"Wattpad is a very popular app that offers a platform for stories and ebooks. It’s full of both undiscovered and published writers who can publish and share their works to the public, But is it really worth it?" --Triece Kushner, 8th grade
For anyone who doesn’t know, Wattpad is a very popular app that offers a platform for stories and ebooks. It’s full of both undiscovered and published writers who can publish and share their works to the public. Wattpad has become very popular during the shelter in place and quarantine as people started to look for fun things to do in isolation.
Wattpad also started to rise in popularity after many of its creators started posting about it on TikTok. Currently, three out of four readers have found out about Wattpad through TiTtok.
“I found Wattpad on TikTok,” confirms 8th grader Cheyenne Sears. ”Although I don’t like the amount of ads, it’s quite annoying.”
The founders of Wattpad, Iven Yuen and Allen Lau created the app in 2006, focusing more on the availability of the app than on the actual forming of rules and safety precautions, therefore making the app unmoderated. Wattpad is supported on as many model phones as possible, the creators wanting the lack of software to not be a problem.
The biggest controversy of Wattpad is the legal age limit. The age limit on Wattpad is 13 years old. A lot of people feel like it is a little too young to be able to be exposed to the sums of graphic content on the app compared to the age of the viewer.
“I feel like the age limit is just right but one thing is is that you have to be very specific when looking for something,” said Sears.
“I think that it depends on the person and what they feel comfortable being exposed to,” said Piper Stuip, a 7th grader at OSA says. “But I feel like there should be more warnings. I started using it at a pretty young age, I don't really use it anymore--unless looking for popular fics that are no longer on Ao3, but I wish I had more of an idea of what to look out for when finding things to read, ‘cause if it was a pairing I liked I would read pretty much anything--and now I look back and see that what they were writing was really weird and it kind of disgusts me.”
Wattpad also became extremely popular when people started to post fanfictions on their favorite celebrities and or characters from movies, TV shows, and even other popular books.
“I tend to mainly read Harry Potter fanfiction books when I’m bored. Wattpad fine for reading, I just personally don’t have the patience to sit there and read most of the time” said seventh grader Ariana Glenn.
Although Wattpad can be a little inappropriate, it can also be educational. Some authors post things such as “How to learn French, 400 tips and tricks into mastering the Language” by Manila Fently. If you know where to look, you can find very interesting reads and opportunities.
“I have read some really good things on there, people are relatively nice and would make sweet comments when I would write something on there, but I also kept getting surprised with things that made me uncomfortable with no warnings,” said Stuip.“So I think overall, my experience has been uncomfortable. [I’m] just basically trying to jump over things/ignore them so I can enjoy the fic. I think one of Wattpad’s faults is the tagging system. I feel like it’s easier to avoid things that way which is partly why I love AO3 so much.”
Another common user comments is the lack of moderation in the comments. “A thing I’ve noticed about Wattpad is that the comment section is either really funny or brutal,.” Glenn adds.
Overall, people seem to enjoy the app. Although it has its faults, it has a pretty strong following and people seem to really enjoy reading and writing. There is a lack of warnings for certain areas but all and all, if you enjoy reading and writing you should definitely check it out.
Wattpad also started to rise in popularity after many of its creators started posting about it on TikTok. Currently, three out of four readers have found out about Wattpad through TiTtok.
“I found Wattpad on TikTok,” confirms 8th grader Cheyenne Sears. ”Although I don’t like the amount of ads, it’s quite annoying.”
The founders of Wattpad, Iven Yuen and Allen Lau created the app in 2006, focusing more on the availability of the app than on the actual forming of rules and safety precautions, therefore making the app unmoderated. Wattpad is supported on as many model phones as possible, the creators wanting the lack of software to not be a problem.
The biggest controversy of Wattpad is the legal age limit. The age limit on Wattpad is 13 years old. A lot of people feel like it is a little too young to be able to be exposed to the sums of graphic content on the app compared to the age of the viewer.
“I feel like the age limit is just right but one thing is is that you have to be very specific when looking for something,” said Sears.
“I think that it depends on the person and what they feel comfortable being exposed to,” said Piper Stuip, a 7th grader at OSA says. “But I feel like there should be more warnings. I started using it at a pretty young age, I don't really use it anymore--unless looking for popular fics that are no longer on Ao3, but I wish I had more of an idea of what to look out for when finding things to read, ‘cause if it was a pairing I liked I would read pretty much anything--and now I look back and see that what they were writing was really weird and it kind of disgusts me.”
Wattpad also became extremely popular when people started to post fanfictions on their favorite celebrities and or characters from movies, TV shows, and even other popular books.
“I tend to mainly read Harry Potter fanfiction books when I’m bored. Wattpad fine for reading, I just personally don’t have the patience to sit there and read most of the time” said seventh grader Ariana Glenn.
Although Wattpad can be a little inappropriate, it can also be educational. Some authors post things such as “How to learn French, 400 tips and tricks into mastering the Language” by Manila Fently. If you know where to look, you can find very interesting reads and opportunities.
“I have read some really good things on there, people are relatively nice and would make sweet comments when I would write something on there, but I also kept getting surprised with things that made me uncomfortable with no warnings,” said Stuip.“So I think overall, my experience has been uncomfortable. [I’m] just basically trying to jump over things/ignore them so I can enjoy the fic. I think one of Wattpad’s faults is the tagging system. I feel like it’s easier to avoid things that way which is partly why I love AO3 so much.”
Another common user comments is the lack of moderation in the comments. “A thing I’ve noticed about Wattpad is that the comment section is either really funny or brutal,.” Glenn adds.
Overall, people seem to enjoy the app. Although it has its faults, it has a pretty strong following and people seem to really enjoy reading and writing. There is a lack of warnings for certain areas but all and all, if you enjoy reading and writing you should definitely check it out.
