the portal

For those budding Scotch Scribes looking for a role model, here’s an interesting list of authors who were published whilst still under the age of 20 (or who wrote their books that young but were published later). 

Teen/Child published authors
*       Nancy Yi Fan: Swordbird (published at 12 yrs)
*       Zlata Filipovic: Zlata’s diary (written 11-13 years; publ. 13))
*       Flavia Bujor: The prophecy of the stones (14)
*       Atwater-Jones, Amelia: In the forests of the night (14)
*       Alexandra Adornetto: The Shadow thief (14)
*       Sonya Hartnett: Trouble all the way (15)
*       Catherine Webb: Mirror dreams (16)
*       Francoise Sagan: Bonjour Tristesse (16)
*       Robert Louis Stevenson: The Pentland Rising (16)
*       SE Hinton: The Outsiders (17)
*       Christopher Paolini: Eragon (18)
*       Simon French: Hey, phantom singlet (18)
*       Mary Shelley: Frankenstein (19)
*       Helen Oyeyemi: The Icarus girl (19)
*       Jack Heath: The Lab (19)
*       Scott Monk: Boyz are us (19)

       Published as adults
*       Daisy Ashford: The Young visiters (sic) (written at 9; publ. 38)
*       Anne Frank: Diary of a young girl (written at 13-15 years; publ.
posthumously)
*       Isobelle Carmody: Obernewtyn (begun when the author was 15; publ.
29)
*       Louisa May Allcott: Flower fables (written at 16; publ. 22) & The
Inheritance (written at 17, publ. posthumously)

       Close, but no cigar
*       Matthew Riley (20)
*       Catherine Jinks (26)

Thanks to Craig Edgman, Teacher-librarian, for compiling this list.

Mrs Sweeney

The author of the Devil Wears Prada has come up with a trio of new characters, all living in Manhattan and trying to juggle careers, family and relationships. Leigh is a book editor for a prestigious publishing house, Emmy is in the restaurant business and Adriana has never worked in her life, living off her wealthy parents and her looks. Having worked and played hard throughout their twenties, the prospect of turning 30 awakens them to the fact that maybe their lives aren’t so perfect after all. A pact is made and they have exactly twelve months to face their biggest challenges and drastically turn their lives around. A great read for fans of, dare I say it, “chick-lit”.

Ms Morris