I've been writing from the age of...?

Question

...six, and I've always loved reading and writing. I'm always writing short stories wherever I go, my draw in my room is full of them. I've written stories at school and always gotten top marks and I submitted an 8 page story assignment at school for my teacher and she recommended that I should continue it and should get it published; but there wasn't a lot to go on and I know its not that easy. I've been told this by school friends, family etc. I've wanted to be an author all of my life and I'm starting a project now that I project will last over aprox. three books, I'd just like to know:

a. What are the chances of actually getting published considering I'm 14, 15 soon.

b. Does anyone have any advice whilst writing, mental blocks, getting information across etc.

c. are under 18's actually taken seriously in this kind of industry?

I'd be so grateful for your help, if you can help. Even your thoughts, I'm just desprate here. I've written the first chapter, 2770 words, and I'm happy with it so far and the story lines orginal. Even if I don't get it published I'll keep it to look back over for future years but I'd just like to know my chances...

x*x

Answer 1

S.E. Hinton And Christopher Paolini were both under 18 when they started their books. So yea, it can happen.

Answer 2

Yea, I have to do this. in the second sentence, it should be "drawer in my room" ther should be a comma after marks in the 3rd sentence. You should split it up too, it's a little bit long. In the sentence before you begin to list your questions it should be "I predict will last"

Okay, just had to get that off my chest. (:

A. Not good. I wouldn't even try, you should wait until you're older and have had more life experiences as well as become more well read. The vocabulary you learn in your teen years is critical too. I'd say wait until college (or after) until you consider getting a book you've written published. That's not to say don't start until college, just that you should read everything you've written with a more aged eye.

b. Keep in mind your target audience. It's best if it's something your familiar with. I'm gonna guess your audience are teens. If you're doing anything with mystery, or where you're keeping a secret, or even if you're just trying to make things suspenseful, then keep in mind that your reader is at least as smart as you. If you can figure it out easily, chances are they can as well.

Don't let writer's block control you. Write through it. Even if you think it's God awful, keep to it; you can always go back and edit it. If you're having problems getting into the minds of your characters then write something from their point of view, or present them with a small problem to solve and let them have at it.

Write what you want, not what you predict the readers will want. This is your story, not theirs; they can always leave if they don't like it :P Don't fill up your story with unnecessarily large words to sound intelligent. Sometimes the simpler path is the best one. Would you want to flip through a dictionary every other page looking for the definitions of recalcitrant, lascivious, and lethologica, would you?

c. Again, not usually, no. There are those rare gems though. Something about publishing under 18 annoys me though. I just look back at my attempts before then and cringe. Heck, I cringe at some of the attempts I make now (18). :P

Hope that helps

Answer 3

Don't be in such a great hurry to be published at the age of fourteen!  You need a critique of your work to date by an unbiased, objective person who is not a relative, friend, or even a teacher.  Your writing will appear immature to a potential publisher if "it's full of flaws"; that isn't a "style" but rather will demonstrate your lack of education and experience.  With literally millions of Americans of all ages and abilities cherishing the same dream which you have of becoming  published authors, your writing must be unique and polished to stand out from the mediocrity.  You must read voraciously in order to discover how real authors compose and relate their stories so that publishers will actually buy them.  It is necessary, too, that there be a market for what you write, a potential readership.  Why not plan to attend college after high school to study English and to take writing courses?  The per centage of fourteen/fifteen year olds whose writings are published compared to those whose creations are not would be miniscule.  Even accomplished and best-selling authors tell of the numerous rejections which they received before finall success was realized.  If you are prepared eventually with the background credentials, you are far more likely to reap the rewards of publication than you are presently.  You say that writing is your passion; it will become a life-long one, doubtlessly, so just continue to write without subjecting yourself to the stress of expecting to publish before you are actually ready.  Good luck!

Answer 4

They could be taken seriously if you're writing was great. The age doesn't matter, It's the quality

Answer 5

I'm in the same boat with you. Cheers! Your chances are great. What helps me in blocks is really good music, piano, or soundtrack music. Or seeing a new movie, researching, or re-reading parts of the story, or re-reading parts of a really good book. When I'm having trouble in presentation, I tend to write a few drafts on how it's handled, read them, improve them, and see what is your best pick, reading aloud really helps in these parts.

Christopher Paolini is like the flesh and blood of the best example. He wrote it out, and had the first draft done by 15. His family read it, and he improved and made the final draft of Eragon. Yeah, you are right that his family self-published it. They did their own individual publishings of Eragon, and Paolini distributed the copies in local areas. All the while getting great praise. About a year or so later the son of a person who worked a Knopf books picked up the book and fell in love with it. Paolini was then contacted and signed to have Eragon published by Knopf books and Random House.

Hey J.K.Rowling went to numerous publishers before HP was accepted>look how that turned out!

I wish you the best of luck and hope to see your books!

Answer 6

Okay, I skimmed what you posted, and here's my advice:

1. Before worrying about getting published, worry about writing the story. Finish the story before you get any fanciful ideas, be sure you are committed to it.

2. Keep reality in mind. Remember that publishers get hundreds of hopefuls each day, there is a slim chance of being published. Don't take that as saying your story is bad, just to be sure you know what you are facing.

3. Before trying to make it big, start off small. There are many sights on the internet for amateur writers such as yourself. Post your story on these first, they can give you positive feedback and help you with your writing. I myself write and am part of many of these sites. They even offer editing services, and there are other hundreds of writers on these sights willing to read your story and give you constructive critisism.

Here are a few:

http://www.fictionpress.com

http://www.youngwriterssociety.com

http://www.webook.com

I have spent the most time on FictionPress and find it to be very good. I'm new to both the Young Writer's Society and WeBook. But as far as I can tell the Young Writer's Society is very much like FictionPress, and WeBook is a place you can actually be published for free. There is some contest you have to win to be published though (take note I'm not sure about the latter). Also, all these sites have free and easy sign-up, so no worries!

4. Do research. Be sure you know what you're talking about, a good book always has truths in it. I would advice doing research on wolves, for starters.

5. Wait for more experience. Your writing style changes as you grow older. Your vocabulary increases, and you read a thousand more books over the years (remember reading is a building block for writing). I wouldn't try being published just yet. Just wait a while, develop your skills, learn from others, gain critisism from the sites I offered.

6. Work on your grammar. Yes, yes, there are editors for this, but really it is quite important for you to know it too. You had a lot of mistakes, and in order for you to have true sentence flow, those shouldn't be there.

7. For writer's block: do not force out the words during writer's block. It just won't work, your words will come out not nearly as good as they would be on a normal day. It is my experience that forcing out words makes me kind of hate anything I write and end up hating the story. Maybe try writing something else, some other story on your mind, or try reading a book istead.

8. Under 18, well, some are taken seriously. Christopher Paoloni was. He was...I think 17 when he published Eragon.

9. Another thing about publishing your story - you need to gain a little modesty. Just because family and friends say you can be published doesn't mean you can. You say your story is original, but it mightn't be. Doubt yourself a little, it makes you better somehow - just don't lose all self-pride.

Anyway, that's my two cents. Hope I was of help, and wasn't too brusque or anything.

=Jean

Answer 7

Why not try posting some of your work. it would be great for others to read it then give their opinions on whether its publishing material?