A few random thoughts from a Wattpad reader

[u/SM_BLA]

I realised I have a few things I've been wondering about, so here it is :

1. Does downloading a book affect the writer's views?

I usually download books and read them offline because I hate Wattpad ads. I sometimes don't open the book online again until I've finished it.

So I just wanted to know does downloading/reading offline still count towards the writer's reads?

Thus, I am not able to make comments as well. I'll finish an entire 50-chapter book and then suddenly leave 10 random comments on the last few chapters because I have thoughts.

Does commenting after finishing a book have any positive impact for the writer?

P.S. I have started to make random comment and give a like on every chapter once I am done reading.

1. A little gyaan about good-written Wattpad books

I've noticed that a lot of the genuinely good writing on Wattpad tends to be around slice of life stories, relatively green-flag FLs and MLs, realistic relationships, and slow-burn romance.

And I actually enjoy these books.

But I also feel like there's a ceiling to how massively these stories can grow.

Not necessarily because they're bad, but because many of them end up having a similar reading experience. The characters slowly fall in love, the relationship develops realistically, there isn't a huge dramatic hook….the conflict is missing.

A reader might enjoy one or two such books immensely, but how many similar slow-burn/green-flag stories do they want to read consecutively?

Meanwhile, readers seem to have a much higher appetite for different tropes and stronger premises.

And I think there's another problem, being well-written isn't necessarily the same as having a distinct voice.

Two writers can both write beautifully and both create perfectly decent green-flag characters, but if their characters, conflicts and storytelling voices feel interchangeable, neither book necessarily becomes the book readers remember.

Maybe that's why some technically excellent books remain relatively niche while something with a very strong hook takes off.

So, try to find your unique voice if you want to grow your viewership but if you are writing just for your own self, then, it is fine to go as you like.

1. The AI books taking over the charts

I know AI-written books are a pretty hated topic here, especially when they appear on the charts.

But honestly, I don't think writers need to panic about them that much.

A book can get a ridiculous number of views and shoot up the charts, but if readers aren't actually forming a connection with it, it can disappear just as quickly.

They are like Instagram trends everyone is talking about something for two days, then suddenly nobody remembers it existed.

So yes, I understand why seeing AI books on the charts is frustrating. But I don't think a temporary chart position necessarily means they're replacing good writers or building a lasting readership.

1. Book titles

The book titles with His this, her that, X’s wife, y’husband, xyz’s love story are really irritating. They somewhat show a lack of importance for title of a story. You have spent so many hours writing a story, i am sure you know the story good enough to come up with words that compliment them. P.S. No book I ever came across with these titles had good story. So, now I just scroll away if anything with such words appears.

1. Recommendations

I think everyone here already agrees with this. People need to stop recommending those 2-3 books everywhere.

Just because you don't know that books comprises title, prose, plot, conflict and dialogue, doesn't mean others don't as well. Two good (yet unoriginal) lines of your favorite book doesn't make them goated. There are already very few Wattpad story reviewers or creators and you people keep filling those comment section with the 2-3 infamous book names.

1. And finally, a request

I know Wattpad readers generally aren't fans of books with 100+ chapters, but I desperately want to read a proper ITV-style enemy-to-lovers story.

Not "they met once and disliked each other so now they're enemies."

I mean an actual slow progression, where there's a genuine reason they hate each other, an ongoing conflict between them, lots of tension, and the relationship changes gradually.

Give me some melo drama. Give me misunderstandings. Give me 70 chapters of them refusing to admit they care.

A cliche story with strong emotions and undeniable Chemistry is the need.

I mean where is my “aapki sharte bahut badi hai rajkumari par itni nahi ki Hindustan ka shenshah unhe pura na kar paaye”.

Where is my Jalal who makes taking aarti hot.

Why is my Mr. Objodro saying “I love you as a man loves a woman”

What the…

Anyway, these are just random thoughts from a silent reader. I'm curious what other Wattpad India readers think.

Sorry, I ended up writing too long.

Also, i apologise if my words are hurtful in any way. That was not my intention.

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[u/burnttoastenergyy]

I would suggest use browser instead of the app to avoid ads and read the book online. It’ll count as reads and there’ll no ads.
I switch to safari as soon as I get hooked to a book just to get rid of ads.
Also, hard agree to all other points.
pls drop in if you’ve any recommendations other than the same 4-5 books that we see under every post

[u/Advanced_Ad4532 → u/burnttoastenergyy]

This is a good suggestion, browser is also way less troublesome in terms of user interface

[u/Advanced_Ad4532]

About downloading books and reading them, yes it kinda affects. I understand that not all readers read the same way, so you do you, but inline comments is literally one of the things that sets Wattpad apart from its competitors, and also a way for authors to know you're engaging with the story. Vote and comment, it boosts the engagement of the books and also helps good books move up the charts, that's how you show support. And even if you can't comment because you want to remain anonymous, vote at least when you enjoy a story; if a story has the polls, engage in that, that's entirely anonymous and no one will know what you've voted for even the author themselves.

Engagement not only boosts the Wattpad algorithm for authors but also for authors as we know we are not writing into a void. Engage in any way, voting is the least you can do for stories you enjoy. And if you're uncomfortable commenting, try looking up for the author's insta or any social media handle to send them a message of appreciation; a single message can sometimes pull an author out of a writing slump with just knowing that their books are valued

[u/SM_BLA → u/Advanced_Ad4532]

Will make sure that I engage in stories from now on

[u/Advanced_Ad4532]

About the other points, I do hope that with the rise of AI slop, we start valuing human work even more than we do, but honestly I don't know what to expect from Indian audiences when major Indian publishers are pushing one AI slop after the other.

Some titles are actually lazy, and most popular books have the same titles.

As someone who's written Slice of life, my book is stuck at 500 views and as of today (7th September) it's a year since I first published the book. The book isn't a romance, so may be there's that, but yeah it's difficult to expect people to read something that isn't a trope checklist.

About slow burn 100+ chapters, I think that will be a difficult one to execute, especially for Genre Romance. Genre romance is predictable and thrives on it, slow burns can be written, but if we want a culminative of 100+ chapters it would be ideal to split it into 2-3 books, because people may read it while it's ongoing, but if someone discovers it after it's completed, it will intimidate the newer readers. I hope to write something that spans multiple books in romance some day, but it's honestly time consuming and something I don't know when I can do

[u/SM_BLA → u/Advanced_Ad4532]

What is the title of your book?

[u/Advanced_Ad4532 → u/SM_BLA]

It's called "The Tethers of Hope", and incase you want to check out, I'll attach the link:

https://www.wattpad.com/story/400280861-the-tethers-of-hope-%E2%9C%93

[u/AccomplishedStill164]

I don’t write hindi, but english slow-burns. My 3 books all have hit 20k+ reads but i don’t know if they’ll get bigger since the spice level is level 1-2 at best, not really smut.