By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
I blogged in May that I was giving the publishing platform Wattpad a go. I was somewhat worried about this decision at the time, wondering if my octogenarian protagonist and I would fit in among the youthful readers on the site.
From May to August, I went from several reads to steadily increasing reads. Nothing I’d call spectacular. But each day or couple of days I’d get a notification that I had someone else following (I think of them more as subscribers of) my story. The number of reads (not readers, reads of each chapter) grew and with them grew more visibility. That’s how it works at Wattpad.
Now, suddenly, I have over 18,000 reads. I’ve done absolutely nothing to get these. I’ve not been actively networking, not been joining groups. I’ve been pretty darn introverted on the site except for my pleasant exchanges with readers who have commented on each chapter.
What helped tremendously was that I was recently placed on the Featured List on Wattpad. Someone from Wattpad emailed me and asked to feature my book. The only thing required on my end was that I keep the book up on Wattpad (once completed, since it’s being released on Wattpad serially) for six months. Featured stories get 1-2 weeks on the front couple of pages before joining the rest of the works on the main list.
We could say that it’s because the content specialist knew I was a published author and that he felt safe featuring my selection. But during our email exchange, it became clear to me that he had no knowledge of my other books or even of the fact that I’d finished writing the book I was posting to Wattpad. He seemed not to know that the book had been published in its entirety for several years. That’s a bit worrying, considering that I posted that information at the end of every uploaded chapter. It’s the “call to action” that’s recommended for authors on Wattpad.
So this is what I’m thinking helps us get featured (like it helps us find readers, in general):
Cover quality
Quality of the writing/lack of typos
Consistency in terms of publishing (this is clearly specific to Wattpad and its serial release culture)
Decent formatting/understanding of the platform
Slow but steady increase in reads (site visibility)
Other discoveries:
There are older readers there, too. Not tons, but some.
Younger readers were surprisingly willing to give the book a go and surprisingly gracious about its content.
I haven’t run into trolls there. This doesn’t mean it won’t happen, but it hasn’t happened yet. It’s been very friendly there.
I haven’t run into the time suck that I worried I’d face with Wattpad. Interactions have (mainly) been short and very pleasant.
Yes, being “featured” on Wattpad makes a huge difference. My “reads” (again, these are “reads”, not “readers”—so each chapter garners reads from readers who’ve already read previous chapters. If that makes sense…) went from the hundreds to the thousands.
How has this affected my sales? I have absolutely no idea. I know that sales in general took a summer dip in July, before picking up again. I think this is increasing awareness of my books. That’s what I believe my online presence, in general, does–give me a bit of visibility. I think I’m gaining younger readers—something I think is important for series longevity.
When might a Wattpad experiment work well for you?
It’s probably not for everybody. You’re putting something up for free. Wattpad is probably not as friendly to some genres (non-commercial fiction comes to mind). I’ve had a writer on Google Plus to recently remind me that it’s a “content silo” profiting from writers.
All of that is true(ish). For me, though, it’s worth it. I already have at least one book at bargain basement prices for sale online. Free isn’t a big deal to me. And I don’t see any other opportunity to actively court young readers in an arena that large. If they’re using me, I’m using them right back.
If you had several books out, wrote YA or other commercial genres, and didn’t mind having a book available for free…Wattpad could provide you with added exposure. And if the book is already written, the serial thing won’t give you any deadline stress–you’d just submit a chapter from your old Word file each week.
So….curious. Have y’all checked out Wattpad for your stories? Visited there at all? What are your thoughts on the platform?
I’ve never heard of it before. I am so far out of the loop of social media. Oy!
Karen–The only reason I knew about it was the fact I was on a panel with the head of content in November…ha! I was just as out of it and I have teen readers in my house! But it has millions of readers there (some as young as tweens), so it’s a good platform to be familiar with.
Hi Elizabeth – interesting to read more about the process and how it works. It sounds an interesting medium, or alternative – but I heed your warnings …
Good for you for giving it a go .. and I hope for generating more sales of your other books … Cheers Hilary
Hilary–Thanks! Yes, not for everybody. If I wrote literary fiction for adults, serious poetry, etc. and had only one book…I wouldn’t do it. I worried I was a little nuts to do it with my cozy mystery/elderly protagonist, honestly, but it’s worked out.
Good to know it’s not a time suck. That I don’t need.
I’d have to write something completely new and then give it up to the site since I can’t do that with my books.
Alex–No time sucks! That’s why you avoid Facebook, right?
Yes, there’s lots of short fiction on there–LOTS of short fiction. That would be a good alternative for you.
