⭒ M A D S ⭒

Hey everyone,
          
          To Be, Rather Than To Seem qualified for #ONC2024 Round 3 (Yay!), but I've decided to withdraw from the competition. Though I'm currently at 14k+ words, there's still a long way until the finish line, and it bothers me how rushed the latest chapters seem. (Pantsing is always hit-or-miss for me, lol) So, if you're reading TBRTTS, know that the updates are on hold, but my priority is to complete this book ASAP. 
          
          I'm happy to be Round 1 and Round 2 Qualifier out of 800+ submissions. It's an honor. Thank you to the #ONC2024 team for the hard work and the experiment ground to write something I wouldn't have otherwise. 
          
          It's time to catch up on those books I've been reading. Good luck to all ONCers! Keep writing!
          
          p.s. Wattpad is discontinuing the DM feature effective May 6th. If you'd like to keep in touch with me, this profile messageboard is open for you, and I'm available on Discord (maddyalson). 
          
          All the love, 
          Mads

Hey everyone,
          
          If you're searching for awards to enter, consider the Open Door Awards 2024, hosted by @grendelthegood (2020 Wattys winner and soon-to-be-published Wattpad Books author).
          
          The submission deadlines are April 8th (for BEST OF) and April 15th (for MAIN GENRE). So, if you're interested, hurry up and don't miss the opportunity to showcase your hard work.
          
          Here's the link: https://www.wattpad.com/story/266745725-open-door-awards-2024-open-✔
          
          Good luck! 
          
          All the love, 
          Mads

Hey everyone, 
          
          Happy Easter!
          
          If you're unaware, I'm participating in @OpenNovellaContest 2024 with To Be, Rather Than To Seem: https://www.wattpad.com/story/363749539-to-be-rather-than-to-seem
          
          It's qualified for Round 2 (Yay!), and the chapters for the 8k mark are submitted today. I encourage you to take a look if you are a fan of books focusing on friendship, solitude, and life (in general). It's my attempt at new themes and narrative style, and I'd appreciate it very much if you'd read it and let me know your thoughts through votes/comments. 
          
          Congratulations to all qualifiers, Round 1 winners and Amby Picks! Good luck to all those striving for Round 2!
          
          All the love,
          Mads

Hey everyone, 
          
          I'm participating in the #ONC2024 with To Be, Rather Than To Seem—a novella falling under literary fiction, something of a bildungsroman, exploring the themes of friendship, growth/aging, ordinary life, and questioning the importance of human connectivity. 
          
          This novella is a special one, and I'm very excited since it's my maiden voyage into something of this depth and style. If you like reading character-driven stories with emotional resonance, please give TBRTTS a chance. And when you do, don't forget to vote/comment to let me know your thoughts. 
          
          Here's the link: https://www.wattpad.com/story/363749539-to-be-rather-than-to-seem
          
          Also, feel free to share your link in this post if you're participating. I'd love to check them out!
          
          All the love,
          Mads

I love your bio! XD Also meant to congratulate on the honorable mention on Disney 100

Hey everyone!
          
          I have an update for W&M: Heartbreak Girl is now a brand-new story with no reminiscence of the old teen fiction. (As always, you can still find the unedited old story at the end of the book.) 
          
          I wanted the beginning stories to showcase my current capabilities and improvements (if there are any, lol). This is more of a "literature" attempt, if you will, focusing on how a story is told rather than what the story is. But that isn't to say the "what" isn't relevant because I've always wanted to write elderly characters, and have a particular fondness for old love, those transcending the test of time. 
          
          Here's a window into Johnny and Jolene's life, a narrative of love in its pure form, loss of hope, and finding it again: https://www.wattpad.com/1416095925-words-and-music-heartbreak-girl
          
          These characters have come to mean a lot to me. I'm considering an unabridged novel with them or a brand-new novel similar in style. There are no concrete plans yet, but if you read the story and leave a vote/comment, it'd help me gauge your reactions and decide whether to pursue it. 
          
          Thank you for the support, and I hope you enjoy reading Heartbreak Girl.
          
          All the love, 
          Mads.

Hey everyone,
          
          I'm a little late, but it's still—Happy New Year! I hope you had a great start to 2024. I, for one, am off to a pleasant surprise. My entries for @WattpadDisney 's Disney100 contest (for both July & August) got honorable recognition. Thank you to WattpadDisney Cast Members for conducting such a fun contest and nominating me for Honourable Mention! <3
          
          If you're interested in reading the short stories: https://www.wattpad.com/story/355537938-wonder 
          
          All the love, 
          Mads.

Hey everyone,
          
          So, I have edited one of my old stories from the W&M collection. Instead of just checking for grammatical errors, I reworked the original romance since I've lost interest in the old story and thought it wise to leave it as it is for nostalgia. W&M has always been a ground for experimenting, and I've longed to write something dramatic with poetic prose and an unusual narrator. 
          
          So now, 'Summer Love' is a speculative fiction from the point of view of "Summer". It was a lovely exercise to rewrite the same story from a different perspective.
          
          If you're interested: https://www.wattpad.com/1398355445-words-and-music-summer-love
          
          To those curious, Words and Music is a collection of songs-inspired short stories. Sound intriguing? I invite you to read the book. And, if you like them, please vote and comment to let me know you enjoyed or otherwise. 
          
          As always, thank you so much for your time. 
          
          All the love, 
          Mads.

Hey everyone,
          
          If you didn't know, @WattpadDisney is hosting a series of activities and contests to celebrate Disney's 100th anniversary. The August writing prompt was so inspiring that a storyline materialised too easily in my mind and I couldn't resist writing. And the July prompt was a leeway to write a story I otherwise never have. So lo and behold, 
          
          Wonder: https://www.wattpad.com/story/355537938-wonder
          
          If you're a reader of my songs-inspired stories in 'Words and Music', you might remember a sort of Peter Pan retelling called 'Lost Boy'. The contest's word limit was a challenge, but I've always wanted to write a sequel with an older Theodora. 
          
          Follow an elderly Theodora on her return to Neverland in 'An Awfully Big Adventure': https://www.wattpad.com/1395331133-wonder-an-awfully-big-adventure 
          
          If you're interested in the original story featuring young Theodora, you can read it here: https://www.wattpad.com/376739472-words-and-music-lost-boy-»-ruth-b
          
          If you're interested in something silly yet fun, even slightly thought-provoking, then, follow Elsa and Anna on a quest to retrieve stolen personal symbols of the Disney princesses in  #GirlPower': https://www.wattpad.com/1395329535-wonder-girlpower
          
          As always, I appreciate every read, vote, comment, and reading-list adds. Thank you so much!
          
          All the love, 
          Mads.

Hey everyone!
          
          If you haven’t noticed, Word and Music has a new look! 
          
          I’d found some short stories in the drafts, written some years ago for W&M. The general plan is to revive the book by editing the existing old stories as well as the unpublished collecting-dust new stories, slowly but surely. So, I’d started with the first-ever short story in the collection—‘Fall.' There were a couple of inconsistencies, and the Romeo-and-Juliet-esque storyline doesn't sit well with me anymore, so I’ve given a sort of revamping. But you’ll still find the bare-bones of the original story in the new version. So now, the 2015 short story is officially edited. 
          
          If you’re interested, here’s the link to the new ‘Fall’: https://www.wattpad.com/1327276385-words-and-music-fall 
          
          To those unaware and curious, Words and Music is a collection of short stories inspired by songs. If that interests you, I invite you to read the book. 
          
          As always, I appreciate each vote, comment, the reading-list adds, and the time taken to read my stories. 
          
          Thank you.
          
          All the love,
          Mads.