A Kid and Teenager’s Guide to Getting Published

Whenever I talk to kids and teenagers about writing, there are usually three questions that come up. How long have you been writing? What made you want to be an author? How do you get published? The first two questions are easy to answer; and let’s face it, people only ask them to be polite. (Since I was 14 and because it’s fun. There, I answered them).

People are really interested in the last one. For an author, to be published means a lot of things. Recognition. Encouragement. Relief. Relief most of all. Relief that all the creativity swirling around in your head, and all the effort it took to craft it into something real, wasn’t for nothing. So on to what matters: how kids and teenagers can get published.

There are loads of contests, websites, and magazines that exist solely to publish those in the K-12 category. Below is a list of my favorites. Just be aware that there are TONS more, which you can find by doing a simple Google search.

1) Stone Soup: This website welcomes submissions by young people up to age 13.

http://www.stonesoup.com/stone-soup-contributor-guideline/

2) Teen Ink: This magazine is written by teens, and it’s a pretty big deal. They’ve been around forever, so check them out no matter what you write. Because they want it.

http://www.teenink.com/submit

3) The Claudia Ann Seaman Awards for Young Writers: If you’re in High School, check out this contest for poetry, fiction, and non-fiction.

http://polyphonyhs.com/submit/submission-guidelines/

4) Kids Bookshelf: This site accepts short stories and poems from those 17-years-old and under.

http://www.kidsbookshelf.com/index.php?option=com_chronocontact&chronoformname=Submit_Short_Stories&Itemid=62

5) Just 4 Kids Magazine: This website accepts submissions from kids and teens to post on their online magazine.

http://just4kidsmagazine.com/writer_guidelines.html

6) Launch Pad Magazine: If you’re ages 6-14, then you can submit your work here.

www.launchpadmag.com

7) KidsCom: Each week, this site publishes five submissions from kids ages 11 and younger, and 12 and older.

http://www.kidscom.com/create/write/write.html

8) KIdsWWwrite: If you’re 16 or younger and like to write stories or poems, check out this website.