Hi Elizabeth,
I’ve been a follower of your blog for several months now, but this is my first time to comment on it. I just published my first book last month and just joined Wattpad a couple of weeks ago to set up my profile .
I was eager to figure out how the whole “Wattpad” thing worked so I began uploading my book there (I had already set it permafree everywhere else). As you did, I also put call to action links to both my website and to ALL the retailers in my profile and at the end of every chapter (I post every Wednesday). I was rather shocked when I started getting reads and votes. You were right about the culture there, it is very pleasant. I haven’t met a single troll.
I initially went in and followed the max number of people I could on Wattpad (1,000), but I have backed off doing much of anything else other than replying to people’s comments on my work (Nano Contestant – Episode 1). I initially got about two hundred followers within a few days, but they have continued to come in on a daily basis without really any further effort.
What I was really excited about was all the reads I was getting! I am just about to be over the 300 “reads” mark. I know that’s much smaller than your very impressive 18k, but it’s significant to me because I am just starting out and I need all the exposure I can get!
I have had quite a few follow-throughs from Wattpad to my website and to my book on the retail sites, but not large number ( I would estimate between 5-10%), but those are all readers that I would not have had otherwise!
The culture has been very kind and encouraging, and I have found the whole experience to be very positive (much better than Goodreads or Twitter).
Please keep reporting back on your Wattpad experiences! Your write-up (and recommendation) was one of the key factors in my taking action to join!
Your Loyal Blog Reader,
~Leif Sterling~
Leif–Oh, I’m so *glad*! Glad it worked out so well for you. :) And so happy to hear that the readers there were just as welcoming for you as they were for me. It sounds like you’ve done everything right. You’ve added a call to action, you’ve reached out to folks, you’ve answered comments. And you’ve gotten reads!
I think 300+ reads is a ton! I don’t remember what I was at before I was featured, but it was in the lower-mid hundreds, not near 1000. You’ve done really, really well.
Wow–5-10% follow-through is very good. It would have been smart for me to track hits on my website from Wattpad. I may start doing that now. Actually, I’m considering putting up another Myrtle book after I’m done with this one. I don’t think that will cannibalize sales on Amazon because I don’t think the vast majority of my readers are on Wattpad–so I’m pulling from a completely new demographic there.
You’re right about Goodreads in particular…ugh. I consider myself to be tough as nails when it comes to reviews…but the ferocity of the reviewing there–wow. :(
I’ll keep reporting in and thanks so much for your reporting, too, Leif! So happy it’s going well.
Elizabeth – Thanks very much for your thoughts on Wattpad. I’ve been experimenting too, mostly with my short pieces, and so far it’s been a good experience. It’s fairly easy to use, and as you say, it gives one a new audience. I also like that it’s given me the opportunity to engage with younger writers. That gives me a new audience, but it also gives younger writers somebody older to talk to about their work if I can put it that way. And my younger Instagram audience is practically all on Wattpad. That’s where young adults often go to find new things to read.
Margot–You’re good to be on Instagram! That’s one I haven’t tried, although my children are on it. Your interest in photography makes you a natural for it!
I’ve been some of your reads, and it’s convinced me to experiment with Wattpad. I’m going to sign up and start posting my first mystery and see what happens.
Joel–Thanks! Glad you’re going to experiment there. I just had someone ask me this morning on Wattpad what mysteries I recommended on the site and I was at a loss! Good to know I’ve got some friends there to recommend.
I’ve not visited Wattpad yet, but I’ve heard several authors on twitter talking about posting there. Mostly YA authors if my memory serves me correctly. I think the exposure is great. Might do that myself once I’ve got some book out there!
Jemi–It’s very popular for YA, for sure. Lots of opportunity for exposure. So many readers there.
I love when you go ahead of me and then I follow. :) After your last article, I signed up, but that’s all. Now I need to put some of my shorts up. A fan base, whether you’re giving it away or not, is important.
T
Teresa–It’s a great place for shorts! Let me know when you’ve got them up and I’ll come visit on Wattpad. :)
You reminded me, I started to serialize a book there months ago but forgot to keep up. I’ll follow your lead and release my first book, chapter by chapter.
Thanks!
Peace, Seeley
Seeley–Great! Good luck with it there. :)
Elizabeth, with this post you’ve answered my biggest question about Wattpad–whether a non-youthful writer and novel heroine would gain any readings there. I’ve only got the one novel out, but I could do flash fiction for a while, if there’s a readership for it, and then serialize the first novel after the next ones come out.
