3 Reasons why 13-year-olds really shouldn't be concerned about finding a publisher for their novel
I'm blogging late tonight because...well...deadlines screw up my sleep cycles. See, I sort of work by inertia: when I'm at rest, I tend to stay at rest; when I'm in motion, I stay in motion.
So deadlines = weird hours.
And that's the excuse I'm going to use for what will probably sound like a really, really rude post.
I apologize in advance. Seriously, I do. What I'm aiming for is honest and helpful, but at one a.m. that might cross over into rude and I really hope not.
Why risk it then, you might ask.
Well, the reason is this: I am getting A LOT of emails from you guys lately--particularly those of you who would like to be writers someday.
And that's GREAT.
Awesome, even.
But I find it a little upsetting that most of you are writing to find out how, once your book is finished, you can get it published since you're only 13. (or 12 or 14 or... fill in the blank.)
Well, if you guys want my honest opinion, I think you're asking the wrong question. The question isn't "will my book get published even though I'm only 13 (or 12 or 14...)?"
The question should be "how do I write a book good enough to be published?" (That advice, by the way, is available at the FOR WRITERS section of the website.)
The short answer to the "can I be published if I'm only 12" question is yes. There is no minimum age to be a published writer. You just have to have a book worth publishing.
I'd like to take it one step farther, however, (after all, you asked for my honest opinion, remember?) and add that if I were you I'd think long and hard about whether or not you should be published--are you mentally and emotionally ready for the life of a published author.
And that's why I wrote the following: three reasons why 13-year-olds really shouldn't be concerned about getting their novel published.
Note: I didn't say 13-year-olds shouldn't write; I certainly didn't say 13-year-olds shouldn't dream. I'm saying that publishing--the business--isn't probably the best use of a 13-year-old's time.
And here's why:
REASON #1:
Questions like "Once I finish my novel can I get it published if I'm only 13?" always remind me of a great quote by one of the guys who wrote PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN. (There are two of them and, unfortunately, I'm drawing a blank on which one.)
Anyway, this guy was talking about how aspiring screenwriters are always bugging him about where/how he got his agent.
This wise/savvy/uber-successful writer's response?
"Asking a working writer how they got their agent is like going to a Pete Rose baseball camp and asking where he bought his glove."
Do you get the analogy? If not, stop right there, you're not ready to be a published writer.
The point is, of course, that if you're going to play ball like an all-star it's not about gloves--the gloves are just the .... things. There's no magic there, no talent. Nothing that will separate you from the masses.
If you want to be a published writer you don't worry about how to find a publisher.
You worry about how to be a better writer!
There's nothing anywhere that says you have to be X-years-old to be a published writer.
If you wrote a masterpiece at 12, then that masterpiece would probably get published, and not only that but I bet that "12-year-old pens Great American Novel" would probably be the headline in a few national papers. You might even get to go on Oprah, who knows?
But to be really, really honest, the reason most 12-year-old's novels won't get published is because they just aren't good enough.
How do I know this?
Because that's almost always why novels don't get published.
It doesn't matter at all how old the writer is.
REASON #2:
The second part of the question that bothers me is the "when I finish my novel" part.
Guys, listen up:
Getting the idea isn't the hard part.
Talking about the idea with your friends isn't the hard part.
Writing a few pages and letting someone you love read them isn't the hard part.
FINISHING a novel is hard.
PUBLISHING a novel is a whole different kind of hard.
Without a doubt, I recommend dealing with the first before you tackle the second. Otherwise, it's like telling an Olympic gold medalist that you have an idea for a gymnastics routine (you haven't actually performed the routine yet, but you know it'll be good), and you're wondering if the Olympic medalist can tell you what you need to do to make the 2008 Olympic team.
Do you see a problem with that? Do you think maybe mastering the routine--heck, maybe mastering a dozen routines--might leave you better prepared for a chance at gold in Beijing?
REASON #3:
If I had a time machine (which I don't), and I could go back to when I was 12 (which I wouldn't if you paid me), and I could take a copy of LYKY with me, and present to 12-year-old me a book which is "publishable"...would I?
NO. WAY.
12-year-old me is sooooooooooo not ready for this business!
Adult (sort-of), experienced (kind of) me can hardly take this business sometimes.
