Publishers and moviemakers are always on the lookout for their next hit. Who’s to say they won’t find it in someone still in grade school?
Child authors show us that there’s no minimum age requirement to sit at the bestseller’s table. From epic fantasies to dating advice, these young writers have some brilliant ideas to share with the world.
The Youngest Child Authors in History
Here are some of the youngest child authors in history and their bestselling works.
1. Christopher Paolini
Having finished high school at just 15 years old, Christopher proceeded to write his first novel, Eragon. He was 18 when his parents’ company published the book. One year later, when a larger publisher Knopf republished the book, it soared to the New York Times bestseller list. Christopher then wrote three more books in the series, which spurred a film adaptation in 2006.
2. Anne Frank
Anne Frank’s diary detailed her harrowing experiences of hiding with her family from Nazis before being sent to a concentration camp. Her story has impacted more generations than perhaps any other book penned by a child. The book was published two years after she died of typhus, still in a concentration camp, when she was 15.
Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl has been translated into over 60 languages and is a mainstay in many literary curricula across the world.
3. Mattie Stepanek
Mattie Stepanek was a boy who had a rare muscular dystrophy but managed to become a New York Times bestselling author of five books of poetry. He was also a lobbyist and peace advocate for people with disabilities. He passed on in 2004, just short of his 14th birthday.
4. Alexander Pope
The classic writer Alexander Pope was a child genius, known for translating major works and writing epics in his early teenage years. He was 12 years old when he wrote his first major piece entitled Ode on Solitude. When he was 21 years old, he published Pastorals.
5. Alec Greven
When Alec was 9 years old, he watched his male peers getting rejected left and right by cute schoolmates on the playground, and decided to write a book called How to Talk to Girls in 2008. This self-help book was meant to help his friends pick up girls better, and became a New York Times bestseller, with practical tips like skipping the sweatpants and combing your hair!
After his first bestseller, Alec went on to write many other titles, including Rules for School, How to Talk to Dads, and How to Talk to Moms.
6. S.E. Hinton
Always an avid booklover, Susan Eloise Hinton was not content with the books being published for young adults. She was only 15 and still in high school when she started writing The Outsiders.
The book became a bestseller by the time she entered college, and the newfound popularity resulted in an overwhelming sense of pressure that caused a two-year period of writer’s block.
Although she wrote other books, The Outsiders continues to outperform all the others, selling almost 14 million copies.
7. Jyoti and Suresh Guptara
Twins Jyoti and Suresh were 11 years old when they finished writing the first draft of a fantasy novel entitled Conspiracy of Calaspia.
Within six years, the novel had soared to the bestseller list. This inspired them to expand the story into a 2,000-page trilogy, and earned them a spot on Schweizer Illustriete magazine’s “100 Most Important Swiss.”
Kasyna Warszawa: https://kasynopl.com/kasyna-warszawa/8. Daisy Ashford
Daisy Ashford was 4 years old when she wrote her first story, but her most popular work is The Young Visiters, the manuscript she wrote when she was 9! It was published in 1919 and when J.M. Barrie, author of Peter Pan, penned the introduction to her book, many readers believed him to be the author.
9. Dorothy Straight
Four-year-old Dorothy Straight wrote How the World Began as a gift to her grandmother, but her parents saw potential and sought out a publisher for her story. Pantheon Books published it two years later when Dorothy was only 6 years old!
10. Christopher Beale
When Christopher’s mother had him write a story, he spun off a 5-chapter novel entitled This and Last Season’s Excursions, about a boy and his toy animals, all over lunch break! Guinness World Record calls him the youngest child author.
Who Is the Youngest Bestselling Author?
Christopher Paolini was 18 years old when Eragon was published. Although other children have become published authors at younger ages, the Guinness World Records recognizes Paolini as the “youngest author of a bestselling book,” with his book selling more than 33 million copies.
Can a Child Write a Book?
Storytelling comes naturally to children, making them a great source of imaginative stories. If they don’t have the technical skills of actually “writing” yet, they can still create their own stories by dictating them to an adult who can transcribe them.
