SMFS Member Guest Post: What the Wattpad? by Judy Penz Sheluk

Please welcome back fellow SMFS list member Judy Penz Sheluk to our blog today. 

 

                      What the Wattpad? 

                  by Judy Penz Sheluk

A couple of years ago I led a workshop at my regional library on writing short stories. Titled “The Long & the Short of It,” the participants dissected a short story into its essential elements, plot, characters, setting, opening and closing sentences, etc. They were then given 20 minutes to rewrite a portion of the same story from a different point of view (third to first) or different tense (present to past or future), after which each willing participant would read what they’d come up with. I’d never done anything like that before, but the engagement was electric, and some of the rewrites were really clever.

I’d left time for a Q&A at the end of the workshop. I expected the usual questions on where or how to get published (and always recommended SMFS for mystery writers), but this time one of the “regulars” (a man who attended all my workshops and presentations—let’s call him Steve) asked me what I thought about Wattpad.

Wattpad? I’d heard of it, but I didn’t know anything about it beyond that it was a place you could publish your work for others to read for free. I figured it might be a fad, some sort of flash in the night. Besides, I’m all for accepting that I’ll never get Stephen King rich, but the whole starving artist thing only sounds romantic. Publishing my work with the intention of never getting paid didn’t seem like anything I wanted to do.

Of course, I couldn’t actually say any of that out loud. Instead, I admitted that I wasn’t well versed in Wattpad, and asked Steve for his take on it. Apparently, he was happily publishing short stories on there to get critiques and gain a following. The money part, to him, wasn’t important, at least not at this stage.

I couldn’t fault Steve for his reasoning, but even so, I didn’t give Wattpad another thought once the workshop was over. In fact, it wasn’t until I was writing Finding Your Path to Publication that it occurred to me that I should include social publishing, not just blogs, but serialized storytelling platforms. In other words, it was time to research Wattpad.

I learned that while are several alternatives to Wattpad available today, that certainly wasn’t the case when Canadian co-founders Allen Lau, an entrepreneur, and Ivan Yuen, a computer engineer, launched Wattpad in 2006. A self-defined “social storytelling platform where new voices write and share,” Wattpad provides an online portal for writers to upload and share their work with readers. Wattpad currently boasts a community of 93 million users—and counting—who collectively spend 23 billion minutes on Wattpad each month, with stories available in 50 different languages. And here I’d been dismissing it as a fad.

But I realized something else as well. Wattpad (or its biggest rival, Inkitt) may not be for me, but this book was about readers find their path to publication. As a result, I’ve included a fairly in-depth look at storytelling platforms and serialized publishing (including Kindle Vella) in Finding Your Path to Publication, something I may never have considered if it hadn’t been for Steve.

I’ve since moved about 8 hours north of that regional library, and I doubt even a loyal follower like Steve would make that trek to attend another one of my workshops. Last I heard he was working on a book about training horses.

Maybe I’ll try to find him on Wattpad…

 

About the book: The road to publishing is paved with good intentions…and horror stories of authors who had to learn the hard way.

For the emerging author, the publishing world can be overwhelming. You’ve written the book, and you’re ready to share it with the world, but don’t know where to start. Traditional, independent press, hybrid, self-publishing, and online social platforms—all are valid publishing paths. The question is, which one is right for you?

Finding Your Path to Publication is an introduction to an industry that remains a mystery to those on the outside. Learn how each publishing option works, what to expect from the process start to finish, how to identify red flags, and avoid common pitfalls. With statistics, examples, and helpful resources compiled by an industry insider who’s been down a few of these paths, this is your roadmap to decide which path you’d like to explore, and where to begin your author journey.

Available in trade paperback, large print, hardcover, and e-book. Universal buy link: https://books2read.com/FindingYourPathtoPublication

 

Judy Penz Sheluk ©2023

A former journalist and magazine editor, Judy Penz Sheluk is the bestselling author of two mystery series: The Glass Dolphin Mysteries and Marketville Mysteries, both of which have been published in multiple languages. Her short crime fiction appears in several collections, including the Superior Shores Anthologies, which she also edited. Judy is a member of the Independent Book Publishers Association, Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she served on the Board of Directors for five years, the final two as Chair. She lives in Northern Ontario. Find her at www.judypenzsheluk.com.