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Am I the only one who didn't know about Wattpad?
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Kelly wrote: "Okay, so on one of these feeds the other day, I saw a post for Wattbpad. What's Wattpad?, I asked myself. So I went and checked it out and I cannot believe I didn't know about this before. I'm just..."You're not alone Kelly. I've no idea what Wattpad is. I've heard about it, but not sure what it is or what it's used for.
This is the first I've heard of it and, after clicking on the link, I'm still not sure what it is or what it's for. There's not much information there.
Kelly wrote: "Okay, so on one of these feeds the other day, I saw a post for Wattbpad. What's Wattpad?, I asked myself. So I went and checked it out and I cannot believe I didn't know about this before. I'm just..."Okay, I'm going to try this. Here's what I've got up so far - http://wattpad.com/ElaineWhite
Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction and love stories between 13 year olds. There are a few gems in there, but it takes a lot of searching. I haven't even thought about putting works on there that I'm not publishing. I hope it's good for you though and I know that there are some people who've built up fanbases through WP. I personally won't use it, but maybe it'll work for you. :)
I started on the wonderful wattpad :)It is fantastic and I read some fab stories on there. I also get some of my covers from there.
The feedback is fab, you basically write your story in parts, people download it and comment they vote if they like it and you can win a watty award for your writing.
The only issue is waiting for updates of books you like.
I heard that that girl, Abigail Gibbs, who wrote
was discovered on Wattpad. She had built up such a fanbase that the publishing company offered her a 6 figure, 3 book deal. She was only 16, I think.
Peggy wrote: "This is the first I've heard of it and, after clicking on the link, I'm still not sure what it is or what it's for. There's not much information there."I don't know what it is either I'm about to check it out myself but I do that too Peggy. I'll look at something such as a site and still have no clue what I'm looking at lol.
Mercy wrote: "I started on the wonderful wattpad :)It is fantastic and I read some fab stories on there. I also get some of my covers from there.
The feedback is fab, you basically write your story in parts,..."
I'm about to check it out but from what your saying it sounds like a site where you can post stories and then people can download them and give you feed back? Sounds like a good idea to me!
If nothing else, it looks like a friendly place to post an excerpt from your book with a link, which helps your search engine optimization!I'm going to sign up when I get a chance. Thanks, Kelly et al!
Elaine wrote: "I heard that that girl, Abigail Gibbs, who wrote was discovered on Wattpad. She had built up such a fanbase that the publishing company offered her a 6 fi..."Since I don't write teenage vampire stories, I am guessing I can safely give this a miss. :-)
Sharon wrote: "Elaine wrote: "I heard that that girl, Abigail Gibbs, who wrote was discovered on Wattpad. She had built up such a fanbase that the publishing company off..."Yeah, I'd give the book a miss even if I didn't write teenage vampire stories. Apparently it's quite insulting to women, which is surprising since the author is a 16 year old girl. But that's just from reviews I read. I'm not going near it myself.
I wouldn't mind a 6 figure deal though. :)
Elaine wrote: "Sharon wrote: "Elaine wrote: "I heard that that girl, Abigail Gibbs, who wrote was discovered on Wattpad. She had built up such a fanbase that the publish..."
It's the novelty of having a teenager write something. Same thing happened (sorta) with Paolini's Eragon. If an adult wrote something that hackneyed it wouldn't have gotten near the attention it did, but because he was 15 when it was published people made a big deal out of it.
was discovered on Wattpad. She had built up such a fanbase that the publish..."It's the novelty of having a teenager write something. Same thing happened (sorta) with Paolini's Eragon. If an adult wrote something that hackneyed it wouldn't have gotten near the attention it did, but because he was 15 when it was published people made a big deal out of it.
Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction and love stories between 13 year olds. There are a few gems in there, but it takes a lot of sear..."
Yep, I'm finding all this fanfiction for children and it's making me feel like a creepy old man (I'm 25) for being on the same site... yeesh.
Yep, I'm finding all this fanfiction for children and it's making me feel like a creepy old man (I'm 25) for being on the same site... yeesh.
J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "Sharon wrote: "Elaine wrote: "I heard that that girl, Abigail Gibbs, who wrote was discovered on Wattpad. She had built up such a fanbase t..."Yup, I tried to read Eragon and it just went right over my head. I didn't get it at all. I think because he came up with his own 'language' everyone thought he was a genius.
