When I worked on the series of Real Deal books for Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, I was lucky enough to connect with then-teen author Dallas Woodburn. Dallas wrote two fantastic essays for the books I edited, and in the past five years, we’ve stayed in touch as Dallas went on to USC, graduated, [...]

When I worked on the series of Real Deal books for Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, I was lucky enough to connect with then-teen author Dallas Woodburn. Dallas wrote two fantastic essays for the books I edited, and in the past five years, we’ve stayed in touch as Dallas went on to USC, graduated, and is now in a gap year between undergrad and an MFA program.

Besides the fact that Dallas is a great writer, one of things that’s always blown me away about her is that she’s always working on a zillion really cool projects to benefit children and teens centered around writing and creativity. She self-published her first book, a collection of stories and poems called There’s a Huge Pimple On My Nose at the age of 10, and her second collection of stories, 3 a.m., came out in 2005. She’s also run an annual Holiday Book Drive for the past seven years, speaks about writing to students, and runs her own summer writing camp for youth.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Dallas founded her organization, Write On! For Literacy, with the goal of encouraging kids to discovery joy, confidence, self-expression and connection with others through reading and writing endeavors. As part of Write On!, Dallas has formed Write On! Books, where she plans to publish collections of stories, poetry, and essays written by young people that are exciting, fun, and easy for young audiences to relate to.

Dallas is currently accepting submissions for Write On! Books at her website, so if you’re a writer in elementary, middle, or high school, and want to be considered, submit your best stuff here.

Congratulations on all you do for young people and creative expression, Dallas. You are truly an inspiration to Smart Girls everywhere!

Hello all!
I hope everyone is enjoying the nicer weather, longer days and smells of spring that are wafting around.
I’m so excited because tomorrow morning I’m leaving for NYC to do some publicity stuff for my book, In Their Shoes! So why am I telling you this? Because 1) I won’t be able to post a [...]

Hello all!

I hope everyone is enjoying the nicer weather, longer days and smells of spring that are wafting around.

I’m so excited because tomorrow morning I’m leaving for NYC to do some publicity stuff for my book, In Their Shoes! So why am I telling you this? Because 1) I won’t be able to post a new Smart Girls Know Affirmation tomorrow, and 2) I just thought you might wanna know.

On a side note, apparently I had some technical difficulties with my blog last week, and many of you didn’t receive last Monday’s affirmation, Smart Girls Know That Jealousy is a Waste of Time. So, I’m going to keep that affirmation up for another week, since it’s such important stuff to keep in mind (for me, too!). And I will try to post a few things while I’m in the Big Apple, so check back to Smart Girls Know throughout the week.

Lastly, I am going to begin answering career questions from girls on Smart Girls Know and on a new Facebook group I created for In Their Shoes. They can be about anything from how to break into a specific career field to what kind of grades you’ll need to be able to work in a certain industry.

Here’s the first question:

Dear Debbie,

I want to be a famous author someday. People always tell me that it would probably be very hard to publish a successful book, but how exactly can you get a book published by a decent publisher? Must you have an agent?

Yours Truly, Eri

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Dear Eri,

That’s such a great dream and goal, and one I can certainly relate to! When people tell you that it’s hard to publish a successful book, they’re right. But then again, what dream and goal worth working towards doesn’t take hard work and dedication? People ask me about how to get published all the time, and my advice to them, and to you, is to be committed to your idea (or ideas) and create mini-goals for working towards your big dream. Whether you need an agent or not depends on the kind of book you want to write and the kind of publisher you want to get it in front of. To get you started, here are some things you can do now to make your future dream of becoming a published author a reality:

• Visit the teen section of your local library and ask them if they know of any writing clubs or classes that you could get involved in.
  
• Write all the time…in your journal, on scraps of paper, on your computer. The more you write, the better you’ll become.
• Read books about how to break into publishing, like Give ‘Em What They Want: The Right Way to Pitch Your Novel to Editors and Agents by Blythe Camenson for fiction, and How to Write a Book Proposal by Michael Larsen for nonfiction.
• Find writing communities online where you can learn more about writing and publishing, like published teen Dallas Woodburn’s site, Write On.
• Be willing to smart small…even many successful authors have had to self-publish their first books, literally traveling around the country selling them out of the trunk of their car before getting the attention of a major publisher.
• Be persistent and committed…it might take a while to break in, but if you’re dedicated to your idea and your goal, you can make it happen!

Good luck, Eri!

Peace & Love,

Debbie

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Have you got career questions? No matter how bizarre, silly or challenging, I’ve got answers, so send me an email! If you’re on Facebook, join my group and get involved!

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Lastly, my publisher, Simon Pulse, is looking for teens to join its Pulse IT Board. If you’re a book lover and can’t wait to get your hands on the next hot title, then apply to be part of the board. You could receive free books and advance reader’s copies…all you have to do is tell Simon Pulse what you think! Click here to sign up!