Advice for writing teen

[Littlemissadequate]

Please can you help with advice for my fourteen year old daughter. She writes, daily, for herself but how does she take it further?
What advice would you give to your teenage self?
She entered a couple of competitions she found on line but didn’t receive a response. Her teachers have always been encouraging and say she’s a gifted writer but although she gets involved in school extracurricular writing activities she would like to progress her writing without the observation of school or her fellow students.
Are there any forums for teen writers? On line creative writing groups that would be age appropriate? We would very much appreciate your advice, thank you.

It can help to follow exercises to develop your craft. There are books out there, like Fiction Writers Workbook by Novacovich or the red book that goes with the OU undergrad course.

There are also online courses like the Futurelearn one which is free. Marian Keyes did one recently on her Instagram - one lecture a week followed by 5 daily activities. It's all still up there. The writing might not be her style but the principles are transferable.

Or try a local writers group, who she might feel more comfortable developing with. Better than with a bunch of people who don't really get it, or who attack anything that makes them feel inadequate (teens). Sally Rooney did this, starting about 15, in a small village in Ireland. She says herself her work at that age was rubbish, but was very important for her development. She went on later to study literature and film.

I'm less good at online - there's scribophile.

Elizabeth Gilbert (eat pray love) did a creative life podcast where she says if you can't find your tribe you have to build it. She did that to develop herself a supportive group.

But being prepared to write rubbish, and getting constructive feedback are important parts of the process of development, as is critiquing others and understanding why it works or not. Its figuring out where to get that experience.

If she looks at Nanowrimo she might find some links from there to find her tribe online?

Sorry, that comment about attacking what makes them feel inadequate largely meant non-writing teens, who take the Mickey in a way that inhibits your daughter, mainly acting out their own feelings of inadequacy.

On the off chance you are in Oxfordshire www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/residents/leisure-and-culture/libraries/ebook-short-story-competition

Otherwise your local library may have something similar. Is she a member of your local library? They often have children’s librarians able to support/ arranging groups/ workshops etc

The main piece of advice for to a 14 year old is to READ as much and as varied literature as possible. Also to continue writing and to try and be open minded to feedback...

• join facebook groups like 20booksto50k (there are also some specifically for young adult writers but I can’t recall the name)
• if she enjoys it, perhaps Wattpad
• read novel craft books, especially Save The Cat; The Seven Basic Plots, and The Hero With A Thousand Faces
• imo avoid competitions they become so depressing
• the degree I wish I’d done is UEA Creative Writing... A lot of professional novelists start there.

I too was always told I had a ‘gift’ for writing and that I should definitely work in that field, but when I look back at the huge time and energy I’ve poured into it (particularly the years talking to agents/publishers without getting any actual deal) I kinda wish I hadn’t bothered and had just spent that time at a gym or socialising. Writing is a lonely and physically unhealthy hobby and the only reason I do it is because I can’t seem to quit. Not sure it’s something I’d want for my child.