Coffee Talks

With Jessie

Here's the last interview with one of the winners of Watt-A-Decade - With Jessie, who is known as TheJessieOwl on Wattpad. Read her winning story Lightning!

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Welcome to the interview, Jessie! 

Tell us something about you!

I like warm things, bike rides, writing, musicals, and biology. I can't roll my R's, which is pretty frustrating! I hate the word "unprecedented" with a passion. And I'm a student, stuck learning virtually during the pandemic. In other words, I'm just a human person :)

When and how did you discover Wattpad?

I discovered Wattpad in the middle of quarantine. I heard about it for a few years, and had considered signing up, but being holed up inside with story ideas floating around in my head finally drove me to take the plunge and start posting online! I love the community of readers and writers I've found here, and I'm really glad I did it.

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

I've been writing ever since I was a kid. I'm not exactly sure why—I was a big reader, so maybe I was just fascinated by the idea of making up worlds of my own! Or maybe it was just to tell a story, something that's interesting and inspired to make up for the dullness of school. Or maybe I wanted to write thinly-veiled Harry Potter and Dork Diaries fanfics. Whatever the reason, I still have tons of embarrassing half-written stories from younger me saved in my drive! And I'm still writing and telling stories, just like the earliest humans.

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

I chose the "we-have-unfinished-business-from-ten-years-ago" prompt because it just lends itself so well to a romantic story about meeting an old flame and rekindling what was extinguished so long ago. Of course, I had to subvert it, and turn it into a story about a man meeting his would-be murderer a decade down the line. It catches you off guard, and there's a lot of room for tension! Murderous, suspenseful tension!

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

Well, I'm pretty proud of this story overall, but I love the banter between Shawn (the man) and Evan (the murderer). It starts off pretty awkward—after all, it is a rather awkward situation to be placed into—but eventually it morphs into this beautiful conversation about death and loss and hope and acceptance between these two people, however estranged their relationship may be. Set against a literal dark, stormy night, everything just seems more intimate. I love it :)

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

I'm just really glad to be a part of this celebration with the platform. I know I'm rather new here, but I'm still honored to have participated in this contest with so many other amazing people! And, of course, winning is nice too. :D

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