I’ve been doing Instagram for the past couple of weeks, learning to use the camera on my iPod and the filters. I don’t know if it’ll bring readers, but it is a sort of outreach and it’s fun. I find it is easier to learn new social media if I can have fun with it it instead of worrying about every last detail.
Meg–The answer is yes! Because I don’t think mystery protagonists come any older than Myrtle. :) Myrtle is even older than Miss Marple. Give the flash fiction a go, for sure–it will also help you get a feel for the site.
Sounds like you’ve done really well on Instagram! And I believe you’re right about the importance of the “having fun” part instead of the usual resignation of having to learn another platform. I think I promised my 13 year old daughter I wouldn’t have an Instagram presence?! :) It’s the only major social medium I haven’t got a presence on.
What about Tumblr? Some people rave about it, and I set up an account, but never did anything with it, seemed like another tundra like Google+.
I’m so embarrassed to say that I can *not* figure out Tumblr. At all. And I’ve read volumes on it. Just can’t get it. And I don’t get the appeal. I curate a good deal of Tumblr sites on Twitter and Google+, and the formatting is just a disaster when the sites try to offer a preview window. Sigh.
Many thanks for this post Elizabeth, as it has pointed out some very relevant details that I knew nothing about. That’s the trouble with DIY, you’re only as good as the info you come across, and I knew nothing about the ‘call to action’ that you should include at the end of every chapter on Wattpad.
An omission soon to be rectified!
Jaye and Anita–Oh, I know what you mean. Yes, something just simple. If it helps at all, this is mine: “Progressive Dinner Deadly” and other Myrtle Clover mysteries are available in ebook, audio, and print formats from Amazon, Nook, Kobo, and other retailers. I’ll post a chapter each Friday, but if you can’t wait, please visit one of the listed retailers for the completed book. Follow me on Twitter (elizabethscraig), sign up for my newsletter, or visit my website at Elizabethspanncraig.com for more information. Hope you’ll enjoy the book.
Well done, Elizabeth, congrats! I’ve had 391 reads on one book (speculative fiction, “Forever Young” set 200 years from now) and oddly enough, only 29 reads for my romance “Crimson Clouds”, go figure!
But nobody’s contacted me to be featured so I think this is quite an accomplishment – and how one can get there is a mystery to me. I had a lot of reads and followers when I first posted the stuff but now it’s dropped down to nothing, so basically I’ve written the site off…Who knows, maybe I’m wrong…
Claude–I can totally see spec fic being big there, so no surprises. Not sure how big romance is there, but hard to imagine it not being big there since it’s big everywhere else. Maybe in a bit more time? I think I was probably around your number before my book was featured. Yeah, it was out of the blue..the featuring. They seem to have scouts that find material there. But they’re always looking for *new* material because you cycle off the front pages of “featured” in a matter of days. So maybe keep going with it?
That’s so cool that you’ve gained more exposure there! After your last post, I put up an excerpt there. I haven’t been back since. I have no idea how many reads??? Thanks for sharing your experience with Wattpad. I kinda forgot about it. See? I’m not the best marketer :/
Julie–It’s on the front page of your “work’s,” book profile there. And, really, you’re describing pretty much what I did, too–put it up there and didn’t think anything else about it until prompted by my calendar each week to upload a chapter. :)
Thanks to this blog, I went back to my Wattpad page and saw someone had commented on one of my works. I also noticed I have more followers. So I figure since I have a work-in-progress, I’ll “milk” Wattpad as much as I can and see if it will build more exposure. It seems to work; as like you, I don’t do much with it, but people seem to find the page.
James–Glad you checked! I don’t usually sign up for emailed notifications of activity, but I did for Wattpad for the very reasons you’re mentioning. Yes, somehow our stuff seems to get discovered. :)
Thanks so much for this insight into Wattpad. It’s been recommended to me by some writers, but they’re mostly YA. I wasn’t sure there were any older readers there. This is definitely food for thought! Thanks.
Anne–Glad it helped, Anne. And thanks!
P.S. I’ll be linking to this post from my blog next week!
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My first two Emperor’s Edge novels are up there. They’re not for the YA crowd really, either, but have done decently well, and I know I’ve gotten a couple of readers who went on to buy the whole series. EE1 was featured a few months ago.
Note: I’ve since learned that Wattpad won’t feature adult (R-rated) novels, so just a head’s up for anyone writing darker or sexier stuff. It’s probably not the best spot to gain readers in that area.
Lindsay–That’s very encouraging–thanks. I’ve had one reader who told me she’s bought at least one of my books, so I guess there is some link there.
And thanks for the tip on R-rated material. I’d not realized that.