UPDATE 2019: I wrote this sometime in 2016 in a late night rage fueled haze after reading through one two many copy cat stories in the werewolf genre. Some parts are a lot more thought through than others and some I added cause I'm a literal gremlin in real life and I have no patience with dumbass stuff/stupid cliches. So don't take it personally.
Alright, this started as a rant but over time I realized I wanted to help people more than hinder their creativity so I tweaked and changed a few things. Please don't take anything I say here as a rigid set of rules. This how-to is more of a set of "suggestions", if you will.
The steps mentioned are what I consider mistakes or overdone elements/cliches in werewolf stories I've seen all over Wattpad and would really like to see people work on or stray away from.
If you have any questions or I missed something you think I should cover feel free to leave a comment! I love it when my stuff sparks discussions pls don't be shy!! I'm not that great replying within a reasonable time but who knows maybe someone else will have an answer to your question!
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Step 1) STAY AWAY FROM ALPHA STORIES:
Look, its tempting to go for the oh so unoriginal and overused alpha theme but in all honesty it can get tiring reading alpha story after alpha story. If anything its just an easy pass; it's normal, familiar and safe. Something no writer wants(safe doesn't mean interesting; Harry Potter wasn't "safe", Percy Jackson wasn't "safe" so don't go for "safe"!). The real challenge lies in not using the Alpha story premise.
Alpha stories may seem like an easy fix but really its just so very dull. Spice it up a bit, don't be afraid to GO OUTSIDE THE BOX.
Side note: And if you were going for an "alpha" type character you're not required to make the main character's personality an "Alpha" type. People have differing personalities: you can have an alpha that's loud and in your face or one that wise and forgiving. Just like you can have a beta that's a lot more in charge or commanding than the Alpha but the Alpha still has the last say. People are different; personalities and how they interact with others shouldn't be dictated by their jobs or roles in society. Make them have personalities DESPITE their positions.
Step 2) No instant love connection:
Sorry, nope, not happening. If its done plausibly and well enough you MAY be able to get away with it like say instant ATTRACTION. Which is completely different from the instant love i constantly see: instant attraction is wanting to date that hot guy at Target or get the number of that cute girl from school but instant love is the intense feeling that everything little thing they do is perfect and lovable and just NOT how things work. In my opinion anyway. Getting away with the "instant love" card takes experience and talent and it's not a great starting point for novice/amateur writers.
Yet again, "Instantaneous mates" is just another easy way out. It's quick and painless and a lot of the time... very predictable. it also leaves a huge gap for your story. If anyone knows romances like I do it's the build up towards the inevitable "I love you" that people like and REMEMBER the most.
It's the fights, the cat calls, the secret glances from across the room, and the heated blushes that make people want to read MORE of your story. If you cut out all of that and move on straight to the baby making you've just jumped your work from "romance" to "erotica" which is probably not what you were aiming for(if it was heyyy good for you).
Not to mention the fact that you've just gotten rid of a lot of great character building and interaction between your two main characters, which will just make the reader impassive if not uncaring about the characters themselves. As my Lit teacher once told me: "Make the reader fall in love with the characters before they fall in love with each other".
Step 3) STAY AWAY FROM THE TYPICAL "WHITE WOLF" SYNDROME:
Yes, it's so very interesting and "unique" to have a white wolf but when so many (published) werewolf stories and myth surround the fact that the wolf coat matches the human form's hair color its just strange and unnatural to have a dark haired character turn into a snow white wolf. This doesn't mean you cant have a white wolf but at least make it a bit more plausible and let the human side have white or "white blonde" hair. Not only is it unique(for humans) but its also makes things a bit more easy to swallow(unless you plan for it to be a full blown fantasy where different color pelts is the last thing people would question. If so ignore what I just said) .
*Also it's not as "unique" for wolves to have white coats unless they live in non-snowy climates(California, Florida, etc). And then it's more of a liability than a strength(think of rabbits; they grow white fur during the winter to hide from predators in the snow and brown fur in the summer to easily hide in the brush, so to make a wolf white in a mostly dry climate is bad. They're more likely to be spotted, by both humans and other wolves. Making them easy targets).
Step 4) A wolf's coat has nothing to do with their power or position in a pack.
I've seen this a number of times around Wattpad. This, to me, is just ridiculous. "A white wolf is super special and powerful but a black wolf should be an omega, beaten down and used for ridicule"??? Where's the reasoning in that? Why is this particularly colored wolf worse or better off than another? What makes them so powerful? "A black wolf can only be an Alpha and all other wolves are beneath them". I'm pretty sure if you replaced "wolf" in those sentences with "person" it would not be so easy to accept, now would it? It may not be the author's intentions but it does come off having racist undertones. Especially when you make that a steadfast rule in your book with little to no reasoning, no lore, behind it. So watch what you do with this werewolf trope people.