Personally, I like my stories edited and non-insulting. I read one of the reviews that says it's like Harper Collins just copied and pasted her posts from Wattpad and put them into a published novel, without even editing any of it. Shocking, if you ask me.
J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction and love stories between 13 year olds. There are a few gems in there, but it tak..."Yup, J. Same here. I'm only 27 and it's all creepy fanfics about 1D. *shivers* Although, it could be worse, I haven't come across any Justin Beaber yet. And - worse - is that Amazon are going to start paying people to publish their fanfic on their site! I saw one for Harry Potter and I was like...what?! No. Fanfics are not for sale. That's surely not legal.
Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction and love stories between 13 year olds. There are a few gems in there,..."
What about those James Potter books? I've seen them for sale for quite a while. I think there was also a blatant ripoff of the Percy Jackson books (rip-off of a rip-off..) with the name Jackson in the title. Somehow this is legal?
On a side note, I already saw one with that smug bastard Beiber on the cover on wattpad, so that happened...
What about those James Potter books? I've seen them for sale for quite a while. I think there was also a blatant ripoff of the Percy Jackson books (rip-off of a rip-off..) with the name Jackson in the title. Somehow this is legal?
On a side note, I already saw one with that smug bastard Beiber on the cover on wattpad, so that happened...
J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction and love stories between 13 year olds. There are a few..."Urg! Good grief. Well, I don't think I'm liking Wattpad so far, but I'll give it a week and see. So far, I can't find a delete button which is a pain for when I inevitably make a mistake. Not even a proper help page.
Yeah, I actually read the James Potter books. Apparently J.K said he could earn money because apart from using the HP names, he didn't steal anything else. It's all his own story, he's only using the names and Hogwarts. She liked it so much she told him it was a good thing, because she didn't intend to write anymore.
Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction and love stories between 13 year olds. Ther..."
I wouldn't be that forgiving if someone wanted to do that with my work, but good for her. I'll also give wattpad a limited time basis to prove itself as a viable place to reach readers.
I was on this one website called authonomy and it was a complete bust and time-suck, so watch out for that one. It's filled with people either spamming you to read their book or trying to make yours look bad so theirs stays in the top. No one of note has been published off of it and it makes no guarantees that if your book gets to the editor's desk that it will be published. It's basically a legal scam...
I wouldn't be that forgiving if someone wanted to do that with my work, but good for her. I'll also give wattpad a limited time basis to prove itself as a viable place to reach readers.
I was on this one website called authonomy and it was a complete bust and time-suck, so watch out for that one. It's filled with people either spamming you to read their book or trying to make yours look bad so theirs stays in the top. No one of note has been published off of it and it makes no guarantees that if your book gets to the editor's desk that it will be published. It's basically a legal scam...
J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction and love stories between 13 ..."Geez. And they get away with it, which is crazy. I only really join things if I can see a benefit. Twitter, FB etc are great for connecting with other writers. I also joined Authorgraph because it's something unique for potential fans and it's free. But these sites where you need to get to know people bug me. I like my solitude - I'm kind of antisocial that way :D I like choosing what to say and what not to join in, like in these groups.
I had someone delete my posts for me, since I couldn't do it myself and I can't even reply to them. They closed the discussion, which is useless because no-one even told me how to delete anything if I do it again, which I probably will.
Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction and love stories ..."
I reluctantly rejoined FB but only to market my book before I publish it. I really don't want to have to use twitter :( I've used it before for business marketing but inevitably some chucklehead decides to spout their mouth off and abuse their first amendment rights by trolling and it takes away all the hard work you did. I just don't want to have to deal with that.
I reluctantly rejoined FB but only to market my book before I publish it. I really don't want to have to use twitter :( I've used it before for business marketing but inevitably some chucklehead decides to spout their mouth off and abuse their first amendment rights by trolling and it takes away all the hard work you did. I just don't want to have to deal with that.
J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fanfiction an..."Yeah, I cheat. I use my blog to automatically update my Twitter and FB author page with my blog posts, so I rarely actually have to visit them. Mostly, I use FB to connect to the other authors with my publisher, because they're all in the US and I'm in the UK. It's easier than e-mail etc.
Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as One Direction fa..."
Sounds like it. I'm too impatient to deal with the whole publisher/literary agent thing myself. Hearing about how the process can take years turned me off to the whole thing. I'm just going to pay for it to be professionally edited then self-publish and be done with it. I hate hassle, and I hate the begging that lit agents try to make people do. Build an online platform and self-pub seems to be really popular and legit these days.
