I feel like it needs to be said just so there's no confusion. It Should Have Been Us was first written in March of 2016.
After much deliberation, I decided to create an instagram account for it. It was my first time writing a fanfiction. I have written a lot of stuff in my life - blog articles, short stories, poems, even OTWOL (yup, you can read my reviews for otwol on my tumblr account) and movie reviews. But only Jadine inspired me to write a fanfiction.
Why instagram when there's Wattpad?
I was never a fan of Wattpad. I'll be real honest with you, I am a snob. There's just no other explanation for it.
Add the fact that I love editing videos and sharing the music I listen to when I write scenes making instagram the perfect platform.
My first instagram post for the story was in April 2016.
When I started posting the story, I was plagued with comments demanding I post more regularly, asking for daily updates. And the most common words in the comment section? "Jadine"
(jadine please; sana jadine lang sa dulo; jadine pa rin)
Parang mga Basha yung readers ko kung magcomment.
At the time, I knew for sure what the ending would be.
Paulo and Nadine will get married.
Yes. Book 2 Chapter One is the original ending of It Should Have Been Us had I finished the story in just one book.
Except for the confusion part making you question who it was she was making out with, Chapter One was exactly how I pictured it.
It was only when I was writing the last few chapters of Book 1 that I dreamt of a different outcome (that "marriage leak" is from a dream) Not that I automatically changed course from being a PauDine shipper to a JaDine shipper. No. Quite the contrary actually. I became more involved in my characters' emotions that every single scene plays quite vividly inside my head.
Book Two is more special to me. I learned to give more to my audience. Back in Book 1, I'd ignore their requests for longer updates, I'd skip their demands for regular posting. In book 2, I wrote longer chapters. I interacted more with the readers. I gave them a definite schedule of updates.
In fact, I even held a couple of contests and posted a few trivia.
But let me tell you one thing my readers learned to accept about me. 😊
I don't change my writing style to fit my readers' needs or requests. Because this story and the way I write - in James' words?
"It is what it is"
And so I tell them this: you can unfollow me if you don't like how I do it, or how the story is going.
I think over the past year I have lost and gained followers daily and so I would sometimes feel pissed as fuck that I would set my profile to private just so they would stop playing with my Follow button.
For the benefit of those who recently discovered this story, It Should Have Been Us reached its finale last March 2017 - a year after it was first written.
I held a charity event and those who supported it received their pdf files of the books in gratuity for their support. But after that, I held on to the books for myself (making it more exclusive in a way)
Every now and then, I would hold contests for some of them to get a chance to win the pdf files.
And just recently, I announced on instagram that certain parts of the book will be distributed to those who answer my after Chapter quiz.
As a small favor, I will be posting the unpublished (at least on instagram) version of Book 2 Chapter 1 and Chapter 21 - both are censored for their mature content.
This time around, I will let you guys read on it without asking for your age and birthday (I do this on instagram)
However, the bonus chapters of Book 2 will not be posted. Unlike Book 1 which deleted scenes were written in a separate book; with Book 2, I only have 5 bonus chapters. All of which are very close to my heart because they were written with all of my heart and soul.
Should you desire reading it after the end of my posting of Book Two here in Wattpad, then I will require that you answer specific questions in exchange. Kind of like a chapter test.
I hope you don't all take me for your usual writer because you'll be very disappointed. I'm not. I'm very OC and I easily switch moods. I am arrogant and bitchy too! And I will never change my ways just because others tell me to. Especially in my writing technique.
And the ending's already set for this one. So I hope you don't frustrate yourself by making demands on my comments section. 😊
If it helps, my readers on Instagram went from being "Loyal Only Jadines" to "Jadines who look forward to the best ending - whether it be PauDine or JaDine in the end" and I can confidently say that majority of them felt more than sarisfied with the ending of this book.
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