12-year-old me thought writing a draft of a school assignment once and then reading it over for mistakes was going above-and-beyond.
There's NO WAY 12-year-old me is going to grasp the concept of reading a 250 page manuscript and analyzing every word/sentence/paragraph until you've turned it into a faster-paced 235 page manuscript.
There's NO WAY 12-year-old me who worries endlessly about what the girls in her grade think about her hair is going to be able to handle having THOUSANDS of copies of her book out there and people passing judgment over whether she's a hack or not.
12-year-old me sees only what is happening to her right then--she doesn't have the luxury of being able to look back in time and realize how things turn out.
12-year-old me doesn't know how to hold her tongue and will probably spout her mouth off and make a lot of really important people mad.
And, most importantly, 12-year-old me is just starting to figure out that writing can be fun. I'd like for that to last as long as possible before the business of publishing starts sucking the fun out of one of her favorite hobbies.
So there. Those are three reasons why I don't think teens and pre-teens should be concerned about where/how to publish their novels.
(please note that publishing and writing are two very, very, very different things. If you want to write me and ask "should I spend my time reading and writing?" then my answer would be absolutely. But these questions lately haven't been about writing--they've been about writing FOR MONEY. Which is a whole different deal entirely.)
And, having said that, I'm going to bed!
Nighty night,
-Ally
PS...I almost forgot about...
REASON#4:
Worrying about "publishing" at a young age will take away time when you should be worrying about learning how to write.
It's about priorities, gang. Every minute you spend talking about how you're going to write a book and you're going to be published is a minute you're not writing.
Now is when you're learning how words work.
Now is when you're starting to notice that there are some books that keep you reading way into the night and some you put down and never think of again.
Now is when you start noticing that great characters always seem so real it's as if you really know them.
Now is when you should be reading AND writing as much as you can--which is a BIG job.
And it's a GREAT job.
And there are many, many days when I wish I could trade you guys jobs.
So why do you want to hurry to grow up? Take this time to read and write and enjoy the fun stuff. Why don't you leave worrying about co-op and sell-through and printruns and copyedits and all the not-fun part of publishing for later?
Okay?
So deadlines = weird hours.
And that's the excuse I'm going to use for what will probably sound like a really, really rude post.
I apologize in advance. Seriously, I do. What I'm aiming for is honest and helpful, but at one a.m. that might cross over into rude and I really hope not.
Why risk it then, you might ask.
Well, the reason is this: I am getting A LOT of emails from you guys lately--particularly those of you who would like to be writers someday.
And that's GREAT.
Awesome, even.
But I find it a little upsetting that most of you are writing to find out how, once your book is finished, you can get it published since you're only 13. (or 12 or 14 or... fill in the blank.)
Well, if you guys want my honest opinion, I think you're asking the wrong question. The question isn't "will my book get published even though I'm only 13 (or 12 or 14...)?"
The question should be "how do I write a book good enough to be published?" (That advice, by the way, is available at the FOR WRITERS section of the website.)
The short answer to the "can I be published if I'm only 12" question is yes. There is no minimum age to be a published writer. You just have to have a book worth publishing.
I'd like to take it one step farther, however, (after all, you asked for my honest opinion, remember?) and add that if I were you I'd think long and hard about whether or not you should be published--are you mentally and emotionally ready for the life of a published author.
And that's why I wrote the following: three reasons why 13-year-olds really shouldn't be concerned about getting their novel published.
Note: I didn't say 13-year-olds shouldn't write; I certainly didn't say 13-year-olds shouldn't dream. I'm saying that publishing--the business--isn't probably the best use of a 13-year-old's time.
And here's why:
REASON #1:
Questions like "Once I finish my novel can I get it published if I'm only 13?" always remind me of a great quote by one of the guys who wrote PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN. (There are two of them and, unfortunately, I'm drawing a blank on which one.)
Anyway, this guy was talking about how aspiring screenwriters are always bugging him about where/how he got his agent.
This wise/savvy/uber-successful writer's response?
"Asking a working writer how they got their agent is like going to a Pete Rose baseball camp and asking where he bought his glove."
Do you get the analogy? If not, stop right there, you're not ready to be a published writer.
The point is, of course, that if you're going to play ball like an all-star it's not about gloves--the gloves are just the .... things. There's no magic there, no talent. Nothing that will separate you from the masses.