Sounds like it. I'm too impatient to deal with the whole publisher/literary agent thing myself. Hearing about how the process can take years turned me off to the whole thing. I'm just going to pay for it to be professionally edited then self-publish and be done with it. I hate hassle, and I hate the begging that lit agents try to make people do. Build an online platform and self-pub seems to be really popular and legit these days.
I've been giving this one a try. My page's here, if anyone's interested: http://www.wattpad.com/user/YzabelGin...I agree that it's basically wading through A LOT of crap (...like 95% of the internet, I'd say?). Fortunately, I've been able to find interesting, mature people among all the kids and childish ones. The others I don't engage with. I may or may not leave my stuff there. The "right" people have given me feedback that has helped me to edit my own work, so for the moment, I can say I'm benefitting from this. However, I reserve myself the right to pull out, of course, if at any point I get tired of it, or if it proves a problem.
Perhaps *we* can be a group of more mature people and authors there, though. Nobody forces us to read the stupid 1D fanfics and other Twilight-ripoffs.
J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of crap such as O..."Yeah. It took me years to find someone suitable, but once I got referred to my publisher she only read one chapter and got back to me in days. I guess it's just about finding the right one at the right time. Luckily, she does all my editing and then passes it by me before clearing it. Everything she does, we decide on together. So nothing I don't want gets passed. And since I'm disabled and have a lot of hospital appointments, she's great at being flexible with me.
Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade through a lot of cra..."
Years?
I had one agent get back to me within minutes of querying with my prologue, but asking for an 8 week exclusive on it. I did some investigative work and found out she pulls this scam on nearly all queriers. She got pissed when I said I couldn't grant an exclusive. I've been researching agents a lot before I started querying and it seems the only ones who were currently taking manuscript queries had questionable reputations. So I took myself out of that mess for now, but I'm glad it worked out for you :) You seem to have found one of the good ones.
Years?
I had one agent get back to me within minutes of querying with my prologue, but asking for an 8 week exclusive on it. I did some investigative work and found out she pulls this scam on nearly all queriers. She got pissed when I said I couldn't grant an exclusive. I've been researching agents a lot before I started querying and it seems the only ones who were currently taking manuscript queries had questionable reputations. So I took myself out of that mess for now, but I'm glad it worked out for you :) You seem to have found one of the good ones.
Yzabel wrote: "I've been giving this one a try. My page's here, if anyone's interested: http://www.wattpad.com/user/YzabelGin...
I agree that it's basically wading through A LOT of crap (...like 95% of the int..."
I agree. I love your 1D fanfiction though. I thought it was inspired ;)
I agree that it's basically wading through A LOT of crap (...like 95% of the int..."
I agree. I love your 1D fanfiction though. I thought it was inspired ;)
It's a bit like Jottify then? I haven't noticed Jottify has a young average age, but then I haven't been a big user -- not after I published, since it's for work-in-progress.
Neither did I like authonomy... bad set-up, bad atmosphere.
Bryn wrote: "It's a bit like Jottify then?
I haven't noticed Jottify has a young average age, but then I haven't been a big user -- not after I published, since it's for work-in-progress.
Neither did I like au..."
Authonomy has the worst set up, like someone in the 90s creating their own website from their basement bad. The atmosphere is just terrible, bitchy writers who want to use others as a stepping stone to get to the editor's desk (I think we all know it's an intern and not an actual editor). Over-promises and under delivers. Big time.
I haven't noticed Jottify has a young average age, but then I haven't been a big user -- not after I published, since it's for work-in-progress.
Neither did I like au..."
Authonomy has the worst set up, like someone in the 90s creating their own website from their basement bad. The atmosphere is just terrible, bitchy writers who want to use others as a stepping stone to get to the editor's desk (I think we all know it's an intern and not an actual editor). Over-promises and under delivers. Big time.
J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to wade throu..."I did yeah. The only reason I waited years was because I was studying at the same time, so I figured all the studying could only help, if I got a qualification at the end of it.
Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattPad. You have to..."
I think it absolutely helps if one is qualified in anything. My degree is in business and I can say all the classes I had taken on marketing and social media have helped me to have a better grasp of how to reach out to my audience. I didn't write my book until I was well out of school but now that I know the business end of things I am glad I have that background. Having said that, I am still so impatient with the whole agent querying game that I gave up before I received any rejections. To me, it just isn't worth my time to wind up giving someone 15% when all they would wind up doing is basically introducing me to a publisher.
