𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀: 𝗕𝗥𝗨𝗠𝗢𝗨𝗦: 𝖼𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖺𝖻 𝖺𝗐𝖺𝗋𝖽𝗌 [𝗥𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗖 𝗦𝗖𝗘𝗡𝗘]
𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿: SuVida777
𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄𝗲𝗿: Danielle | Dark_Ghostie
𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲: 17 August 2024

─⁠──⁠──⁠──⁠─ ⋄ ☾∘☽ ⋄ ─⁠──⁠──⁠──⁠─

𝗛𝗲𝘆, 𝗜'𝗺 𝗗𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲, 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗮 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜'𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿'𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄.
I'm a nerdy couch potato from the central hills of Sri Lanka! I write YA sci-fi, fantasy and horror. It’s hard to pick, but I gravitate towards sci-fi the most. My stories come with immersive worlds and heroines who tend to be nerdy, whimsical and rebellious. I love delving into the mind-boggling possibilities of science and technology, as well as exploring social/eco themes that could do with a spotlight. So underneath the fun and fluff, there’s always something for the nerds and thinkers.

𝗡𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂! 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗥𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗦𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗼𝗿𝘆! 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁? 𝗗𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝘁?
Thanks so much! While I put a lot of effort into the ships in my stories, I don’t have a lot of romantic scenes. So it makes me super happy that what I do have actually won!

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹?
We need wholesome romance in books. My ships come with fluffy but deep ships. This particular scene isn’t just sweet but it’s also symbolic in the story.
The ocean is a largely unexplored wonderland—it’s space right here on Earth! I’ve been fascinated with it for a very long time. When my fun illustration of Ariel won first in the Rewind the Classics contest last year, I thought of writing a retelling of The Little Mermaid. I envisioned a mer-city in the Indian Ocean, and I decided to explore themes of climate change and sustainability.
It was insanely fun and challenging to create an underwater metropolis that is realistic—complete with its own tech, history, clothing, food, politics and society. I had to research geology, marine biology, the alien world of the deep seas, ocean biomes, plastic pollution, commercial fishing and the impact of climate change on the oceans.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘂𝗽 𝗮 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗰𝗲? 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗽𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴?
When it comes to speculative fiction, it’s very important to build and visualize the story worlds and magic systems. That’s what makes a story immersive. I'm a careful plotter, so I outline the plot, do research, jot down character notes, build worlds and even keep lots of other random notes before I even start writing.
Rhodoreef was challenging on multiple levels. I had to learn about marine biology, ocean biomes, plastic pollution, marine life trade, commercial fishing and last but not least, climate change with relation to the oceans. When it came to worldbuilding, I had to create underwater tech, society, politics and even a marine-based food system! But it was an insanely fun and eye-opening experience!

𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆, 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝘁? 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿? 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗸𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳?
I’ve been escaping to story worlds from a young age—books, video games, anime and movies! It eventually led me to a career in art and animation. Somewhere along the way, my own stories and characters birthed in my mind—though I never wrote them.
In 2020, I decided that I should sit down and write Komoreby. I searched online about where I can post my work, and Wattpad came on top. I liked the interface, and the community seemed big, so in January 2021, I uploaded 10 chapters at once on Wattpad!
I’ve honed my craft a lot over the past few years, with feedback from readers and reviewers. There are so many things I wish I could tell my younger self. It’s hard to pick.

𝗜'𝗺 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱'𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀’ 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁, 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁? 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝘁? 𝗔𝗻𝘆 𝗴𝗼 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀? 𝗜𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗪𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗽𝗮𝗱.
Since I’m a big plotter, I actually don’t get stuck halfway. Everything from my story ideas to research are all in my extensive notes. So I don’t really experience writers’ block. My advice would be to plan early.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗿𝗴𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗪𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗽𝗮𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺? 𝗜𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝗻, 𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹𝘀?
If you want to go for screenwriting, then sure, script it is. For novels, unless you want to experiment with a funky format, it’s best to stick to narrative form and tell the story you want to tell.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀? 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝗻?
The whole contest ran so well. Thank you so much for your time and effort!

𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗳𝗳, 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗪𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗽𝗮𝗱?
Read a gazillion stories, especially that from the genres you write. Connect with other writers, since Wattpad is all about social storytelling and getting lots of consumer feedback to improve your work!
There’s no easy way to success, so strap in for an uphill climb. But don’t consider it “work”. Go all out with the character design, worldbuilding and have lots of fun crafting your tale! Don’t follow trends in the pursuit of success if your heart’s not in it. Convey your unique voice, because that’s the way to attract genuine readers.