Tiffany Turner's Young Author Support Page Welcome to a place to help you become a Young Author!

First of all, if you can pick up a pencil and write, you are already an author. So don't worry about whether you're an author or how to prove you're a good author. You are already one, and with some practice, you can become better. All authors practice writing daily. As long as you write something, and it doesn't have to be fancy. What you did today in school or a dream you had the night before are good places to start.

Where is a place to practice? Well, all writers have their chosen tools. Some like quiet corners with their favorite pen or pencil. A lot use what is called a journal. A journal is a daily writing place for you to store ideas, notes, and inspirations that come to you. Often I do a lot of my journal writing at night, since I have always had trouble getting to sleep at night. Try to pick the best time for you. Just before bed, as soon as you get home from school, after dinner, or even first thing in the morning are great times to get started. Try several to see which is the best time for you.

What to write? Try the first thing that comes to your head. You might have your teacher give you some ideas, or maybe you are lucky enough to do some journal exercises in school. Use those ideas at home too. Also, try out styles you have been working on in school. Or maybe you've found a new genre to explore. Write a mystery, fantasy story, spooky/horror story, or any other ideas. Don't let the blank paper stop you. If you can think of nothing, try writing "I am an author" over and over. Eventually your own thoughts will start adding to the sentence.

Another thing that helps out young authors are writing contests. Try doing a search for young writers contests on the internet. These are great ways to try a new writing style, meet a deadline, and maybe even get some feedback on your writing. You also may even win a prize or recognition. Pay attention to the guidelines and follow them as carefully as possible. A good story can be disqualified if it doesn't follow the contest rules.

To start: Try Highlights for Children They have a My Pages section where they publish pictures and writing by children.

Now your on your way as a young writer! Keep at it everyday and you'll see what stories you can come up with.

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