Simple Manipulation

SM *FAQ*

Hey Everyone,

Long time no see, huh?

I know it has been quite some time since I have posted anything on wattpad. But I will say, every once in a while I come back to look at notifications or check messages. And within those notifications are A LOT of questions about this story, so I figure I owe it to you all to answer some.

Before I get into some question I wanted to make a few statements that might clear some of them up immediately or at least make things more understandable.

I started writing Simple Manipulation when I was about 14 years old. I was new to writing and only started because my cousin wrote on here, and I wrote stories for her in my free time and she thought it would be great if I started posting them. I was so nervous to share my stories that I didn't even use my real name for my account. So no, my name is not really Eleanor. It was supposed to be, but my parents ended up picking something else! Today, I am 18 years old (a few weeks from being 19). As a 14 year old, as it turns out, I had better writing skills than I thought, seeing how this story is STILL being read and enjoyed. I did not see myself as a great writer, and even today although I have been writing for years, still don't consider myself great. So it's no surprise that this isn't the best story ever written and has a number of continuity errors or considerably cringey moments! But I did not set out writing this story to be great. I did it to have fun and to create something other people would enjoy. And if I may say so myself, I think I did an okay job.

Anyways! Let's answer some questions!

First and foremost the MOST asked question or point of concern:

WHY DID YOU END IT THE WAY YOU DID?

- Ok. Listen. I hate the ending. I can't stand it. If there is one thing I could change about any of my past writing, it's the ending of this dang story. To this day I have no reason why I chose this ending because fun fact IT WAS NOT THE ORIGINAL ENDING!! Originally, I had Peyton turning Luke down in a very Pride and Prejudice Elizabeth Bennet chewing out Mr. Darcy fashion. And I had written the whole thing. But I chose this one instead. My best explanation for why is because of my age, and the stories I was reading at the time. I was 14 maybe 15 by the time I finished writing SM and sappy romance endings were all I, or a lot of girls or boys, around me could dream of. Not to mention, most stories I was reading on wattpad had happy endings. Happy, sappy endings where the main characters end up together were desired. And wanting to write something others enjoyed, I figured people wanted that kind of ending from my story as well. 

Well turns out I could not have been more wrong. Oh well. You win some, you lose some.

 WHAT HAPPENED WITH DEREK?

- You guys I have no clue. No clue at all. If you asked me who the character Derek was now I would say, "I wrote a character named Derek? But I hate that name!" Yeah, I couldn't tell you. Going back through I totally get what all of you mean. MAJOR PLOT HOLE. I think that at the time of writing I had worked it all through in my head, but didn't see a need in actually telling the back story. Because the point of this story wasn't to tell the past, it was to tell the story of Luke and Peyton at that point in time. But Derek is gross and mean so whatever happened, it wasn't good and at the very least added the drama I wanted.

IS THERE GOING TO BE A SEQUEL?

- Sorry for those who really want one, but no, probably not. This story is old to me now. Don't get me wrong, I love SM. It's my baby! But When writing it I had no intention of a sequel and still today I have no intention of writing a sequel. My writing style is different now and has matured, and the way the story left off (unfortunately) it doesn't leave much room for a sequel. I may or may not have come up with a sequel idea ;) , but it definitely isn't anything that branches directly off of SM and would be VERY different. But I really, really do hope to get some of it done for you all, but I can't promise much. Also I do not write much on wattpad anymore so maybe I can change that. But again, no promises.

WHERE DID YOU GO?

- I didn't go anywhere! I just don't visit wattpad much anymore. Not to say that I grew out of it, but time caught up to me. As I got older, school got more intense and I was finding less and less time to devote to writing. Well, I still wrote. I wrote a lot. But with the little amount of time I had to write I did not feel comfortable committing to posting stories on wattpad. Trust me, I know what it is like to be an anxious reader looking eagerly for the next update ;)

And once you "leave" wattpad, it's very hard to come back. That part is hard to explain, but I hope there are some of you that understand. 

More recently in the past two or so years, I have taken up writing without posting. I want to build my skill and never lose my passion or my touch, but again, with time constraints it's hard to commit to posting. Funnily enough, the writing is still in part shared with wattpad! I made an incredibly good friend here on wattpad when I began SM. She was a fellow writer who loved my story and I loved hers. Today we are best friends and have made trips to see each other outside of our wattpad inboxes. She gets to read just about all my things and hear just about all my story ideas, and I hers. 

ARE YOU MARREN?

- I get this a lot. And while I am flattered by the thought, no I am not. While I did put some of my personality into Marren's character, she is not entirely me. I try to put a little of myself into all my main characters because if there is some way I can relate to them, I feel that I can write them with more truth. Marren's character is more inspired by a close friend I had at the time. So sorry, I am not the Marren you are looking for!

YOUR GRAMMAR IS TERRIBLE!

- I was 14.

YOUR STORY ISN'T VERY WELL WRITTEN.

- I was 14.

WHY DID YOU NAME YOUR CHARACTER'S PEYTON, LUKE, AND MARREN?

- Because that's what the random name generator website gave me.

I hope these answers are satisfactory to you all. I am happy to answer anymore that you have, just leave them in the comments below on this part and I will do my best to answer them! But again, I don't have much time so it could take a while! A long while.

All in all, I love this story. No, it's not great, but I would like to think that it is at least good. I have always hoped that people who read it are not reading it for a well written work of art, but instead just a cheesy little book that they can laugh at, and enjoy because I know I got that kind of experience when writing it. 

I am still shocked that this story continues to be read, voted for, commented on, and added to people's libraries. Even though I don't do much on wattpad anymore, it still makes me smile to see it all. I hope you have enjoyed this story for the weird, funny, mess that it is! 

Thank you again, all of you, for reading Simple Manipulation. You made a 14-15 year old girl incredibly proud of herself, and love a hobby she used to hate. You still mean the world to her <3

Stay safe, and keep reading <3

- C