MENTOR:
Viktoria Dahill (she/her)
CATEGORY:
Adult
SUB GENRES:
Contemporary, Rom Com, Historical, Romantic Suspense, Fiction with strong romantic elements
SOCIAL MEDIA:
BIO:
Born in a small suburb outside of Boston, Viktoria Dahill now lives in the UK. Honing her writing skills through an MA and career in development for charities, Viktoria writes a mean (self-professed) grovel and is probably the only person in the world who enjoys the third act conflict. When she’s not writing men who are ready to beg, she’s working somewhere out in a field.
In terms of the writing, Viktoria writes across forms and has been mentored in poetry, short fiction, and novel writing. She has been long and shortlisted for several UK literary prizes and regularly tells herself she’ll write every day, but never does.
When she’s not writing or working (or worrying), she enjoys running, reading, and being easily distracted by tractors. With each race she runs, she wonders if she should write a sports romance about amateur runners – but then farmers exist, so that idea is quickly side-tracked.
MSWL:
So writing this MSWL was super difficult because I am one of those people who doesn’t know what I want until you give it to me. It’s like a ‘what do you want to eat?’ question. I’ll try anything once and don’t usually read for tropes. With this in mind, PLEASE send me:
- Competency porn (does your love interest or main character do something super niche and teach the other person about it? That’s some 10/10 content that I wanna see in my inbox)
- High stakes
- Regency settings (Or modern gentrified society, especially if there is a class difference or fish-out-of-water situation going on. I’m a fly-on-the-wall type of girl).
- A healthy dose of cringe, especially if it’s in place during a misunderstanding trope. I’m here for the cringe. Cringe people have great sex so . . .
- Any heat is all good with me. I do love a slow burn and I’m a bit shy when it comes to watching any TV with nudity in it, but I’m as passionate about high heat books as closed door/fade to black.
- I don’t shy away from medical procedures or violence on-page nor do I mind traumatic backstory, but I’m partial to a kind love interest.
- Stories with strong romantic elements that wouldn’t otherwise fit snugly into genre romance. Show me the obsession and the longing for years.
- I’m always open to underrepresented voices, working-class writers, BIPOC, and LGBTQI+
Super specific things that I’d freak out if you sent them to me:
- Veterinary or animal-related careers
- If your love interest is anything like Louis Theroux, Alan Rickman, Colin Firth, or Benedict Cumberbatch (in their many character iterations). I want banter but also make him/her/them polite, please lol.
- A romance about runners! I’ve always wanted to write one but I honestly don’t have the gall.
- Plus sized/tall love interests. Chubby men and tall women are specifically things I’d love to see.
Some of my favourite books/authors include: Anything by Lisa Kelypas, Nora Roberts, or Eloisa James. Rosie Walsh. Lisa Jewell (when she used to write romances though some of her thriller men are also licks lips). Beth O’Leary (especially The Road Trip). The Rosie Project Series. All Creatures Great and Small. The Codes of Love by Hannah Persuade. Unsticky by Sarra Manning (This book is everything I’ve ever wanted. I buy this book for people for Christmas every year. If you can comp this book I WANNA SEE!). Reputation by Lex Croucher. Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuinston.
Books that are hugely centred around romance but aren’t genre rom: Anything by Sally Rooney or Naoise Dolan. All He Ever Wanted by Anita Shreve. Good Intentions by Kasim Ali. I’m a Fan by Sheena Patel. Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors.
Keep in mind that I’ve listed things that came to me immediately over a brainstorming session, so if you’re unsure about whether to send something to me, please ask! I’m pretty accessible on the bird app and/or just try me.
I’m not the best fit for (meaning I don’t read enough of these and won’t have an editorial vision for them – sorry): - Paranormal romance - Dark romance - Science Fiction/Fantasy Romance
MENTORING STYLE
For my mentoring style, I’m happy to discuss things like:
- An edit letter (for the big picture/narrative arc)
- Line edits
- Microsoft teams calls (I use this branding of an otherwise ‘zoom’ call bc I have Teams on an unlimited basis, so we don’t have to keep logging on every 40 minutes).
- Playing to the collective strengths of the mentor-mentee partnership. Making decisions on what would work best for the Mentee together.
- We can freestyle in a chat as well, whether that be WhatsApp or Discord. I tend to be this way with my writing group and they probs regret it because I am entirely memes.
My mentoring style will be largely driven by the mentee. I’m experienced in big picture and line editing through my own writing, critique groups, courses, retreats, and my MA. In my own writing life I’m the type of writer who disappears for 7 months and comes back with a first draft – I appreciate a hide-y hole. Having said that, I’m also here for mentees who want to check in regularly and meme in the chat. I’m a super responsive person and open to detailed edits on a specific section or having a brainstorming chat to ask questions about what would drive the project as a whole.
I’m also (and many will call me insane for saying this) a huge fan of the synopsis and have been (kindly) told I’m very good at writing them. So I’m super keen to whip marketing materials for a manuscript into shape and create several drafts of a query letter to hit the trenches right.