9 Year old Author

While the publishing industry continues to react to all the downsizing, there is some good news regarding one sale by a very new author. Alec Greven's dating primer, How to Talk to Girls, hit bookstores last week. The book, published by Harper Collins, began as a handwritten pamphlet that the 9 year old Greven sold at his school's bookfair. It was the runaway bestseller.

Apparently his advice was straightforward enough to catch the attention of an agent and then an editor or two. Some examples: "The best choice for most boys is a regular girl. Remember some pretty girls are cold hearted when it comes to boys. Don't let them get to you."

Before you jump to conclusions about whether or not 9 year old boys should even by thinking about girls, let me assure you that Gevens does not recommend dating (which he defines as going out to dinner) until you are "old," say 15 or 16. And you should not fall in love until at least middle school.

The rest of the advice seems to be fairly classic: "comb your hair and don't wear sweats" and the best way to approach a girl is to just say "hi." "If I say hi and you say hi back, we're probably off to a good start," the fourth grader from Castle Rock, Colorado notes.

According to his mother, young Grevens reads voraciously and wants to be a writer when he grows up, with a weekend job in perhaps archaeology or paleontology.

Sounds like a plan. In the meantime, the new author has no current love interest. "I'm a little too young," he said.