THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS A READING APP AMONG SENIOR HIGH

SCHOOL STUDENTS

A research proposal
Presented to
Faculty of Senior High School
Our Lady of Fatima University

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for

PRACTICAL RESEARCH 1

Bulatao, Cathlene Joy S.

Carullo, Kimberly A.
Castañas, Wellcha A.
Hangsitang, Jocelle H.
Pamplona, Jocel L.
Pascua, Hannah Mae A.
Roldan, Mikaella Jazz Q.
Maniquis, Dan Albert
Tubera, Rexyben R.

Mr. EmmanuelPacianoM. Mabulay

(January, 2019)

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
Abstract

This study aims to help the students to encourage themselves to have better reading habits and
to avoid too much reading that they can't benefit on. Wattpad reading and writing stories has a
lesson that they can apply for their daily lives. They can get knowledge out of it and can enhance
their vocabulary they can relax and have time with themselves in reading books. Wattpad was
started in 2006. This study used a qualitative phenomenological survey method to know life of
readers and their experience wherein we conducted it to Senior high School students to know
their insights about the Wattpad. The researchers have narrated the findings and analysis with
the exact words or phrases that the Senior High School students used in terms of Wattpad. The
findings of the study lead to the conclusion that the general purpose of this study is to know the
intellect and responsibilities about Wattpad wherein the Senior High School student challenge
their mind and to test their knowledge and understanding skills in terms of Wattpad. According
to Senior High School students they relate themselves in Wattpad character who is having the
same personality that they had and some Wattpad contains the same situation that experience
in real life. The research recommend that you should also be careful on who you meet and make
friends in the internet, because not all you meet in the internet is a good person and you need
to have limits to reading wattpad because sometimes they very addicted they might have a bad
grade or they won’t learn on what their teacher is discussing.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…

1.0 Introduction

This research is about the popularity of Wattpad as a reading and writing app among senior
high school students about what could possibly the influence of Wattpad to reading and writing of
Senior High School students
What can teens (and users in general) do on this platform? They can both read and write
books or short stories and comment and review the works of other people in a collaborative and
participatory way. The members of the community, known as ‘Wattpaders’, serialize their stories,
uploading one or two chapters at a time inviting comments and advice on each chapter or part of
their works. The users can also award “stars” (positive votes) to the works, follow each other’s
profiles and join thematic “clubs” (discussion forums) that focus on particular genres or other
aspects of reading and writing.Wattpad is thus progressively reinventing the industry of cultural
products, subverting the traditional roles of author and reader and the laws of marketing, as here
the success of a work is decreed solely by its readers.At the time of writing, registration to Wattpad
is free of charge.
Wattpad is an Internet community for readers and writers to publish new user-generated
stories in different genres, including classics, general fiction, historical fiction, non-fiction, poetry,
fanfiction, spiritual, humor, and teen fiction.It is an amazing website where novice authors can
write and share their own stories for others to read. This website is great for when you want to take
a break from purchasing new books, but it does take patience to find the perfect read.

Wattpad also has a “Community” section where you can join different clubs, enter writing contests,
and receive tips on how to improve your writing. Every month, Wattpad hosts a #JustWriteIt contest
that consists of a person writing a story based on the topic for the month. For example, the topic
this month is to imagine what life would be like on other planets.

Wattpad provides the writers with an opportunity to write, promote and help their work
reach across a wide and varied audience of more than a million users. The users are actively
engaged in the entire process and are able to directly interact with the writers and share their
opinions with fellow readers.

Once you find a book you really like, you can add it to your library and follow the author
to read their other works. If you take to time to search for a good book on Wattpad, this website
can be very enjoyable. Even if you’re a person who writes for fun, publish your stories on Wattpad
for a chance not to just gain fans but also to express your feelings and to share something that
bothers your mind.
However, Wattpad plays a big role particularly among teenagers. Wattpad is very popular among
teenagers specifically the Senior High students. Teenagers read Wattpad not just for fun or out of
boredom. They also read stories that has a lesson that they can apply for their daily lives.
As this printed Wattpad books became so popular, Senior High students has become too
much attached to it. This study aims to help the students to encourage themselves to have better
reading habits and to avoid too much reading that they can’t benefit on. In every side of its content
we can get advantages and disadvantages through reading these printed Wattpad books. It may give

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
us time to relax and have fun inrelating to the characters in the plot, but it can also influence us to
do things thatare not appropriate for our age especially that teenagers nowadays are very curious
and ignorant of the things that these books may hold. People read because of the benefits they get
from books. They can get knowledge out of itand can enhance their vocabulary. They can relax and
have time with themselves in reading books. Wattpad printed books are very popular among
teenagers that it become influential. The fact that the authors of
these books are more mature than most of the readers. Because of which the young readers may
become ignorant of things that are not supposed to be in their age. They might become addicted in
reading that they can’t concentrate on their school works
Truly reading is fundamental. We know that, books have great importance for humans. We
cannot ignore the importance of reading. Researchers aim to know the impact of the popularity of
Wattpad as a reading and writing app among Senior High school students that could affect their
everyday life in this society where Wattpad’s popularity has made its way to influence young
people to try using Wattpad app as a reading and writing device.
To the readers and to the students, for them to know and be aware to the impact of the
Wattpad App to the society as this app continue to rise as a reading and writing app.To the parents,
for them to understand through this research how the Wattpad app influences their children and
also to the teachers, for them to acknowledge the effects of the Wattpad’s popularity among their
students. And lastly, to the future researchers who would be able to use these data for them to get
the ideas and references if they are planning to conduct the same study.

2.0 Literature Review

Wattpad’s Popularity

According to Reid, C. (2016), How Wattpad Became a Multiplatform Entertainment

Venue. Wattpad was founded in 2006 by Allen Lau and Ivan Yuen, Wattpad, an online community
of writers and readers, has blossomed into a multiplatform entertainment venture that attracts
millions of visitors to its site each month. Wattpad helps aspiring writers find readers, but it also
provides traditional book publishers, advertisers, and film and TV producers with original content,
in addition to offering them real-time data on which stories and topics consumers find exciting.

