Wattmag Issue #12

Wattpad Inspired

I developed a love of reading from an early age. My mom always read to me, always encouraged me to read; it was my great escape. Being an introvert, my social life was made up of mostly books, imaginary worlds in my head and television shows. A fact that still holds true until this day.

I didn't think to start writing original stories until high school. They were nothing major at the time, just random short stories I gave my friends to read. Not long after, I was introduced to the world of screenwriting and made my first (and only) short film when I was fifteen years old. Screenwriting, Poetry, short stories, novels, I have dabbled in all of them. I was trying to find my 'sweet spot' and settled on writing novels and short stories.

A friend of mine encouraged me to broaden my audience base by sharing my work with strangers. It was already nerve-wracking showing my stories to friends, fretting over if they were going to like it or not. So the thought of sharing my work with complete strangers, readers who are not at all obligated to spare my feelings in any way, was terrifying. But if I wanted to get serious about my writing I knew I had to learn how to face criticism. Enter Wattpad.

In 2012, a close friend told me about Wattpad. I was apprehensive about the idea, but after much nagging, I gave in and joined the community. First as a reader, then as a writer. It was also during this time that I started writing short stories to exercise my writing muscles.

Each week I wrote and updated a chapter in my serialized shorts and each week the views never came. The votes never came. No comments... nothing. Only two persons interacted with my story and they were my personal friends. Ten parts in I stopped writing disheartened by the lackluster reception my stories were getting. Needless to say, I unpublished all of them and slinked off depressed feeling like a failure. That was 2013.

I kept writing on and off (mostly off), but no one outside of my circle saw what I did. Truth be told I didn't feel as if my writing was worth it. At the time, in 2013, I didn't realize I was approaching my writing and my experience on Wattpad all wrong.

Signing up for Wattpad I came in expecting instant fame. I was impatient. I lacked confidence in my writing, and I was writing for all the wrong reasons. All of that, especially the latter, needed to change and so it did in 2015.

When I unpublished my stories in 2013, I logged out of Wattpad and never looked back. It wasn't until August 2015 that I signed in again. I rewrote the serialized shorts I had previously unpublished and reposted them. I didn't release them thinking I'd get half a million reads in a month's time I just did it because I could.

I started a two-part novel series after completing the rewrite of my first story. I never expected anyone to see it, much less read, vote or comment. I never expected it to get to #1 on the Fantasy Hotlist with more than 1.43 million reads to date. I never expected the reception I got especially because it didn't line up with the 'typical' Wattpad story.

My growing audience didn't make me feel popular or full of myself it left me with a sense of responsibility. A responsibility that pushed me to learn more about the craft I wasn't taking seriously enough. Joining in with the community of writers on the site, talking and rapping with like-minded Wattpaders further highlighted how lacking my approach was to my writing, so I went out, and I learned.

I reworked the chapters I had in my novel and rewrote the short stories I had posted. One of the most important lessons I learned was, the magic of a story was in the rewrites.

Along with editing the chapters, I changed the cover of my book. My entire approach to using the site changed. Some may say Wattpad books aren't real, but the work many writers put into them is reason enough to take them seriously.

The experiences I have had with Wattpad, both positive and negative, pushed me to be better and do better. Because of all the things I've learned and the amazing people I have met, I am now driven to become a published writer outside of the creative nest that is Wattpad. The site provided me with a platform but as they say, the dream is free, but the grind is sold separately.

Growing as a writer, you'll have teething pains, but it is important to know why you write. My reason changed from wanting to be famous in a snap to writing for the enjoyment and the fulfillment of those few who took the time to read. I sought to reward them for their time with a story that was done to the best of my ability as I continued to learn and as I continued to grow and find myself as a writer.

At present, I am working on editing my novel for publication outside of Wattpad. Whether it be traditionally or self-published, I am determined to get it done. Whether in two years or five or ten the dream will come true, and the grind will never end.

I am Wattpad driven, and Wattpad inspired. Are you?​