AsianStorysketcher

Everyone~
          
          Ahhhhhhhhh! Can I please virtually scream?
          
          I WON! I am a special winner of the Wattpad ThingsBook x Wattpad
          Special prizes! Having a ThingsBook account was a fun experience for a whole month. I will definitely continue making more entries and sharing a part of me there. So many people added me as a friend, and I got to share so many things that are a part of my life: inspirational quotes, books I read, songs I sang, songs I loved, my Wattpad books, my nails (haha), Easter eggs, haha...so many random things. I was also able to see what other people liked and how they are spending their beautiful lives. Even some of them are content creators.
          
          I would love to especially thank Wattpad and Thingsbook. The thing about notebooks is that I can't get myself to use beautiful custom notebooks. I will probably treasure it as it is. Or maybe I should fill it with all my Wattpad works inside of it. Oh, beautiful!  Why do such beautiful things happen in my life like this? I seldom win prizes, and this just totally made my night! I'm jumping for joy!
          
          The story creator kit is so appropriate for me! I already won so many Wattpad premium coins that I have to spend, and now, I hit the jackpot of the jackpots. 
          
          ----
          
          Hi there, 
          
          Congratulations! 
          
          You have officially been selected as a #MerchBox winner of the Official ThingsBook x Wattpad Sweepstakes Contest! 
          
          Prize Details: #MerchBox Secondary Prize: Story Creator Kit 
          You will receive a ThingsBook x Wattpad Story Creator Kit designed to help capture and celebrate life’s moments.
          
          Each kit includes: 
          Fujifilm Instax Mini Camera Bundle 
          ThingxBook x Wattpad Moleskine notebook 
          ThingsBook x Wattpad Tote Bag 
          1-Year Premium Wattpad Subscription
          Custom designed ThingsBook x Wattpad Merch Box 
          Exclusive Thank You Card
          
          [redacted personal info]
          
          Thank you so much for participating in the ThingsBook x Wattpad Official Sweepstakes.
          
          Congratulations again, and we look forward to hearing from you 
          
          Thank you,
          Wattpad HQ

Hi Readers,
          
          What a rainy three-day Memorial Day weekend for those who celebrate in the USA, or Buddha's birthday, or Whit Sunday in Belgium. These are the holidays that I know of. 
          
          My plans aren't going as planned, so I am delaying chapters of "Mokpo, We Go!" to be published later this week-- and hopefully fast! 
          
          I decided to visit my uncle in the long-term rehab center, and I felt so bad that he had lost a lot of weight, couldn't sit up, had no feeling on his left side, and mumbled when speaking. However, he was still in the mood to make lots of jokes. Life is short, people. If you can still pursue your passion, do it now before your body breaks down.
          
          I wonder if it was because I went there that I felt sick and weak today. That really messed up my plans! 
          
          I want to edit one more chapter of "Mokpo, We Go!" to chapter 30 and then go full force into finishing my other story. It's my destiny to go slow. I should lower my expectations this year.
          
          In other news, I have a new idea for a fanfic. I did write a little bit about the idea of writing a fanfic on @yodudewhohurtyou 's conversation board about NCT WayV members. This is a topic that I don't have too many ideas on, or it just never came to me, so I thought I would love to write one, but I have no solid idea yet. I only had one strong idea with Xiaojun and Renjun in the past. However, honestly, one thing at a time!
          
          Well, that WayV idea has come! Recently, there's a clip on X where WayV members Xiaojun and Kun reunited with "long lost" WINWIN!  It feels like a miracle that they reunited since it's been a long time since WINWIN was a part of WayV. He was busy acting instead of being an idol.
          
          Hence, I have a great idea, but how not to spoil it? Let's just say the FL will initially try to date Xiaojun and WINWIN unsuccessfully, and afterwards, she realizes that Kun was there along for her. Things will intensify once she makes her boyfriend official. Oops. Who will she ultimately end up with? Untitled for now.

Hi readers,
          
          It's time I give an update about my projects.
          
          I meant to finish editing "Heartbeat Hell" this week, but I feel like 2026 is not going smoothly for me at all. I became exhausted and then a bit sick recently so I had to force myself to rest. I wanted to finish editing the story up until chapter 30, my goal by end of this week.
          
          For readers waiting for my "Mokpo, We Go!" story, if I can manage to finish editing "Heartbeat Hell," then I aim to publish the next chapter by Memorial Day on Monday. It's been such a long time! I think I have to re-read the recent chapters to recollect what I wrote. This is why I don't like working on more than one project at a time.
          
          I want to finish the entire story of "Mokpo, We Go!" before 06-JUN-2026. Why? Because my family will arrive on that day and I will be on personal vacation. There's a chance I might not finish it, but I will do my best to present the finale ASAP. I'll be on break for 3 weeks in June. I'm going to gain some more life experience and come back with fresh ideas.
          