Wattpad has built its online community by offering material from aspiring writers—who
post their content for free to solicit feedback from readers as well as to build a following—and now
from a succession of veteran writers looking to cultivate readers under the age of 30. Over time,
Wattpad’s free-content platform has attracted significant promotional partnerships with major trade
book publishers, among them HarperCollins, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, and Sourcebooks.
And for good reason: Wattpad attracts more than 45 million visitors monthly
Wattpad is using its 10th anniversary to highlight its efforts at monetizing the site’s
enormous traffic in order to generate revenue for itself and for the writers who use the site to
develop their craft and readerships. Over the past year the site has launched programs that generate
different forms of advertising revenue, among them Wattpad Futures,

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
which places video and display ads between the chapters of Wattpad stories, and Wattpad Brands,
which recruits the most popular Wattpad writers to develop native advertising for a variety of
national brands. Earlier this year the site launched Wattpad Studios, which partners with Hollywood
TV and film studios to develop projects from the most popular Wattpad material.

Wattpad has announced additional media partnerships that will bring its content to a mass
audience. Under its Wattpad Studios program, Wattpad is teaming with Turner Broadcasting/TNT
to create horror programming for TNT’s Tales from the Crypt under executive producer M. Night
Shyamalan. The deal also features a TNT horror contest, launched at the end of October that will
award $20,000 to the best scary story submitted by a Wattpad writer. In addition, TNT will purchase
the story and produce it for TV. The deadline for submissions was the end of November, and a
shortlist of nominated writers will be announced sometime in December.
Last month the site announced a new partnership with Universal Cable Productions—a
production house that has developed such TV series as BattlestarGalactica, Mr. Robot, and Suits—
to create programming based on Wattpad content. The deal allows UCP to use real-time data from
the Wattpad platform to determine which stories and topics are trending in the Wattpad community.

According to Bold, M. R. (2016), The return of the social author: Negotiating authority and
influence on Wattpad. The rise in self-publishing, digital folk culture and social media participation,
have revolutionized reading and writing practices. Readers can directly contact their favourite
authors, and publishers, through social media and become authors, and publishers, themselves. One
of the outcomes of digital reading and writing is that writing is now becoming more democratic:
traditional publishers are no longer the sole gatekeepers of culture. The popularity of social writing
platform Wattpad is a recent example of how a new generation of influential and innovative writers
is entering the publishing arena.
This also demonstrates that there is a demand for authorship without the intervention from
publishers. Despite this, traditional notions of authorship, ownership and control are prevalent in
contemporary publishing hindering the true potential of creativity. The disharmony between the
rise of the amateur author and the control of the traditional publisher is confronted in the digital
public sphere.
Consequently, issues such as authority and influence are mediated during the activities and
interactions that take place on social media and other online platforms. Established authority
figures, such as famous authors or well-known publishers, that exert authority and influence in the
traditional sphere, can shift this authority and influence to the digital world; however, this sphere
is also occupied by emerging networks of influencers, such as emerging authors or micro-
celebrities, who gain popularity as a result of specific trends, in specific domains, at specific times.
This article will examine how new and established authors are using social platforms, and social
media, to publish their writing, build communities and extend their dialogue with readers and other
writers.
A netnographic study of Wattpad will identify which authors are the influencers and innovators in
social publishing. Consequently, this article will underscore the increasing importance of social
networks and social relationships in 21st century publishing.

According to Harrison, K. (2016). How I Went From 350 to 10,000 Reads on Wattpad in a
Month,Writing is often an isolating, frustrating experience. An enormous weight is lifted when that
final draft is complete and you send it out into the world. But that terminus is the origin of a whole

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
new struggle: finding an audience for your story. Bridging the awareness gap is the most difficult
hurdle to clear, and, for me, Wattpad has been indispensable in that battle. It also provided me with
important data I would have otherwise missed. There are two types of readers I was surprised to
find were fans of my Johnlock future AU stories — middle-aged super hardcore Sherlockians who
know the original Arthur Conan Doyle stories almost by heart and teenagers who have never
consumed any other Sherlock Holmes media (never read a book, watched BBC Sherlock or seen a
film).

Wattpad understands the importance of other social media platforms, and on top of sharing
to most of them, you can integrate YouTube videos into your stories and create quote cards like the
one below for your stories to post on Instagram, etc. Wattpad is incredibly daunting when you step
into it as a new writer looking for success. Nevertheless, there are strategies you can implement to
give you a better chance of getting your fics read.

Wattpad as a Reading and Writing App

According to Kirci, H. (2014). The tales teens tell: What Wattpad did for girls. Wattpad’s
power to catapult teenage girls into the world of publishing has been extraordinary: some users
have received publishing deals with the likes of Harper Collins and Random House. Eighteen-year-
old Beth Reekles garnered a three-book deal with Random House US after her story, The Kissing
Booth, hit 19m reads on the website. Since then Reekles has been cited as one of Time magazine’s
most influential teens. The fact that she reached Random House’s radar, currently studies physics
at Exeter University and is considered an American teenage sensation is stunning and inspiring to
thousands of girls like me who dream of publishing a book someday – or just excelling in whatever
they choose to do. Publishers are increasingly aware of Wattpad and novellas and fan fiction and
they are certainly keeping an eye on it.Publishers want the best books and if they find great writing
talent on Wattpad, why not? They are very aware that teenagers read and write [on the website]
and also that teenagers aren’t big readers of eBooks. I think it’s fantastic and more publishers should
do it.
Of course, while the app provided her with entertainment, excitement and joy for a good
year or so, her time as both reader and writer has ended. She could not carry on. The spelling,
grammar and poor plotting began to irk her and the need to read more riveting and thought-
provoking literature took over. Right now, she’s on The Great Gatsby. When she was asked to write
this article, she imagined her story lying forgotten, gathering dust and cobwebs, and logged into
her account for the first time in ages. To her surprise she saw that readers were still continuing to
like, read and comment on her story – some only hours or days before. She have to tell you, a
feeling of warmth spread through her.
According to Chapman, G. (2014) Writers and readers go mobile and social at Wattpad.
Readers share feelings, thoughts and criticisms with one another and authors at the social network,
sometimes shaping fates of characters or directions of stories. Readers are free to wait until books
are complete and then binge on chapter after chapter, but that is rarely the case at Wattpad. The
most common question fired off at the service is said to be "When will the next chapter be
released?"