If you want to be a published writer you don't worry about how to find a publisher.
You worry about how to be a better writer!
There's nothing anywhere that says you have to be X-years-old to be a published writer.
If you wrote a masterpiece at 12, then that masterpiece would probably get published, and not only that but I bet that "12-year-old pens Great American Novel" would probably be the headline in a few national papers. You might even get to go on Oprah, who knows?
But to be really, really honest, the reason most 12-year-old's novels won't get published is because they just aren't good enough.
How do I know this?
Because that's almost always why novels don't get published.
It doesn't matter at all how old the writer is.
REASON #2:
The second part of the question that bothers me is the "when I finish my novel" part.
Guys, listen up:
Getting the idea isn't the hard part.
Talking about the idea with your friends isn't the hard part.
Writing a few pages and letting someone you love read them isn't the hard part.
FINISHING a novel is hard.
PUBLISHING a novel is a whole different kind of hard.
Without a doubt, I recommend dealing with the first before you tackle the second. Otherwise, it's like telling an Olympic gold medalist that you have an idea for a gymnastics routine (you haven't actually performed the routine yet, but you know it'll be good), and you're wondering if the Olympic medalist can tell you what you need to do to make the 2008 Olympic team.
Do you see a problem with that? Do you think maybe mastering the routine--heck, maybe mastering a dozen routines--might leave you better prepared for a chance at gold in Beijing?
REASON #3:
If I had a time machine (which I don't), and I could go back to when I was 12 (which I wouldn't if you paid me), and I could take a copy of LYKY with me, and present to 12-year-old me a book which is "publishable"...would I?
NO. WAY.
12-year-old me is sooooooooooo not ready for this business!
Adult (sort-of), experienced (kind of) me can hardly take this business sometimes.
12-year-old me thought writing a draft of a school assignment once and then reading it over for mistakes was going above-and-beyond.
There's NO WAY 12-year-old me is going to grasp the concept of reading a 250 page manuscript and analyzing every word/sentence/paragraph until you've turned it into a faster-paced 235 page manuscript.
There's NO WAY 12-year-old me who worries endlessly about what the girls in her grade think about her hair is going to be able to handle having THOUSANDS of copies of her book out there and people passing judgment over whether she's a hack or not.
12-year-old me sees only what is happening to her right then--she doesn't have the luxury of being able to look back in time and realize how things turn out.
12-year-old me doesn't know how to hold her tongue and will probably spout her mouth off and make a lot of really important people mad.
And, most importantly, 12-year-old me is just starting to figure out that writing can be fun. I'd like for that to last as long as possible before the business of publishing starts sucking the fun out of one of her favorite hobbies.
So there. Those are three reasons why I don't think teens and pre-teens should be concerned about where/how to publish their novels.
(please note that publishing and writing are two very, very, very different things. If you want to write me and ask "should I spend my time reading and writing?" then my answer would be absolutely. But these questions lately haven't been about writing--they've been about writing FOR MONEY. Which is a whole different deal entirely.)
And, having said that, I'm going to bed!
Nighty night,
-Ally
PS...I almost forgot about...
REASON#4:
Worrying about "publishing" at a young age will take away time when you should be worrying about learning how to write.
It's about priorities, gang. Every minute you spend talking about how you're going to write a book and you're going to be published is a minute you're not writing.
Now is when you're learning how words work.
Now is when you're starting to notice that there are some books that keep you reading way into the night and some you put down and never think of again.
Now is when you start noticing that great characters always seem so real it's as if you really know them.
Now is when you should be reading AND writing as much as you can--which is a BIG job.
And it's a GREAT job.
And there are many, many days when I wish I could trade you guys jobs.
So why do you want to hurry to grow up? Take this time to read and write and enjoy the fun stuff. Why don't you leave worrying about co-op and sell-through and printruns and copyedits and all the not-fun part of publishing for later?
Okay?
posted by Ally Carter at Monday, April 07, 2008
43 Comments:
Hey Ally,
I really like reason #3. It's really good.
-Kat
hey ally,
y wouldnt u want to go back to when u were 12?
