Writing: Getting to Grips with Wattpad

 What is Wattpad?

Wattpad is a free social media app for writers and readers. Writers of all abilities, from newbies to professional authors, can post stories one chapter at a time. Founded in 2006, Wattpad has more than 40 million users worldwide - and the majority are readers.

Most stories are read on a mobile phone; 50% of stories are written on a mobile phone. The most popular genres are YA, New Adult, sci-fi and romance. Wattpad is popular with teenagers, but 35% of users are aged between 18 and 30. Most users live in the USA, Canada and the UK, and it's the number one app in the Philippines.

It's not just for fan fiction either. Many established authors use Wattpad, including Margaret Atwood, Colleen Hoover and Meg Cabot.

But Is Wattpad For You?

If you are new to writing, I would suggest joining with a couple of friends. Wattpad is a great way to share and comment on each other's stories. You can add photos, videos and create a cast list of actors who you would love to play the part of your characters. My seventeen-year-old self would have loved Wattpad!

If you are a published author it can be an excellent way to connect with new readers - but it won't necessarily lead to book sales. As Wattpad is free to use, you are effectively giving away your work for free too. Consider posting the first book in a series, or a novella, or short samples of novels - the first two or three chapters. Check this is OK with your publisher first though. If you are with KDP Select, for example, you are limited to not publishing more than 10% of your book on any other website, including your own.

When I first joined Wattpad, I posted two 10,000 word short stories, originally published in an anthology, to which I still owned the rights. One of these was chosen by Wattpad to be one of their Featured Reads. You don't have to wait for your story to be chosen for this promotion, you can apply here. The only rule is that you have to agree for that story to stay on Wattpad for 6 months. The advantage of having your story featured is that you'll gain more readers and followers. 

If you are unpublished and serious about your writing, do be careful exactly what you post. Some competitions and publishers have a rule that they won't accept a story if it has already been published elsewhere - and that will include Wattpad. 

Tips

As with any social media account, put a bit of effort into setting up your profile. Use a unique picture for your avatar, either a photo of yourself or a picture that in some way represents you. And don't forget the banner (background strip at the top of the profile). Most users have a pen name but if you are already published, or have other social media accounts, or a blog/website, it makes sense to use the same name so you can be easily found by your readers. You can add links to these accounts from your Wattpad profile, and when you post a story you can also add a link to a retailer such as Amazon or Kobo. 

Make it clear if your story is only an extract. You don't want readers waiting for the end of a story which will never come.

Each chapter of a story counts as a separate read/vote, so it makes sense to post each chapter as a separate instalment. For example, Why Do Fools Fall in Love* has fifty-two chapters, so one person reading the whole story would be the equivalent to fifty-two reads.

It is up to you how long your chapters are. I try to aim for at least 1,000 words per instalment, preferably 1,500 words. It certainly makes you think about where to put your cliff-hangers!

Votes are worth more than reads, so gently encourage readers to vote for your story if they have enjoyed it. At the end of each of my chapters I have a 'call to action': 

Thank you for reading my story! 

If you have enjoyed it, please help others find it by voting!

I also add the date the next chapter will be posted.

If you are serialising a novel, try to post a new instalment once a week. If you want your story to rise up through the charts, you will need to post at least twice a week. 

Wattpad readers are non-critical when it comes to spelling mistakes and typos - to them, the characters and the story are more important - but don't use this as an excuse not to post your very best work! If you are posting a work-in-progress, you can go back and edit it at any time.

After you've published a new chapter, double-check for errors. I copy and paste my chapters, which look absolutely fine until I hit 'publish' - and then everything  mysteriously shifts to the left. Occasionally words merge and weird symbols appear. So I always make sure I check through what I've posted after publishing as well as before.

Remember to share your stories to your other social media accounts. Widgets are available to add to websites and blogs. You can also create quote art - a line or two from your story set against a pretty background.

Like Facebook and Twitter, you can post a message to your followers via the Conversations tab. Readers can write on your 'wall' and you can send direct messages to individual users. And every time you update a story, your followers will receive a notification.

Why I love Wattpad

One thing I found extremely disconcerting at first, was the way a reader can comment at any point during the text! But once I got over myself, I realised what a great idea it was. The comments are almost always positive and as a writer it is lovely to see how readers are engaging with your story and characters.

As stories are told in instalments, forcing readers to wait for the next part, it really made me think about where the best place was to end the chapter - and how much of a page-turner that chapter really was. It also made me think about the reader and what their reaction was likely to be to an upcoming scene.

Conclusion

If you are a published author, with little or no free time, looking for a social media site to do the whole 'buy my book' thing, Wattpad probably isn't for you.

If you are a published author wanting to expand on your readership, and you're happy to chat to fans about your characters and plot twists, you could post up a novella or the first book in a series. 