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
The Wattpad mobile application is free, as is access to work uploaded by writers. More
than half the stories on Wattpad were written on mobile devices. Wattpad writers don't get paid,
but exposure at the social network provides opportunities for them to make money.
Publishing house Simon and Schuster gave Wattpad author Anna Todd a sizable advance
to make a series of books out of "After" stories she wrote on her Android smartphone and uploaded
to the social reading network, according to Lau. Hundreds of writers reportedly have seen their
work on Wattpad lead to traditional publishing deals. In collaboration with USA Network, Wattpad
has commissioned a writer to create prequel stories intended to promote a coming "Dig" television
show.

According to Anderson, P. (2016), ‘The Pulse of Trends All Over the Planet’. In The
Philippines, Wattpad is known as much more than a huge online reading and writing community.
Its arm called Wattpad Presents generates content for film and television productions.
Announced in September 2014, the partnership sees TV5 Manila dramatize popular stories
from the Toronto-based Wattpad site. The program is heavily geared to the romance and fan-fiction
interests of the millennial demographic that seems to “get” Wattpad most easily. Young love and
pink-hued comedy are the stuff of such titles as Cupid’s Fools, Fake Fiancé, Casanova’s Love
Game, and A Rose Between Two Thorns.
This unusual liaison between media may suggest a valuable model for more traditional
publishing companies to explore in the search for new readers. But the mechanism of Wattpad
Presents requires an element of blur: there’s a blending of TV-film audiences and readers here that
goes beyond simple movie tie-ins. Many of the most ardent fans of the programming on screen are
also devoted readers and/or writers of Wattpad’s stories-in-process online. The partnership
embraces a through-bonding effect between fans, writers, and—eventually—extending to the
actors who play the stories’ good-looking characters in the shows.
Wattpad is peer-to-peer reading and writing. The readers there, Gardner says, vastly
outnumber the writers. The writers normally produce installments of long-running serials. The
readers respond eagerly to twists and turns in the stories they’re following. And all is not TV or
film: Summit Media’s imprint Pop Fiction Books produces print and digital editions of popular
Wattpad stories spotted by the platform’s staff.
The kind of fandom that Wattpad can drive to television and cinema like this in The
Philippines is boosting celebrity actors’ careers, sure, but it’s great for authors, too.And the
bestselling stories on Wattpad, says Christine Ko, team publisher with Summit Media are turned
into bestselling books. For these beaming young moderns, Wattpad is a romantic bridge, a two-
way channel between the actors they love and the stories they love, written by the author-peers they
love. They’re voting with their wallets. Not just with their tweets
According to Gaughran, D. (2012), What's Up With Wattpad? Kids these days, always
wandering around with their noses in their iPhones, up to no good. Well, maybe not. Because lots
of them are using an app called Wattpad which might just be the biggest revolution in reading
you’ve never heard of. Fast forward to today, and Wattpad is the world’s largest reading and writing
community. I have had lots of teachers tell me that kids are getting into reading e-books on their
smartphones in a big way.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
All the stories on Wattpad are free. Readers don’t have to pay to join the site (or download
the app), or to read any of those 3 million stories (which can also be read on any computer, laptop,
or tablet). But they’re not just reading, they are writing too – which is great! There is a real mix of
stuff on the site, everything from early teens posting their very first forays into creative writing,
right up to work from published authors. But they’re not just reading, they are writing too – which
is great! There is a real mix of stuff on the site, everything from early teens posting their very first
forays into creative writing, right up to work from published authors (like me – more on that below).
There are short stories and flash fiction, as well as novellas and full novels too. All genres
are represented but, given the age profile of most readers (from early teens to early twenties), YA
seems to be huge, followed by paranormal (and fantasy in general), and then maybe science fiction
and romance.

Writers post work in parts (i.e. chapters) which tend to be short, to make them suitable for
mobile reading. For example, I posted Transfection there just after Christmas, and even though it’s
less than 6,000 words, I broke it up into three parts. Longer work tends to be serialized, and readers
can keep track of their favorite writers and stories by becoming “fans”, which means they will
receive an email each time the writer posts a new “part” or story. The most popular stories have
had a stunning impact, being “read” millions of times. (Note: each time a “part” is read, that will
add to the counter. If a book has 30 “parts”, each reader finishing it will add 30 “reads” to the
counter.)
There is a lot of interaction on the site too. Comments are open at the bottom of each “part”
and the most popular stories generate a lot of feedback. Sometimes it’s aspiring authors fielding
suggestions on how to improve their stories (many books are being serialized as they are written),
other times it’s more polished writers sharing how they constructed certain scenes or dealt with
characterization. For self-publishers, it’s another venue where you can get eyeballs on your work,
as long as you are open to this kind of free sharing of your content (which is not for everyone).
According to Popescu A. (2013), Wattpad is the Most Active Social Site You've Never
Heard Of. Wattpad is positioning itself as a new storytelling and consumption platform for readers
who want deeper interaction. Reading is shifting more and more to e-readers, with at least one in
five Americans read an e-book in the last year, according to a 2012 report by the Pew Research
Center.
In August, the service saw more than 1 billion story reads, prompting its founders to launch
a Kickstarter-style crowdfunding service for authors to raise capital to self-publish. So far three
projects have been funded. Relativity Media is now using Wattpad to promote the upcoming release
of the film Romeo & Juliet, serializing script excerpts online. Publisher Harlequin is using Wattpad
to host a new adult genre writing contest. Boy band Emblem3 is even using the platform to connect
with fans through stories about teenage issues.
The idea for the company was hatched by self-professed bookworm Allen Lau. Back in
2006 Lau wanted a way to read on his mobile phone, way before the proliferation of e-readers and
smart devices. Lau started building the solution himself, and linked up with Ivan Yuen, who was
working on a mobile app for sharing and reading stories.
According to Streitfeld, D. (2014) Web Fiction, Serialized and Social. Wattpad is not the
sort of site where writers talk about suffering for their art or spend hours searching for the mot

