"National Encourage A Young Writer Day": 11 Authors Share Their Advice
When I was in middle school, I participated in a competitive writing program called Power of the Pen. A nerd to the core – something for which I was never apologetic – I would spend my after-school hours hanging out with my besties and developing my writing chops by engaging in round after round of timed, prompt-based writing.
I knew even then that, at my core, I was a writer. I didn’t write because I wanted to write, I wrote because I needed to write.
And as much as I loved that part of me, it also terrified me. Because, for me at least, writing was an inherently scary process. It was deep and personal and abstract. What I needed then were words of encouragement. I needed someone to tell me that I should keep trying to write, to convince me that my dream of writing in a professional capacity wasn’t so unattainable.
It is for this reason – because so many young writers need these words of encouragement – that National Encourage A Young Writer day exists.
Today, we have asked some of our best author friends to provide these words of motivation. So, all you young aspiring writers, check out their sound advice.
And, most importantly, don’t stop following your passion.
Megan Collins
Author of The Winter Sister, Behind the Red Door, and the forthcoming The Family Plot
Keep going.
It sounds so simple, but it can often be really hard, especially since ALL writers face so much rejection. No matter how many times you hear no, remember to keep fighting for your words and ideas and stories.
Keep writing, keep submitting, keep striving to be better.
There’s so much in the publishing industry and literary world that you can’t control, but you will always have YOUR unique voice, so treasure and develop that as much as you can.
Abby Jimenez
USA Today bestselling author of The Friend Zone, The Happy Ever After Play List, and Life’s Too Short
Writing is for everyone.
If you love it, practice it and you'll get good at it. Then share it with the world.
Molly E. Lee
Author of adult and young-adult fiction, including the Grad Night series and the forthcoming Ember of Night
Keep writing.
Despite the market shifts, despite the rejections, just keep writing. Keep sharpening your craft.
This business is incredibly subjective. One rejection doesn't mean no one will love your work, it just means you have to keep trying. Keep pushing yourself to learn and grow as a writer as you continue to knock on doors until you find the perfect advocate for your work.
And read...everything. Not just in the genre you write. Read as much as you can and learn from those who inspire you.
Hold onto that passion that drives you to write and use it when the climb to publication seems too steep. You can reach the top as long as you put in the work. And when you do what you love, it doesn't feel like work, right?
Also, I've come to find brownies are a great fix for nearly any situation: tough edits, writer's block, rejection letters? Let the chocolate carry that weight for a minute, and then roll up those sleeves and get back to work.
You've got this.
Vanessa Lillie
Amazon bestselling author of Little Voices and For the Best
Writing is a journey, not a destination.
Even when you're published, you are never "there" and that's a good thing. There are always new writing craft skills to learn, new stories to write, and new opportunities to share your work as long as you keep writing.
Christina McDonald
USA Today bestselling author of The Night Olivia Fell, Behind Every Lie, and Do No Harm
Writing isn’t just about motivation, it’s about dedication.
Motivation is your desire to succeed; dedication is your commitment, your willingness to show up day after day to do the work that needs done to actually succeed, no matter what obstacles or rejections stand in your way.
Work hard. Don't give up. Keep writing.
The only way you'll definitely fail is if you give up.
Jonathan Parks-Ramage
Author of the forthcoming novel, Yes, Daddy
Don’t write something just because you think it will be “commercial” or you think that it is what people want to hear.
Write about something that fills you with passion. Write the story that only you can tell. Write something that makes a difference in the world. That is the story that will connect with readers!
Alyssa Schwartz and Jessica Etting
Co-authors of The Lost Causes and the forthcoming Fade Into the Bright
Everything you need is already inside you — small observations, the conversations you overhear, the daydreams you have. Write it ALL down. You never know what may lead to inspiration for a character, a story, a novel.
Lizzie Shane
Golden Heart Award-winning author of A Royal Christmas Wish, The Twelve Dogs of Christmas, and the forthcoming Once Upon a Puppy
The best advice I ever received was to remember that you don't have to be perfect right away.
Every writer you love started out exactly where you are, learning and finding their voice. Every sentence doesn't have to be flawless - just generate that first draft and worry about making it shine later. I still give myself "permission to suck" in my first draft so I don't get bogged down in self-criticism and perfectionism.
Chase your vision to the end, get it down on paper, and you'll probably find during edits that the rough draft isn't nearly as rough as you thought it was.
Kelly Simmons
Author of novels including One More Day, Where She Went, and Not My Boy
Don't be afraid of big things.
Enjoy the short forms, play, experiment. But remember longer pieces — plays, novels, memoirs — are created by just a string of short paragraphs. Paragraphs suddenly turn into pages, pages turn into chapters, scenes.
Jen Williams
Author of novels including the Copper Cat series and the forthcoming A Dark and Secret Place
If you love it, do it.
When I think about what I wish I had been told as a young writer, the first thing that occurs is: if you love it, do it. Write to please yourself, read as much as you humanly can and glean every atom of wisdom from each page.
As a young person I was told that writing was too competitive to be a realistic career… This advice usually comes from well-meaning people, but it is ultimately daft. You have one life – why shouldn’t you pursue the thing you love? Plus, here is the secret truth no one talks about: being a writer isn’t really a choice anyway. Try to do something else and it’ll creep back in at the corners; I went to art college because writing was ‘too competitive’ but four years and a degree later, I still wanted to write books.
So if you love it, do it.
Extra bonus advice: read widely, take notes, ask questions, and don’t give up.
Addie Woolridge
Author of the forthcoming novel, The Checklist
It's okay to feel sad if you receive a rejection or harsh feedback, but don't wallow!
Feel your feels, eat a cookie, then file away the hurtful email and get back to writing.
Publishing my first novel required exponentially more perseverance than I expected. However, seeing someone hold my book for the first time made it all worth it.
If you feel discouraged, trust me, somewhere out there, a reader is waiting to pick up your book, so keep at it!
