These are the voices of our mentors and mentees from past and present. They've provided their insight about the program, their processes, the Wattys, and have shared their favorite Wattpad stories. Grab a cuppa and sit down with us as we get to know...
The Bootcamp Mentors are proud to present a spotlight interview with KryssaStevenson author of Cut From A Tattered Cloth. Check out this writer's work and give them a shout out in the comments.
BCM: How did you discover the Bootcamp Mentors and what have you found most valuable about this Wattpad community program?
KryssaStevenson: So I didn't know about BCM until I saw a bunch of my Wattpad friends posting about it! The most valuable asset has definitely been my mentor, Domi Sotto. She's been a total rockstar helping me piece together what's missing from my story while also pointing out what's working really well. Sometimes she believes in my story more than I do and that definitely motivates me to keep writing.
BCM: What prompted you to start writing on Wattpad and what do you like most about the platform as a writer?
KryssaStevenson:I actually heard about Wattpad on the Writing Excuses podcast. I can't remember the name of the author who mentioned it, but she basically described Wattpad as a YouTube for books, with the same concept that your stories will sink or swim based on your own merits. I was really attracted to the idea of being able to share my stories with like-minded peers and decided to try it out. :-)
BCM: What motivated you to write the story you're submitting to the 2023 Wattys?
KryssaStevenson:In 2016, I lived with a host family while doing my student teaching in Japan. We got super close during our time together, and I actually just went back in April for my host sister's wedding. Since my first book was rooted in my Pacific Island heritage, I wanted my next story to honor my host family and everything they did for me. They're big into One Piece and Studio Ghibli (which, of course, means I'm a fan of that too, now :-)), so I decided to create a Ghibli-inspired world with the found family elements we see in One Piece.
For the story itself, I knew I wanted to write about fatherhood. I'm a big believer in the idea that all men are called to father, even if they don't have their own children. I've learned that from experience since there were a lot of times in my life when I couldn't be with my father, and had to trust other men acting as father figures for me. I learned the hard way that not all men will step up to that role, but the ones who do are seriously heroes to me. Which, side note, my host dad was actually one of those! To this day I adore the man and still call him my touchan.
So with all that in mind, I got the idea of this grumpy man who essentially has fatherhood thrust upon him. And while he doesn't feel adequate for the task, he decides to step up to the plate rather than abandon a young girl that needs him. It's a story that hits close to home for me, and I'm super excited to share it with everyone.
BCM:. If you had to describe your story in three words, what would they be?
KryssaStevenson:Tattered, not broken.
BCM: Tell us one thing about your writing process that has helped you the most.
KryssaStevenson:The thing that's helped me the most is the hard truth that writer's block isn't real. That's not to say that writer's don't get stuck. Believe me, I get stuck all the time. But before, I would think of writer's block as something like the flu; once you had it, you couldn't do much about it and had to wait until it was gone. But writer's block isn't like that. When you're stuck, it means there's something about the story that just isn't working.
Rather than wait for the Muses to strike, I take Neil Gaiman's advice and backtrack to see where things went off the rails. If that doesn't help, then I'll take the Brandon Sanderson approach and try to decide if I'm overworked, stressed out, or need to work on something else for a little bit as a palette cleanser. For me, being stuck isn't an excuse to stop writing. And of all the mindsets I've tried to adopt over the years, I'd say that one's helped me the most.
BCM: Share two Wattpad story recommendations.
KryssaStevenson:I'm not much of a romantic, but for the sake of supporting my mentor I started reading L.A. Lawless by DomiSotto. Another Wattpad story I've had on my list for a while is Daraka vol 1: Head Hunt by HeideHunt.
Thank you, KryssaStevenson. We wish you all the best in your writing endeavors.
More BCM spotlight interviews are on the way!
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