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
juste. Much of the most popular work is geared to young women and draws its energy from fan
fiction. (Harry in “After” is inspired by Harry Styles, the teen heartthrob from the band One
Direction.) Other popular categories are vampire fiction and mysteries. The writers — who are not
paid for their work, as on any social network — put up stories, recast them, abandon them and
delete them on whims, in the process making more traditional e-books look as eternal as a Knopf
hardcover.
This is writing reimagined for a mobile world, where attention is fragmentary. Before the
Internet collapsed time and space, a vast gulf existed between writers and readers. J. D. Salinger
was a little extreme in asking his agent to destroy any fan mail, but in general the more successful
the writer, the greater the distance between the author and the reader. The writer was an imperial
figure, an artist who dwelt on Mount Olympus. The reader was nowhere.
Wattpad eliminates any remaining distance between creator and consumer. The reader has
been elevated to somewhere between the writer’s best friend and his ideal editor, one who offers
only adoration. Acquiring such fans is the most important job of a Wattpad writer. Then comes
keeping them happy, not only by doling out new work on a regular basis. Besides letting readers
post a public comment, Wattpad allows them to send a private message to the author, vote for a
work or become an official fan of a writer. Fans can also dedicate a chapter of their own novel to
other writers, make covers for books and create YouTube and Pinterest tributes.
They can offer casting selections for a favorite story as if it were a movie. Starting a few
months ago, they could insert comments directly into the text of a story through in-line
commenting, which all readers can see. They can even sponsor a writer with real money. The
traditional publishing industry is watching Wattpad closely, not only as a source of new talent but
also for techniques to increase reader engagement. Wattpad writers freely acknowledge that their
manuscripts are often first drafts written as spontaneously as possible. There are practical reasons
for this. For much of Wattpad’s far-flung international audience, English is a second language. The
more direct the prose, the better. But it also captures the site’s egalitarian approach. Wattpad might
seem an overnight success, but it struggled for years to break through. Mr. Lau and Ivan Yuen were
Canadian tech entrepreneurs interested in mobile reading. They released an app in 2006, but this
was before the Kindle and the iPhone, and it struggled to gain momentum. Adding 17,000 public
domain books did not do much. But then writers began to post original works, and the site caught
the mobile wave. Like many start-ups, Wattpad has big dreams but little revenue, mostly from
advertising.At the moment, however, Wattpad is a means to an end for its most successful writers,
not an end itself.
As stated by Artwood, M. (2012). Margaret Atwood: why Wattpad works. 'You can post
your own writing. No one need know your age or background. And your readers can be anywhere'
Once again people are giving me strange looks. Why Wattpad? And, indeed, what pad? Wattpad,
as in wattage, the kind that makes the lights turn on. Maybe my dates with Wattpad are a bit
undignified. But at my age you can afford to be undignified. You're free to explore, and to guinea-
pig yourself, and to stretch the boundaries.
On www.wattpad.com – using your computer, tablet or phone – you can post your own
writing. No one need know how old you are, what your social background is, or where you live.
Your readers can be anywhere. And if you're worried about adverse reactions from your teachers,
your grandmother, or others who might not like you writing about slavering zombies or your
relatives, you can use a pseudonym. You can be FlamingLeprechaun and represent yourself with a

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
picture of a bat or a spoon: the internet lends itself to surrealism. Then you can post stories about
Pod People or affairs with smouldering hunks undead for 2,000 years, which beats "My Summer
Holiday" every time. Not only that, you'll have readers who leave encouraging comments on your
message board, thus boosting your morale.
Think of the outlets young writers of my generation had at our disposal. We put together
little booklets with our writing in them – our handwriting – for a readership of two: our parents.
We went on to place an ill-advised poem or story in the school yearbook, to the secret derision of
our classmates. We had to use our real names, which meant that many of us hid our most heartfelt
writing in our sock drawers. Some of us later created literary magazines cranked out on mimeo
machines and sold in early 60s coffee houses during Poetry Night, after our angst-fuelled readings
of our own left-handed works. We were not at the height of our powers.
Wattpad was started in 2006, before the tsunami of ebooks. Everything on the site is free.
Over six years, it built itself up under the radar of the traditional publishers, and it now has a
membership of millions, in 25 languages, with 1.7bn minute views per month. Increasingly,
publishers and music companies are looking at it as an aid to promotion. (For instance, the Wattpad
One Direction launch has been viewed by 1 million, and has generated 12,000 pieces of fan fiction
to date.) They're also talent-spotting on it, and some Wattpad writers have already moved over to
other, more traditional, paid methods of publication.
We hear a lot these days about two ideas. First, that young people aren't reading, but are
playing video games instead. However, you don't get that impression from Wattpad, possibly
because the site emulates features of video games: participation. Like Dickens during his serial
publication of Pickwick, Wattpad writers get feedback from readers, and may shape their stories
accordingly.
The second idea is that traditional publishing is doomed. I don't think that's true either.
Publishers bring a lot to the joint venture that is producing a book. Not everyone wants to read
those kinds of books, and not everyone wants to write them – but they remain a huge aspiration for
many. For those who want to hone their writing skills, schools and tools are increasingly available.
In my view, Wattpad is not a replacement for publishers, but a gateway leading to them.
But shouldn't writers get paid for their work? In an ideal world, yes. However, though $1.99
– standard for a shortform ebooklet – is low in western terms, it's a prohibitive amount elsewhere.
And how can you pay online if you don't have a credit card? Our generation in the west was lucky:
we had readymade gateways. We had books, paper, teachers, schools and libraries. But many in
the world lack these luxuries. How do you practice without such tryout venues? Without a piano,
how do you learn to play the piano? How can you write without paper and read without books?

2.1 Statement of the Problem

In line with the foregoing discussion. The main objective of this study undertaking is to conduct an
assessment on how Wattpad’s popularity affects readers and writers reading and writing
1. What is the Demographical Profile of the respondents in terms of the following:
1.1 Age
1.2 Gender
2. What are the opinions about the rise of Wattpad’s popularity of the respondents?

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
3. What is Wattpad as a reading and writing app as preference of the respondents?

