MENTORSHIP
Each year, Books That Help run a free mentoring opportunity for aspiring writers writing books with important and powerful messages.
The mentorship is run in conjunction with Little Tiger Press.
MEET THE TEAM
Perry Emerson
(Senior Editor at Little Tiger Press)
Clare Helen Welsh
(Founder of Books That Help)
‘BOOKS THAT HELP’ MENTORSHIP 2025-2026
This year’s Books That Help mentee is Emma Hulin!
At the start of 2026, Senior Editor at Little Tiger Press, Perry Emerson, joined Books That Help founder, Clare Helen Welsh, to whittle down almost 100 mentorship submissions to one winner and two highly commended.
The Books That Help mentorship is awarded each year to one writer with a picture book that aims to support readers through life’s up and downs. The selected writer benefits from editorial feedback from Emerson and a series of virtual mentorship sessions with Welsh.
The winning manuscript is ‘Was it you, CapyBarbara?’ by Emma Hulin.
Emma has been a primary school teacher for 18 years and has an MA with Distinction in Early Years Education. Her text ‘Was it you, CapyBarbara?’ features a main character who is worried about transition to the BIG toilet. CapyBarbara’s friends help her to overcome her fear… so she can stop leaving surprises everywhere!
Perry said, “It’s always a real joy to help Clare assess the submissions for her Books That Help mentorship. This year, the standard of writing and the quality of ideas was exceptionally high across the board, and so it was a real challenge to whittle the stories down to a list of only three!
Huge congratulations to Emma for winning the competition. Her story demonstrated excellent understanding of picture book writing and a keen awareness of what children, and their parents, are looking for in the books they read. I feel confident that, with Clare’s expert guidance, Emma will be able to elevate this story even further over the course of the mentorship.”
Clare said, “Emma’s submission was fun with an important message – what a great combination. It stood out to me right from the start. I am confident that with Perry’s feedback, Emma will be able to strengthen the humour, whilst retaining the important takeaway, and I can’t wait to get started!”
This is what Emma had to say about winning the mentorship; “I was over the moon when I received the news from Clare. I have long been a huge admirer of her picture books and regularly use the ‘Books That Help’ website. As a teacher and parent, it is truly a gift to have access to quality recommendations for books that help. I am excited to start the mentorship and feel so grateful for the opportunity to learn from Clare and receive editorial feedback from Perry.”
The two highly commended texts were Dance, Deepa, Dance by Sheena Garg and The Best Pirate in the World by Tara Potter. Perry added; “Congratulations also to our two runners up, Sheena and Tara, whose stories both showcased incredible picture book writing talent. I truly believe that all three shortlisted writers show remarkable promise for a sparkling future in picture books.”
The Books That Help team would like to thank everyone who applied. We hope to run the mentorship again in the future but in the meantime, you can find a range of outstanding picture books reviewed by category on the Books That Help site : www.booksthathelp.co.uk and on our Instagram page.
THE ‘BOOKS THAT HELP’ MENTEE 2025 -2026 IS EMMA HULIN
Emma has been a primary school teacher for 18 years and has an MA with Distinction in Early Years Education. As a teacher she has always been captivated by picture books and understands the incredible joy they bring. She also knows that they can be a powerful tool to support learning.
Emma has spent the last 4 years developing her skills as a picture book writer and dreams of one day sharing her stories with as many children as possible. Her story explores the experience of a child / animal who has anxiety about using ‘the big toilet’. She hopes it will help to address a common fear for young children and give them the confidence to tackle this important life skill.
The two highly commended texts were Dance, Deepa, Dance by Sheena Garg and The Best Pirate in the World by Tara Potter.
The Books That Help team would like to thank everyone who applied. We hope to run the mentorship again in the future!
Sheena Garg
Tara Potter
‘BOOKS THAT HELP’ MENTEE 2024 - 2025: Abigail Kikuchi
Abigail Kikuchi writes stories inspired by the big feelings that both childhood and motherhood bring. She is based in Hertfordshire and works as an art gallery project manager.
“I am thrilled to be the Books That Help winner. Clare is an incredible writer and I am extremely passionate about the power of books to help children (and adults) deal with the many challenges life throws at us. My story ‘William Won’t Eat’ explores the sometimes difficult feelings food can evoke for young children, with a particular focus on allergies. I feel very lucky to be given this opportunity by Clare and Little Tiger Press and can’t wait to get to work under Clare’s mentorship.”
‘BOOKS THAT HELP’ MENTEE 2023 - 2024: Flora Cruft
“Writing is often a solitary journey, full of twists and turns that only those on the same path can understand. I had no idea, when I entered the Books That Help Little Tiger Mentorship competition, how beneficial working with Clare in a mentorship would be, not just for my writing but for my sense of self, and my resilience as a writer.
It can feel vulnerable and exposing to express ourselves through any act of creation. Entering writing competitions means taking a leap of faith into the unknown. I was incredibly lucky that Little Tiger Press editor and judge of Books that Help, Perry Emerson, saw the potential in my submission and I won the competition.”
‘BOOKS THAT HELP’ MENTEE 2022 - 2023: Lucy Falkner
“What an opportunity the Books That Help mentorship has been! I have learnt a huge amount about the craft of picture book writing over the last six months and my stories have benefited enormously from Clare's tailored teaching and detailed critiques. To be guided by someone with such brilliant knowledge of the picture book market has been very helpful and I am now in a position to send my first submission package, something that felt a long way off at the beginning of this mentorship!
I am also hugely grateful to have had such helpful feedback on my writing from Perry Emerson at Little Tiger, who has been very generous with his time. I am sad that the mentorship has come to an end but am delighted with the progress I have made under Clare's expert guidance and feel prepared for my next steps.
Thank you to Clare and Little Tiger for a wonderful experience!”