The (Unofficial) Wattpad Writer's Manual

SECTION 6: Please be Kind, Rewind

SECTION 6: Please be Kind, Rewind

Look, if you hate to re-read what you've already written, then you probably don't enjoy writing that much! Yep. I said it. I hated myself for saying it while I said it but it had to be said. Heh... said that on purpose. Anyway! This is a very true statement. If you don't want to edit what you've worked so hard to write, then why even write it in the first place?

I don't care how good you write. If you don't go over your work, you won't be able to see where you can improve the story, correct mistakes, etc. I still read the 1st chapter in my 20 chapter book just to make sure it flows! You can be rest-assured that I also read this manual over and over again until I was satisfied with it. So please don't forget this very vital step.

And while it's ok to ask for criticism (we open ourselves to that every time we post right?), you don't want to end up writing a long, sad story at the beginning of each paragraph stating that "it sucks right now but let me know how I can make it better" hoping that it will get better. It won't. Confidence is beautiful, even when you're writing, and not everyone will have positive criticism. Why open yourself up to that?

What I do is write, write, write... get every idea, every thought - all of it - down. You can cut away any "fat" later. The important thing is not to forget any important sequence. I try to write as descriptive and insightful as possible, remembering Chapter 3's "5 Senses" tips. When I start to read the chapter over again, I start noticing all sorts of things! Perhaps the paragraph above doesn't flow with the paragraph below. I skipped from one subject to another. I forgot to tell the audience how she felt when he slapped her. I misspelled "said" and wrote "sad". I omitted his expression as he caught her in the act. I wouldn't personally feel that way if he ate my cookie in that particular moment. I would feel melancholy if my boyfriend ever cheated on me, not cheerful - unless I was trying to hide my emotions... etc, etc, etc.

Another important thing to point out is that I don't throw all my text away! Some of it, but not all. Meaning that if a particular paragraph might work better somewhere else, I'll save it in a "scrap file" brilliantly titled "BOOKTITLE scrap notes". Of course, you'd replace the BOOKTITLE part with your actual book title. In this file are all my notes and ideas for upcoming scenes I want to write about. Snippets of paragraphs that are just too good to NOT use somewhere else. All my "underdeveloped" ideas waiting to be plucked up and put to good use!