Is Wattpad the future of publishing?

[Robinne Weiss]

Ran across this post today-- 5 Things Writers Should Know About Wattpad & the Future of Publishing | WritersDigest.com. I'm curious what you all think of this. Do any of you use Wattpad? Is writing to become just another way to sell advertising?

 

[Richard Turner]

There are lots of good things coming out of America but this doesn't sound like one of them.

 

[Marc Joan]

Hm. Interesting, but my gut reaction is that, like self-publishing, only a tiny percentage of authors will make decent money from it. Worth keeping an eye on though. Wonder what @AgentPete would think of this...

 

[Carol Rose]

Dear Lord I hope not.

 

[Emurelda]

Everytime I hear the 'future of....' something then I always file it in that zone - somewhere in the future.

 

[AgentPete]

I initially dismissed Wattpad as the world biggest slushpile. Other people, notably HarperCollins, have tried this sort of model, and it didn’t work out for them. So I bring some cynicism to the table.

Let’s see how it develops after a few years. For a few writers, it might be one option. But I agree with Em, anything starting with “XXX is the future of yyy” is mostly codswallop. The article is quite clickbait-ey, and I don’t trust Writers Digest much, either.

 

[Bernard Stacey]

Interesting, and a little bit terrifying. Looking through the first couple of pages of promoted titles there seems to be a lot of erotica (certainly the biggest single category) on display, with highly suggestive covers trying to lure in the curious teen.
I doubt more niche or experimental work would get much of a look in but for some it may be a way forward.