I think you make a very good point. I wrote my first "novel" (haha) when I was thirteen, five and a half years ago. I know that thing-scribbled with all sorts of mistakes into an old notebook-will never ever see the light of day! Since then, I've been playing around with different plot ideas and maybe I'll type up one or two pages, but if I'm not feeling it, then I stop. There's no point of torturing myself with characters that I, the writer, don't even feel a connection to. When you're twelve or thirteen or any age, you feel like you're pretty much invincible and that you're the next great american novelist, but you might not be. You may never get published. It's a sad thing to say, but it's true. That doesn't mean you should give up, never give up! I'm never giving up, even though that light at the end of my tunnel dream is dimming, I realize that I don't have to be a writer. I can be anything I want to be in the publishing world, and just because I can't think of a good enough plot that will keep the readers turning the pages and asking for more and more doesn't mean that I'm a failure. Just that I'm not a writer. I could still wake up in the morning with the most amazing plot in my head and I will know everything that happens and it's all just a matter of getting it on paper...
And I'm still hoping that day will come.
-Kim
I am an aspiring writer and my friends and I always say "When I get published..." To tell you the truth, I don't think I'm anywhere NEAR being published. at this point, I write for fun. If, by some chance, I get published on the way, so be it! That would be great! I get where you're going though- some of my friends barely have plots thought out and they already want to know details about being published. I spent a whole week just developing my characters, before I even had a plot (not something I usually do, but I am a character writer!) and my friends are shocked with the way I can take an everyday situation and give them exactly the way eveen minor characters react! I see where you are going with the publishing thing though- it is annoying soemtimes!
hey ally,
thanks for all that. even though you were tired. i might be able to hold off seeing what i can do to get my book published for a while.(even though i have been published twice in two "young authors" books in 5th grade.)
Dear Ally,
I thought a lot about what you said. And I realized I've been pretty dumb. I've been talking to my mom about agents and publishers, thinking about how to go about getting them and how cool it would be if I actually got a book published. But because of me doing all that, I haven't written a lot in a while, and I know to get published I have to deserve to be published.
Which starts with finishing the book.
Thanks a lot Allie. I re-read your tips about being a better writer and they helped. I'm a better writer because of it!
((I got the whole analogy thing though :D))
-Emily
awesome reasons :)
Hey Ally,
I changed my mind, I like #4 the best!
:D
-Kat L. M.
I understand!... I read the book doormat a while ago, and it was written by a teenager. It wasn't a great book, but I thought that if she had held onto it a few more years, the book would have been 20x better.
whoa. that's some very useful advice. if i was a good writer, and wanted to be a writer someday, i would deffinitely listen to you. :) its good that you love your job or else we wouldn't have the GG books to love. xD
I totally understand the reasons. i want to be a writer too- but not tell i'm grown and out of college would i actually have one of my stories published, cause all mine are seriously bad! so i'd wait a couple of years for the experience to grasp me and then i'd try to write the next Harry potter. so that was really spankin advice ms.Carter. Btw- how's the diet church- i mean weight watchers going?
hey ally,
I totally see where ur coming from... yes it's a little rude, but it HAD to be said... I agree so much... Yes I would like to MAYBE be a writer but I know I couldn't handle it NOW... Maybe someday, who knows?
U rock,
Wghoops21
REASON #5:
I wrote a letter to the editor for this newspaper because they ran an article on my school that showed it in a really bad light. For WEEKS afterwards all my friends (and even some of their parents) kept congratulating me. I could barely handle it then - I am NOT good with attention (kind of like a certain Gallagher Girl!)...
Trust me, you DO NOT want to be in that position - I didn't even think it was that great of a letter...
ANNNNNYWAY, good tips. But about the gymnastics (sorry, im a gymnast and i get really agitated about this sort of stuff), it would be more like if a gymnast said "I was thinking of adding a (insert skill here) to my floor routine, and I think it can get me to the 2008 Olympics" if they'd never even tried that skill. They should be trying to nail it, not talking about what could hypothetically happen.
*Artemis*
Ally~
what's the word on GG3?
Love, J
Hey Ally! They are selling LYKY at my school's book fair-it sold out in one day!! I told everyone I know how awesome it is, so I guess the bought a copy to see for themselves!
Thanks ally for the reasons, they are really good.
