as a proud disabled woman. he writes on disability and appearance diversity issues for news outlets including the CNN, ABC, The Age and Sydney Morning Herald, and SBS. 

26 Apr: Week 3 – Editing Intensive 1 (approx. 3 contact hours)

Language foundations with Adolfo Aranjuez

Adolfo has over a decade of experience in publishing and editing; he is the Publications and Content Manager at Melbourne International Film Festival, Publications Editor at Liminal magazine, and Specialist projects producer at Arts Access Victoria.

3 May: Week 4 – Editing Intensive 2 (approx. 3 contact hours)

Editing fiction with Khalid Warsame

Khalid is a prolific writer, editor and arts worker. He previously coordinated and worked with the West Writers Group at Footscray Community Arts Centre and was the Fiction Editor at The Lifted Brow.

10 May: Week 5 – Editing Intensive 3 (approx. 3 contact hours)

Editing non-fiction, Part 1 with Jinghua Qian 

Jinghua is a writer and editor with experience in both literary and news media settings. Ey was head of news at Sixth Tone (an English-language media outlet in Shanghai) and has edited for Djed Press, Peril, Mascara, Hyphenated and Dude magazine, among others.

17 May: Week 6 – Editing Intensive 4 (approx. 3 contact hours)

Editing non-fiction, Part 2 with Jinghua Qian

24 May: Week 7 – Editing Intensive 5 (approx. 3 contact hours)

Editing poetry with Evelyn Araluen

Evelyn is a poet, educator and researcher working with Indigenous literatures at the University of Sydney. She is the Co-Editor of Overland Literary Journal and her work has won the Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers, the Overland Judith Wright Poetry Prize, and a Wheeler Centre Next Chapter Fellowship.

31 May: Week 8 – Commissioning writers, illustrators and other stakeholders with Hella (approx. 2 contact hours)

7 June: Week 9 – Permissions, contracts, copyright, libel and other legal issues with Hella (approx. 4 contact hours)

MEAA and Your Rights At Work with Marisa Wikramanayake

Marisa is a writer, editor and journalist. She works freelance covering science, politics, business, arts and lifestyle news, and edits books for publishers and award-winning authors. In her spare time, she volunteers as a Federal Councillor and delegate for the union MEAA and sits on its Ethics Committee and the National Freelancers Committee. She has also previously sat on WA’s State Literary Board.

14 June: Week 10 – Wrapping up! (approx. 2 contact hours)

Program Features

  • 1-on-1 training with industry professionals
  • Paid, hands-on, practical editing experience
    ($75 payment for each piece edited and published – at least 1 piece in each genre; a minimum of 4 pieces, a maximum of 8 in total)
  • A choice of optional electives, including an overview of education publishing, overview of trade publishing, multilingual editing, journalism and news media, among others.
  • Sponsored professional development opportunities, to the value of up to $750
    (a minimum of 3 professional development activities to be undertaken independently)
  • Cost of any materials required to successfully complete the program covered, to the value of up to $250
  • Access to the industry-standard Macquarie Dictionary online, or a print copy
  • An additional $500 payment upon successful completion of the program, and a formal letter of recommendation
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