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Fan Fiction Writing on Wattpad (#1)

What It's Like Writing on the Online Platform

By SarahPublished 6 years ago 5 min read
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*I do not own this logo, Wattpad does*

I've been a member on Wattpad for four years now, and posted my first story in 2014—about a year after first I created my account. And in that time, I learned a lot about what it's like to write on the website.

Here's what it takes to post a story on Wattpad, from the big to small steps and everything else in between!

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A lot goes into posting your first chapter on Wattpad. I personally didn't even plan on posting a story at all. I originally created my account to read fan fiction, not write it. I came up with my first idea from a day-dream I had, I believe. And I never expected it go anywhere. I had been writing stories from around the time I learned to hold a pencil properly. Mind you, many of them were terrible! But that didn't stop my 12-year-old self from writing as many different story ideas in as many different notebooks as she could! I literally have a full bookcase of notebooks dedicated to my story ideas. So when I got a new idea for a story I thought, what could it hurt? Let's do it! However, it wasn't as easy as that.

#1 Getting Started!

Like I said before, my original intention wasn't to post stories on Wattpad, but I came up with an idea out of the blue and decided to run with it. That's how most of my stories start, but usually none of them go anywhere. What I like to do before I post a new story on Wattpad involves a ton of planning. I like to have a general idea of what the story is going to be about figured out, along with the character names (and possibly who is playing them), the cover made as professional looking as I can get it, along with at least a few chapters written. All of these things are needed before you even think about posting a story.

#2 What to Write About?

Of course, the first step to posting a story would be to come up with an idea to write about! That goes without saying. So let's say you come up with a rough idea for a story that you might think have a chance in that creative mind of yours. What do you do with it? Normally, for me, I come up with this bomb-ass storyline. I furiously write or type out as many ideas as I can on a page and then... I run out of inspiration. Isn't that infuriating?

#3 Keeping It Moving Along!

What you need to do in a time like that is keep pushing if you really believe that this idea has a chance, throw on some music, roll up your sleeves and crank out a few chapters if you can. It's a good rule of thumb to have, say... five chapters written out before you post a story on Wattpad. Readers hate waiting for updates, and if you take forever you could lose their interest. If you simply can't get five chapters of work, at least do as much as you can. Get a general outline for where you want your story to go, and something that really helped me was figuring out the big, main points of my story. The twists and turns are what will keep your readers wanting more.

#4 Anxiety

So now that you have all of the basics for your story down, and it finally comes time to publish, you can sometimes experience anxiety—especially if it's your first ever book!

Posting anything online can be stressful. Since it is the digital age, anyone can read anything, and you never know what the response is going to be. So for me, the hardest part about writing online is well... actually posting it. How are people going to take the things that I write? Will they hate it, or absolutely love it? It's well-known that people online can be harsh—they do not hold back! And, well—sadly—the only way to find out if people will like your work is to actually post it! You have to have confidence that your work is strong and your storyline is good. So, for me, after about a week of going over and over the thought in my head, I wrote my chapter and hit publish.

#5 Keep writing and enjoy the reads!

Once you get over your fear of posting the first chapter, you should feel very pleased with yourself. You've put a lot of hard work into creating this amazing work, and now it's out there for the world to enjoy! I can say from personal experience that the Wattpad community has never been negative towards me. I've only received positive comments on all of my works, which I'm very fortunate to say. But on all other stories I've read, I can say the general feeling on Wattpad has been pleasant throughout. So, keep writing and enjoy!

#6 Need More Advice?

Did you enjoy my little two cents on this topic? If you're new to Wattpad and struggling to write, or maybe just enjoy listening to me ramble advice, look for more posts by me about Wattpad soon! It feels like I am still a newbie on Wattpad, but having four years and 12 (yes, 12!) works up on Wattpad, I guess I could be considered knowledgeable about things that happen on the website. I'm going to be posting a lot more tips, tricks, and advice about Wattpad soon so if you enjoy, stay tuned!

Also, if you'd like to check out some of my Wattpad works, check out this link! (Thanks in advance if you do!)

fan fiction
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About the Creator

Sarah

My mission is to help women have a successful, happy life. I mainly write about blogging, but I've got other stories written here as well!

Want more blogging tips? Check out my blog- updated every week! https://www.sarahmarie.blog

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