2.2 Conceptual Framework

WATTPAD

Wattpad’s Popularity Wattpad as a Reading App

POSSIBLE REASONS OF INTERACTION

WATTPAD’S APPEAL
ENTERTAINMENT
PUBLISHING STORIES

PEER INFLUENCE FINANCIAL EFFICIENT

Figure 1

Wattpad connects people who love to read and write together. This study is guided by the
theoretical understanding of SOCIAL THEORY. According to Chapman, G. (2014) Writers and
readers go mobile and social at Wattpad. Under this theory, Readers share feelings, thoughts and
criticisms with one another and authors at the social network, sometimes shaping fates of characters
or directions of stories. Social theory is a theory that tackles about the social interaction of readers
and writers with the use of Wattpad that leads it to its popularity.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
2.3 Research Paradigm

INPUT
* To know the demographic
profile of the respondents in
terms of:
1.1 Age
1.2 Gender
* To know the influence of
Wattpad's popularity.
*To know the opinions od the
respondents to Wattpad as a PROCESS
reading and writing app.

 The researchers
used survey
questionnaire.
OUTPUT  The researchers
used the internet to
gather data,
A better
understanding of what
remains to be the
perspective of those people
who uses Wattpad App for
their reading and writing
activities. Which we want
them to also know the
advantages and
disadvantages of the
impact and influence of the
popularity of Wattpad App
to their lives.

Figure 2

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
In Figure 2, it describes the research paradigm of the study wherein the inputs consists of the
demographic profile of individuals in terms of Age, Gender and To know the influence of Wattpad's
popularity. Lastly, to know the opinions od the respondents to Wattpad as a reading and writing
app

Next is the process of administering the survey. It consists of seven (7) open ended questions.
The output is to have a better understanding or point of view of respondents to the impact of the
popularity of Wattpad App. The researchers wanted everyone to know the advantages and
disadvantages of the impact and influence of the popularity of Wattpad App to their lives.

3.0 Research Methods

The methods that the researcher used for the study is qualitative approach where in, this
method will present the techniques and strategies that will be utilized by the researchers in
completing this study. It includes the following: research design, research location of the study
where will be held, respondents, Ethics and techniques use in the study like interviews and
observation which will be discussed in the latter part of this study.

3.1 Research Design

This study used a qualitative phenomenological survey method to know the life of readers
and their experiences because the goal of the phenomenological research approach is to describe a
lived experience of a phenomenon as this is a qualitative analysis of data, methods to analyze its
data must be quite from different from more traditional or quantitative methods of research.
Essentially, researchers are focused on the meaning, the meaning of the experience, behaviour of
the readers and writers.

3.2 Research Locale

This study was conducted in Our Lady of Fatima University, Quezon City. Formerly
known as Our Lady of Fatima, and also formerly known as Fatima Medical Science Foundation,
Incorporated (FMSFI). It was address at 1 Esperanza Street Hilltop Mansion Heights, Greater
Lagro, Quezon City. It is a Private University in the Philippines with 5 buildings and a very good
facilities. Because it easy to gather respondents and less hassle.

3.3 Population and Sampling/ Key informant Selection

In this study, researchers will find capable and beneficial respondents using snowball
sampling, a technique wherein initial sample members are asked to refer other people who meet
the criteria required by the researchers, which is a respondents who’s at the age of 16-19 years old,
respondents who read for a month and more than 1 year, respondents who has variant feelings on
their favourite genre, respondent who try reading but they no longer continue, and respondents who
read Wattpad because of peers. Researchers use snowball sampling because in order for them to be
able to gather more respondents, the one will recommend other respondents until they met the target
number of respondents.

3.4 Research Ethics

The confidentiality of the key informants is safe on this study. The participants don’t need
to worry about the information that they have given. The researcher ensures that the personality of

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
the respondents will be kept private and will not be included in the published copy of the study. All
of the information given to the researcher are respectfully used for the study purpose only.

3.5 Research instruments

The researchers’ self-made instrument was the main instrument of the research. Since the
research is qualitative, the questions are open-ended. It is composed of about ten (10) questions
quantifies the variant experiences of the respondents on their reading habit. The instrument that
was used are the selected students in Our Lady of Fatima University and researchers had used
Questionnaire interview, to gather the answer of the respondents in Our Lady of Fatima University
based on the question written in the questionnaire. In the preparation of the instrument. The
researchers chose only a several students to find a respondent who take on reading Wattpad for the
instrument being used.

3.6 Data Collection

This study used primary data collection procedure. Primary data were collected through a series of
survey questionnaires with the fifteen (15) chosen participants. The researcher`s had conducted an
intake interview about the participant`s profile. Then a semi structured survey questionnaires
follows wherein there are sets of questions raised by the researchers.
3.7 Data Analysis
The data that where collected by the researchers through the respondent, A main advantage
of data analysis is that it helps in data collected being reduced and simplified, while at the same
time producing results that may then measure using quantitative techniques. Moreover, content
analysis gives the ability to researchers to structure the qualitative data collected in a way that
satisfies the accomplishment of research objectives. However, human error is highly involved
in content analysis, since there is the risk for researchers to misinterpret the data gathered,
thereby generating false and unreliable conclusions (Krippendorff & Bock, 2008).

4.0 Results
This chapter gives the readers an overview of the whole verbatim of each respondent. It
introduces the problem that challenged the researchers and it also presents answers for each of the
chosen problem.

Q1. What are the effects of Wattpad’s popularity to your life?