If you are new to writing and want to connect with fellow authors, and you have a thick enough skin to cope with readers putting comments all over your work, then why not give Wattpad a try? You could set up a profile and read other people's stories to get a feel for the site first, until you feel brave enough to dive in and post one of your own.

Like all social media, you'll get the most out of Wattpad the more you use it, and by being friendly, genuine and social. You need to take the time to do it properly - set up a profile, post stories or extracts, and interact with readers and other writers. Read, comment and vote for other people's stories; become involved.

And above all, don't forget to have fun!

*This story is no longer available to view on Wattpad

This post was previously published on Novelistas Ink

A Walk on the Wild* Side & The Lonely Knight

In which I actually leave the house ...

One of my New Year's Resolutions was to stop working weekends and explore the surrounding countryside instead. I live in North Wales; it's one of the most beautiful places in the world; do I even need an excuse?

* This is as wild as I like to get ...

One of my favourite walks is along the River Llugwy in Betws-y-Coed. It's not too strenuous and there are plenty of coffee shops in the village. Betws-y-Coed Community Council have built a wooden walkway between the trees, suitable for wheelchairs and prams, as well as for when the route becomes too muddy underfoot. (You can tell I'm a townie). It's a very short walk (yup, townie), lasting about half an hour, but the scenery is beautiful. It is also possible to carry on walking alongside the river to the Miners' Bridge.

Here's a photo of the River Llugwy, taken from the walkway. I'm fascinated by the effect of light on water, and I'm always trying to photograph it - not terribly successfully.

Once you've walked past the walkway, some of the path is made up with these slabs of stone:

I loved these moss-covered boulders and had several tries at photographing them:

The River Llugwy, taken from the Miners' Bridge: 

As the name suggests, the bridge was used by the miners on their way to work in the Gwydyr Forest. It is unusual in that it is built at a steep incline.

The Miners' Bridge

I think my favourite bridge is the Sappers' Bridge, on the other side of the village. It's a suspension footbridge and was built by the Royal Engineers in 1930 to replace an earlier bridge which had been swept away. It crosses the River Conwy beside St Michael's Old Church - and is disconcertingly bouncy to walk on.
 

The Sappers' Bridge
looking towards St Michael's Church

The Sappers' Bridge
looking towards the A470

The River Conwy
taken from the Sappers' Bridge

The name Betws-y-Coed means 'prayer house in the woods' and is thought to refer to St Michael's Old Church, which was built in the 14th century and is the oldest building in the village.

St Michael's Old Church
taken from the Sappers' Bridge

St Michael's Old Church
(The yew trees are well over 500 years old)

Although the church was made redundant in 1873, with the building of St Mary's Church on the main road, it is still consecrated and holds a service on St Michael's Day (29th September) and a candlelit service at Christmas.

Interior of St Michael's Old Church

The church has been beautifully restored and is definitely worth a visit. The font dates from the 13th century (older than the church), and the Tudor linen fold panelling of the oak pulpit is believed to have come from Gwydir Castle at Llanrwst. But what caught my attention was the stone effigy of a knight - the kind more usually seen on top of a chest tomb. The Latin inscription says: 'Here lies Gruffydd son of Dafydd the Red: Lamb of God have mercy upon me'. So who was Gruffydd, and why is he lying here all on his own?

The effigy of
Gruffydd ap Dafydd Goch

Helpfully, there's a poster on the wall above him explaining his story. It says that he lived locally at Fedw Deg, that he fought under the Black Prince (son of Edward III) at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356 and that he died sometime around 1370-80.

Because he's all on his own, I had imagined him to be a single man but apparently he was married to a lady named Margaret. His effigy shows him wearing the armour of a knight and he is armed with a sword and dagger. His feet rest on a lion, meaning he died in battle, and his coat of arms was a chevron with two oak leaves - the design is shown both on his belt buckle and his tunic. His head rests on a helmet topped with a bird holding an oak leaf in its beak. Unfortunately at some time in the past Gruffydd's helmet has been trimmed to fit the niche where it now rests.

There is a theory that he was descended from the princes of Gwynedd. His father was thought to be the illegitimate son of Dafydd, Lord of Denbigh, who was the brother of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd (Llywelyn the Last), but no one can be sure.

How did his effigy end up in this tiny church? Well, the clue is in the date of his death. Given how important he was locally, and that the church was rebuilt at the same time, it is not unreasonable to conclude he was the original patron.

So, not such a lonely knight after all.



Recommended Coffee Shop:

The Alpine Coffee Shop and Gallery

Sources and Links:

The St Michael's Old Church guidebook, written by Lorna Scharer
St Michael's Old Church
Photos: Mine!

