Interviews

June 2023 - Interview with wdhenning

Good morning everyone!

Elveloy here from AdultFiction. Today I'm interviewing wdhenning (Bill), author of The Phobos Transit Quilters Guild, our Book of the Month for June 2023 and a ShortLister for the ONC2023

Welcome, Bill!

Firstly, can you tell us a little about your non-wattpad life?

Bill: I am a retired chemical engineer living in Oklahoma, USA with my wife of 42 years. We have two grown sons. If you read The Phobos Transit Quilters Guild, you will find that my wife is a prolific and proficient quilter. I sometimes dabble in woodworking and lathe turning. Beyond those activities, we like to hike, kayak, and climb mountains (as long as they are not too technical).

Elveloy: What drew you to Wattpad?

Bill: I stumbled across Wattpad five years ago - and was like, cool, free stories! Soon, I tried my hand at fiction, starting with a few sci-fi short story contests. My previous writing experiences were technical and research reports. My first novel, "Dark Fall", was drafted in 2019. Looking back, these first writing attempts were cringeworthy - kinda like looking back at old pictures of myself - but my style has much improved since then. I re-edited "Dark Fall", so the words flow much better than when originally posted. I found that I thoroughly enjoyed creating stories, participating in various contests, and interacting with others on the platform. Wattpad'ers tend to be quite supportive of each other.

Elveloy: That's true! I've found that. Moving on to your writing, do you consider yourself a 'plotser' or a 'pantser'?

Bill: I am most definitely a 'plotser'. Typically, I lay out the story beginning (so called, inciting incident) and ending (resolution), then fill in key plot points along the way before I do much drafting. But having said that, plans often change, and the story might take unplanned detours along the way as driven by the characters and conflicts. The ONC tight schedules sometimes forces pantsing, though, which is a bit uncomfortable. My other ONC submission this year, "Curse of Stone", was mostly written with little more than a beginning and end in mind.

Elveloy: Two entries, eh? Now that's a challenge. I see your story, The Phobos Transit Quilters Guild, made it to the Open Novella Contest Ambassador's Pick list. Congratulations! What appeals to you about the ONC?

Bill: Thanks! Showing up on the Ambassador's Pick List was a pleasant surprise, and I hope indicative of things to come. We shall see. I've competed in every ONC since 2019, starting with "Paradise Blight". The Phobos Transit Quilters Guild and two other of my ONC novellas, takes place in the same sci-fi universe. Although, each were written as stand-alone stories rather than as a series. The appeal of ONC to me is that it is fun! I've enjoyed the camaraderie of other writers and readers. There are so many great novellas in the contest. So many, in fact, that I wonder how the ambassadors that run the contest manage to pull it off. Kudos to them!

Elveloy: Agreed! And what's next in the pipeline for you?

Bill: Writing two ONC novellas simultaneously was more of commitment than I originally anticipated. Next year, I may just stick to one. Presently, I am taking a break from writing to catch up on reading ONC stories from other writers. I have a few rough ideas for novels that I might work up, mostly originating from my previous short stories. And if a short story contest catches my eye, I might dive into that.

Elveloy: Thank you for your time Bill and best of luck for the rest of the ONC!

You can find more about the story in our Book of the Month chapter for June 2023, here.