Coffee Talks

With AJ

The Ambassadors profile celebrated its tenth birthday with a writing contest and some other fun activities. Recently, the winners have been announced and we at Coffee Community have decided to get to know them and their writing journeys more! 

So, let's meet one of the winners - AJ, also known as bigfivedonaldduckfan on Wattpad. Read their winning story Coldest Welcome!

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Hey there and welcome to the interview! 

Tell us something about you, AJ!

Well, I'm AJ, history student and supermarket employee by day, writer by night (though that's technically a lie; I write during the day as well). I'm from the Netherlands, kudos if you've heard of it, and in my free time I like to read and write stories in pretty much every genre except erotica.

When and how did you discover Wattpad?

Oh man, that was way back in 2014 when I was just barely doing secondary school. I went to grandparents' place every friday evening and they always let me use their laptop, which allowed me to take my sweet time and explore the Internet as I pleased (which also led to me seeing things I shouldn't have seen, but let's not unpack that trauma). I stumbled across Wattpad, read a couple stories there and liked the site so much I made an account to start writing myself not too long after!

When did you start writing and what does writing mean to you?

I've been writing for as long as I can remember, but we really shouldn't discuss the awful Sonic the Hedgehog fanfiction I wrote, when I was six. I've come a long way since then, been improving my writing when- and wherever I can, and I believe six-year-old me would be quite proud! 

Writing has always been very important to me. I've got a very active imagination and a mind full of ideas for stories, and if I never wrote them down, I don't think my brain would ever give me actual rest. It would just explode or something. So to make sure I remain functional and don't get absorbed by daydreams and stories too much, I gotta write, haha.

What inspired you to write your Watt-A-Decade winning story? 

Mostly the prompt. I mean, that's kind of the prompt's sole job, isn't it? Inspiring writers? But no, seriously, I came across the Watt-A-Decade book, checked out the contest and the prompts, and the one about the haunted university just got to me. Before I knew it, I'd come up with Coldest Welcome, and then I figured I'd never forgive myself if I didn't write it!

Do you have a favourite part in your winning story that you would like to share? If yes, tell us why!

My favourite part is the twist at the end, which I'd prefer not to spoil here. It's a good one, though ;D but twist aside, I think I like the story's atmosphere the most. Coldest Welcome is a horror/thriller/mystery story, so I tried to convey a sense of foreboding eeriness in the setting and overall atmosphere. I like to think that worked out well!

What did you like about the Watt-A-Decade event the most?

The writing itself made for a really good time, but I liked reading other people's submissions as well! I haven't found too many, but it's always fun to read the work of fellow writers. I definitely want to check out the other winners' stories at some point!

Thank you for the interview! Congratulations on winning Watt-A-Decade's writing contest! ☕