Is it possible for a young author to achieve mainstream popularity?

Christopher Paolini is an exception to the rule, and not the good kind. He's overrated, and over hyped. Plus, he had an "in." If your parents own a publishing company, he's a good model for you, otherwise...

Young author's rarely get published for a wide variety of reasons not the least of which being they shouldn't. Even would be writers in their early twenties find it hard to be published outside of small independent fiction magazines.

Some guys do it - Jay McInerney and Bret Easton Ellis are two examples, but only one of them continued to succeed. And there are other famous examples (Stephen King was in his 20's still.), but generally writers don't get a legitimate publishing contract until they are in their late 20's, early 30's.

I don't know why, except those seem to be the requisite ages for people to actually have something to say that others will care about.

So, realistically, no, it's not possible for a young author to achieve mainstream popularity. And the younger the author the more unlikely it is.

Truth be told, if you're below 18 (or 25) you shouldn't even bother querying. Just write, and wait for a few years. There's no rush, really. Look at it this way, if the world transfers over to electronic readers (ie The Kindle) as the primary medium for literature, it's going to be a whole lot easier to get published. You'll never make any money, but it will be a whole lot easier to get published.

Your work is generally judged by the work ant the age of the author usually note known by the reader.

It is nearly impossible for any author to gain mainstream

Consider the times That Cat in The Hat got rejected.

Christopher Paolini was only 15 when he first wrote Eragon and that was even turned into a movie. Anything's possible right?

I'm 14 (15 in a week) and am working on a sequel. I'm kind of scared to attempt getting it published for fear they'll discriminate against my age, but I still am planning on trying when I'm finished editing my first book.

I hope you do too =]

Good luck

Yes, look at the author of Eragon, sure the books themselves were utter crap, but he recieved a lot of popularity.

It is possible, but just ensure that you are good enough, there is never a problem with waiting a few years, and rewriting, and revising something. As there isn't a problem with trying, and failing.

Yes,as long as your story is written well,has a fresh storyline,a colorful cast of characters(haha,alliteration) and interesting twists,you'll make it big.