First of all, I need to apologize for not posting as much as I should. My computer got a virus and has been acting up. My deepest regrets. I also made an account on…WATTPAD!!! So that’s kept me busy-ish, too.
Yesterday, I went to the Steinbeck Center for the writing competition. Here’s a rough schedule of what happened:
about 7:45-8:55 People came, ate breakfast, lots of adults talking
about 8:55-10:00 We wrote about The Red Pony by John Steinbeck
about 10:00-10:15 Break, get into groups (A, B, C)
about 10:15-12:00 Stations: ponies, Rodeo Queen, museum
about 12:00-1:35 Meet mentors, take photo, eat lunch, talk about essay with mentor
about 1:35-2:40 Revise essay
about 2:40-3:00 Wrap up, get certificates, leave
We don’t get the results until May 3!!!
I updated Nakoma. And that ends the contest, too. Jenna, by default (since no one else participated) won. Jenna: Please leave a comment with your prize choice. We can talk about it more later.
Battle of the Websites: Wattpad VS FictionPress
I recently made an account on Wattpad, and I’ve decided to battle it out between the two websites, FictionPress and Wattpad.
Round 1: I think it’s really important that both these websites, since they’re advertised as being for 13 years and up, are child/teen/tween appropriate. They shouldn’t have a ton of stories with sex, drugs, etc. There could be, in my opinion, a separate place for “Adult Fiction” or just a completely different website.
Wattpad: For as much as I’ve seen, Wattpad attracts a younger audience, which, for my age is better. The stories are for ages 10-17 mostly.
FictionPress: A lot of adults were on FictionPress. Most of the stories were explicit, containing a lot of bad words and the like.
Round 2: Another important aspect in my opinion is good grammar and spelling. Not only does it drive me crazy when it’s incorrect, but it makes the author seem unintelligent. A few mistakes are okay, but when it’s constant, to me it’s like, come on. You are an author! Use spellcheck if you can’t spell, at least.
Wattpad: I have seen very few mistakes in the stories I’ve read, and I applaud the authors for the that.
FictionPress: Woah. Lots of mistakes. It drove me crazy when I read the stories; there was almost always something to edit.
Final Round: Yet another matter is how accessible the website is.
Wattpad: Very easy to go on, easy to find stuff, very self-explanatory.
FictionPress: Very easy to go on, same as Wattpad. The look could be sleeker, though.
Those are my thoughts about the two websites.
Carpe diem,
Chloe
Free As a Girl With Wings 
I have finally caught up on your posts. Congratulations on the Steinbeck competition! I would love to know more specifically what you wrote about.
And I know I am old fashioned but I liked your Event and Weather updates. They gave me a sense of what was going on around you while you wrote, what made an impression on you, maybe influenced your writing.
Have started reading your novel. So impressive. Such self-confidence you have putting it out there for the world to read.
Carpe diem! I’m surprised that I won, but since it was by default, I guess it makes more sense. You honestly don’t have to give me a prize, but if you did, I guess I would prefer a page with one of my stories. It’s a story I wrote for the Hero’s Quest project we had to do in 7th grade, and there are twosequels to it, making it a Trilogy. If acceptable, at the end of the story I would like to add, “Go to wattpad.com and find the user ‘Volleyballstar11’ if you want to read the sequels,” or something like that.
I have one thing to say. WATTPAD RULES!