Top Tips for New Authors

I often find it hard to know what to do with my writing, but I've learnt some things which I would like to share with you:

1. Try to write every day, but if you can't manage it, don't worry or give up. In my busy home, I'm lucky to get writing time twice a week.

2. Spend a lot of free time planning your story, even just in your head. Think about what the next sentence might be, or how to get to your stories conclusion from it's current point.

3. Talk about your work with family and friends, but don't let them change your idea unless you really think deep down it is a good decision.

4. Before handing work into a publisher or competition, get a friend to edit it. You can get some really helpful tips about your writing. Often when you become so familiar with something, you can't see that you've got a plot hole, or you use the word "very" too much.

5. Join a writers' circle. That way you can get supported, hear other peoples work, hear about new possible publishers, and make some friends who might be good potential editors.

6. Stick to an idea. Even if you get writers' block, keep going. Think it over carefully before you seriously decide to scrap something.

7. Read a lot. It is the way you learn new vocabulary and phrases and just become more familiar all round with words. It is important for any writer, and can also give you some insight into what your target audience like and don't like.

8. Aim high, aspire to do great things with your work, be ambitious. If you don't believe in yourself and your writing, no one will. Have some confidence in yourself. In short don't fear dreams. Even if they don't always come true, they are an important way of pushing you forward. But...

9. Don't build your life around future fame and fortune. It isn't healthy, and you might lose sight of the things that really matter in life. Those things are priceless, and all the money in the world couldn't buy them. Remember that writing might not be your only future career as well. Very few writers can support themselves on the money they earn from their books.

10. Have lots of fun! If your writing is boring you, it's most likely going to bore your readers too. Write about what interests you. Make sure you enjoy reading it. If you do than you have absolutely accomplished something.

Good luck! Next 10 blog posts will go into each of these in more detail.

Bye for now,

Zoe xxx

Entering Competitions

I've just sent off my entry for a Writing Conference Competition. This was a big step for me, as I haven't had a lot of experience in competitions, and I've probably made a thousand mistakes. The whole prospect was daunting really. When you write, or paint, or sing, or act, or play an instrument, you are sticking your neck on the line, hoping you will be liked, but terrified you will be hated. My advice for anyone in a situation like this is to go for it - you've got nothing to lose. It is a great way to get yourself known, you will get useful feedback, and maybe, just maybe, something really amazing will come out of it. Good luck guys! 

Welcome!

Hello, and thank you for clicking on this link and opening this blog! I say I am a young author, but really I'm more of an aspiring writer. My name is Zoe Mitchell, I am 13 years old, and I love writing. My dream is to get my book published, and I'm working hard on achieving this.This blog will be about writing and books - I will talk about my writing, writing conferences, my top tips for aspiring writers (both for children's writers and in general) and  some book reviews and recommendations. I will also talk about getting inspiration. Hopefully in the future I'll get some interviews, but right now I will focus on what I've already said. If you have any ideas for future posts, any tips for me, or whatever, please leave a comment. Bye for now!