Writing Resources for Young Writers

For young writers who are passionate about publishing their work someday, it can sometimes feel pretty overwhelming out there. Whether you're the one looking for guidance or you have a relative or friend who could use some help, here are some resources that might be useful.

Community
One of the amazing things about modern writing is how connected we can all be. Finding other writers who think like you do is one of the best ways to keep yourself motivated, get valuable feedback, and provide encouragement throughout the entire publishing journey. Here are some communities specifically geared toward younger writers:

• Young Writers Online: Although this forum might look pretty basic, it's a great place to post work and get feedback on short stories, novels, poems, and even reports and essays. Certain sections of the forum are only available to those who sign up for an account, which provides for a little more privacy.
• Young Writers Society: If you're between the ages of 13 and 25, the Young Writers Society might be just the online home for you. Members post work for critique, questions about the craft, and valuable tips about writing and publication.
• Absolute Write "Teens Writing for Teens": Fair warning—while the main Absolute Write forums are a fount of valuable information about writing and publishing, they can also be pretty harsh for those who don't have thick skin. Within the forums, however, there are dedicated threads specifically for teens writing YA fiction (the link above goes to the current one, and there are links to previous ones in the first post of the thread). If you're looking to connect with other teen writers who are serious about the craft, this is a great place to find them.

Writing Resources

• Scholastic's Writing With Writers: Pick your favorite type of writing and read inspiring examples, prompts, and tips from real writers in that genre.
• The Story Starter Jr.: Can't decide what to write about? Get a quick, randomly generated story idea here. Don't like the one you get? Just press the button again to generate a new one!
• Grammar Girl: Not sure whether you should have used a semicolon or a dash between those clauses? Grammar Girl is here to help you. She has quick, easy-to-understand explanations for the most tricky grammar, punctuation, and usage questions.
• Pacemaker: This is a great site if you need help staying motivated on your personal or school writing. Input your goal and then create a personalized strategy for getting it done on time.

Publishing Opportunities

• Teen Ink: Between 13 and 19? You can submit your work to this teen website and magazine for publication consideration. They also run contests, host camps and summer programs, and have forums where you can share your work and get feedback and advice.
• Young Adult Review Network (YARN): From their website: "YARN is an award-winning literary journal that publishes outstanding original short fiction, poetry, and essays for Young Adult readers, written by the writers you know and love, as well as fresh new voices...including teens." How cool would it be to have your work published alongside your favorite established YA writers?

Announcement: New Team Members!!!

With great delight, I'd like to introduce you to a couple of fabulous writers who will be joining the Thinking to Inking team: Karen & Mitchell Clayton!

This dynamic mother/son writing duo is here to give us some tips from the inside of the teen world (Mitchell) and what it's like to write with a partner.

So, to get to know them a little better, here is a note from the wonderful Karen Clayton:

I am a stay-at-home-mom of three very active boys.  When I am not scraping cereal off the walls, planning classroom parties, or taxiing kids around town, I enjoy hiking, Tae Kwon Do, scrapbooking, quilting, and of course writing.  I have a BA in Anthropology from Baylor University and have either taught or subbed for grades K through 12, thus I am familiar with kids of all ages. 

Mitchell is a typical teenage boy.  He enjoys Tae Kwon Do, football, hiking, windsurfing, sailing, SUPing, shooting, longboarding, Theatre, and Choir.  Although he prefers sports over the arts, he has won awards for both Theatre and Choir.  He has even been invited to sing at Carnegie Hall.  When he isn’t out being a boy, he likes to apply his expertise into his writing to help bring his characters to life. 

As a family, we enjoy taking trips to National Parks and then writing about them.  Working together is both fun and challenging, but always interesting!  That’s our story.  What’s yours?