Writerish Questions | Writing on Wattpad

I am a writer- and I loved to write way before I loved to read. Some of you may not know, but I'm currently writing and revising a novel: a sci-fi YA that is turning into a series/duology...

Another writing-related thing you most likely don't know: I write a lot of my works on Wattpad.



I did a lot of practice writing by writing fanfictions and such on there. 
That was why I joined Wattpad, was to get better at dialogue and pacing, and have feedback from my audience and fellow writers.


It's AMAZING!! I love Wattpad (just make sure to save your writing every once in a while), there are clubs that you can join, based on genres and then other ones specifically for editing questions, marketing, publishing- and much more.


I've been writing on there for a while now, and I've made several writer friends and definitely improved my writing. 
If I have a question, need tips or advice- I can make a discussion in any of the clubs and quickly get lots of different opinions from different writers.

I do some of the chapters as samples and to ask for feedback on the story so far, etc. But currently, on Wattpad the only part of my book you can see is barely a fraction of the very first draft.


But to actually write my book, I have a 3-subject notebook that I keep track of things in. Such as a vague outline, character descriptions (so I don't forget), and a list of important plot points that I can't forget to tie up. 
You have to keep track of these things!

 
I write each chapter on Wattpad (but do not publish them), I copy and paste the chapters to Scrivener, and there I can always go back and look something up if I forgot. Or add something, remove something, etc.

Sometimes though, I will write a few sentences to a page of an important scene in my notebook and then flesh it out and add more when I type it up. 


I have a few friends that have a hard time coming up with what to write when they stare at the blank page in Wattpad's writing area so I would suggest brainstorming on paper for that. I don't have that problem a whole lot, my Writer's block is more of just a slump. 
Since I have lots of different writing 'projects' (the fanfictions, my novel, and my poetry collection) I am constantly writing or plotting or outlining, so when I have a hard time writing is like when I have to take a break for a while.


 


If you're going to write on Wattpad, here are some things you should know:


- Always click that save button. Always.

- Copy and paste your chapters to another document or even print it (I save mine to Scrivener).

- Tags are your friends.

- You can always change the title, synopsis, and cover.

- You don't have to just use Wattpad's cover creator, I use Canva's free book cover creator (there's even an option for a wattpad book cover).

- You can rearrange and go back and edit chapters whenever- just make sure to keep clicking the publish and save buttons.

- Go back and check your past chapters, to make sure your story is consistent.




Now on Wattpad, there are some things you need to know or remember to get readers, keep readers, and make yourself happy with your writing too.


- You need to update your story regularly. Whether that is once a week, twice a week, once every two weeks- you need to let your readers know. Don't just forget and then update every two months. You need to be persistent in your story, otherwise you'll fall out of love with it and/or it'll never get written!

- Write what you want to read. You can write something specifically for someone else in mind, but I personally have found that I need to want to read what I write. I need to be excited to discover more of it as I write. I have to like what I'm going to be spending my time writing!

- Don't forget your audience. Your audience will be actually reading your story if it is published on Wattpad. And they will comment on all sorts of things. Advice, tips, encouragement. Maybe not always something good, but the majority of the time they will tell you what they think about the dialogue, the plot, the characters. They'll give you feedback on your story, which is wonderful.



On Wattpad, I actually have been asked a lot of questions about writing (and while I do answer them on there) I'm going to repeat them on here.



Do I have a Writing Buddy?

Er. My pug is my Writing Buddy actually. She lays beside me on the couch and I'll sneak her some pieces of food when I take a break to eat.
Though I am doing some world building for a writing project with my best friend for a series we're planning. Other than that, I currently write my projects alone. Maybe in the future, I'll coauthor with someone though, for now...I'm a little busy with several writing projects and life.

I do, however, have a friend that hosts WriteAThons sometimes, and does Writing Sprints with me when she can! She'd probably be my human writing buddy... Here's her blog. We're ''Author Buddies''!!




How do you get your writing ideas?

 I have a naturally over-imaginative brain, so fanfiction ideas are constantly there. And sometimes I'll add some ideas that I got from a wicked cool dream I had. It tends to work the same way with my novel ideas...




Do you listen to music when you write?

Yes, I actually make playlists for my writing projects on YouTube. But sometimes I don't listen to anything when I'm writing.




How often do you write?

 Um, every day actually. I'm constantly writing- when I'm not reading or baking or anything else (such as those two jobs I have).




Do you plan all the different types of scenes in your stories/fanfictions?

 Nope. I have a general idea of the plot when I start writing (or even just one tiny idea), and I wing everything else. I'll already have an idea of what I like or don't like in fanfictions or other stories, and I just come up with it as I go.
Now sometimes when I start a scene, I'll suddenly know exactly how I want it to go and how it'll tie into the story.




Do you outline?

Ah.... yes and no.

For fanfictions- No.

For my novels, yes. But it's more of a small plot point outline- very skeletal and bare. I fill it in as I write. Chapter by chapter.




Do you ever go back and rewrite then?

Yes, for my novel if I add something that needs to be hinted at earlier or I forgot something or suddenly think of something- I can go back and fix and edit it.




What do you drink when writing?

Where do you think I got my coffee addiction from???




How do you stay inspired to write?

It's not about staying inspired, but I have an inspiration board on Pinterest for each of my writing projects. For settings, characters, or anything that reminds me of my project.




Do you have your book saved anywhere besides on Wattpad?

Of course! I have Scrivener which I use to edit and revise my book. Whereas Wattpad is used for when I write the 1st draft of it.




How do you plan to publish?

I plan to self-publish. I plan to use Amazon's Createspace and Kindle Direct Publishing.






What was the first book you remember writing?

I used to write ''books'' about my toys when I was real little. My first one was actually a trilogy and about my Littlest Pet Shops. (So embarrassing.)




If you're a writer, please comment about your experience. Do any of you like Wattpad? Have you used or heard of Wattpad before?



Thanks for reading!!
~Books with Noel

P. S. Please tell me I'm not the only one that wrote fanfictions.