Publishing a Teen Author

I remember Maggie Mei’s first birthday, a few months after we adopted her from China, when she picked up a pen, and holding in correctly, attempted to write something on paper…

Many people dream of writing a book. Some write their book, never to see it published. Others finally see their book in print after many submissions to publishing houses. Here’s how one teenager’s dream of becoming a published author came true before her sixteenth birthday.

In January of 2007, my thirteen-year old daughter, Maggie Mei, announced that she wanted to write a book. We home school after many years of Montessori, and I enthusiastically said “Yes! It will count for school!” By April of that year, Maggie completed most of the story and began looking for an artist to illustrate it. After searching on-line for illustrators, she found Melody Lea Lamb on eBay. Melody was thrilled to help a young author get started in a writing career and by the spring of 2008, illustrations were well underway with Maggie guiding the process.

During the fall of 2008, the illustrations were completed and editing began. At this point, my husband and I started a publishing company, Good Times Press, LLC, to allow Maggie as much control over the entire process as possible. In the early spring of 2009, we contracted with Self-Publishing, Inc for even more editing, then layout, design, and finally printing the books in full color by off-set print press.

Maggie Mei Lewis, now fifteen years old, is very happy to present Moonlight Memoirs – Remembering That Family and Friends Are Forever, a culmination of nearly three years of inspired work. Through exquisite illustrations and comforting verse, Moonlight Memoirs tells the story of two young mice and their moonlit adventure when they learn this special lesson – the love of family and friends lasts forever. Maggie’s positive, uplifting message of comfort and hope reaches across religious and cultural boundaries to reassure her readers that everything will be all right, no matter what happens to their loved ones.

Moonlight Memoirs’ official publication date was August 26, 2009. Since then, Maggie has been busy with book signings and presentations about her experience as a teen author. She’s been featured in numerous magazines and newspapers. Sales are steadily increasing and as a publisher, I’ve had many queries from other authors wanting Good Times Press to publish their books. Most recently, we were honored to donate two hundred copies of Moonlight Memoirs to the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), a national non-profit Veterans organization which supports the families of military members who have died while serving America. Who would have guessed that my positive response to Maggie’s announcement three years ago would lead to these growth-stimulating experiences today!

For those of you who have young authors at home, here are my recommendations for a happy, successful journey to becoming published:

1)      Believe in your child.
2)      Believe in your child’s book.
3)      Read about self-publishing as much as you can, then make your decisions based upon what feels right to you.
4)      Remember this: what you focus on becomes your experience.
5)      Focus on what you want and then go with the flow.
6)      Appreciate the things that seem to go wrong. They help you define what you really want.
7)      Stay positive and always offer encouragement.
8)      Allow your young author as much freedom and control as possible.
9)      Most important of all: Have fun!

Greta Johnson lives in Edgewater, Maryland with her husband, Rod Lewis, and their two daughters, Maggie Mei and Irene.