I need to E-mail this to my dear friend, Elaine. She "wrote" a "novel" and is having a bunch of her friends that read and write alot to edit. Then she has a "distant family member" that owns a publishing company to get it published for her. Sometimes she has too big of a head
Wow!! Awesome reasons. I'm thirteen and I LOVE to read. I could also write but I do NOT see myself of being an author. It's not that I'm bad at writing. It's because I don't want all those pressure. However, I'm still young and I could be wrong. Maybe on the future I'll change my mind and really want to be an author. As for now, I will just enjoy the pleasure of reading.
-Mae
Oh and Ally, I understand how you feel about Reason 1 and 2. I also get irritated just by reading those questions. I mean, you will NEVER know when you're going to finish with all those editing and and stuff. So always take your time.
-Mae
I think there is a really good cliche to sum that whole post up.
Don't count your chickens before they hatch.
You have to write the book before you can be published. And before that, you need an idea that you feel like writing. And before that, you need to know all about basics in story structure and how to do all of those complicated author-y things to even sit down at a computer or desk or whatever to write.
Hmmm. Starting to rethink future.
Maybe I'll save that novel for when I'm, like, 50.
Thanks for the advice. Although I was planning to write after I retire from my (six years from now) career in a professional dance company. I think if you've got an idea, you should write it down, write the opening page or chapters even, then put it away until you forget about it, then reread to see if you still think the idea was ever really that great to begin with. For now, save our writing for when our English teachers assign essays. Wait a bit until we know all we can. Then go out into the world with your idea and hope everyone thinks its as good as you do. Most of us could only hope to be as good as Meg Cabot, J.K. Rowling, and our very own Ally Carter. And James Patterson. And E.D. Baker.
Ok, stopping great author list before this post is twenty miles long.
Thanks again Ally!
*Marina*
Great advice. Not that I am looking to publish a book or anything, but either way, it's still good. :)
I'm with you about not going back to being 12 again. I think it is much harder now than it was when I was 12.
i love reading, but i don't enjoy writing as much. i totally agree with you on all your reasons! keep working on GG3, and i hope you know that we're all rooting you on!
Dear Ally,
I know you are very busy lately what with writing GG3 and keeping up with your website and all, but if you do by some chance end up reading this I would like you to know that I took what you said into great consideration. After thinking it through for awhile I realized that what you had said was true and that as we are teenagers we should be learning to write not focusing on getting our book published. Since I hope to someday be a writer I was wondering if you could give me and other aspiring writers some tools you used to write the GG series. I would also like to comment on how much I love your series and how well you wrote the first two books and how well I am sure you with write the third.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Dana
I never understood y people think they can just type something up, send it to someone, and get it published. It takes more than that. It takes drafts, and more draftes. It takes time, and hard work. When i write "Novels" I spend at least two months finishing the first draft. By the time i'm done, it might have been almost two years! (You can never edit tooo much) And get this ally- i'm twelve. Just turned it too. I get it. I get y ur frustrated. But will u give us a chance?
I totally agree. I've had plenty of my writing published in the newspaper, and my friends are always telling me i should publish one of my many books. Long books. I tell them i don't even want to be a writer, because it's too easy. I'm good at it. I want life to be a challange. But when your as good at it as you are, you don't really have a choice. But you like it and thats all that matters. they gawk, and i have to remind them that i'm eleven. Again.
Ally,
You're really not being fair. I respect your opinion, but maybe they are just excited about their work and the possibilities it could bring. Don't be so hard on them.
Hey Ally!
I really like to read and I like to write... I know i'm not great or anything but it's still kind of fun to think of ideas that I would like to write about. I don't think I would be a professional author or try to publish anything I write because I know that I'm not ready, or maybe ever, for the pressure and attention. I'm pretty shy about things I do well at or something. I think that everyone who reads your recent advice will have to stop and think about all of their "novels" they wrote and want to publish. I think that everyone would like to thank you for the reality check that you gave us. Bye!
Hi Ally,
I personally think you're not giving them the up-lifting spirit most children should recieve when trying to reach their goal or their dream. This post puts them down and makes them BELIEVE that their "12-year-old" stories aren't good enough to be published.
I think you're sending them the wrong message by saying that writing is great and wonderful and fun and that "you could do it" and then telling them that their stories aren't really good enough...
hey ally,
were u 4 real about the george clooney phone call? i cant tell!! tell me if ur joking or not!! please!
