36 Scenes on Wattpad

That’s it. I’m nearly there. The whole thing is nearly there. For the past thirty-four scenes I have strategically been uploading the story. It’s not just a story.

It’s a novel.

It’s my first.

Baby is born.

Nearly.

I have two more scenes to put up there. They may or may not be necessary. They certainly explain some things, but not everything. I am actually quite concerned that I will have to continue with the story. I don’t want to do that. But I have to admit that I am leaving it hanging out there a bit. The book is complete although there may be more of the story to tell. That will have to wait. Or possibly someone can do some fan fiction on it.

The whole experience with writing the story has been somewhat of an inner journey for me. I have struggled to get to the end. I looked for answers along the way. I found some, but not all of them. The story follows the same lines. The main character has a sort of epiphany. I had that myself. I needed to have that experience as well. I had to find out why I was writing the book. I had to find out what it was that I was trying to say. In the end I think I did. But only the readers can tell me if I succeeded.

Thirty-four scenes ago I started posting the book on Wattpad. Wattpad is a platform for writers and readers to connect. It is a sort of Facebook for books. What sets it apart is that a large percentage of the readers are teenagers. They are exploding with creativity. They are also consuming stories like they are all eating their last meals on death row. I think it’s incredible. Books are not dead, certainly not on Wattpad. And anyone who says that the youth of today don’t read needs to wake up. But books are not only for the young. There are enthusiastic readers of all ages out there. They are just not hanging out in libraries and bookshops. I am finding that as an author you really need to go out and look for them. The reassuring thing is that they are out there in their millions. Wattpad makes it a bit easier for me to find them.

Publishing one scene a week is not a new thing. It’s what Dickens did. He sold his work several times over in different formats. He was very clever. I realise that I am just like him. I am already a self-publisher. I am learning as I go along. It’s a very steep learning curve. I have absorbed a mountain of information. I have done a couple of courses. I have taught myself how to be a better writer. I have also increased my output. I had a slow start. Now I’m picking up speed. But I do need to get my first book completed. That is one big hurdle I still have to jump over. One positive is that I’m nearly there.

Thirty-four scenes down, two to go. It’s kind of daunting to think about. Early on, somewhere in May, I started by posting one scene a week on Wattpad. In recent weeks I switched to two scenes a week. I wanted to get to the end. Now I am at the end it’s difficult. The scenes are not finished. Well, they are, but they need work. I think. Maybe I’m just battling resistance. That was one reason to switch to two times a week. It forces me just to do it. There is no time to think. I am basically busy full-time with it in order to reach my targets. I am pushing myself. I am out in the open. If I don’t put anything up there I will have to face the wrath of my audience. I am glad that I already had most of it written. If I had to write from scratch I think it would be too hard. Maybe not. Maybe I need to learn to do that too. I need to learn about letting go of perfection. Maybe I need to open up and share my experience. Well, It’s certainly happening with this piece. Hello. It’s me here. Yes, you just read it. I bared my soul to you.

I’m wondering if thirty-six is an important number. Isn’t that a reasonable term for a pregnancy? The baby may be a little premature. If that’s the case then I should spend that little extra time on making sure that its healthy. I don’t want to have to watch it struggle in an incubator. More resistance. Stop thinking that way. It is what it is. And it is finished. My readers will tell me what needs fixing. It will have a whole bunch of doting grandparents. Some of them won’t be old enough to have children themselves but that doesn’t matter. Wattpadders don’t judge, they give unlimited support and constructive criticism. It has been a fantastic experience sharing my story with them. Maybe you should do the same.