In terms of publishing, the rise in modern technology has made it easier for anyone of all ages to publish a book. Although children don’t usually get offers from traditional publishers, a child can always self-publish their book with the help of a parent or adult.
Kid Authors
If you haven’t yet read a book written by a child, try out some of the titles listed above. You will likely find yourself pleasantly surprised and challenged by the insights that someone younger can offer.
Or, if you know a youngster trying their hand at writing, give them some encouragement and inspire them with these success stories.
Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- 30 Classic Children’s Picture Books
- How to Write a Children’s Book: Tips on Length, Illustrations, and More
- 15 Best Children’s Books of 2019: Inspiring Reads for Little Ones
- 21 Great Freelance Children’s Book Editors
Yen Cabag is the Blog Writer of TCK Publishing. She is also a homeschooling mom, family coach, and speaker for the Charlotte Mason method, an educational philosophy that places great emphasis on classic literature and the masterpieces in art and music. She has also written several books, both fiction and nonfiction. Her passion is to see the next generation of children become lovers of reading and learning in the midst of short attention spans.
I am 13 and writing many books that dozens of kids love and want me to publish. I just wish I could find a publisher that would distribute my books to multiple companies, give me a decent sum, and not cost thousands of dollars. I am, after all, a teen. I don’t have thousands to spare. My genres are fantasy, historical fiction, action/adventure and real life. I know my books would have a large turnout if they made it into the market based on what those of who are reading my books (ages 6 to 18) say. Many of them wish to publish, too and greatly appreciate books. How can we publish on a budget yet have our books be widely-known?
Thanks for your question! A legitimate, traditional publisher actually won’t charge you anything to publish your books, the trick is just finding the right one. For example, we don’t charge our authors anything, and we happily accept submissions from minors, as long as an adult guardian can sign the contract on their behalf if we choose to publish their book. Then the other key part to your success will be marketing, but that doesn’t have to cost a lot either. We have a post on how to market books with lots of helpful tips :)
Hey , I’m 12 years old and currently working on a plot for a book I’m creating and there’s this thing that keeps bugging me . The illustrations . I don’t know how to hire an artist for it and would like someone to tell me how , thank you. If anyone knows how please reply :)
P.S. my name isn’t Jane River , I’m just worried about privacy . Call me L.A.
Hey L.A, me and my friends are working on a graphic novel and I felt like I was in the same spot too, what I have to tell you though is ask your friends sometimes it turns out that you best friend is an amazing artist. If you can’t find any artistic friends then just look up book artist and a few websites will pop up. If you want a less expensive one I recommend going to one that has less then 10$ an hour, you might be given less experience but you don’t have to pay a lot of money. Also some artist just want to have a percentage of the profit from your book, which I would use because you are still getting money and not really paying it.
I am writing my stuff right now, I just need help publishing my book. Can you give me any tips
Hi Portia, thanks for your comment! Do you know if you want to work with a traditional/large publisher or self-publish?
I think I want traditional/ Large publishing
That’s great! :) What’s your genre? I can share links to lists of publishers or literary agents that you can send your book to
My genre is more of a realistic fiction/fiction/sci-fi it is hard to explain, here is the link to where you can find one of my short stories (one I am writing just for fun) and one that I am writing for a series, https://werdsmith.com/rocketdog/K2NS6Z
Here are some sci-fi publishers you can check out :)
Um is my thing posted
I am writing two scripts right now, “Actors” and “The lost world” both are very different and i plan on finishing them over the summer. All of these comments inspired me to work on those more and start the beginning of my book series that I have been planning to write for a year. I am 11 and a half. Thank you guys for the inspiration!!!
That’s great Portia! I’m so glad you found the other comments inspiring :) Keep up the great work and let us know how it goes! :)
Hi! I am currently 12 years old and In the middle of writing 2 books, my first book I kinda gave up on even though I really like it. I kinda gave up on it because it was about three girls who are sorcerers and go to school for magic and I’m afraid I will be caused of copywrite or something. I’m thinking of just making them some sort of other mystical magic holders but I’m not sure… what should I do?
