Is it possible for an elven yr. old to publish a book?

Question

I've read more books then my mom, I've been homeschooled for five years, I'm skipping sixth grade, and I have already completed my first novel. I only let people read it if they give me criticism. I REALLY WANT TO PUBLISH!

Answer 1

I found this on a quick search of the internet. It has some links to pages and tips to get you started. I would go for it!
http://www.realkids.com/keys.shtml

Answer 2

OK

Criticism time.

You DO NOT under ANY CIRCUMSTANCES put a COMMA before the word AND

I'm skipping sixth grade, and I have already completed

Naughty, naughty!

The COMMA is the most misused and abused thing there is!

I know, I'm a big abuser!

This is going to be obstacle one. The person reading your book with have a Masters degree in English and had worked in the publishing field over 10 or more years.

They will scope out your weakness and can reject a book based upon it taking TOO MUCH WORK to put it into shape.

OR they may assign a co-author to fix it and you get second billing.

So, go back and make sure your writing is CONCISE. Make sure the grammar is correct. The puncutations are correct. The sentences are structured correctly and don't dangle.

THIS IS A HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT

Alright, you may not get this book in print until you are 12 or 13 as it may take that long to PUT IT INTO SHAPE

But when you put it into shape it may sell instantly.

This is homeschooling homework.

It also has to be double spaced 1" margins single sided.

So, go now and get some books on GRAMMAR, PUNCTUATION and SENTENCE structure and play teacher/editor on your own writing and see where you problems are and fix them.

Make a draft so PERFECT it squeeks.

So PERFECT they just send it to the typesetting room as is!

Your best shot is delivering a good story, that is so well written the Editor has little to do to make it better.

Then get a copy of Writer's Digest Marketplace and maybe write a query letter and include coverage (a one paragraph synopsis of the book) and some details and see if they'll let you submit.

Now, you have to take this SERIOUSLY

Do you know what it takes to get a Masters Degree or PH D

A written document called a Thesis or Dissertation.

You pose a question about something in your field.

Then you present the current research and facts.

Then you show how your drew your conclusions.

Then you annotate all your research.

This document is done with an Advisor (basically and Editor) who will make you re-write and change things because they don't buy into it.

When it is DONE it is PERFECT and then THE ENTIRE DEPARTMENT AT THE COLLEGE reviews that document and decides if you merit the award of a degree.

So your writing has to TELL THEM SOMETHING NEW and TELL IT in the best GRAMMAR possible, because they all hold Masters and PH Ds.

So this assignment is real world.

Real world doesn't take "just anything."

Answer 3

If it was possible for Mozart to write music at age five, you it is certainly possible for an eleven year old to write a novel. The fantasy novelist, Christopher Paolini, author of Eragon, was homeschooled and wrote Eragon between the time he was 15 and 19. You're a bit younger than he was, but there isn't anything that should stop you from publishing your work.

The first thing you should do is find a literary agent. This person will probably ready your manuscript and let you know if he or she thinks its marketable. And may make some suggestions for how to tighten it up. But the real reason for having an agent is to have him negotiate the publication with the publisher.

It is possible that the major publishing houses won't be interested. Don't let this discourage you. Paolini had similar difficulties, and he, his family and some other supporters self-published his first book. The difference between having a publisher publish your book and self publishing is that when you self publish, you assume the risk of the book not selling instead of the publisher. There are a lot of companies that help people self-publish.

Please tell us what title to look for when your book comes to Barnes and Noble or Borders

Answer 4

It's not impossible, just know that competition is fierce. It's not easy getting a first novel published, however if it is good the publisher is not going to care if you are 11 or 99.

If you're serious about publishing your work, make sure you edit it to perfection. Have people who are big readers and those with good with grammar/spelling/punctuation read it and give you opinions and suggestions.

When you've got your manuscript perfected, you'll want to find a publisher. Look through the Writer's Market at your library, in the reference section. Check out each publisher's guidelines and stick to them religiously. If your manuscript is 50,000 words, and they ask for 75,000 to 200,000 words, don't send it to that company. If you wrote a fantasy novel, don't send it to a mainstream publisher. If they say send only a query letter first, just send the letter and hold the manuscript. If they ask for the whole manuscript, send it. Format the manuscript exactly as they specify.

You should also read up on how to write a good query letter, and how to format your manuscript-- libraries have loads of books that will give you tips on how to do this.

Beware of vanity presses-- those that ask for money to print your manuscript. These are not to be confused with self-publishing companies, but for that you would need to pay for a certain amount of books to be published and then you would need to market/sell your books yourself.

Most of all, don't get discouraged. If you like to write, even if your first novel never sees print, keep trying. Some people write several books before one is finally accepted. Most writers, even adults, get a lot of rejection in the beginning. You have to learn to roll with those punches. Think of it as a learning experience and keep plugging away at it, you learn from your rejections more than you learn from your successes.

Good luck to you.

Answer 5

If you've wrote a book, for sure go for it! You may want to start out just asking a bookstore if they could give away some free copies to get started. But if Eragon was first published when the guy was 14 (and thats a darn good book!), I don't see why an 11-year-old can't publish :)

Answer 6

Yes, you can publish a book at any age. I believe the youngest publisher was 10 so far. You might want to try query letters to publishers, or goon line and check for publishing companies that accept unsolicited manuscripts. Or if all else fails you could self publish.

Answer 7

Anyone who has the basic ability to read and write can publish a book. The difficult part is marketing a book and getting it sold to the public.

You don't need perfect grammar. (You can hire someone to edit it. The best writers in the world ALL use editors)

You don't need to hope for some publishing house to accept your manuscript. You can self-publish instead for only a few hundred dollars... and have your book available for sale at sites like amazon.com etc.

You don't need a literary agent. (you need sales and marketing)

Write your book. Self-publish it and then go out and sell it. The most difficult part will be the sales part.

info on self-publishing:
http://www2.xlibris.com/pubservices/index.asp

Answer 8

Publishers do no longer care how previous you're or how solid your grades are. They care whether you have written something that ought to cause them to a stack of money. They very seldom think of that approximately books written with the aid of sixteen-3 hundred and sixty 5 days-olds with unfavourable grades, yet do no longer enable advise previous me provide up you attempting. i anticipate you're conscious that publishers require stunning spelling and grammar from authors. If this question is representative of your writing, you would be in a "common job" for particularly some time to come back...

Answer 9

Yes you can publish a novel at 11. It doesn't matter how old you are.

Answer 10

you have nothing to loose you wrote the novel i say you should try to publish. besides how many 11 year olds are writing books. GOOD LUCK!!!

Answer 11

Yup, you can try to get a contract with Random House Publishing company. Check out their website and see what they have to offer.