The Guide to Wattpad (& Creat...

By _Sophie_Isobel

648K 20.2K 12.2K

Since 2013, this Wattpad Guide has offered writers, just like you, helpful writing tips & techniques, across... More

Welcome to the Community!
Reads: How to get more
Follower Counts Don't Matter: Here's why
Profile: How to format a good one (profile pic, cover photo & bio)
Front Cover
Votes
Writers Block: Tips on Getting Inspired Again
Title
Story Description
Comments
Wattpad's Reading Algorithm
Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar
Naming Characters
Starting a Story
Reads to Votes Ratio
Story Structure
Reading Requests + Promoting Work
Plot Twists
Describing Action Scenes
Hooks
Character Deaths
Rankings and Tags
Rule of Three + Alliteration
Endings
Deleting a Story
Character Interactions
Describing Surroundings
Homonyms (E.g. 'there', 'their' and 'they're'- what's the difference?)
Planning
Developing Relatable Characters
Word Count Goals
Descriptive Writing
Character Design
Pacing
Speech
Filler Chapters (the Con's)
Humour
Upload Schedules
Author's Notes
Passive and Active Voice
Over/Under Describing
1st, 2nd, 3rd Person; Limited + Omniscient
Top 3 Most Important Writing Tips
Finding Individual Voice
Can you get Paid by Wattpad?
Editing + Re-editing
Word Class
Switching Perspectives
Wattpad Writing Competitions
Character Consistency + Distinctive Traits
Consistency is Key
Synonyms + Antonyms
Consistent Story Voice + Theme/s
Sentence Types
Similes + Metaphors
Protagonist v Antagonist
Sentence Structures
Any Suggestions?

Genre

869 43 9
By _Sophie_Isobel

Here on Wattpad, when you choose a genre for your story, it can only be one and there are only limited options. For example, 'Poetry' is a really  broad category and there should probably be sub-categories like 'Comedy Poetry' or 'Short Poems'. It's the same with the genre 'Teen Fiction', which is so broad that a story could be a 'Vampire' or 'Werewolf' genre and also fit into 'Teen Fiction'.

I always used to place my stories into broader categories like 'Teen Fiction' rather than 'Adventure' or 'Thriller' because I assumed that for a broader category, more people would find or be interested in my work. But, now I think I'd recommend going for the most specific genre you can. It means that people can instantly identify your story and know somewhat about what it's about. And, as I said in the last chapter 'How to Reach the Rankings', in a more specific category there's likely to be less stories and so your story will probably be more likely to get into the rankings.

If you're trying to choose between two, or maybe even more categories, it can be especially difficult, particularly if you've only just started writing it. But don't stress too much, whatever genre you initially choose, you can always change it later. For example, if you intend your story to be 'Horror' but are only a few chapters in and it seems to fit a 'Paranormal' or 'Mystery/Thriller' so far, which do you choose? Obviously it depends totally on the story, but there's no harm switching genres even daily, just to see what seems best.

I'd also take a look at the categories you're trying to choose between. For example, I had published a story a while ago and was debating between 'Mystery/Thriller' or 'Adventure'. Obviously 'Mystery/Thriller' just sounds better but when I took a look at other stories in the category they were all crime/investigation/abducting and kidnappings, so I switched mine to 'Adventure'.

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