Weekly Wattpad Contests

Free Writing

I have seen some very concerning things afoot. By that I mean that I have seen a very concerning lack of things afoot. Our 'The Dead and the Daring' has generated a moderate amount of interest, but I haven't seen a single entry yet.

There's still a week left, so I'm going to be optimistic and assume it means you're all working very incredibly hard to deliver your absolute best work.

Side note: I am very easily confused. It's been a difficult life lesson for me to learn that I presuming meaning is a dangerous and, and often futile, exercise, but this has left me never inferring meaning from anything that can even be remotely considered ambiguous, and, as such, my world is filled with great unknowns and chaos. Side effects include: obliviousness to flirting (to many a potential suitor's dismay), misunderstanding of instruction (my manager gets annoyed sometimes, but I function better when left to my own devices anyway), inability to pick up on social cues (like, really, if you just want me to know something, be blunt. Hints don't work with me), and, most notably, the severe lack of clarity in communication (I try, but really, I suck at relaying ideas).

For this reason, I am also very confused about what I say, very often, in fact. I'm not sure whether this is going to be a judged contest (probably not, but I have some free time on my hands, so I might as well), or what the whole raison detre would be for this exercise. In the end, I tend to chalk it up to, writing for the sake of writing, because while inspiration is important, so is practice.

End of side note.

So, for this week, we're all about inspiration. What life breathes in your artwork? What are the muses singing to you? Has the holy gift if divine sight brought you a scene from realms ephemera – those sparks of light or dark that overtakes you for a moment and flows from your fingers?

I quite often find inspiration in unexpected places. I've been trying to really pay attention to the things that inspired me this week while taking a critical look at exactly what it has inspired me to do, and why.

So, perhaps, that would be what we do this week.

The theme for this week is going to be appreciation. There are a few places here on Wattpad which has sparked my creative fire, and I'll share them with you. These prompts are all very open, and you should feel free to chop and change them to your liking.

1 – Names of Greatness

There are a few really cool names on WattPad, and I often tend to think of them in terms of characters. Recently, I've been introduced to another contests account called WritingFury with a display name Alaska & Atlas. If that doesn't sound like a superhero-duo struggling to get into the weird and wonderful world of superhero/villain politics, then this prompt is pointless.

There are some other names I really like too. VexHellfire could totally be a villain in a post-apocalyptic Young Adult novel. Maybe OnlyKnownAsCOfficial (Only Known as C) is a ghostwriter for a mysterious blog offering life advice to kids in her school.

Draw inspiration from the persona of another. Let them know that you think they're really cool and honour them with their very own fanfiction.

2 – Excellent Characters

I'm approximately 87% certain that authors love when others love their characters. They spend a lot of time thinking about them, and how they function, who they are, what their brain works like. I've often wondered how one of my favourite characters would function in another circumstance, disconnected from the book they're in.

There are some books out there with pre-made characters, ready for you to toss into a world of chaos and conflict. One I've noted is by jkrhinestone (a huge inspiration to me over the course of the past week) called 'Character Prompts'.

Perhaps you already have a favourite character you'd like to use.

No matter what you do, be sure to respect the original creator by crediting them with the character concept and directing everybody to the book they're in. Wouldn't hurt to also just, y'know, ask for permission or inform the author that you're borrowing their character for a bit.

Remember: the point of this is to honour the person who inspired you.

3 – A Moment of Absolute Thanks

Perhaps you have that person who utterly and infallibly supports your work, who fuels your creative drive and makes you want to carry on. I have @DavidLikesBigRobots who, without hesitation, delivers absolutely thrilling commentary on my work and inspires a lot of it.

If you have your own lover-of-robots (or equivalent), then this is the callout you need to write an entire chapter about how much you appreciate the fact that they exist and the extent of how awesome their personality must be in order to put up with the verbal equivalent of industrial effluent you produce. Go out of your way to say, "Hey, everybody, here's a really cool dude/chick/person of indeterminate gender who is very awesome and you should totally look at."

4 – Poker Games

This one is focused on somebody who you look up to, who does what you want to and inspires you to do the same. @jkrhinestone writes poetry daily, and I'm a poet by heart. When I look at her work, I feel this incomprehensible sense of pride and motivation to be the best darn poet I can be.

The idea here is that you're two-of-a-kind. Kindred souls in different times, worlds apart. That gap is breached by the Pad of Wattness, and it's time to let them know. Honour them with the kind of work that inspires you. I'd write a poem for Jessica if I hadn't already mentioned her five million times now.

If their writing inspires you, then let that inspiration drive the work you produce for them. It's a nice gift to know that you make somebody else's passions flare.

This whole idea of inspiration is a wishy-washy contest at best. If you have other, more solid ideas for how to go about it, then feel free to do so, and share them here. Who knows, maybe you inspire somebody else to participate this week as well. Wouldn't that be the most profound instance of poetic justice?

Additionally, look at other entries. This is a week of celebrating good things, and perhaps you'll identify with somebody and find a whole new source of inspiration to light the pyres of your creative shores.

My final words are so gay (i.e. emotional and sappy, but good and healthy):

I find myself inspired by you, the entrants to these contests. Before I began here, I've had a very limited connection to Wattpad. But we've built a community together, and that has worked wonders for me. I read your stories and I'm exposed to a million great ideas, styles of writing, and narrative designs. Maybe I made a few friends along the way too.

These contests wouldn't happen if it weren't for you, and you have my thanks.

And, of course, let us thank the OG of this book, the great Nadia from @Contests who allow all of this to take place.

With that, I wish you well.

Sincerely

The Lover of Spiders and Other Arachnids in General

(i.e. TimberWoolf)