I think it absolutely helps if one is qualified in anything. My degree is in business and I can say all the classes I had taken on marketing and social media have helped me to have a better grasp of how to reach out to my audience. I didn't write my book until I was well out of school but now that I know the business end of things I am glad I have that background. Having said that, I am still so impatient with the whole agent querying game that I gave up before I received any rejections. To me, it just isn't worth my time to wind up giving someone 15% when all they would wind up doing is basically introducing me to a publisher.
J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Elaine wrote: "J. wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Honestly, I dislike WattP..."You're absolutely right. Even when you get a publisher, the usual %age is just 7% for a paperback book and 20% for a kindle (last time I checked)! I'm lucky that my publisher is independent and understanding of all the hard work that goes into writing - because she's a writer herself. We get more than the average because she can afford to do so at the moment. But still, it always depends on the market and fluctuations in what's popular.
Okay, so far from what I've read, no-one can spell! The writing is atrocious but I'm going to persevere in the hope that someone will learn what real spelling and real editing looks like. *sighs and shakes head*Oh and another thing I noticed - the 'writers' are all teeny-boppers obsessed with 1D and corrupted by 50 Shades! Urg! Honestly, some of the sex stuff written by kids that young, is just plain ridiculous. It goes full explicit and it's all that dominant crap (insert strongest word possible as replacement) similar to 50 Shades...which, I have never read and don't plan to. What's the world coming to?
Sorry, rant over. I think Wattpad may be turning me into an old-fogey or driving me insane. I apologise now for my imminent mental breakdown.
90 to 95% of readers and writers on wattpad are teenagers. And only teen stories ever reach the top lists. The rest have to be found as a needle in a hay stack. Not many care about the spelling and grammar on the site. It's very hard to get noticed, voted and commented on.
Lia wrote: "I don't read anything on Wattpad, I don't find much of the stuff there entertaining or interesting. I think that Wattpad is mostly for young authors, most of them are just starting out in the way a..."LOL Love the Spoiler! I read one story yesterday that did that. It was like a train wreck. I was so shocked at how awful it was that I couldn't look away. hehe. I'm guessing it's like a torture site for real authors :) But, I suppose if you want a teen audience, it's a good way to get noticed?
http://www.wattpad.com/user/cozenkkI just started a story there, "Seeing Red". It is at best amateurish from some of my most favorite writers. If you would like a good list of some of the better stories there, I have a good few to give you a good night or two to get lost in the pages. There is also a group here at group reads (small). I have posted that list of gems there as well.
Lia wrote: "I don't think so, no. Especially if you're trying to build up a fanbase.
The readers there seem to want a very specific kind of story to read (1D fanfiction, forbidden love, Mary Sues etc.) that t..."
Totally agree. That's why I left after about a week, the audience wasn't for me.
The readers there seem to want a very specific kind of story to read (1D fanfiction, forbidden love, Mary Sues etc.) that t..."
Totally agree. That's why I left after about a week, the audience wasn't for me.
Also Wattpad is for unpublished works of literature. Some writers do turn it into a self published book. fallen Crest High is one of those books (ignore the second one at all cost thought). There are some really great stories there, "Paying For His Mistakes". You just have to expect that there will be editing issues. Surprisingly there are some really good "free" stories there. It's more like training wheels in my opinion.
I haven't gained much from the site either.
I been a member since last week so I'm still getting used to it, I actually like it. I can post stuff I may never intend on publishing. Also Wattpad is ranked #2 on a site for 46 best places to promote your book, underneath Goodreads.
Justin wrote: "I been a member since last week so I'm still getting used to it, I actually like it. I can post stuff I may never intend on publishing. Also Wattpad is ranked #2 on a site for 46 best places to p..."
I totally agree Justin. I wasn't sure at first but I'm actually really enjoying myself. Been on since last week and got 14 votes and 7 followers already. Plus, I'm enjoying reading other people's stories. I'm only posting stuff I wouldn't otherwise publish, or posting the start of stories to see what reception they get, for later when I publish the whole thing. I think it's actually quite great :D
Yeah its a great way to post your own work and to view others. A very simple formatted website. I only got a few views on my work but like I said its still early. Wattpad is good though!
OK, just started on this and created a page. I will try to figure out how to friend all of you here and hope I can get some votes as well! Thanks!http://wattpad.com/AndreaBarbosa
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Here's mine
http://www.wattpad.com/user/TentCity