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WATTPAD’S LARGEST ANNUAL WRITING CONTEST

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About the Wattys

The Watty Awards are Wattpad’s annual celebration of the galvanizing, inventive, diverse voices that choose to share their stories on Wattpad every year.

Nine languages, 11 categories, and thousands of incredible entries later… The moment has finally come to reveal the category winners of the 2022 Watty Awards. These are the stories that wowed the judges with their irresistible characters, imaginative plot lines, and wonderful worlds that only you had the power to create. Whether your story is taking home a prize or not, finishing and entering it is a huge win. Thank you for yet another inspiring Wattys season, and see you next year!

Keep scrolling for all of the 2022 Watty Award category winners.

Wattys Milestones

Wattys open for
entries

July 22nd, 2022 at 11AM EST

Wattys close for
judging

August 19th, 2022 at 11:59:59PM EST

Wattys shortlist
announced

On or around October 19th, 2022

Wattys winners announced
live at WattCon

November 19th, 2022

And the 2022 Watty Award winners are…

Grand Prize Winner

This year we added one (1) Grand Prize winner per language. The Grand Prize winners represent the best stories submitted to The 2022 Wattys Awards and achieved distinction in at least three of the four special prize categories listed below.

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A Wattpad WEBTOON Studios Winner

The WWS Entertainment Prize

For a Wattpad-originating fiction in any genre with strong underlying storytelling, compelling characters, and a unique hook that is suitable for film and/or television adaptation.

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A Wattpad WEBTOON Studios Winner

The WWS Animation Prize

For a Wattpad-originating story with strong underlying storytelling and compelling characters, and a strong visual and/or world-building component best suited for animation film and/or television adaptation.

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A Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group Winner

The Frayed Pages x Wattpad Books Award

The FP X WP Award, presented by Anna Todd, considered authentic relationship stories from unique voices. We looked at fiction that explores the complex, messy, and diverse relationships that make loving our best form of living.

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A Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group winner

The Wattpad Books YA Award

The Wattpad Books YA Award considered stories in the Young Adult category that represent an original point of view and feature strong underlying storytelling. We looked at fiction entries across all genres.

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A Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group Winner

The W List New Adult Award

The W by Wattpad Books Award considered stories in the New Adult and Romance categories with broad commercial appeal in the marketplace. We looked at fiction entries with a strong happily ever after for the main characters.

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Special Prize

Best Characters

This story features characters that resonated with our judges and made us root for them every step along the way.

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Special Prize

Most Engaging World

This story features rich world-building that truly immerses the reader.

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Special Prize

Biggest Twist

This story shocked our judges with a twist we didn’t see coming.

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Special Prize

Catchiest Hook

This story builds off an idea that is fresh, imaginative, and exciting.

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Category Winners

Fanfiction

Category Winners

Fanfiction

This award showcases the worlds we love, the characters we know, and the stories we’re so into we just had to take matters into our own hands. From your favorite K-pop group to Billie Eilish, TikTok stars, and The Avengers, your fandom knows no bounds! This category aims to recognize Wattpadders who have challenged and changed beginnings, endings, and relationships while staying true to the heart of the story. We looked for fresh alternatives, rewrites, and divergent storylines for all our favorite characters or worlds so we could spend a little more time with them after the book closes or the credits roll.

Category Winners

Fantasy

Category Winners

Fantasy

This award recognizes the worldbuilders; the writers who take us on fantastical adventures, heroic battles, and epic journeys to save people, kingdoms, or dynasties. In a world of your own imagination, fantasy explores the magical and mythical unknown, ancient folklore, and mythical creatures. Is your character a soon-to-be queen living in a magical kingdom, or a dragon riding the winds of an ancient land? Writers penning the next Descendants of the Crane, The Witcher, or Lord of the Rings entered their stories in this category.