Verbatim:
Respondent 1
“Because of the popularity of Wattpad, It encourage me to read.”
Respondent 2
“Nakaka-enjoy kasi marami kang matututunan.”
( It is enjoyful because you can learn many things.)
Respondent 3

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
“Ang epekto sa akin ay hindi ako nakakapagfocus sa pag-aaral.”
(The effect on me is I can’t focus on studying.)
Respondent 4
“Nawawalan ng focus sa pag-aaral.”
(Losing focus on studying.)
Respondent 5
“Hind makapag-focus sa pag-aaral.”
(Can’t focus on studying.)
Respondent 6
“It encourage me to read some too.”
Respondent 7
“It helps me to be fond of reading”
Respondent 8
“Because of Wattpad my time goes by and became entertaining at the same time.”
Respondent 9
“It enhances the reading comprehension and ability to read in a fast way. ’’
Respondent 10
“Stress reliever, past time”
Respondent 11
“It become my starting point in being a fan of books.”
Respondent 12
“It doesn’t have any effect in my life, really.”
Respondent 13
“It depends on what story of Wattpad I read and to how it affects to me.”
Respondent 14
“Good, cause it motivates me to become an energetic person.”
Respondent 15
“I have discovered that a lot of my friends also enjoy reading Wattpad as it progress
to its popularity and that they share the same interests of genre as I do. Making me feel
belongingness and closer with them.

Analysis
Most of the respondents who answer the question #1 stated that the effect of Wattpad’s popularity
to their life are: Lack of focus on their study, Entertainment, Fondness in reading and enchance
their reading comprehension .Three (3) of the respondents said that they are lacking of focus in
terms of studying. Three (3) of the others stated that their reading comprehension enhances them.
And Two (2) of the respondents said that they serve reading Wattpad as entertainment. And lastly
the Two (2) remaining respondents stated that they’re very likely to read Wattpad.

Q2. How does Wattpad can change your perspective in your everyday life?

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
Respondent 1
“I see different perspective, there is also tragic ending not always happy”
Respondent 2
“Yung mga words ko napapalitan na.”
(“My way of speaking are changing”)
Respondent 3
“Nakakatanggal ng pagod.”
(“It relieves tiredness”)
Respondent 4
“Libangan”
(“Entertainment”)
Respondent 5
“Nakakatanggal pagod.”
(“It relieves tiredness”)
Respondent 6
”It helps me to understand some situation on how should I act.”
Respondent 7
“Because of Wattpad, I learnt that not all endings ends happily.”
Respondent 8
“Wattpad changed it on being a positive person thru ups and downs.”
Respondent 9
“It affects the perception in terms of realities considering the fantasy it brings to the
readers.”
Respondent 10
“It makes me to be a positive thinker.”
Respondent 11
“It makes me a wonderer. It enhanced my creativity and comprehension.”
Respondent 12
“It somehow teaches you different views in life.”
Repondent 13
“It is great and fun every day I read because every day I have a wonderful
imagination.”
Respondent 14
“It can improve myself to do my dreams.”
Respondent 15
“It made me more idealistic in a way that I expected things from my own reality. It
also made me daydream a lot, affecting my studies and the important things that I have to
accomplish.”
Analysis
Most of the respondents stated that the Wattpad change their perspective in life in a way
that they become positive thinkers, enhance their words and comprehension. They believed that

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
not all finales or endings ends happily. Stress reliever and their perception about realities and
imagination. Entertainment. Three (7) out of fifteen (15) respondents all shared the same ideas
about how Wattpad made change their perspective in lives. The idea of the difference of reality
and imaginations. Three (3) of them have thought how the reality is different from the
imaginations that they got from reading Wattpad. Two (2) of them have thought that not all
finales end fortunately. And another two (2) had a different perspective.
There were eight (8) out of 15 respondents that has thought that Wattpad has change their
perspective in life in positive way. Three (3) of them stated that they become positive thinkers.
Two (2) of them had enhanced their words and comprehension. Another two (2) of them has
made Wattpad as their stress reliever. And one (1) of them considered Wattpad as an
entertainment.
Q.3 How does Wattpad affect your academic performance?
Respondent 1
“I learnt that Wattpad can teach.”
Respondent 2
“Hindi na ako nakakagawa ng assignment ko”
(I no longer do my assignments.)

Respondent 3
“Minsan di nakakagawa ng assignment dahil sa pagbabasa”
(Sometimes I no longer do my assignments because of reading.)

Respondent 4
“Pwedeng mawalan ka ng focus sa academic performance dahil wala ka nang
ibang ginagawa kundi magbasa imbis na magfocus.”
(You might lose focus on your academic performance because you no longer do
anything but reading instead of focusing.)

Respondent 5
“Bumababa ang grado”
(The grades are dropping.)

Respondent 6
“Nothing, as long as I limit myself”

Respondent 7
“It helps me in learning new words”

Respondent 8
“It really doesn’t affect my academic performance, but sometimes I go to sleep
without proper sleep.”

Respondent 9
“It enhances the comprehension and capability to understand the context.”

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
Respondent 10
“Sometimes this would be a hindrance for me to do my school works or assigned
task.”

Respondent 11
“It doesn’t affect my academic performance. Actually it serves as my leisure time
whenever I read”

Respondent 12
“It doesn’t affect my academic performance, it is not the app that affects, and it is
the discipline of the reader that matter.”

Respondent 13
“It’s not bad, never lose my academic performance”

Respondent 14
“It affects bad sometimes, because I can’t handle my time because of reading”
Respondent 15
“As I've said, my bad habit of reading Wattpad too much affected my academic
performance negatively. It caused me to procrastinate a lot.”

Analysis:
Most of the respondents stated that reading Wattpad doesn’t influence their academic
performance and in fact it helped them to improve theirselves. Six (6) of them have the same
thought that reading Wattpad has no effect on their academic performance and three (3) of them
had enhance their grammars because of Wattpad.
There were six (6) out of fifteen (15) respondents’ shows that Wattpad affect them
badly on doing their tasks. Five (5) of them no longer do their tasks due to reading Wattpad. And
one (1) of them had a poor time management.

Q4. What is the influence of your peers to you on choosing what to read Wattpad stories?

Respondent 1
“The idea of romance.”

Respondent 2
“Cover palang at prologue palang nila mapapahanga ka na.”
(From cover to the prologue of story you will be impressed.)

Respondent 3
“Yung pag nagsusuggest niya ng mga story na basahin ko daw”
(Whenever she suggest stories that I should read.)

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
Respondent 4
“Sinusuggest ng iba kung ano yung magandang story kaya binabasa ko”
(Other people suggest stories to me that’s why I’m reading it.)

Respondent 5
“Friend”

Respondent 6
“They like the genre that I like too.”

