Interviewing The Wattpad Angels

Interview with @jewel1307

@jewel1307 is the author of the 'Enchantress Series', 'Callie - An Enchantress Novel' was the Watty Awards 2012 Finalist! She has also written a guide called - 'How Do I - A Guide' which explains HTML codes, how the ranking work and much more. The link to this guide is provided in the external link.

Enjoy !

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1. What do they call you?

A. My username is jewel1307, my friends call me Jules.

2. For how long have you been writing?

A. Writing was something I never considered doing until I joined Wattpad two years ago as a reader. I found some stories that needed a lot of work, but had received a good few reads. I figured I couldn't do any worse and began planning my first story 'Callie'. I was in the middle of reading a series by L.K. Hamilton and these books influenced a few of my characters - vampires and shape shifters.

3. Which part of writing a story, do you enjoy the most? (Creating characters, the plot and the subplots, the beginning/ending or the middle)

A. Oh boy... The entire process is enjoyable, but the best part would be building the entire tale around a single event.

I've written a few short stories for various smackdowns (contests) that were inspired by one or a combination of prompts. Pictures, quotes, songs, opening lines, that sort of thing. There's great satisfaction to be had from writing a 2000 - 6000 word story from a couple of pictures. I love a challenge.

4. Have you faced any embarrassing moments, in terms of writing?

A. Ha! Yeah, the day it finally dawned on me that good grammar is essential in a story. By the time it happened, I was half way through my third book in the Enchantress Series. The embarrassment came because the two completed books had been entered in the Watty awards with not a single word edited in either of them. As pleased as I was when they made the final showcase, I couldn't in good conscience leave them like that. The task was daunting. 100,000 words stared at me from the screen of my laptop and I'd no idea where to start. A very lovely lady on site came to my rescue and basically edited Callie for me. She taught me a lot of very basic stuff that I'd no idea about. That's when I actually realised just how bad my grammar was, it's also the day I vowed to educate myself.

I haven't looked back. The reward of having a short story featured was well worth the effort of teaching this old girl some new tricks.

5. Which is your favorite color? Have you made any reference to it in your story/stories?

A. It depends on my mood. When I'm happy it's anything pastel, when I'm mad it's something dark. Today is baby pink in honour of my newborn granddaughter. =)

6. Out of the stories you have written on Wattpad, which is the most memorable one?

A. Imagine me puffing my hair off my forehead in thought... There isn't one that stands out anymore than the others in terms of writing them. The one I take most pride in was written for one of the smackdowns I mentioned previously. 'In the Name of Love' from the collection of horror stories called 'Tainted By Darkness', was featured a little while ago.

7. Are you planning on publishing soon?

A. Urgh, I already have. Callie was published in November 2012 on a whim. I don't regret it, just wish I'd fully edited before I took that step. The thought of having so many bad copies in circulation is not a pleasant one.

8. Which is your favorite book/series on Wattpad?

A. I think I have them all on a reading list - Recommended Reads

9. What kind of help do you provide - critiques, free advice or editing?

A. Advice - I'm full of it. =D Seriously though, if there's something you need to find on site, or you don't know how to do something, just ask. If I don't know I'll likely know someone who does.

10. Which author do you idolize (off Wattpad)?

A. Obviously L.K. Hamilton - her Anita Blake Series blew me away. J.R Ward - Black Dagger Brotherhood is awesome, I highly recommend it.

(she is my favorite author too ! I love the Anita Blake series !)

11. If you were a newbie, which part of the story would you focus on most?

A. The single most important thing is to have fun while you write. When the enjoyment of writing stops, so will the story. You won't produce your best if it's a chore to do it.

Secondly, show things, don't tell. As a reader, we don't need to know everything about your mc in the first paragraph, nor do we need to know the brand name of the clothes she's wearing. Build your scenes and drop little details here and there throughout the entire story. This will help the flow and build your character gradually. Only by the end of the story should we know everything there is to know.

12. Which is your favorite character (off Wattpad) ?

A. I don't recall any that would stand out as favourite off wattpad. On wattpad, now there's a different matter. @Alice_Iceflower quite possibly has the best characters. She has a knack for them. Check out her 'Heart of Stone' story and tell me you don't love the gargoyle.

13. If you were given a choice to become one character (of your story posted on Wattpad) which one would you be and why?

A. That's a bit of a loaded question. If I say I'd like to be one of my characters them it would imply that I'm not happy with who I am. On the same token it would be awesome to have magical abilities like Callie and Adie.

14. Do you prefer dark romance or the usual?

A. I'm not a big reader of romance, I prefer the stories I read to be sci fi, fantasy or paranormal genres. If there happens to be a bit of romance as part of it, fine, but I don't purposely seek out romance.

15. Where do you look for your inspiration?

A. Everywhere. The smackdown contests are a great way to get inspiration for short stories.

16. What’s your favorite TV show?

A. Benidorm. Seriously funny British comedy series set in ... Benidorm.

17. Do you prefer more reads, votes or comments?

A. All of the above =D who doesn't.

18. Imagine the world is collapsing around you, what would you choose to save – technology or books?

A. Technology, as long as there's a power source to run it. Most books are stored in digital format and it takes up less space. No way could you collect every book ever written and even if you did have enough time, where would you store them if the world is ending? It'd be one heck of a spaceship if that was your escape plan.

19. What is the best advice you have given and received?

A. The lovely @TheOrangutan once told me to just get the chapter out of my head and worry about editing later, only when you've done that you put it up on wattpad. It's sound advice. Editing as you type can interrupt the flow of words leaving your brain.

(hmm..the wise old Orangutan. lol!)

20. Any extra tips for our young writers?

A. Write for the love of writing. Anything else I'd like to say has been said by @KatherineArlene in her guide 'How To Gain Reads, Votes and Comments' Now that ^^ is awesome reading material!

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I hope you guys enjoyed this interview !