Teenage Writers?

[Leonidas]

I have the sneaking feeling that I'm among very few teenage writers here, though I was wondering if there were any others that I'm not aware of. I'm about to start my junior year at a private girls' prep school, and I'm torn between excitement and trepidation. This is definitely the hardest year in high school where grades matter the most, and I already know of two tests that are scheduled for the first week back, but I intend to keep writing all throughout the year.

I have a blog devoted to writing this year as a student: A Year of Teenage Writing. Come November, I'll be participating in National Novel Writing Month, where I know I won't be the only teenage author, but are there any others here?

If you aren't a teenager, but still a student, how do you balance your schoolwork and writing?

[sbs_mjc1]

Mike and I are grad students. And frankly the only way we balance work/school/writing is to give up some other activities (ie, writing time instead of TV time, etc).

[Sommer Leigh]

Being a teenager, you're probably not much different than those on here who are also in college trying to juggle school and writing. Good for you!

I'm not a teenager anymore, but my husband is a high school english teacher and I'm constantly amazed and impressed by his students ability to do so much. I don't think they get nearly enough credit for being as busy and involved as they are.

Last week was the release of a book called The DUFF (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) by Kody Keplinger. One, it's one of the most awesome books I've ever read. Two, it's written by a teenager. She's 19 now, but she wrote and sold it as a senior in high school. So awesome. She has a great blog and talks a lot about juggling everything. http://kodymekellkeplinger.blogspot.com/

[otherside89girl]

I'm 20 and a college student. I wrote most of my novel last year, my first year of college, and... basically I just didn't have a social life at all. I didn't have a job either. But I also only spent 2-3 hours every other day writing, so I think I could balance that with school and a job next time. Or school and a social life. We'll see. Good luck, Leonidas. I remember high school as a lot more time consuming than college, so keep making time to write!

[WilliamMJones]

I am a teenager for about two and a half more months. Eh, I'm going to feel so old when I turn twenty.

[Leonidas]

Interesting that there's more college students here than high school students, though I expected as much. I know that I only started to seriously consider writing to be published eventually last year, and that I have a long way to go, but I thought there might have been one or two other writers here who were still teens.

Sommer, I don't normally read YA Contemporary, but that book sounds intriguing and I'm loving that blog so far. Thanks for linking me to it!

Also, yeah, giving up time for other things it about the only way I think anyone gets any writing done. Oddly enough, I get more writing done when I'm busier, so the summer is always a bit of a dry period for me, writing-wise. I'm working to change that, of course, but I'm looking forward to the two hours I allot myself every day during the school year to write as being highly productive. xD

[heyimkt]

Hey! I'm a teenage writer :) Just started college. I hadn't really considered getting published until the beginning of this year. First, I didn't know ANY possible way to do that, and second, I didn't think I could. Then I got my first legit critique partner and was like...whoa, I think I could do this.
I'd written two or three novels (two of them stuck in a drawer now) before I actually thought I could do it. The amazing feedback from my beta gave me the help and confidence I needed. Then, as I read and researched blogs and websites, I understood the industry and how to go about finding an agent. That's when I truly thought I was ready.
So the MS I started in January (kinda forgot about again until April) got picked up again and I finished it in July. During that time, I decided I would query in fall (why not?). There's my journey :) Don't freak about junior year. Yeah, it's way important, but it was also one of the best years for me. If you're interested in more of my querying/writing journey, check out my blog. Good luck!!

[Aimée]

Hey, I'm just starting college. I'm 18, but I've been writing forever, even before I was a teenager. In high school, I didn't really need to balance schoolwork and writing that much. My schoolwork was super easy. But now that I'm starting college, it'll be a little tougher. But I'm sure it's no different than people who work full time jobs.

[Matt in the Hat]

I'm 18, so I guess I'm still technically a teenager. At least I consider myself one enough to post in this topic haha.

Junior year is definitely the hardest, so make sure that you stay on top of everything in school. I slipped up a lot junior year, and looking back I really should have handled it better and been more focused - practically failing math throughout the year wasn't enough of a wake up call I guess haha. But I was really stupid about it, and as long as you stay focused and put your school work first you'll be all good. It was definitly the most fun year I had during high school too though, so make sure you enjoy it and good luck.

I'm kind of in a similar situation now with my writing. Like I got much more into it this summer than I ever had, to the point where I now have my first WIP I guess. But I leave for college on Friday, and my classes begin on Monday morning. So I'm going to have to learn to juggle my school work and my writing soon.

[jkmcdonnell]

I am a teenager for about two and a half more months. Eh, I'm going to feel so old when I turn twenty.

You have no idea. I almost had a quarter- (fifth-?) life crisis in March.

[sierramcconnell]

Well, I'll be 29 in September but I was a teenager once! XD

Does that count at all? ; . ;

Okay fine... [saunters off toward the old people]

[Los Doyers]

I turned 20 back in June (damn I feel old), but I've been reading Nathan's blog since I was a junior in high school. I attend college full-time, work retail part-time, and am a Dodger's fan all the time, so my only chance to actually sit down and write is late at night. Not that I don't get writing done during the day: my friends and coworkers think my thumbs are glued to my phone texting, but I'm really jotting down random scenes or fleshing out characters.

[midenianscholar]

I'm still a teenager till October, so... *raises hand*

I started seriously writing in highschool, and finished my first ms the summer before starting college. I edited the ms over freshman year, while also writing a second ms (unrelated to the first one). I'm a bit unusual, because I write pretty fast. When I am going strong, I average at 1,000 words per thirty minutes. What I found was that if I just gave myself twenty minutes to write every day, I could progress my novel without having to set aside hours. Writing can be tough to fit in sometimes, particularly since I work full time over the summer and part time during the semester, but if I stay on top of my school work I don't have a big problem, and I'm not much of a socialite anyway.

I will say NaNoWriMo is awesome at college, because you can find friends to do it with you. Last year I got into a word war with a friend, where we were neck and neck at our word count for a few days, and we'd yell at each other from across the dining hall. "You and your 200 words! I'll get you when I finish economics homework tonight!" That sort of thing. ... We had no shame. And the rivalry made for some great (and fast!) writing.

[Inheritance]

Haha--word wars...
I'm a teenage writer. I set aside a lot of time this summer (whatever it took to get 1000 words or 4 handwritten pages) to write, but failed half the time at meeting my goal. I still felt successful when I wrote every day. I've gotten one MS so far and am working on draft #2 (or three or four or something) of it.

Never forget the amazing Steph Bowe (http://heyteenager.blogspot.com/) who was on TV this week(!). 16 and published.

[Melyn]

I'm also a teenage writer. (Well, I turn 13 in November, so almost-teenage.) I'm also inspired by Steph Bowe and Kody Keplinger. :) And I blog. This NaNo will be my second, and I'm very excited. Right now I'm working on my third novel.