Wow, the first competition of the Wattpad year is coming to a close. This was an exciting year for ONC, and I wanted to congratulate everyone who took part, no matter how far you got. This is really an important part of the annual Wattpad cycle, so I always encourage fellow Wattpadians to take part unless they are wrists-deep in an enormous project with tangible prospects.
ONC can be tough on a writer as the results roll in. I had been heartbroken in the past, expecting to make the short list. It sucked out the fun from ONC, so I no longer pursue it as an ONC goal.
Instead, I disengage from ONC at this stage—save for sincerely congratulating the winners—because I had met my actual goals.
These goals depend on me, and only on me:
1. I wrote a complete novella in 20-25K range about the character and events that I love to bits. It fit a prompt I chose (always just one). And I was chuckling gleefully while I was writing it.
2. I started a bunch of ONC stories and bookmarked the ones that stroked a chord with me to finish reading.
In the past, I sometimes had an additional goal is for my novella to serve as a zero draft for a Watty-eligible novel, but this is no longer an option—for me. I am too far behind on many older stories to set aside time for Watty prep, and I have ticked off a Watty win, Stars, Creators and Originals from my achievements list. I am working for different goals for the time being, but if you didn't fulfill those achievements, your ONC can serve as a sound foundation for a Watty-eligible story (as the ONC Round 3 form had strongly hinted at).
Gardening season is starting here, in Calgary, Alberta, so I will take my time to enjoy my garden. I hope it will help me with the post-Originals burn-out.
Have fun writing, good folks!
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