I feel the same, I have all these ideas for books but I always stop in the middle of writing them. Some times I never finish
Hey Avila , first I love your story plot , it sounds really interesting and entertaining! But dont give up ! I had a story plot idea but it didn’t work out so after some deep research through some books and my imagination , I found out the perfect story plot! It takes time but the last idea you’ll come up with , will turn out the best .
Hi Aviva! Thanks for your comment. Do you mean because it’s similar to the HP series? I think it depends on what you do with the story. You could have a story about 3 sorcerers who go to a school for magic but still make it a completely different story from HP!
Aviva, there are like, ten thousand books with three kids who go to magic schools or are magic including, Map Makers, Harry Potter, and more that I forget the names of! DON’T WORRY. Just write on!
I’m 10 3/4 and I wrote 18 books and am working on three more.
that’s amazing!
By the way I am 12 and a half
That’s AMAZING, Appie! Keep up the great work! :)
Hello, fellow authors!
I am currently working on a book titled, “The Sword and The Star,” in the fantasy/action-adventure genre and I personally think it is going great so far! As a child, I was brimming with ideas (I am 13 now but much more dedicated to writing) and I found it hard to make these ideas reality. Young writers about my age often find it hard to reach the perfection they seek, but as an encouragement, I NEVER thought I would reach page 250 and now I’m past that, with 85,996 words. My original goal was 200. So never give up on dreams, as with time and practice they can become reality. I don’t expect mine to become a “best-seller” or the new “Lord of The Rings”, but someone once told me not to write a book for the sake of money or popularity. Write it for the sake of writing it. You have a story to tell. Sometimes the process is long and hard, but it’s always worth it. You are weaving characters that are real to YOU, events that YOU created, and that’s something to be proud of. Not everyone can.
-Emma
I plan to publish “The Sword and The Star” on Amazon. Any help you can give would be incredibly appreciated.
Wow, thank you so much for sharing those words of advice and encouragement, Emma! I’m sure it’s going inspire a lot of other young writers (and writers of all ages!). And congratulations of your book, that’s so amazing! If you’re going to self-publish, we have a lot of resources on our site to help you. For the technical stuff, I would follow our Kindle self-publishing checklist. As for marketing, we have a list of steps that can help self-published authors get their work to as many readers as possible. Of course, as for the actual writing, I’d highly recommend working with a professional editor or beta readers so you can make sure it’s the best version it can possibly be before publishing. I hope this helps. Best of luck with your book and please keep us updated! :)
The day you sent a comment in, Emma Fain, was the day, I made up in this series I write, it was Magic Horse Day :)
Emma Fain…you probably just inspired a hundred authors when you wrote that comment. Thank you so much for the advice and encouragement! I will read your book when you are done!
Emma Fain, you have inspired me so much!!! I have been struggling to write a book (my goal is 300 pages) and this was exactly what I needed to read right now! I definitely will check your book out btw!
Hi,
My grandson just turned 9 and has written 17 books. He just loves writing! His style is engaging. What should I do/not do? I simply enjoy reading them and talking to him about the stories. The stories are about the animals on his farm. They get into all kinds of mischief and travel to many countries. In the latest, they manage to get rid of bad Russians.
Thanks
Hi Julie, that’s so great that your grandson loves to write! I would definitely encourage him to keep it up (but only if he wants to and really enjoys it). You could check out this list of children’s book publishers as well. Many publishers will publish work by young authors as long as an adult guardian can sign the contract for them. Again, the important thing is that he’s really interested and wants to continue :)
Hi! I’m 10 (almost 11) and I want to be good at poetry. Please give me some feedback for my poem that I made while looking at a rainy day-p.s. it’s called ‘This Very Morning’.
This Very Morning,
I saw the most beautiful thing
a little girl could see.
Sparkling raindrops
Illuminating light
covering the car like a royal gown
Water and light
flying like ribbons
swirling and twirling
around and around.
This Very Morning,
I saw the most beautiful thing
a little girl could see.
Hi Sami, thanks for sharing your lovely poem! I think you’re doing a great job :) Keep practicing and writing about things you see! you can also enter some writing contests :)
Sami, I’m not really a poetry type, but… THAT WAS BEAUTIFUL!!! Like, WOW. Keep it up and you’ll be famous :)
Hi, Im almost 13 and i want to write a romance novel, are there any publishers that will accept teenage authors? :)
Hi Lyric, you may be surprised to know that many publishers accept child/teen authors, as long as an adult guardian can sign the contracts on their behalf. So feel free to reach out to publishers and ask :)
Hi
I am Amelia. I am 7 years old.
