From Wattpad to Published Author - My Journey

Since then...

Even in the months leading up to The Novice's release, my life began to change. Wattpad flew me out to Canada for their new office launch party, where I got to meet the entire team. They were a fantastic bunch of people with one of the best work cultures I have ever encountered.

I found a kindred spirit in the cofounder of Wattpad, Allen Lau, who had combined his love of books and business, just as I had. Allen told me how in the early days he had received grateful messages from children all around theworld, who could not afford books. One stood out in particular, a boy who had got into trouble on the streets and was going down a bad path. Wattpad was his salvation, staying in and reading rather than going out and getting into trouble. Allen told me Wattpad wasn't about profit in his eyes. It was a way to improve people's lives.

Most fascinating of all was when Allen took me through a presentation that all Wattpad staff were shown when they joined. It was truly inspiring, detailing the humble beginnings of Wattpad to the multimillion dollar company it is today. Someone should write a book about it.

I was also given the opportunity to meet key Wattpad members and give them my ideas for improving the site the following morning. I am told at least three features I recommended are in the pipeline and I'm proud to say that onehas already been introduced! It was also surreal to meet people such as Beth Reekles and Abigail Gibbs, two authors who had inspired me to put my book on Wattpad in the first place, being young British authors who had their Wattpad books traditionally published.

There were other amazing authors there, too many to name, but we all got on extremely well and have plans to write together in the future, when Wattpad's collaborative feature is introduced. Perhaps unusually, of the dozen or so Wattpad authors who had been flown in, I was the only male.

Ultimately, I never put the rest of the book on Wattpad. It would be unfair on the publishers who have invested so much time and effort in the series to then give it away for free on another platform, nor fair on myself given the time I have put into writing it. At the same time, without my readers, my book may never have been published, or even finished. In the end, I realised that there was a net gain for all by publishing the book. Now I would have the time and incentive to write a further two books for my fans to read, whereas before I would have stopped at one. I also decided to write a fourth book, a prequel, for them to read on Wattpad for free as a thank you.

Since then I have been on panels at several conventions and festivals, including Hay Festival, Bath Festival, Wattpad Loncon, Nineworlds, DeptCon in Ireland and even EMIL in Brazil. I have presented at several schools and given talks at author events on how to promote oneself on Wattpad. Perhaps the most gratifying change is that I trained with the UK's National Literacy Trust and Author Profile to become a professional speaker and now campaign to improve children's literacy around the United Kingdom.

A year and a day after I started uploading on Wattpad, Summoner: The Novice hit five million reads. I am also proud to be able to say that both The Novice and The Inquisition became New York Times bestsellers, at #5 and #2 respectively.

It has also been amazing to get to know my two brilliant editors, Liz Szabla in the US and Naomi Greenwood in the UK, who's combined insight have taught me more in one year than a lifetime of my own study of the craft. They have been a stellar team and have managed to polish Summoner: The Novice into a book I am hugely proud of.

Juliet has been my guiding light, helping me navigate the world of publishing with a steady but firm hand. I don't think there is another literary agent like her, nor one more suited for my needs as both a person and an author.

While some might look over their shoulders and wonder what might have been, I am very fortunate to know in my heart that I can stand by my decisions. I can safely say that I have no regrets, only eagerness for what the future will bring.

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If you enjoyed reading this, please don't hesitate to vote! Feel free to comment and ask questions, I'll always try and respond when I can :). Don't forget to look out for Summoner: The Novice in your local bookstores or if you're feeling extra excited, you can preorder the book using the links on my profile, or searching for it in your usual online bookstore. 

All the best! 

Taran