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Young Writer Needing Advice
Okay I'm 15/F and am an inspiring writer. I have wanted to become a writer since I was 11. I have writen several stories so far and have a few questions on publishing and stuff.
1. How old do you have to be to publish something?
2. Where can I find a publisher willing publish a book from me? I specialize in horror romance and fantasy so if you have a name of a place. I live in Alberta canada so.
3. Is an editor the same as a publisher?
4. Is there anything else pI really need to know about being a writer? Any advice from writers or publishers is helpful thank you!!!
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Just a note, I have not worked in editing or publishing before. The knowledge I have is from personal research, what I've been told from my University lecturers and from people who are in/have experienced within the industry.
1. Any age.
2. I don't live in Alberta, so I have no idea. But, start by google searching places. Google maps is great too. You can usually just search "publishing houses in Alberta" or something like that and lists will come up. Wiki will usually have a page on the 'big' book publishers near you.
Another idea is to look at books from authors within your genre who have published within Alberta or around you in Canada. Usually on the front/back and spine of the book there will be the publishers logo. There are also details within the first few pages of the book with the publishers details. Look them up and find some contact information. That's probably your best bet. Also, it might help to read some of the books that these companies publish to get an idea of what they expect in your standard of writing.
3. No. There are all different kinds of editors and publishers, and each publishing company might be different. You have junior editors, senior editors, editor assistants (which can be classified as juniors or receptionists), executive or the 'big boss' editors, and possibly more (or less, depending on the size of the company). These are just the manuscript editors, then you have other editors that work on the publishing side, dealing with the presentation of books and images used before the text is published. Editors are like the in-between people that work with the writer and the publisher.
Then you have the many branches of publishing. In book publishing, the editors work with the publishers (who are graphic designers, possibly CEOs or bosses within the company, copyeditors, printers, and probably more). These are the people that work at turning your manuscript (your story) into a thousand glossy-covered books. They also organise things like how to sell it to the right audience, advertisement and things like that.
4. Here are a few tips that people have given me over the years:
- If you want to be a writer, you have to read, read and read some more. No book is completely original, every book is an appropriation of ideas/characters/settings that come from other books and inspirations. Reading as many books as possible expands your knowledge and understanding of writing.
- Write every day. A poet once told me you can't just write when you're inspired, because you'd only write every couple of years. Even when you don't want to, write anyway.
- If you're stuck for ideas, try freewriting. This is where you just write/type as much as you can for 20 minutes or so. You don't stop even for a moment. If you run out of things to say, you just write whatever comes into your mind, like "I can't think of anything to say purple monkey dishwasher". Don't worry about editing either. This technique helps you to think up ideas. If you have the opposite problem where you have TOO many ideas, then freewriting is perfect for this as well! Just keep writing non-stop all your ideas, explain them, talk about characters and your thoughts on what you want to write about.
- The best advice given to me on trying to get published came from a real editor. A LOT of editors used to be (or still are) writers. The editor I met worked in a writer's magazine, and she had previously written a lot of poetry and articles herself. She said to me that if you want to get published, you just have to submit your work and submit it everywhere and anywhere. You know that you were close to being published if your work is returned to you with a lot of feedback.
- Feedback is essential to any writer. You only improve your writing with consistent effort (writing regularly) and with constructive criticism. The best feedback I've ever received in creative writing came from my Year 11 English teacher, and it was just a simple sentence! He said to me, "you go a little overboard with your vocabulary and techniques, you might want to try using them a little subtler." I listened to him and in my end of year exams I got 100% for my creative writing piece. So, any feedback is good and you should really listen to what others have to say.
- This is advice I got from my sister. She told me that wherever you are, and whatever career you want to get into, find mentors. These are people who know their way in the industry and can help you a lot with your work. This is fantastic advice for multiple reasons;
1) Networking. To get yourself published, it's better to know people. It's hard to make it in this kind of industry without knowing people already in it.
2) These people give you POSITIVE FEEDBACK. There is absolutely a difference between someone criticising your work and someone giving you constructive criticism. Don't ever let someone tell you that you can't be a writer, or even let someone make you feel like that. Even if it's an editor/publisher. Sometimes this means that your writing isn't up to a publishing standard yet, but it does not and it will never mean that you can't be a writer. It just means you need to push yourself to better your work and to get your stuff published eventually.
Mentors help you understand where you're missing the mark in your writing and make you feel like you're worth the time. They're amazing people, and you should surround yourself with them.
- A final tip is to get other people to read your work. Preferably teachers, parents or even just some close friends. They have to be people that can give you honest feedback and while it can be a little upsetting sometimes, you have to accept their criticisms of your work.
A little extra word is that in your life, you may feel like you've lost your passion for writing. The best thing I ever did was go to University, and to a University that had creative writing units. They were amazing classes and they've helped me find mentors in all different fields. If you ever feel like you're losing touch with writing, take some classes wherever you can, inside and outside of college. Or even join writing groups.
There are a million tips for writing, but I've just put my favourites that have really helped me along the way.
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1.You can be any age to publish a book.
2. You may want to find yourself a literary agent. It's easier, then finding a publisher yourself.
3. No, a editor deals with the content, and the publisher deals with the printing and financing.
4. Some advice is start young, begin taking classes in high school, then make journalism your major in college. And finally, don't get to stressed, because then you lose focus.
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