          Once that is over, I will announce my next story, but I will have limited time to work on it as I will be on break again for 3 weeks from end of July to August.
          
          In the end, it's a hard balance game. 
          
          Also, for "Mokpo, We Go!," I am reaching almost 3K viewership, my highest yet for my works. @coconutmelonabar gave me a great idea to expand on a side story for Jiwon and Sungchan and their college days. I can also expand more on Sion's college days with Chaehee, and maybe a little bit more on Wonbin. If so, I can present a 7-part extra chapter-series to make my story fuller than before. It's these side-quests that would be fun to read if you like my characters.
          
          Look for it in the future, but unsure if it will be after the story is completed or before the story is completed. I'm not a person who obsess with numbers, but I want to give my readers something special to show my appreciation.
          
          If you have any ideas for a 4k readership, let me know!

Hi Writers,
          
          I'm addressing writers on Wattpad. I found a great way to boost your confidence... with AI!
          
          Feeling down in the dumps? Want to know what your strengths or weaknesses are? Want to know what your chances are to win a contest (theoretically?) Want to know what the world thinks of you? 
          
          Have no fear, AI is here! 
          
          I was in training at work about how to use Copilot, but then my mind wandered off to asking Copilot about myself. Copilot gave me some positive and negative thoughts about my writing, but I switched over to Gemini, which always tries to uplift me and make me feel so happy.
          
          I asked AI to analyze my Wattpad username, and wow, did AI generate a lot of info about me: activity level, philosophy, notable works. 
          
          On Wattpad, I'm a supportive peer, an advocate for users, and I have a diverse range of interests. 
          
          I've always been a curious person who wanders into the unknown. 
          
          Then I ask AI to analyze me as a writer. Whoa, did it write a lot about me, which is interesting. I know it's not everything, but I'm amazed.
          
          When I asked AI to analyze my chapters 1-22 and then chapters after 22 of my book, it seems to only discuss it in general, but still very interesting to read.
          
          Then, I ask AI to analyze my book, my competition, and my chances of winning a contest. Haha, I really don't mind winning or losing, but I just wanted to know what AI would think and get an analysis. 
          
          The results are thrilling. Reading how AI compares my book to others is so interesting to read, especially since I haven't read the other books yet. Let's just say I have a slight advantage, but there is, of course, no guarantee. Still, I find this all fascinating.
          
          I asked AI to compare my two books and my writing style, which is so different because the stories are so different.
          
          If I had any type of writer's depression, I am cured. If I were having a bad day, I'd instantly smile again. I'll work hard!
          
          Who needs psychics? Try AI and possibly boost your mood today!

Hi everyone, 
          
          I'm popping in to say "Hi!" I feel guilty about not writing about my Mother's Day. People might be surprised, but yeah, I'm a mother too! You might have read about my daughter, whom I mention from time to time. So far, my birthday gift and Mother's Day gift are a secret, but I already know she bought me a Capybara stuffed animal (I picked it). I am obsessed with the cute Capybaras, especially the one you find in Korea: the capybara bumblebee keychain with vibrating wings when you pull its string. I want that! I can't believe my mother bought my daughter that capybara bumblebee keychain in Insadong for 5,000 won, and she gave it away to her friend. I also accidentally broke it and repaired it myself with my sewing skills because it didn't vibrate anymore. If she were going to give it away, I would have wanted it.
          
          Anyway, I celebrated Mother's Day with my mom last Saturday, where we went to the "congee village" restaurant to 1) scope out the restaurant since we need to go there for my cousin's 100-day baby party, and 2) might as well eat there. 
          
          The food was good, and I did not spend a lot of money. I just didn't have a huge appetite. We ordered the classic Tang Jai Jook or "Little Boat Porridge," a beef chow mein, and then a plate of dim sum. I forgot what I ate!
          
          I felt like I was in Guangzhou because the decor was like an outdoor village where we speak Cantonese, but the Chinese characters in the kitchen area were all simplified characters. Looks like I still have trouble reading simplified characters. I grew up reading traditional, but I've been exposed to it a lot more now.
          
          After that, I took my mom to my local library because I had to return two books, but then I borrowed four new books! I'm in book debt. My mom wanted to read some Chinese fantasy novels, but she didn't find any. Even if she did, she claimed that she didn't have time to read. I laughed. She is about to retire. She'll ideally have a lot of time then, right? Wrong, haha.

Knock knock!

Hi Wattpadders,
          
          I meant to write about Wattpad category updates yesterday, but didn't have an opportunity. I'm glad some of you noticed the Wattpad update.
          
          Wattpad's update with the categories and subcategories has arrived!  I already categorized all my works. I wish I had read the article on all the subcategories before I categorized all my works, because I winged it and explored them manually to see what it's about. 
          