Respondent 7
“When they recommend other genres that I don’t usually read, when I read it also
I found it entertaining.”

Respondent 8
“They prefer some chiklit genre stories which is not my type so there is no influence,
the way I choose the story I want to read.”

Respondent 9
“Their biases or genres on what to read.”

Respondent 10
“They are telling something about the story that they read for me to get curious.”

Respondent 11
“Honestly, no one influences me as to what to read. It come from my desires and
admirations.”

Respondent 12
“They tend to suggest “What’s hot” stories, but I prefer underrated stories but the
storyline is perfect.”

Respondent 13
“My friends, because sometimes, I heard about what to read Wattpad story”

Respondent 14
“Good. Cause I know that we’re just the same what we want to read.”

Respondent 15
“My friends had influenced me to different genres of the stories due to their
reading recommendations.”

Analysis
Base on the respondents ten (10) out of fifteen (15) of their answers tells that the
influence of their peers on choosing what to read Wattpad stories is through recommending
stories.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
There were five (5) of the fifteen (15) respondents, stated that no one influences them
on what to read Wattpad stories.

Q5. What will you do if you met someone who read Wattpad with the same story that you are
reading?

Respondent 1
“I can easily make friends with her because we have the same interest.”

Respondent 2
“Nakakapagkwentuhan kung ano yung mga nangyayari dun.”
(We talk on what happened on that story.)

Respondent 3
“Siguro wala, hayaan ko lang sya hanggang sa matapos nya.”
(I guess none, I’ll just let him read until he finished it.)

Respondent 4
“Kakaibiganin”
(Befriend him/her)

Respondent 5
“Bibigyan ko siya ng payo”
(I will give him/her advice)

Respondent 6
“It’s gonna be amazing, we’ll talk about it for sure.”

Respondent 7
“I’ll ask what title and genre of story he/she is reading”

Respondent 8
“I think, I will have some a long talk with that person and have fun together while
telling the exciting happenings in that story”

Respondent 9
“I will be grateful to talk to someone who reads the same story because we can
connect to each other”

Respondent 10
“Having a conversation telling those feeling that you feel all throughout reading
the same story.”
Respondent 11
“I would be glad of course because finally there would be someone who will
understand my humor. ’’

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…

Respondent 12
“We will talk a lot, but it depends if I’m the one ahead or him/her because if that’s not
the case, I probably stop him/her from spoiling the story.”

Respondent 13
“I always smile because I related to each other.”

Respondent 14
“Hysterical, happy and energetic because we have some topic to talk about it.”

Respondent 15
“If I discovered someone reading and enjoying Wattpad as I do, I would probably be
ecstatic and chat with him/her about the things I know.”

Analysis
Fifteen (15) of the respondents tells about socializing with someone that they will met
with the same interest of Wattpad stories. Twelve (12) of them stated that they will chitchat with
each other. While two (2) of them were going to befriend someone they will met who read
Wattpad stories. While one (1) of the respondents said that she will give an advice to someone
that she will meet because of Wattpad.

Q6. What genre would you choose to read? Why?

Respondent 1
“Romance because I did not experience it yet in real life”

Respondent 2
“Teen fiction, kasi gusto puro mga kabataan lang.”
(Teen fiction, because I want a story that involves only teens.)

Respondent 3
“Romantic”

Respondent 4
“Anything basta may mabasa lang ako.”
(Anything, as long as I have something to read)

Respondent 5
“Romantic”

Respondent 6
“Sad story, because I like to cry the most.”

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
Respondent 7
“Mystery and fantasy, because it improves my logical thinking and wakes my
imagination and curiosity.”

Respondent 8
“I refer fantasy, werewolf vampire story action. Because too much love story is
not really my type.”

Respondent 9
“Fantasy, action and mystery genres.”

Respondent 10
“Romance because I find it interesting”
Respondent 11
“The genre that I want is trill/suspense because it makes me think and analyse.”

Respondent 12
“As of the moment, honestly, I am not reading any story anyways I prefer tear-
jerking stories of fantasy with a twist of science or detective as well.”

Respondent 13
“Romance, because it make me dream of how would be my love life is.”

Respondent 14
“Fiction/love story because Im just a teenager, there are some lessons that we can
catch up.”

Respondent 15
“Fantasy/RomCom/Action -This genres inspired me and entertained me alot. I
love the way fantasy warps reality into something very interesting and out of the ordinary. Whilst
I love to read RomCom cause they make me laugh alot, and Action because it gave me a sense of
thrill opposing from my boring reality.”

Analysis
The respondents had a different pick of genre. Five (5) of them prefer reading romance
stories. Two (2) of them want Teen Fiction stories. One (1) prefer sad story and another one (1)
prefers Thrill genre. While six (6) of the respondents has more than one pick of their prefer genre.

Q7. How can you relate yourself in any character in wattpad? Who is that character and why?

Respondent 1
“Maxpein because I relate to her braveness and being a straight to the point kind
of person.”

Respondent 2

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
“Candice, kasi nararanasan ko yung iba don. The four badboys and me.”
(Candice, because I experience some happenings there. The Four Badboys and me)

Respondent 3
“Daniel, mas mahal pa niya ang iba kaysa sa sarili niya,”
(Daniel, he loves other people the most than himself.)

Respondent 4
“Kathryn, mapagpatawad.”
(Kathryn, forgiving.)

Respondent 5
“Carmilita, kasi mabait like me.”
(Carmilita, she is kind like me.)

Respondent 6
“Agatha, she do what she wants for someone happiness. ”

Respondent 7
“Carmela of I love you since 1892, because I love Juanito, a fictional character.”

Respondent 8
“Nieves Solanna Galvez or Snow in Scorching Love, I may not relate to her but
she inspire me to her lighting spirit.”

Respondent 9
“Honestly, I don’t have something to relate myself on considering the genres that I
was reading.”

Respondent 10
“Maxpein in the story of he’s into her, because of my strong personality.”

Respondent 11
“I can’t remember that there is a character that I can relate myself to. Because
what I read is always a crime story related.”

Respondent 12
“I think it will be Coco “Ang mahiwagang bra ni lola” I can relate in such a way, I
felt Coco’s desire to become more beautiful, physical attractive.”