I am writing a fantasy book !!!!!!
How many words should a fantasy book have ??????
_ Amelia hill
Hi Amelia, that’s amazing! It really depends on your readers. If you’re writing the book for kids, it can be quite short. If you’re writing it for a general audience, it can be tens of thousands of words long! Best of luck with your book :)
Same here, ten, I suggest going as many as you can. Try to push yourself, who knows? You might surprise yourself!
Hi I’m 11 and thinking of writing a book an idea for this book it’s sort of about me but also a guide to help kids with emotions and problems. Problems like how to deal with friendship and stuff. I have no idea if it would be good to write? Would publishers buy it or however it works(I don’t know how the system works?) Can you tell me if you thinks it’s an interesting book to read?
Hi Lily, I think a book that helps kids is a great idea! You’ll definitely want to focus on how your experience can help others. You can check out a list of nonfiction publishers that might be interested in a book like that :)
So what book would I classify this as? non-fiction or fiction? do you deal with criticism from people who didn’t like your books? does creating a book mean that your kind of famous or not I’m of course writing this book to help people but I was just wondering?
Hi Lily,
I am thinking that this is a very creative idea for a book. Many people can learn from this kind of guide book. My advice to you is to write the book! Ask your teacher/parents for help with the publishing part.
Keep writing!
Ms. D’Souza – Principal
hi- so I’m 14 and I just started writing a horror-themed book and I had a few questions about things… what are the publishing/editing options?
also, my story switches between characters from different times and I would like to give the reader some sort of background on whichever character the chapter is focused on but am having severe writer’s block– any ideas?
sorry to be so scatter-brained my thoughts are EVERYWHERE
if anyone has any ideas i would love to here them, and am open to suggetions
Hi Sophie, congratulations on writing a book, that’s amazing! So for your first question, sounds like you need to decide between traditional or self-publishing. We have a post that compares them here. For introducing your characters, you want to avoid an info-dump. You can reveal a lot of their back story through context or even dialogue. I’ve also seen books that have an index of characters at the front or back with a little paragraph about each of the main characters for reference.
great! thanks! i just have a couple more questions, so with traditional publishing what are the limits on creative freedom? like do i get a say in what the title ends up being and do i have the option to help with the cover?
Hi Sophie, with most traditional publishers, they’ll consider your input and ideas, but they’ll ultimately make the final decision about the title, cover, etc.
hi i am violet and i 11 years old and i am writing a book i am not quite done with it yet but i want to know where i can find a good publisher and who you recommend
Hi Violet, that’s so awesome! What genre is your book? :)
mystery and fantasy
we have some lists of mystery publishers and fantasy publishers you can write to :) I would start with whichever you think your book is more of
Hi, I’m 12 years old and I finished a book, revised it 2 times but still knew that it’s not good enough. I really want free developmental editing from professionals. I have read the blog post about getting your book edited for free posted here on TCK Publishing but it doesn’t really help me. Can you offer advice on it?
Hi Adrian, thanks for your comment! First, I think it’s GREAT that you’ve done the hardest part and written your first draft:) You can look for “beta” readers, who will read early drafts of your book and provide feedback :) we have a post on that here. I hope that helps! best of luck with your book, and please let us know if we can help with anything else!
Hey, this Abinaya. I am too an young author. I published my book ‘Jony and Stories’ when I was just 13 years old. Currently I am working on my second novel.
You can find my book in Amazon, flipkart and notionpress store. Would you please mind me adding in this list??
im 12 years old writing a book inspired by the beast quest series im half way through ! wish me look:)
That’s awesome!! Best of luck with your book, D.P.J.! Let us know if you have any questions about the writing/publishing process or if there’s anything we can help you with :)
Hello, I’m a thirteen year old who is working on a novel. I’m almost done, but I would like to know – where should I send my manuscript? The novel is pretty long, and it’s a fantasy. Thank you!