          If you have a work(s), published or unpublished, on Wattpad, you have until June 2026 to give it(them) at least a category before Wattpad automates it for you. I am not sure how accurate the categorization would be if it's done automatically for you.
          
          I think this taxonomy Wattpad knowledgebase article should help you in case you want to know more about the subcategories:
          https://support.wattpad.com/hc/en-us/articles/48003739079828-Content-Taxonomy-Glossary
          
          There were some subcategories that were missing. Now, I can't remember what subcategories I wanted. Maybe they just want the most popular Wattpad categories right now.
          
          For my works, the Romance category is a must-add. I also added "Culture and Identity" with an emphasis on "East Asian." I'm probably going to use "destined love" as a subcategory a lot because I think fate has a strong influence in my stories. It might not be as obvious as red string theory, fated mates, or Omegaverse. By the way, I'd like to write about those too one day.
          
          For the Fanfic category, we can add our own fandoms if it doesn't exist on the list. Type what you want into the category and click on the black button below it to add it as a custom fandom. I added "Super Junior" for one of my stories. You can also type the fandom name to filter on existing fandoms.
          
          I focused a lot on fiction, but I do have some non-fiction works too. The only category I didn't have is poetry, but I probably won't write or publish poems or songs lyrics any time soon. 
          
          Have fun categorizing your works!

Hi Wattpadders,
          
          I noticed Wattpad's "value proposition" statement today on the main landing page before I log in:
          
          Come for the story. Stay for the connection.
          
          Wow... How awesome! That's exactly what I do here! I thought it was Wattpad's slogan, but Wattpad's slogan is "where stories live" since 2019.
          
          I feel like romanticizing everything right now. How beautiful that we provide stories on Wattpad and also connect with each other. You don't get this kind of interaction if you read a physical book and wanted to chat with the writer (I want to talk to Lauren Kung Jessen and Kate Robb). Sure, you can go to their social media pages and then message them from there, but to really give inline comments or instant comments about their work is a specialty of Wattpad.
          
          Did anybody hear of the New York Bookcon controversy recently where a fan interaction with an author went downhill for being below expectations, calling the author "unfriendly" and "rude"? Do fans expect authors to be like K-pop idols, smiling, roleplaying, and engaging with fans all the time?  Well, if I were there as an author, I probably can't stop grinning to meet fans unless I meet someone who makes me uncomfortable. I have a sixth sense for "feeling" people.
          
          First,  I couldn't even get a ticket to Bookcon because tickets are sold out. I heard there were numerous complaints about the event in general so maybe it's good I didn't go. I never went to Bookcon before. I rather be home, ya know? But if it's an opportunity to meet fans/writers, yeah, I'd go!
          
          BTW, Jet Li's book release was yesterday! Must. Read.
          
          I humorously spent last night squealing over my writing. I built up this world and I'm living in it. This story is so real to me even as I edit it. I fight the fatigue, but it's genuinely a pleasant experience to read my story. In between, I internally talk to other imaginary characters that tempt me to write a different story, but I laugh at that. I love this!

Knock knock!

Hi Wattpadders,
          
          It's me again. I'm itching to write something even though I have no time for this. Yesterday, I spent 7 hours editing one chapter. How insane is that? I went beyond 2 AM to edit a crucial scene in my story. That is crazy dedication. 
          
          Just when I thought my story was good, I somehow edited it to become even better. That's when I realized what other writers meant when they don't know when to stop editing. I'm the kind of person who would rather write than edit because I lack time and energy, so I would rather write stories and edit when I have time, which is never. Maybe someone can take it over to edit it when I'm dead, but the basic bare bones story is written.
          
          I was keyboard warrioring on the X platform yesterday. Someone wrote something negative about Wattpad and how it's filled with AI -generated stories. Really? Am I the only one who thinks I'm reading other people's genuine work? I don't count using AI-assist to do grammar checks and any type of assistance with the evaluation of the story. Writers have had spellcheckers and grammar checks since I had my first word processor. 
          
          Or am I living in a Wattad world of illusion where other stories are AI generated? I really can't tell what is AI and what is not that easily unless it's really obvious. I even watch YouTube videos about it to see how I can spot it.
          
          A lot of people claimed to have left Wattpad due to the lack of personal messaging features and the inability to see what other people are reading, liking, and commenting on. Again, is it that important for you to see what I like, vote, or comment on? It's only interesting if I were a famous writer. 
          
          Lastly, quitters miss the days when the real writers used to write funny stories about their personal lives. Well, aren't I doing that every other few days? This goes to show I'm not AI and I'm a real writer who has a real life! I was waiting for someone to bash me online, but surprisingly, nobody did. I'll stay invisible because I like peace.