I write, but I don't worry about publishing. I think it would be awesome to be published at my age...I'd be, like, world famous. ha.
Although I never intend to get published, I will never, ever give up writing. It's very much a part of who I am.
~ E.A.
PS. I promise this didn't sound rude at all. :)
i must say, i completely agree with you! and im a 15 year old aspiring to be an author. but i totally and completely agree with you. (did i spell completely wrong?) your intallect amazes me!
Thank you for making those points. You are absolutely right. The point isn't to get published but to be the best writer you can possibly be.
Ally,
I can completely understand your point. (And don't worry, you were way shy of the rude line. :)Though I got the analogy, I don't think I will be ready for publishing a novel in a very,
very,
very,
long time. (I'm thirteen. :)
And I have one more point you could add.....when you start to write to publish, you are writing for an audience. Sure, fans, money, and fame are nice, but then you're not writing for you...and that completely stinks. I know I don't want to write about something I wouldn't read...I want my writing and me to....at least mirror each other slightly. Lace my writing with a bit of me. So I guess that is my disertation on reason numero cinco. (Spanglish)
How is the getting to see Stephenie Meyer thing coming along? And the George Clooney thing? Honestly...I'm curious.
Thanks Ally, you rock.♫
Hey Ally. Thanks so much for posting that. I'm 13 right now and I love writing. Sure, I think about getting published and I'll say things like "When I get published, I'll buy myself a horse" or whatever but I know I'm not ready to be published. I refuse to let my parents read my writing, so how would I deal with the world reading it?
Besides that, I haven't completely finished a book yet. I actually only just finished my first rough draft ever. I'm not ready to get published and I know that.
I loved your reasons!
-Harmony
P.S. I linked to this post from my blog :)
ally
i think that was kinda negative to poeple who write and are young and want to get published. and i think you should have written somthing else . maybe something postitive. being twelve and trying to write a manuscript that i want to get published. so i think you should have written more postitive to poeple that are young writers
giuliana
Eh, just a little rude
oh BTW that was from:
Thanx a Million,
Love ay x2,
---Jessi
thank you soo much. i really needed to here this. :D
Hey ally, just wanna say I like ur reasons and I made my own novel correct that my own series!LOL:) Thanx 4 the good advice!Hope u do good on ur book!And by the way I'am only 12!
-Shy
I love your books a lot and I understand your point, but I don't completly agree. I am almost 13, and my mother is really poor, but we have an older computer that I am using to wirte a book. I know it is a long shot, but I understand that if I don't find a way to make some money and quick, I won't be able to have a car, or go to collage. I want to make something of my life and it isn't going to work if I don't come across any money. You might argue that my mother could pull some money together for a car, at the very lest and I could pull out a loan or something for collage, but its not that simple. My mom only makes $800 dollars a month. If 500 of that goes to rent, and the rest goes to food and gas, there is no money left. (my father is not around). I am a stait A student and I know what I want and I know I have enough ambition to get there if I work at it. I am not trying to bost; only to make my points. I agree that it is a lot of pressure, but if I have made it through so many obsticals in my life - much more than anyone should have to go through by the time they are my age - I know I can do this to. Everyone is differnt and I know that you might just laugh at this post, - how stupid a little girl like me is to think I will get published - but I know what I can achive, and I have seen a girl on the today show who was only 13 and had a whole series of novles out, so if she can do it, so can I. I will not give up, and I don't care what anyone thinks.
hey ally!
i just wanted to say this blog was AWSOME. I completely understand.
I am 13 also and even though many of the people i know, including all of my language teachers, insist that i publish my work, I have decided to wait until i'm older. One reason is because most of the time- I can't even finish my novels! it takes so much work. And then whem I re-write them and re-rewrite them, I feel completely empty, well until i let another friend read it and what do you know? they say the same line i've always heard. "You MOST publish. You just...Have it." But i like to keep most of my writing private and i've only published two of my poems. Do you have any advice?
-Howie Macbeth
HEy Ally! I like this blog because you did'nt sugarcoat the fact that trying to write is hard work. You weren't being rude,you were being real. Anyayz jusst please keep writning cuz i LOVE your work peace out!-Lysette
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