Do you publish young authors’ stories?
Hi Winter! We actually have a list of fantasy publishers and literary agents you can check out :) congratulations on your book and best of luck!
Hi! I’m twelve years old and working on my first novel. My draft is currently at 3,230 words, and I’m not sure how much farther I have to go to make the book complete. If I do need much more words, can you please give me a few helpful tips on how to lengthen it?
Hi Lucy! May I ask what genre your book is? Most novels are at least 40,000 words, but you can always start with a short story :) To expand your story, I would start by following the basic story structure (including several inciting incidents, a turning point, etc.) and make sure your characters are really developed. That takes some time and space to do well. :) The Snowflake Method could also help!
I was only nine when I published my first book, Fire, Frost, Darkness. I am ten now and about to publish another book, Cats Once Tranquil after I edit it. Both of the books are available on Amazon and my school is going to add the books to their library. What do I have to do to get on this list?
Great work. Add links to your book on Amazon so people can reach more easily :)
https://www.amazon.com/Fire-Frost-Darkness-excerpt-Companion-ebook/dp/B09PZGZWKL/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=fire%2C+frost%2C+darkness&qid=1649211614&sr=8-1
You can just contact me via email.
Hey I have a story and was wondering if you could help me with it. Anything will help so thank you!
Hi Violet! Can you tell me which areas you need help with the most? (plot, characters, setting…)
Aashi Agarwal is 9 years young published author and her first fiction story book ‘The Cauldron of 10 stories by a yet to be 10’ has been released on 14 Feb 2022. The book is available on Amazon, Flipkart and other online stores.
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6899063234389774336/
Can you please list her too?
Thanks for sharing! We’ll check it out :)
It’s so awesome seeing how many young authors there are out there, a lot younger than me and several even PUBLISHED! I’ve been writing for several years now and I still haven’t been able to finish a book or actually found publishers that accept unsolicited material internationally (besides you guys!). Can you guys give me any pointers on what kind of fiction stories you usually accept? Would you accept stories from a teenager? Thanks!
(I’ve actually published several short stories on my personal blog here: https://awritershideout.wordpress.com/ and I also made another blog where my fellow writer friends and I publish our writings: https://inklingsjr.wordpress.com/)
Hi Eliza, we definitely welcome submissions from teens! (You would just need a parent or guardian to sign the contract on your behalf.) You can get a feel for what kind of fiction we accept here. We pretty much publish all the main genres of fiction.
Eliza I read your short story Ethan Jimenez I LOVED IT you are going to succedd someday
I am 10 years old and I want to publish my book about hybrid animals trapped in a cruel zoo. I also have a friend who is writing the book with me.
PLEASE give me advice to make my book into a bestseller!
Hi Avery, that’s so exciting! Are you interested in working with a traditional publisher or self-publishing? In either case, you’ll need a parent or guardian to sign contracts on your behalf. Here’s a list of children’s book publishers you might want to start with.
Hello! I have a young friend at the age of nine and they currently are working on a book with a partner. I was wondering if there could be two authors for one book and if there are any publishers that would like to help achieve this friend’s goal.
Hi Thomas, yes, there can be two authors. What type of book are they writing?
Hi, my name is Al am not a kid, but I want to say that I started writing at the age of 9 or ten. am 34 about to be 35 next Tuesday. I publish my first book in 2013 and about to publish my second book in this year. I would like to say to all the children’s authors. The kids’ author to keep on writing, keep focus, to never quite or listen to the negative of others. You guys have great stories to tell to help other kids, you guys’ uplift many and inspired adults and children alike. Keep on writing. to the ones who made this post I love that there always something positive when a young person writes and becomes a writer. We need more authors out there.
Yours truly,
Al B Venable Jr
Thank you so much for those words of encouragement, Al! You’re absolutely right, and I hope your comment and this post inspire more kids to write :)
Thanks, im on writers block and i needed this
I’m founding director of Charlie’s Port. We publish books that children write or illustrate. This year, we are publishing an anthology of my favorite writing and artwork created by children. There are monthly writing prompts. All child artists and writers should participate! :)
http://www.charliesport.org
http://www.maryclairebranton.com
Thank you for sharing, Mary Claire!
