AfterDark Team: Our regular readers know the first question is always the same - introduction! Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your life outside of Wattpad?

still_just_me: First off, thanks for this interview. I'm flattered.

Yeah! *double hand waving at my screen* I'm Kay, a low-key, sarcastic introvert who prefers quiet moments at home with my family. I'm married, and a mom to two, so homework, reading, cooking, and 'please don't drown'-type lessons dictate most of my non-writing time. When I'm not writing, I work as a technical statistical advisor.

AfterDark Team: Hello Kay, really loved your way of introducing yourself. And your job and sarcastic way of talking reminds me of a certain famous sitcom character.

Why don't you tell us more about your stories?

Kay: A lot of my sarcasm seeps into my stories, in particular self-deprecating characters and weird encounters. Almost all are contemporary spicy romances. It's Just Phone Sex is about a woman with a heart too big for the world I created for her. Saddled with college debt and a victim of unfortunate circumstances, Juneau's a phone sex worker, which doesn't go well until she gets a call from Damian, a jaded, emotionally-detached NYPD detective whose job is draining the life out of him. Their sweet and spicy phone calls are intermixed with rom-com-type in-person encounters, and my description is reading as dry as burnt toast, but I promise it's funny! It has some darker themes, which arise more in its sequel.

I Hate Football Players is the first story I wrote on Wattpad. A high school senior, Ellie, begrudgingly becomes involved with her quarterback brother's rival, Logan, who tries to use her to disrupt her brother's season. It's very teen-sassy humor, first relationship journey, and football/school situation-driven drama, but arching over that is Ellie's mental health struggles. The story's evolved into a series with three -the fourth one coming- for the main characters spanning high school to after college, and spinoffs for side characters.

I've recently updated/overhauled both stories, improving my writing and story-planning within Wattpad's Creators program. My Creators' story is Charitable Contributions, enemies-to-Iovers involving a yoga instructor Amelia rehabbing NFL quarterback Sam's injured shoulder. He's very arrogant, which she's not impressed with, but we see his true character once the source of her mental health struggles is revealed.

One Bite is my lone werewolf story, which I wrote a couple of years ago when going through a werewolf-binge reading. Zara is trying to find her place in the world her father has sheltered her from. And Social Distancing is about a research scientist who finds love right when the pandemic breaks out.

AfterDark Team: Contemporary romances really do hit home, because they seem more likely to happen than the other sub-genres. You have written quite a lot of stories Kay. How did your writer journey start on Wattpad? And What's your writing process, are you a Planster or a Panster or a bit of both?

Kay: My journey started as unintentional stumbling around online, binge-watching rom-coms. I'm an insatiable reader, no guarantee I won't bite if interrupted. Reading has always been a fantastic form of escapism, getting absorbed into the world an author creates combined with whatever my imagination paints feels like letting the creative side of my brain breathe.

I read on Wattpad for about 2 months and became so inspired to delve into writing stories/relationship dynamics that I was looking for and couldn't find. Anyone can write, anonymously if needed, and there are authors and readers for every story. I'm very lucky because my stories are long slow burners, and I've managed to be discovered by readers that enjoy that kind of format.

For the first two years, I wrote solely for fun. Total pantser. I can be quoted many times saying, 'I'm not a real writer/This is all for fun.' It wasn't until IJPS became my second story to pass a million reads that I started to think maybe I had something to be more serious about. And then I hit roadblocks. I've been blessed by rejection because it came with positive criticism, pointing out missing or poorly executed aspects of my stories that were spot-on.

It was excruciatingly painful to switch from a pantser to a chapter-level plotter. My writing is organized chaos. I draft a logline first, then the summary, and fill out a romance story template to establish the main character's goals, motivations, flashbacks, and stakes. I break the summary into event points and have brainstorming sessions to jot down as many more events as possible. Then I order them and break things into serial chapters. I don't use a strict plotting method, but check that the number of chapters aligns with the 3-act structure–that the 'pivotal moment' is around the middle.

My actual writing words down is where I indulge my pantsing. I don't write first drafts in serial Ch 1, 2,... order. Weird, I know, but writing is like problem-solving. Everyone utilizes their way to reach the solution, and no one approach is 'better' than the other.

I also sprint a lot. And edit, edit, cry and complain, edit.

Since this is AfterDark, my spicy scenes tend to be explicit. Like any scenes, they need to accomplish something for the story. I use sex as another form of communication, which requires setting up a sexual relationship dynamic. So, while the standard wham-bam parts are similar, the context is different. I try to think about what each character is separately hoping for in the moment, or needs to take away from it.

AfterDark Team: Your writing process is very thorough and it's amazing how much work you put into it. Like you said about hitting roadblocks, this is one common problem all writers face. How do you get over your writer's block? I'm sure our readers will love some tips.

Kay: Thank you. If stuck putting words to the story, go back to the source that inspired you. Was it a movie, music, another story, pictures, or a particular place? Returning to chapters or scenes I have written, editing them, or reading through the outline jars my mind to where the story's going.

For me, finishing a scene is more important than ensuring every word is perfect on the first iteration. Not writing in serial order helps, although it does make the last chapters super painful. I've put them last for a reason. :)

Find a way to reduce or remove self-induced pressure. And find a community! Writing can feel isolating. Talk about your story with writing friends. Bounce those ideas and status updates off each other. There are reading and writing critique clubs on Wattpad; I recommend Writers Connx, Dreamland, and Wattys Bootcamp Mentorship for writing development.

Writing the entire first draft before posting avoids pressure while readers are waiting, and helps set a regular posting schedule. Last, hopefully, take comfort in knowing writer's block happens to all of us.

AfterDark Team: It sounds so helpful yet is pretty easy to do. That's really a great tip and surely, our users will greatly appreciate it. Now off to our final question, would you like to give any message to new writers on Wattpad?

Kay: First, welcome and good luck in your writing journey! I would recommend not writing inside a bubble. Engage in the community, respond to comments, and read every story you can find in the genre, including going deep into those tag groups to ensure there isn't a similar one. Tropes aren't exclusively owned, but you want your characters and storyline executions to be unique. The last thing you want is inadvertent coincidental overlaps, but this also creates opportunities to make yours shine on its individuality.

For example, 'phone sex worker gets off to hot caller' is not a unique storyline; the first PS story I could find was written by Vox in the mid-90s. But, 'phone sex worker who is terrible at her job, drowning in debt after she lost her parents and falling victim to bad luck, gets off to hot caller who's a detective jaded and burned out from work -- BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE, because they already have intersecting lives' infused with their sweet x filthy relationship dynamic makes IJPS unique. Or, at least I hope so. :)

Thanks so much for picking my writing brain. Always happy to talk about these kinds of questions. My DMs are always open. Good luck and happy writing!

*****

And that's a brilliant wrap to a brilliant interview!

Thank you so much for taking time out to chat with us. We wish @still_just_me only the best in all her future writing endeavors. 

Go ahead and follow them on Wattpad to read more of their amazing stories!