Writing wise, it's so very boring and unoriginal. A super special, super unique character(aka werewolf with a white or black coat) is born with super unique and powerful abilities. Been there, done that, snore. Harry Potter may have been born as a prophesied child but he did all that WORK to actually become it. Percy Jackson may have been born from one of the three most powerful gods in Greek history but he WORKED to earn his own place as "hero". Whatever happened to character striving for greatness, working for their abilities or even just working to get to the top?
Instead of having your characters pop out of the womb with this special ability, have them work to achieve it. I'd much rather read a story about this no name, not so special werewolf coming from nothing to achieve greatness instead of some prophesied, overpowered werewolf doing exactly what was "prophesied" from page one.
I honestly just don't understand Wattpad writers' obsession with looks and their connection to power/rank. Like my aunt's dog is an 8 year old Jack Russell Terrier, is a chubby little thing, but she's the Alpha bitch among my aunt's 5 dogs (most of them larger breed dogs). This dog is small enough for me to yeet across a field with two hands, is essentially a mutt, and her name is PRINCESS for crying out loud but that bitch scares me sometimes. She'd probably kill me in my sleep if she didn't like me so much.
So whenever I read about some color or another making a character "stronger" or something it just makes me think of my aunt's dog. Most people would never assume this tiny, white dog with the name Princess could be a killing machine if she wanted to.
Now imagine my confusion/annoyance when I read yet another story about a wolf that has white fur for whatever reason and therefore they're somehow stronger and more revered over some other fur color?
If you're going to make fur color a thing make it only COSMETIC otherwise you're just fishing for reasons to make your MAIN CHARACTER special without really wanting to go through the work of doing it. Why make them an interesting character personality wise when you can just make them OP because they have a blue fucking fur color. Why put any effort into their story when "they're a rare color wolf so they're special"?
Or, idk, make them a white wolf that's supposed to be super powerful but they're actually the weakest thing since sliced cheese. That'd be interesting. Reverting norms, making people question stereotypes/what they know.
Step 5) "Rouge" is a color. It does not mean the same thing as "Rogue".
This, sadly, seems to be a major problem in the paranormal writing category on Wattpad.
Rogue
rōɡ/
noun
a dishonest or unprincipled man.
Rouge
ro͞oZH/
noun
a red powder or cream used as a cosmetic for coloring the cheeks or lips.
verb
color with rouge.
Rogue is a wolf with no pack. Rouge is a COLOR. Rouge is the WRONG WORD people. Stop using it as if its the right one!!!
Its confusing people (people whose first language isn't English as well as the younger writers on here who don't know any better) and making you look a little bit stupid. Especially when you repeatedly use it as if it IS the correct word. (You think I'm joking but people have actually argued with me that it IS the right word.)
Please straighten this out. It's off putting reading the color "red" all over the place. Especially with my 8 years (as of 2019) background in French. Just imagine how it must be for native French speakers? "the (red) are running inside our territory" "the (red) have kidnapped your mate, Alpha" "there was a (red) standing in front of me". That's like using the word "lose" instead of "loose". Like I get it. It's an easy mix up... but this isn't a "stylistic" choice or a word you made up... you just... very obviously don't understand the difference between the two.
But then again, this is more of a pet peeve of mine... but the fact that this is so common place is a problem in and of itself.
Sidenote added 2019: I wrote this in 2016 when Wattpad was originally still very desktop user friendly before they switched to focus more towards mobile users. I know that since Wattpad is more geared towards app users this could be an even bigger problem popping up among tablet/phone users and their fickle autocorrect.
I know most autocorrects are pretty accurate SOME of the time but if you're typing fast or not paying attention it can be a problem not to mention your phone/tablet will remember the words you use the most making it that much more frustrating. So if you're writing a story on your tablet/phone and it keeps auto-correcting "rogue" or "rouge" and you don't fix it, over time it'll just automatically place it for you. I hear this is especially annoying with users that have autocomplete functions.
I'm not a techy person so I won't pretend to know how to fix this for you guys but I did want to point out that some people can't help it or are too far gone to go back and fix their whole story. I am lazy. I understand more than most. I DO VERY MUCH SUGGEST getting onto a desktop/computer and using the ctrl+f keys to find those words and fix them. Or just writing on the desktop version if you have that option. Autocorrect/autofill can be a pain sometimes.
Step 6) THE ALPHA SHOULDN'T BE A TEENAGER.
