Writing a book is like trying to teach a small child. It requires a huge amount of effort and stumbles a lot along the way. It’s extremely rewarding when you finish, but can destroy your whole day.

Since the age of four, I’ve been writing short books and stories. But recently in January, 2019, I’ve decided to take a more serious approach.

Makynzie Weller, another student writer said, “My book was about a small girl deciding what she wanted for her birthday, because it was my birthday and I didn’t really know what I wanted.” 

The book I am currently writing is a futuristic science fiction book told from two distinct perspectives. It features concepts such as aliens, adventure, and multi-conflict situations.

“I would write about science, volcanoes, and all that, like, natural disasters. I think people need to know more about science; people don’t ever read books,” said another girl who likes science fiction, Rachel Schumaker.

The key factor to writing a book is dedication. Twice so far I’ve had problems in my writing and stopped believing I could accomplish anything more than a small child’s story. But dedication won those battles.

For instance, a while ago I added another perspective to the story. At first, I experienced writers’ block, for I didn’t know if it was right for my story. But I fell in love with both of my characters and decided to keep them both in my story.

When I get writers’ block, determination leads the way like this. Although I stop typing for a while, I continue to generate ideas while I’m away from the computer, and finally motivate myself to write once again.

At the age of four, I was writing short stories. By seven, with the guidance of my mom, she helped me publish a book. No, this book cannot be found in stores, but it is a hard copy for memories. It wasn’t until intermediate school I considered writing any large chapter book.

According to CBC.ca, the first book in the Insanity series was written by Jyoty and Suresh Guptera, twins, when they were just eleven-years-old.

“If I were to write another book, it would be more of, like, a love story because I’ve always found that the most interesting type of book,” states Weller.

Mattie Stepanek, a boy who died at age 14 due to a rare muscular dystrophy, didn’t let his handicap stop him from being an amazing writer at a young age. He was a poet who wrote his first poems at the age of three to cope with the death of his older siblings.

So, clearly, lots of young people like me have first hand experience on writing a book. But what kinds? According to Writers-online.uk, some popular book genres are romance, crime and mystery, science fiction, and fantasy.

“I like science fiction,” said Schumacher, “because I really like science and I really like fiction, so put them together and it makes science fiction.”

Amelie Atwater-Rhodes wrote her first book, In the Forests of the Night, when she was just 13, with other follow up books later on. It was a fictional book about a 300 year old vampire named Risika.

“I enjoy fiction, because it’s a way to escape reality,” said Weller.

When writing a book, this is an important thing to consider. It is crucial to recognize other people’s interests, which might be the same as yours. I’ve learned, by writing my science fiction, that lots of adults I’ve talked to have been very interested in the topic of my book.

So if you are thinking about writing a book, follow your heart and write what you think people will enjoy. Dedicate yourself and take your time when writing it. Consider that you may have trouble along the way, but persevere and you may become one of the youngest best-selling authors.