Never mind, my computer was being really laggy and wouldn’t load anything but older comments. It also won’t let me respond to comments easily. I am writing a young adult book set in a futuristic dystopian earth. Sorry for creating a new comment thread.
So for YA the average word counts usually fall between 55,000-80,000, but again, there are no hard rules. And I think it’s definitely ok to include lgbtq characters in YA, these days there are many examples of YA books with such characters so many publishers wouldn’t have a problem.
My first comment was deleted and I don’t know why. The one that was posted right before mine is also gone. I just want to know if publishers accept books from kids/teens with LGBTQ+ characters. I’m wondering if that’s why my comment was deleted or if there was some other reason?
How many words does a chapter book have to be for you to publish it? I’m just wondering because I’m a 13 year old writing what will hopefully be a novel. I currently have over 3,000 words and I’m on chapter two. Also can kids publish books with lgbtq characters?
There aren’t really hard rules about word count, but a lot of it does depend on your genre. Are you writing a book for kids/middle grade or young adults? What is your genre? You might find this post helpful. And yes, you can publish books with lgbtq characters
Hello! My name is Ben Galioto and I am writing a fantasy novel. I hope to be an author and I am 11 years old. I have 18,000 words written. I hope to publish. Do you have any advice?
Of you want you could self publish on gumroad as a ebook. Get your parents to help set up. I have a book on there. Your book is quite long so you could publish it for more mine is 3$Canadian only 1,400 words I just published yesterday. Hope this helps.
-Also young reader and writer
thanks for sharing your tips and experience, Carla!
Hi Ben, thanks for your comment! That’s so great that you’ve started writing at such an early age. Whether you want to self-publish or seek a traditional publisher, I would definitely recommend having others read your work so you can get feedback on your story. You can also check out this list of fantasy publishers. Keep writing, practicing, and having fun!
Hello Kaelyn,
I have been writing for the last 2 years. I am 10 years old and have a collection of multiple short stories. All the short stories are connected.
Can you please guide me how to get my stories published. I do not want to go for self-publishing and I do not have an agent. I checked TCK Publishing does not accept short stories. Are there any publishers/ literary agents who accept short stories?
Thank you!
Hi Garima, thanks for your comment! That’s so great that you started writing at such a young age. If you want to publish short stories, I would check out some of these publications.
hi im ava im 11 yo and im about to publish a ook called the pond in the medow ive been working on it since i was 7 yo its about the changeing life of a girl named lilly she has a singel mom called ma her ma drowns after trying to save lilly from the pond after she sneeks out lilly has to call her pa but he already has a new life with a wife and a 7 yo girl named pearl she has to adapt to her new life in the big appel insted of her old home in missisipi 1904 as she faces on new chalenges in the city . im hopeing it will be a good book when i publish it please check it out :]
That’s wonderful, Ava! Keep up the hard work. I’m sure it will be a great book!
Hi there! I am 13 years old and published my first novella at age 12, but wrote it at 11. It is called Bouquets & Broken Hearts and is available on Amazon. I just recently published my second book, The Sound of My Voice and that is also currently available on Amazon. The author is Kate Guerrero. I am very excited to share messages and inspire other young authors out there to be who they were created to be and to keep chasing their dreams. I love hearing all of these comments about kids who are already writing at such a young age!! Keep writing- I can’t wait to see your names on the bestseller list one day! :)
Thank you so much for sharing, Kate! That’s so awesome. Keep writing, and best of luck with your books! :)
Hi. I’m 12, and I’m trying to write a fantasy book. Can you please explain what are requirements for words and pages, and how exactly would I go about getting published?
Hi M.R., thanks for your comment! The requirements will depend on each publisher’s submission guidelines. Lots of publishers accept work from kids (us included) as long as a parent or guardian can sign the contract on your behalf. You can find our submission guidelines here, or check out these other fantasy publishers. I hope that helps!
Hi.
I’m twelve and I began a draft about a fantasy.
One day, I want to be a bestseller author.
I read many books as inspirations. I read, like one series a week.
Thank you.
That’s great, Rielianna! Keep reading and practicing your writing and you’ll definitely go far :)
Hi!