(skip to the side note of this step if you intend to have the alpha be a teenager no matter what)
I'm sorry but believably and from ALL of the PROFESSIONALLY PUBLISHED books I've read it's ridiculous to have a 17-18 year old running a pack. It would just make more sense if the Alpha was a dominant male in his mid to late twenties. Especially since it's pretty much an age that many people consider to be "their prime". Medically speaking; teenagers(and I imagine young wolves)are still growing and handling their hormones, still learning to control themselves in their teen years. So for a pack to be led by a hormonal, possibly unpredictable 18 year old is absurd to me. The alpha has to be calm, in control, and someone people look up to or even fear. It's how and why they are the Alpha.
Would you follow someone immature, irresponsible and emotional? Especially, when it could determine the lives of your family or friends? Or even yourself? The Alpha is like a father figure and a general. He's not there for show, he's not there to coddle you, he's there to lead and protect the pack.
Making a teenage boy the Alpha is like having the biggest idiot in your class the leader purely because he happens to bench press twice your body weight. He barely knows his ABC's, dammit, why should he be leading ANYONE??!?
Yes. I know, we're talking about werewolves here so why does it have to be realistic? In my experience its always great to feel like it could happen(for example: a number of best selling books have had real locations in their stories and showed emotions and scenes in a realistic and immersive way.) It just makes for a better experience for the reader overall. The more plausible it sounds the more the reader is pulled into the story. You don't have to make it so realistic that werewolves don't exist, just don't make it so impossible that it leaves readers detached from it.
Side note: this rule isn't set in stone. If it's done right it could make for a great story but most of the time people don't do it right so all I have to say is: BEWARE!
If you feel like it's something you just have to have then here: make the character strong, level headed, and mature. Having a crazy, rebellious, do whatever alpha is NOT a leader. Nor will others follow that type of person. He(or she) must be someone that is reliable and dependable. Someone others can come to for advice. Even with how young he/she is.
I mean look at Scott from Teen Wolf: He's a teenager but his personality is one that people are willing to follow and come to when there's a problem. He has his goofy, teenager moments but they don't get in the way of his abilities as an alpha.
(Added 2019) Or even making the teenager Alpha an Alpha in training or have a teacher/parent figure teaching them how to become an Alpha. It'd be an interesting twist on the classic "coming of age" and "learning responsibility" stories.
Step 7) DO NOT- I REPEAT- DO NOT DO REJECTION STORIES!!!!
It's so over-played and so predictable, it's sickening. Yes, it can be spiced up but at this point it's all been done so much that its not even worth it. I know it's hard trying to find a plot to entice people to read but if you really want a story that's your own and not a knock off(or be constantly compared to others) then find something not beaten over people's head.
Why, you ask? Rejection stories tend to take up the whole premise of the book even when the book isn't initially about the rejection or when the story has a bunch of other more SERIOUS problems going on. The main guy is usually horribly cruel to the point of being almost abusive and even if he had a good reason, i personally would be pissed that he acted like such a dick. The girl forgives the guy no matter how long the heartbreak/rejection was or how horrible the transgression which leads into the fact that there's very little conflict or progression with the rejection itself. People get rejected, they grieve, they move on. Even just a little. There's hardly any internal or external conflict for me to take interest in the rejection or story at all.
Not to mention, most novice writers make the rejection stories sound extremely abusive. Be it emotionally, physically, and psychologically. Then they twist scenes and character reactions to make it all seem ADMIRABLE. This, i repeat, IS A FUCKING TERRIBLE THING TO PUT OUT INTO THE WRITING COMMUNITY. You do not put out material where younger, impressionable readers, can read a story about an abusive romantic lead and make his actions something they would WANT in a boyfriend/girlfriend. It sets a bad example that these abusive relationships are "ok" and "acceptable" even preferred over more healthy and stable relationships.
And why, you ask? Because they're hot. Because they're "a werewolf so they can't help it."
Step 8) DO NOT EXCUSE SHITTY ACTIONS BECAUSE THEY'RE "WEREWOLVES"
If a character does something bad such as stalking, abuse, murder, rape, etc. DO NOT FUCKING MAKE EXCUSES FOR THAT CHARACTER BECAUSE THEY'RE A "WEREWOLF". Just because they're a being that doesn't exist, this doesn't mean they're exempt from human morality or laws. They are still partially human. They interact and coexist with humans, therefore they must (at least) follow those same moral codes/laws. Yeah, we all know that the character isn't real, that werewolves aren't real. It still doesn't make their actions any more acceptable or them any more innocent because they're "not real". Very REAL people are reading it, therefore you have to realize that they might take it the wrong way, they might take certain behavior as "cool" or "admirable". There are people who might take your words to heart.
