2022 Mentor

“I absolutely loved giving back to the community and offering my time and experience to aspiring authors. Ebony and Kailei are so organized and are full of gems and awesome information and I highly recommend this mentorship to aspiring authors and/or illustrators, especially BIPOC creators!”

2024 Mentor

"I'm still in awe of how well-organized PB Rising Stars is, and how supported, empowered and inspired I felt as a mentor. It's more than a mentorship program, it's a community, and I'm truly honored to be a part of it."

2023 Mentor

“Being a mentor for PB Rising Stars was the highlight of my summer in 2023. Working with my mentee and interacting with the larger PB Rising Stars community were both invigorating and fulfilling experiences filled with the joy of creative collaboration and beautiful breakthrough moments. The support, educational opportunities, and structure that Kailei and Ebony provided in the mentorship were all invaluable necessities that allowed me to be the best mentor I could be.”

2022, 2024 Mentor

“Firstly my mentee, Tamara Haq, signed with an agent! That was on the top of my gratitude list for 2022 :) it felt so good to help someone, in my small way, to navigate this big, confusing publishing world. I also learned so much about mentoring and feel more confident teaching now, as compared to before…Last but not least, getting a sneak preview of Ebony’s courses was icing on the cake :)”

2023 Mentor

“Prospective mentees and mentors, are you ready to embark on an incredible voyage that will enhance your creative journey? Then hop on board and apply to PBRisingStars today because this is one opportunity you don't want to miss! What Ebony and Kailei have created is a tightly run ship carefully helmed with kindness, compassion, and clear communication. From the application process to the wrap party, they pour their hearts into every detail so that your experience is as supportive and structured as possible, allowing you to experience maximum artistic growth with minimal stress.”

2023 Mentor

“The PB Rising Stars mentorship is a truly special program that has allowed me to be able to give back to the kidlit community. I grew as a mentor, gained new friends, and forged relationships with an incredible community. Thank you to Ebony and Kailei for this wonderful opportunity and for creating such an empowering program.”

2022 Mentor

“The talented and supportive women (Ebony and Kailei) who run the program, mentors cheering each other on, and talented writers and writer-illustrators who were understanding and eager to jump in and do the work, these are things that really made this program such a great first time mentoring experience for me. But what stands out the most is being able to learn and give back to another creative working towards their dream.”

2022 Mentor

“I cannot speak highly enough about the program that Kailei and Ebony have put together. As a first-time mentor, I felt fully supported and set up for success. I am grateful for the opportunity this program gave me to support a tremendous up-and-coming author while also teaching me so much about myself and my own craft.”

2022 Mentor

“5 Stars for the PB Rising Stars mentorship! This is an incredibly well-run program with support for both mentor and mentee every step of the way. The program is designed to offer flexibility to each pair, allowing participants to tailor mentorship based on the needs of the mentee and the strengths of the mentor. It’s an amazing learning experience for everyone involved.”

2022, 2023 Mentor

"Participating as a mentor was an incredibly fulfilling and gratifying experience. I wanted to share my learnings and experiences in the hopes of growing another creator's work and career. I was so delighted with the collaboration, growth, and creative development of my mentees. It helped me become a better mentor, and I learned so much from my mentees too! Kailei and Ebony are so organized and supportive, and the webinars provided throughout were generous and informative. It was a joy to participate!"

2022 Mentor

“PB Rising Stars mentorship was such an amazing opportunity for me to be able to give back and gain even more than I could have ever imagined…. This mentorship was made possible all because of Kailei's tweet and Ebony's push for it. They are both so talented and will guide you every step of the way whenever needed. So grateful for them. This is great mentorship program. Grateful to have been a part of it!”

2022, 2023 Mentor

“I've had the most incredible experience as a mentor both in #PBRisingStars' 2022 inaugural year and 2023. Each time, my mentees blew me away with their talent, turbo-charged work on multiple manuscripts, and openness to discussing a wide range of considerations and strategy for their publishing pursuits. I also personally gained invaluable perspective and insight while working closely with my mentees, collaborating with fellow mentors, and joining in on the excellent industry-focused webinars Kailei and Ebony integrate into the mentorship program. #PBRisingStars is a one-of-a-kind, career-changing opportunity for mentors and mentees!”

2024 Mentor

"I was honored to be a PBRisingStars mentor this summer, and I’m so glad I applied. What a great way to give back to our #kidlit community and meet new friends as well. Between the professional workshops and summer meet-ups with mentees, the opportunities for growth were varied and motivational. Thank you to founders Ebony and Kailei and all who worked tirelessly to make this program a success. Most of all, cheers to the 2024 mentees. We are so proud of you!"

