History has seen notable personalities who became famous even before they turned 20. Yes, we are talking about famous ‘Child Authors’. So many of us keep thinking that we will write a book one day and keep telling ourselves that we are going to start. Perhaps, some of us even make a start but only a handful of us finish what we started. On the other hand, these child authors are actual literary stars who not only dreamt of writing but also accomplished that task during their childhood. Here’s a list of a few of them.

Anne Frank

One of the first names that probably comes to mind when we say ‘child author’ is Anne Frank. Her posthumously published diary achieved worldwide fame. She started writing her diary when she was around 13. She maintained records of her daily experiences when her family was hiding during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. Unfortunately, they were discovered and sent to concentration camps where Anne later died of typhus. However, her book went on to create a stir in the world after its English version was published in 1952.

Alec Greven

Alec Greven’s first book ‘How to talk to girls’ was penned by him to help his friends with the difficult task of talking to girls. He was 9 when he wrote the book and had no idea that it would become a New York bestseller at the time. Published in 2008, this book has simple and helpful tips for boys so they don’t get shot down by girls. Since then, he has worked on other stories including ‘How to talk to moms’ ‘How to talk to dads’ ‘How to talk to Santa’ and ‘Rules for school’.

Christopher Paolini

‘Eragon’ was written by Christopher Paolini just after finishing high school. The book was published when he was 18 and made it to the New York Times bestseller list. After that, he wrote three more books in the series. In 2006, Eragon was made into a feature film and he holds the Guinness World Record for the youngest author of a bestselling book series.

Christopher Beale

‘This and last season’s excursions’ was a story that 6-year-old Christopher wrote for his mother over lunch one day. The five-chapter story about a boy and his stuffed animals gained him the Guinness record for the youngest child author.

Jyoti and Suresh Guptara

The UK born Guptara twins wrote “Conspiracy of Calypsia’ at age 11. The novel was published when they were 17 and turned into a bestseller. They completed their work with a trilogy on the same series and were named among the ‘100 Most Important Swiss’ by Schweizer Illustrierte magazine. They are currently working on their second series of books.

Writers write primarily with a passion for language and literature. Not everyone is motivated by the glory of a bestseller. Although the accolades one might receive are extra credits for a job well done. Drawing inspiration from these ‘Child Authors’, everyone ought to do whatever they have thought of doing. In short, start writing your book!

Written by – Radhika Pillai