Example 1: Stalking.
Just because the werewolf is your romantic lead does not excuse him going into a house uninvited to watch his "mate" sleep. Just because he's a werewolf doesn't make following the female lead around without her knowledge "acceptable". Mate or not, her being in danger or not. Just because he's a big, bad, extremely ATTRACTIVE guy doesn't make this behavior acceptable either. This romanticizes a major problem for the female population and makes it seem "ok" as long as the guy is "hot" or (in this case) a "werewolf".
Example 2: Abusive relationships.
"He will romance you. He will want to commit to you very quickly. He will want you all to himself. He will be very 'concerned' about you. He will be sweet and caring- sometimes. He will play the victim."
Does any of this sound familiar? Maybe a number of popular werewolf stories that have floated around Wattpad? Well, you are definitely right.
But it's also the early signs of an abusive relationship: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pamela-jacobs/early-warning-signs-of-an_b_6009076.html
Control, jealousy, and isolation. More sickingly common traits of a male werewolf. But also:
A hot and cold personality, yelling one moment and loving the next, emotionally manipulating the female lead in hopes of gaining something. These things are way too common in a werewolf romance story. And you want to know why?
Because authors have perpetuated that THESE are the traits of a werewolf. That, since they're a werewolf, they can't "help themselves". Them being a werewolf- hell, them not even being REAL- does NOT excuse abusive behavior. It does NOT excuse anger, jealousy, controlling behavior, and all the other things that make up an abusive relationship. It does not excuse murder, stalking, abuse, any of it.
SO PLEASE STOP USING "WEREWOLF" TO EXCUSE SHITTY BEHAVIOR!!! Have the characters react to bad situations, to bad behavior, the way they would in real life. You wouldn't see a friend who's boyfriend is controlling and angry and jealous all the time and go "awww you're so lucky!, he cares about you SO much" so why would you have your characters act that way? You wouldn't watch someone get brutally murdered and calmly go "well he couldn't help himself, he has urges". SO DON'T MAKE YOUR CHARACTERS REACT THIS WAY.
Step 9) DON'T HAVE THEM SAYING PACK RELATED THINGS AROUND HUMANS.
If they're in hiding they wouldnt go around saying "we're a pack" or "im a wolf". Even in their head. THEY KNOW they're apart of a pack. You dont go around saying "im a human" in your head or out loud every time you get the chance do you? So why would they? Don't talk about pack business or strange happens around humans. We're not deaf and neither are we dumb. Have code words, "looks", or even just mind linking.
Step 10) MAYBE DON'T HAVE WEREWOLVES IN CITIES... this is more of a suggestion based on personal preference...
It wont go well: the noise, the smell, and the enclosed space just wont be good for someone with enhanced sight, hearing, and smell. I mean have you ever smelled a trash heap??? Imagine that all day, EVERYWHERE YOU GO. *shivers. Not to mention wolves just naturally like forests and open environments; places to run and play. Away from smelly, noisy humans.
There's also less chances of being spotted by humans. A city or even a large town often as people up and about at all hours of the day (and night) so the chances of spotting a werewolf would be higher. Not to mention if something like a werewolf was wandering around a city, it'll be on the news very quickly. Especially in today's age of cell phones.
Smaller towns or towns surrounded by wilderness are a much better setting for werewolf stories. If someone spots a wolf in some small town in the mountains, they're more likely to go "oh, neat." but if some city slicker sees a wolf as they're going out to take out the trash I'm pretty sure they'd tweet about it in 2.5 seconds.
Step 11) PACE YOURSELF.
I see a lot of werewolves stories just regurgitate all the information they can into the first chapter or even the first few paragraphs of a story... and THEN start the story. They give all the characters' names, relationships in literally the first chapter:
"I'm 18, blonde with baby blue eyes, and a unique white wolf . I want to find my mate because my father died in a horrible pack attack and now i have powers that let me see into the future." Do you see how forced that feels?
This is bad. VERY BAD. It's not very good writing, really, unless you're writing in diary/memoir style. Which, in itself, isn't a very favorable style of writing.
Just giving the reader all the information at the beginning of the story leaves little to no set up. It's like throwing a toddler into the deep end of a pool and expecting them to just go with it. It can be pretty off putting for first time readers and even be a deal breaker for some. People don't like stuff shoved in their faces in real life let alone in the material they read so ease your readers into your story.
Side note: While I'm on the topic, just giving the information on all your characters doesn't do jack shit. It's not the same as slowly letting your readers get to know your characters. Let the readers slowly build a connection between them and character.