Related posts:

Castles, Ghosts...and Knights in Murky Armour
Castles and Cream Teas
Beyond the Bridge
More Ramblings About Tombs

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Writing: Getting Serious

I've always liked the idea of New Year's Resolutions. That chance to reinvent yourself every year, like the kind of books I read as a teenager: neglected female completely transforms into the belle of the ball with the help of a few mice, a pumpkin and - oh yes, a fairy godmother. Funny how these kind of stories always involve someone else coming to the rescue. I'm a proactive kind of person myself. If I'd been Cinderella, it would have been more a case of "B***** the Fairy Godmother, get me a pumpkin and I'll do it myself."

You see, as much as I love watching TV shows like The X Factor, there's always one thing guaranteed to infuriate me: whenever a contestant says something like, "I really want this, I've wanted it my whole life." OK, so they've really 'wanted' a singing career but they've never done anything about it? Never had singing lessons, or written a song, or formed a band, or tried to set up a few gigs? Basically, they've been sitting around waiting for a fairy godmother (Simon Cowell?) to come to the rescue.

Can you see where I'm going with this?

If your New Year's Resolution was to write a book, or maybe you've already written a book and you want to get it published, what have you done about it? Anything? Anything at all? Scribbled a few notes? Fantasised about the hot actor you'd like to play your hero in the movie adaptation? Stuck a pin in the Writers' and Artists' Yearbook and queried a few random agents? Enjoyed a few daydreams about the glamorous life you're going to lead as a full-time author? (And that's a whole other blog post, trust me.) If you want to be a writer badly enough, I'm afraid you're going to have to get serious about it.

Understand that you'll to have to make sacrifices. Not the dancing-naked-in-the-moonlight-and-endangering-defenceless-chickens sacrifice, but the kind that involves the most precious thing of all: your time. For example, if you know you only have an hour a day to write, then write - don't waste that time faffing about on social media.

Perfect your craft. There are hundreds of books about writing (my favourite is Stephen King's On Writing). Or take a creative writing course and, once you've written your novel, pay to have it professionally critiqued before sending it out to an agent/publisher. Although I still feel the best, easiest and most fun way to learn how to write fiction is to read lots of it. It's not expensive. You can borrow books for free from your local library and there are always deals to be had on ebooks. If you feel you don't have the time to read, think about how you spend the time you do have. Sacrifices, remember? No one lies on their death bed wishing they'd spent more time on social media.

Having said that, social media is an effective tool for writers, but only when used in the right way. Unless you are already published, forget about all the things you've heard about creating a 'brand' and setting up a 'platform'. The most important thing is to be social; you'll get far more out of it. Make friends with fellow writers, new and established. Follow people in the industry, such as agents and publishers - but don't expect them to follow you back, and definitely don't pitch your novel unless invited to do so. Most publishers are great at posting about deals on books and will have competitions to win signed copies from your favourite authors. Some publishers have blogs where they post writing tips from their editors, tell you when they are open for submissions and what they are looking for, as well as running writing competitions to win a book contract.

Talking of which, don't overlook those writing competitions - that's how I got my first book deal - and I didn't even win. And, if you can afford it, attend writers' conferences and literary festivals. Editors and agents are less likely to ignore a submission if it's come from someone they remember (in a good way!) from a workshop or a one-to-one meeting at a writers' conference. But if you're not lucky enough to bag a one-to-one, don't despair. Sometimes you can learn more from attending an industry panel event, and listening to writers and editors talking about the current market - what's popular and what's out of fashion. You'll have the opportunity to ask relevant questions and learn more than if you had pinned all your hopes on a one-to-one where you might have either targeted the wrong agent/editor, belatedly realised your submission is not polished enough, or had plain nerves just get the better of you. Early on in my career I found myself sitting on a sunny bench at a writers' conference, drinking coffee and chatting about trends in fiction with a commissioning editor. I got far more out of that than if I'd tried to pitch her my book.

No one understands a writer like another writer. Try joining a writers' group, club or society. The Romantic Novelists' Association accepts unpublished authors under its New Writers' Scheme. Alternatively, find out if there are any writers' groups meeting in your area and, if not, why not start one? The Novelistas came about because Trisha Ashley moved to North Wales and put out a request asking if other local writers would like to meet up. Our group has now been going for almost fifteen years.

L-R: Trisha Ashley, Juliet Greenwood, Louise Marley

Compared to when I first started out, there are now so many great opportunities for writers. Don't waste time waiting for that fairy godmother or daydreaming about success. If you want to be taken seriously as a writer, you have to start taking your writing seriously.

And no one can do that but you.

This post was previously published on Novelistas Ink

Photo Copyright: All pictures my own except Cinderella (Fotolia) and girl with laptop (Shutterstock).