Category Winners

Historical Fiction

Category Winners

Historical Fiction

This award recognizes the writers who take us on a journey through the past, who love writing about lush, historical settings, like an Aztec temple or the Scottish Highlands. Is your story a twist on a classic figure, like a female Napoleon? Has your main character been reincarnated as a Chinese empress, or are they looking for love in the Regency era? The Historical Fiction award is for stories that make us feel like we are living in a distant time. Stories entered in this category had a similar vibe to Bridgerton, The Song of Achilles, and Memoirs of a Geisha.

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Category Winners

Horror

Category Winners

Horror

This award is for fear-seeking writers who give us terrifying takes on our worst nightmares. Whether it’s about a serial killer on the loose, an evil undead clown, or a brilliant cannibal, the Horror award celebrates stories that bring all the thrills and chills, and make us question our own realities. Feeding on our deepest physical and psychological terrors, these stories join the likes of The Silence of the Lambs, IT, and Get Out.

Category Winners

Mystery & Thriller

Category Winners

Mystery & Thriller

This award honors the writers who keep us on the edge of our seats and glued to our screens. From solving crimes to racing against the clock to stop one from happening, the Mystery & Thriller award considers stories with suspenseful plots, high stakes, and satisfying endings. Stories in this category helped bring out our inner detective, similar to bestsellers like Gone Girl, When No One Is Watching, or Behind Her Eyes.

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Category Winners

New Adult

Category Winners

New Adult

This award recognizes stories that highlight the golden moments between your late teens and early twenties. The New Adult award seeks stories that give voice to those trying to “adult” in this day and age, from finding first loves to making career moves. This category sought contemporary tales like Pitch Perfect, The Deal, or Red, White and Royal Blue.

Category Winners

Paranormal

Category Winners

Paranormal

This award showcases writers who unearth the unknown and explore what lies beyond the veil. The Paranormal award celebrates real-world stories, about unexplainable transformations and creatures, like vampires, werewolves, angels, demons, ghosts, and psychics. Writers who love stories like The Vampire Diaries, Stranger Things, or Cemetery Boys, entered in this category.

Category Winners

Romance

Category Winners

Romance

This award celebrates the swoon-worthy storytellers who tug on our heartstrings and demand our emotional investment. From passionate cowboys to billionaire rendezvous and squee-worthy soulmates, these stories focus on adult characters and themes within modern, real-world settings. The Romance award goes to stories that depict a central love story that compels us to hope for a happy ending. This category looked for stories like The Kiss Quotient, The Hating Game, or The Wedding Date.

Category Winners

Sequels (English Only)

Category Winners

Sequels (English Only)

This award champions the ongoing stories that feature the same major characters facing new, exciting, and challenging circumstances. Sequels allow devoted readers to continue on in the worlds they love (think: Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and The Hunger Games), with the characters they aren’t ready to say goodbye to yet.

Category Winners

Science Fiction

Category Winners

Science Fiction

This award goes to the forward-thinking writers who evoke a sense of wonder, unravel new realities, and send us shooting into the void. The Science Fiction award recognizes stories that center around science and technology—like Star Trek, Fahrenheit 451, or The Fifth Season—and challenge us to think big and differently about the world we live in. Space operas set in a galaxy far away, near-future dystopias, alternate histories you get this picture.

Category Winners

Wild Card

Category Winners

Wild Card

This award celebrates stories that use characters and plot to transcend multiple genres. From old-school westerns with fantastical elements to mysteries that center around dystopian twists, stories in this category defy expectations and offer readers something completely new. Stories in this category were similar to American Gods, The Kingdom of Back, or Life of Pi.

Category Winners

Young Adult

Category Winners

Young Adult

This award champions stories that explore the teen experience, from coping with loss to exploring gender, and navigating high-school crushes and first sexual experiences. The Young Adult award recognizes modern, real-world stories that capture an authentic teen voice and the emotional stakes of growing up. We looked for coming-of-age stories from all walks of life, similar to the likes of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, The Hate U Give, and Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda.

Wattys text in the form of a parallelogram