It allows for the readers to make their own opinions of them, whether it's love or hate or apathy. If you leave all that character development out of the story and just TELL your readers the character learned a lesson or just TOLD your readers that your character was brave without really SHOWING it, it's pretty much just defeating the purpose of writing a story right?
Step 12) TITLE IS EVERYTHING!
Don't let people tell you it's "Just a stupid title". Titles and covers can make or break it for people. Sad but true. Don't put some long ass title like "The school bully is my new teacher and he's the alpha of my pack and also my mate whaaaaat?" because just NO. I can tell you didn't try and that the story is just as unintelligent as the title. Good stories that have thought put into them have just as much thought put into the title. Pick a word that means a lot to the story or a saying frequently heard or maybe even something that inspired you while writing. Hell, I've even seen funny twists on other titles! JUST TRY. There's plenty of writing sites that provide advice on coming up with titles. It'll take time but it'll be worth it.
(NEW!) Step 13) ALPHA RELATIONSHIPS/POWER IMBALANCES
A commenter (shoutout to Wongile) brought up that in werewolf stories the relationship between an Alpha and a werewolf of a lower rank (specifically an Omega from a lot of stories I've come across personally) can be sort of... problematic.
An Alpha, whether a part of the love interest's pack or not will always have this power over lower ranking werewolves. This makes relationships between Alphas and lower ranking members sketchy if not down right creepy if said Alpha is also OLDER than the lover interest.
A good outside example of this would be student/teacher romances:
Now, I'll admit, I loathe student/teacher romances. The power imbalance between these two is just too great. Sure, I get that some people like older love interests. I totally get it. I understand and I do not judge this at all if it's between two consenting adults. But this becomes a problem when said student is underage/a teenager. Then there's the added fact that said teacher has a certain level of power over that student: if the teacher does something wrong a student is less likely to be believed over a respected, older member of society that's in a position of authority, the teacher has power over their grades (which is an ever BIGGER problem if they're a professor could mean the difference between continuing to have the financial aid of scholarships or loosing that scholarship due). And these are only a FEW things I find wrong with this trope.
This is very much the SAME for Alpha/Omega/any low ranking werewolf romances. The Alpha has a certain level of power over other werewolves that borders on god-like: if they're the Alpha of the lover interests pack, what's stopping them from forcing the MC into a relationship at the threat of ostracizing or punishing them... or their family? What's to stop them from using their power and their rank from forcing or coercing the MC into doing something they don't want? Relationships, even if harmless in their intent, make it very hard for the MC to speak up or go against the Alpha/love interest.
THIS IS NOT A RELATIONSHIP. A relationship is two people working together as a team. If one person has more power or say in the relationship to the point where they may well have their life in their hands that doesn't make for a very good relationship. Even more sub/dom relationships still have that line in the sand. One isn't so far above the other that they could possibly lose their friends or loved ones simply cause they don't agree on something or the sub wants to break up and the dom doesn't. That's abuse. That's coercion. That relationship cannot -ever- be "consensual" because that threat hangs over their heads like the Sword of Damocles.
If they refuse an Alpha they run the risk of them (and possibly their family)being thrown out of the pack or treated poorly by others because of pack mentality: "she made the Alpha sad/angry, she rejected the Alpha of all people, let's treat her like garbage and teach her a lesson."
When real world Alpha wolves chose a mate that mate runs the pack along side them, acting not only as a surrogate leader when the Alpha male is away but also still holding just as much power as the Alpha no matter what. Simply establishing this sort of dynamic while an Alpha is romancing the MC would solve this whole power imbalance right away.
A majority of the time, unfortunately, a lot of rejection stories showcase this threat fabulously: they have the Alpha reject the mate (always a female) and force her from the pack. In turn she looses her family, her home, everything she's had up until that point simply because the ALPHA doesn't want the MC.
Now, imagine these rejections stories with an Alpha that wants the MC. No matter what. They don't care if the MC may or may not be interested, they'll have the MC and they'll threaten them with exile or their family's safety to do it. Maybe they don't even threaten it, maybe just the thought that they CAN do it is enough to FORCE the MC to accept the Alpha no matter how they feel about the situation or the Alpha.
That's pretty rape-y don't you think?
All I'm saying is be careful how much power and control you give Alphas. Pay attention to the power dynamics between Alphas and their love interests. Stop making overpowered, older Alphas fall in love with younger, low ranking werewolves and vise versa. I can't believe this is a thing I have to say but here I am... saying it...
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Well, that's it. If you read this far thanks a bunch! I hope this was helpful to any future werewolf writers out there! Message or comment if you have any questions or feel like I missed something!
Vote and Fave please~