Teens who write are often unaware of the myriad opportunities available for getting their work published –and in some cases, making money from it. Finding these resources can be quite easy for teens who know where to look for publishers who work with young writers.
Publishing Online
Writing online is a tremendous and open market. Beyond the world of blogs and LiveJournal are paid, professional opportunities to publish work, as long as teen writers know where to look.
TeenInk.com is an online publishing website especially for young teen writers. Since it specializes in teen writing, it provides opportunities to find publishers, read the work of teens and find workshops and writing camps. The print magazine is written almost entirely by teens, with sections of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, reviews, opinion pieces by college students and artwork.
In addition to offering publication through its own website, TeenInk also offers a list of other publishing companies that work with teens. This list is a simple place for teens to start looking for publishing companies to send work to; the list is divided into categories and each link includes a short description.
WEBook.com
WEBook.com is an online publisher with a focused environment for teens to practice working on their craft while being published. The website also offers numerous tools for writers to use, including an activity to help with writer's block, writing contests and a Twitter account for writers to use in order to keep current with the site's updates and writing projects.
Active users of WEBook who contribute high-quality writing and editing have the opportunity to be featured in books published and sold, and to receive royalties. WEBook also offers writer's workshops and tutorials run by members and site staff that help young writers hone their skills and improve the quality of the work they produce on the site and elsewhere.
Writing Contests for Teens
For teens willing to engage in competition, writing contests are available for every genre and type of work. From fiction to personal essays, there are contests running constantly that focus on teen writing. Most contests award some form of publishing as a prize, whether online or in print, and sometimes a monetary award or scholarship is also given. Contests are a simple, practical way for teen writers to get some practice in submitting their writing for consideration, and the benefits of winning a contest are more immediate than waiting to collect royalties.
Self-Publishing for Teens
Although once scorned by large publishing companies and readers alike, self-publication is gaining steam as a trend in the writing industry. For writers who have little luck finding a publisher or who want to have more control over what happens to their writing, self-publishing is an available option.
Lulu.com
Lulu.com is the most prestigious online self-publishing company, and its prices for authors are very reasonable. For new authors, there are often free publication deals offered on Lulu, as well as a free copy of their book once it has been published. Lulu also works with Amazon.com to provide a platform for authors to sell and promote copies of their book and collect royalties.
For teens who feel that attempting to publish with larger companies will not be possible, working with a self-publishing company like Lulu will allow them to retain control over the editing, formatting and writing within their book and make money off of their work as well.
Writing Scams
When considering sending out a piece for publication, there are things of which a young writer should be wary. There are scams floating around that are designed to trick authors into giving away money, their writing or rights to their work. There are also things a teen should take care to do when preparing to send out writing to publishers.
Young writers should beware of contests that require a monetary entry fee; checking the credentials, past winners and legitimacy of these kinds of contests can prevent a financial loss. Companies that offer "contest-winning" writers publication in an anthology for which they have to pay are almost all scams, and should be avoided by serious writers. Although it's nice to see writing in print, it's not worth getting ripped off to do so.
Submitting Teen Writing
Editing writing before submitting it is vital. Giving writing to friends and family to proofread can help writers catch small errors they might have otherwise missed, and those small mistakes can add up very quickly. An extra pair of eyes will make a huge difference in readying a piece for submission.
All publishers have requirements for submitting writing, and these should be followed very carefully to ensure that the work is not discarded because it's missing an element. Most submission packets need to include a SASE (a self-addressed stamped envelope) so that a reply can be sent to the writer, a cover letter that offers a brief description of the writing and lists previous writing awards or publications, and the manuscript itself.
Ensuring that the publisher chosen is willing to work with a young writer, that the publisher is legitimate and that the writing submitted is of high quality will help any teen who wants to get published. Experienced writers know that rejection is guaranteed a significant amount of the time, and it is important for a young writer not to get discouraged if a piece is not published immediately.
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