2023, 2024 Mentor

"Mentors get out of this program everything they put into it and more. It's a joy to participate and I have not found a better way to personally support newer writers and increase the diversity of picture books for young readers."

2024 Mentor

"Being a mentor for the PB Rising Stars has really allowed me to become a better leader as well as a better writer. I was able to share my experiences as an author with my mentee and find ways to enhance manuscript after manuscript. I have learned so much while mentoring and I'm forever grateful for having been chosen for this amazing program. So many new stories have been created over the summer and I'm excited to see what's to come. Thank you PB Rising Stars for this awesome experience!"

2024 Mentor

"I joined PB Rising Stars to give back, as I've been helped by so many others on my author journey. I completed my time as a mentor impressed by all I personally received. Helping my mentee polish her manuscripts and move closer toward realizing her publishing dreams was great. The webinars featuring award-winning authors and illustrators were chock-full of inspiring and useful information. I attended the first in-person meetup for mentees and mentors at ALA in San Diego and felt downright pampered by all the special touches the organizers provided for each PB Rising Stars event. Serving as a PB Rising Stars mentor connected me with new author friends.  I'm proud to be a part of the PB Rising Stars community and grateful to have been selected as a mentor."

2024 Mentor

"PB Rising Star is truly an incredible program. Its organization is top-notch and community-oriented. It goes beyond a mentorship program, as it is a way of becoming part of a family and receiving support outside the literary. I was impressed with Ebony and Kailei's commitment to creating an unforgettable experience for mentors and mentees alike. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be part of this family!"

2024 Mentor

"Being a mentor for PB Rising Stars 2024 Mentorship program has been the perfect opportunity of giving back to the writing community by sharing my time and the experience I've gained through my journey to publication. It's been a very rewarding experience that I won't forget. During the summer, we not only worked on my mentee's manuscript, but we also established a two way support and learning relationship through discussions about different topics regarding publishing. 

I appreciate my mentee's trust in me, her hard work, curiosity, and willingness to do her best and to be open to feedback. By working with her she also taught me a lot about my craft, my writing, and about myself. I'm so proud of the growth I've noticed in both of us as a result of working together. Being her mentor has been an honor and I can't wait to see how far my friend will go. 

I also want to mention just how much I value the support I received from Kailei and Ebony from the first day to the last. The communication was very clear and constant and I always felt like I could reach out to them and they'd be there for me. The access to all the incredibly informative and enlightening webinars for mentees and mentors was an extra benefit that I've valued a lot in the past months.

I'm so grateful I got to be part of this program and I'm happy to belong to the PB Rising Stars Family."

2024 Mentor

"PB Rising Stars truly changed my life. I love how organized the process was in not only receiving submissions but also choosing my mentee, follow-up mentee, and honorable mention. Working with my mentee was a dream come true, and I have made a wonderful friend for life. The community this mentorship program fosters is one of such love and acceptance. And the first-ever gathering at the ALA conference was wonderful! I made so many new friends and was able to meet some of my absolute literary heroes. This program not only taught me how to be a better mentor, but it also taught me how to rhyme through one of the workshops. This was an absolutely amazing experience and one I hope to repeat!"

2024 Mentor

What a hell of a summer! I cannot say enough how wonderful and enriching this experience was. As a first time mentor, I wasn't sure what to expect when I threw my hat in the ring, essentially volunteering to support authors and creators through a phase that I so vividly remember. Being green, unsure, wondering if this was truly my calling, would I ever get published, what and who to talk to, basically: all the whos whats wheres whens and whys!! This was all of us pre-publication. So how could I dare, if given a chance to help, not reach back to help someone else?

That said, I did reach back, and I learned so much, from the PBRS team, the mentees, and the industry. Preparing myself to be the best mentor I could be helped me become a better creator, better listener, and helped me find clarity about some of my own literary choices and challenges. My mentee was amazing and I'm so thrilled I had a chance to be an ear for another creator, even if it was brief. 

Lastly I'll address the elephant in the room - Kailei and Ebony....just WOW!! These are the two most committed women I've met perhaps in my lifetime. To see them create something so pure and authentic, a grassroots effort, simply out of a love for the industry has made me WANT to be better, at all things. I'm convinced that the purest intentions (which is, simply to help others) is why PBRS has been so successful. While I know the mentees were elated to be selected, I'm honored to have been part of something so special, and that they trusted me to do the work. The people I met, discussions I had, sidebars, communions with authors I didn't know, and being present for someone else, has made this the highlight of my literary career. 

So happy to watch PBRS grow, and to call myself an alum!"