I enjoy writing.
How do you publish a book if it’s by a kid (I’m eleven)?
~Rebecca McMay
Hi Rebecca! You can publish a book much like an adult would, the only difference being if you sign with a publisher, you’ll need an adult parent or guardian to sign the contract on your behalf. You can also self-publish your stories :) we have a guide on self-publishing here. You can also check out our post on how to become a successful author
I want to become an author but I don’t know how. Any ideas?
Please u can start by using your Talent
Thanks, Wendy! Talent does play into being a writer, but dedication and hard work also pays off :)
Hey there! My best advice is to actually start writing. It doesn’t matter that your work is bad and full of errors at first. But if you don’t practice, you’ll never gain the experience to become a good writer :) Don’t be afraid to ask for criticisms on your writing too. Having someone else’s opinion may give you insights that you’d otherwise miss.
Alvia Lijo six year kid is vivid Bibliophilic also writes small stories and draw pictures like cartoon characters…
How can she become an author??
Hi Bincy! You can actually help her to submit to publishers (many don’t have age restrictions), or self-publish her stories. You can find more info on that here
Start writing of course!
Hello! So I’m writing a book about a ghost! I’m 11 and already have 11,000 words but I have some questions. And could I have ur email so i could give u access to look at my book on google docs? Thanks!
and how do I publish it? How many words do I need it to be? How many pages? How many chapters? btw it’s a novel so.
and how do I find an agent? do u have somebody? thanks
Hey Liv! Thanks for asking :) Publishers usually require a minimum of 40,000 words in a manuscript (this is also our minimum word count). That can change depending on your genre and the publisher though. The number of pages and chapters will depend on how long your novel is. Here’s an article you can read about this.
Finding an agent can be a difficult process and it depends on what genre your book is. If it’s a children’s book, then this article may help. If not, we have other lists of literary agents on the blog. Just type in “literary agents” in the search bar :)
I can’t give you specific answers as it would really depend on what your genre is but I hope the resources I linked here can point you in the right direction. What I do strongly recommend though is to have an adult assist you every step of the way. If someone does want to get you published, it’s likely your parents/guardians who need to sign the contract since you’re underage.
You can also self-publish your book. We have an article here that talks about the pros and cons between traditional and self-publishing. If you do go that route, Kindle’s one of the best platforms to self-publish. We also have an article about that here.
thanks!
hi u can email me if u want and i can read if for you. we can trade manuscripts. ill give u my snap and if that doesnt work we can find a way to connect bc i dont want to give my email out online!
Hello uh I don’t have snap sadly and what do you mean by ” Trade manuscripts?” So will you like help me or…?
pls respond if you got my comment!
yes I responded!
Hi! I’m Tallulah and I’m writing a book but I’m scared to show it to them.
Hi Tallulah! Do you mean to your parents or other people?
I, Nuha Paray, published my first book “Artemis Adventures” very recently at the age of 10. I made the use of KDP Amazon to publish the book. We were also not sure initially, how to publish the book independently. Hopefully it helps other who are looking for options to publish their books first time.
Hi Nuha, congratulations on your book! That’s awesome! If you’re interested in self-publishing, you can check out the differences from traditional publishing in this article. Let us know if you have any questions or if there are any resources we can share!
hi i would like to publish but im scared to ask my parents should i ask them or leave it?
Hi Kat, thanks for your comment! Are you scared they’ll say no?
Hi I’m 12 and writing a 200 page novel. I wonder if anyone knows the best way to get it published and the best way to get it known?
Hi Lucy, that’s so great! you could try to get your book traditionally published, or go with self-publishing. You can check out the pros and cons of each here. You’ll need your parents or guardian to sign a publishing contract. As far as getting it known, you can check out these tips for marketing a book. Let us know if you have any other questions along the way. Best of luck with your book! :)
Thank you so much!
I dunno if I should count, but I write on google docs. I started writing with short stories about ghosts, and I’m 12. Not really young, but I’m not sure if they’re actually good material or not. I do mostly poetry though. Could you take a look and tell me if it’s any good? Also, a small poem about the human mind, and the depths of ingrained depravity.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ghV9zP1RySASFXRL-8Usd_VMbh5AQ2dMSRYJLlJrGHQ/edit?usp=sharing
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MF-UHjK9fwgbYxL5muSRph37v5OA0CGxiWe9dpcw1zw/edit?usp=sharing
Hi Leah!
I looked at your poem and think that you did great. It may feel as if writing especially at a young age isn’t significant, but I promise that there is an audience out there to support you. Look for opportunities for publicity, and make sure to involve your parents or guardians in your writing process. Lastly, please do not share anything you intend to publish like that. People can steal your ideas.
I know you’ll go far!
Hi Leah! I agree with the anonymous comment below, I think you did great! Seek guidance from your parents or guardians as far as what/how to share, and keep up the awesome work.
Hi. I Messaged you on your google drive so we can exchange manuscripts and talk about writing.
Leah!!! You are an AMAZING writer! I loved to repetition in “how to roast marshmallows” when Elizabeth keeps messing up and dropping the marshmallows into the fire. I going to post some of the things that I am writing when I get to a good stopping point!!!
Great work!!!
Hi I’m eight and I really hope to be on this list soon.
Hi CoCo, that’s great! If you love writing and keep it up, I’m sure you will be soon :)
Can I write a chapter book? I am eight years old. (and very curious)
of course! anyone can write if they have inspiration and motivation :)
Hi adults I am 8 years old can I write a book at my age
I think you can write a book at your age! Ask an adult if they’d be willing to help you with figuring out how to get it published or put together!
Sure you can! :)
Hi Sarah, you can definitely write a book! Many publishers work with child authors as long as a parent can sign the contract for them. what kind of book would you like to write? :)
My daughter self-published her first fantasy/adventure novel during the pandemic at the age of 11. The book is called Ruo and it is listed on Amazon. Can you please add her to the list?
Hi! Can I know if you include self published authors because I know a young author who published two 90000 word novels by the time she was 13?
My first daughter, Eni’s first chapter book just got published when she was 9 years old. The book is available on Amazon:
Lena Carls and The Power of Friendship https://www.amazon.com/dp/1631030582/ref=cm_sw_r_wa_apa_glt_fabc_CDTDAQEADG8NRZEG0MTZ
Can we add Julianna Villarreal to this list? She is 10 years old and just published her first book. Learn more about her story here: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/lauravillarreal2_my-daughter-published-her-first-book-this-activity-6787414577857617920-voB_
Hi Laura, thank you for sharing Julianna’s story! I’ll check it out and work on updating this post :)
Master sadhasiv krishna has been punlished his book Pachunte kavithakal, 43 poems, published by Green Books. The youngest poet sadhasiv is 7years old child. His poems was published in the dailys, and his second book will publishing within 2 months.
Hi Namo, thank you for sharing Sadhasiv’s story! I’ll work on updating the post
Kamille Mohler from Little Rock, Arkansas is the next big young author. She was 8 years old when she wrote her first book on bullying. i AM NOT is the name of it and I am her agent. I ask if she could be entered into the conversation of the countries youngest authors. Please email me.
https://www.google.com/search?q=KAMILLE+MOHLER&safe=active&sxsrf=ALeKk01aWscyTg1OjywSFQsOXVsMrrCclg:1613461610277&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjgjo7x9O3uAhUJLs0KHXXCAdYQ_AUoAXoECAMQAw&biw=1366&bih=568
Hi Edmond, thank you for sharing Kamille’s story! I’ll check it out and work on updating the post
Hi I am writing a book called I shaved my eyebrows off and I was wondering if since it is a children’s book it had have illustrations
Hi Rhea, in general, if it’s for young children, it’s ideal to have images.
What if I am not good at drawing then how would I add pics
Hi Rhea, I agree with Portia’s advice below :) also, you don’t have to draw the images by hand, you could create some graphics digitally too.
Also Rhea you could ask a friend that is a good artist to do the drawings for you, that is what I am doing for a graphic novel me and my friends are making. If you are not friends with any artist I would try to hire an artist to do that for you. If you don’t need to pay them and they just get a percentage of the profit from your book that is okay too! Try to find the best deal that works well for you