Respondent 13
“Sometimes I feel character for my imagination when I’m reading.”

Respondent 14
“By just the same feelings or what happen, Zandra because I fell inlove with my
best friend too.”

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…

Respondent 15
“I sometimes place my feet into their shoes. There is this girl character from a
fantasy story where she fighted battles and more importantly she tries to fight the battle in her
head. I can relate to it because I've been also fighting my own demons.”

Analysis
Six (6) out of 15 respondents said that they can related themselves in Wattpad character
who is having the same personality that they had. Five (5) out of 15 respondents said that the way
they relate themselves to the Wattpad character is because of the same experienced in the story
and in real life situation. Three (3) respondents said that they can't relate themselves in any
Wattpad character because according to them those characters made them inspired. One (1)
respondent said that while reading Wattpad stories he/she are trying to put his/herself in the
situation of a Wattpad character.

Q8.What do you learn upon reading Wattpad?

Respondent 1
“Many things but it gives you the perception of every character.”

Respondent 2
“New words at marami kang imagination.”
(New words and you will have many imagination.)

Respondent 3
“Ahm siguro yung wag masyadong mahalin yung taong di mo pa lubos na kilala.”
(Ahm I think, don’t love too much any person you don’t know too well.)

Respondent 4
“Wag basta basta magtitiwala.”
(Don’t trust too soon.)

Respondent 5
“Makuntento kung anong meron ka.”
(Be contented on what you have.)

Respondent 6
“It helps me improve my grammar.”

Respondent 7
“I learn some facts and trivias.”

Respondent 8
“I learn some words that are not familiar to me. I learn some different perspective
in life.”

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…

Respondent 9
“Perseverance and patience.”

Respondent 10
“On how to handle everything in life.”

Respondent 11
“I learned reading can really take you to the different places. It makes you see
things that there nothing impossible in this world and also you connect to your eyes.”

Respondent 12
“Aside from the writing techniques and all, there are lessons that you can learn
from different stories.”

Respondent 13
“I learned a lot of things that reading in Watppad because Im so happy when Im
reading.”

Respondent 14
“To face the reality, but sometimes we need to be happy in just imagining when
we're reading.”

Respondent 15
“That there are countless possibilities with life. It just takes time to experience it.”

Analysis
The respondents had learnt different things upon reading Wattpad. Thirteen (13) of the
respondents had learnt something that they might apply on their everyday life happenings. Nine
(9) of them learnt how to handle happenings in life. Two (2) from those thirteen (13) respondents
learnt to not trust easily on the people on your surroundings. One (1) learnt how to be persevere
and patient. Another one (1) gave an advice on what he had learnt, it is to be contented on what
we have.
There are two (2) respondents who learnt that Wattpad can somehow enhance their
grammars.

Q9.what do you usually feel when you are reading wattpad stories?

Respondent 1
“Like I am in a whole new world.”

Respondent 2
“Kinikilig at minsan nakakaiyak.”
(Feels romantic excitement, sometimes crying.)

Respondent 3

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
“Happy and excited.”

Respondent 4
“Kung nakakaiyak edi iiyak ako kung nakakatawa edi tatawa.”
(If it is tearful then I will cry, if it’s funny then will laugh.”

Respondent 5
“Nakakarelate.”
(Relatable.)

Respondent 6
“It help me to kill my boredom.”

Respondent 7
“I feel entertained.”

Respondent 8
“I engage my emotion sometimes in the stories that im reading so it depends on
how the story flow.”

Respondent 9
“Feel contented and relax at the same time.”

Respondent 10
“Satisfied”

Respondent 11
“I usually feel excited and entertained.”

Respondent 12
“Of course it depends on the mood what has the author create, I feel like laughing
on a very sad scenario.”

Respondent 13
“I feel entertained and excited.”

Respondent 14
“Exhilaration.”

Respondent 15
“Happiness, entertainment, excitement, etc.”

Analysis
Most of the respondent had feel mixed emotions when reading Wattpad. Thirteen (13)
of the respondents fifteen (15) respondents felt happy, excited, sad, entertained and satisfied.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
Seven (7) had mixed emotion on reading Wattpad. Four (4) stated that they feel entertained
whenever they read Wattpad and two (2) stated that they were satisfied.
One (1) respondent think that he is in a whole new world. While another (1) feels that
stories in Wattpad is somehow relatable in his life.

Q10.How does Wattpad affect readers’ social development through interacting with the writers in
Wattpad?

Respondent 1
“It improve their social involvement on expressing what they feel of reading the
story.”

Respondent 2
“Minsan yung words nagagaya na.”
(Sometimes some word were imitated.)

Respondent 3
“Masaya, kasi nakakapag interact o nakakusap ko yung favorite author ko.”
(Happy, because I intereact or communicate with my favourite author.)

Respondent 4
“Nakakapag communicate ako sa iba, minsan sa mga authors sa facebook.”
(I can communicate with others, sometimes with the aouthors in facebook.)

Respondent 5
“Nagiging active ako sa social media kasi gusto ko silang makusap.
(I become active in the social media because I want to communicate with them.)

Respondent 6
“Nagiging active sa Wattpad.”
(Become active in Wattpad.)

Respondent 7
“The readers imitate the writers.”

Respondent 8
“They leaving comments every chapter and I saw some fans are happy if the
authors like or reply to them, I think that is one of the factors why some authors is famous and
it is one of the fans achievement if the authors give attention to them“

Respondent 9
“It encourages readers to freely support the authors so that they can create
another story in the future.”

Respondent 10

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
“Readers used to idolize the writer of the story.”

Respondent 11
“By social development, the readers of wattpad often becomes more observant
which somehow makes a bit weirdo.”

Respondent 12
“I myself my favourite author and I are friends on facebook wattpad somehow
helps us to interact with another promising writers.”

Respondent 13
“I learned to communicate with them.”

Respondent 14
“it can affect the popularity of the writer there's a possible that all of the readers
can share the stories of some writers that can writers will they discovered there works then
they can give some advice to the people who started to read their works.”

Respondent 15
“I think it helps for both the reader and writer to feel a sense of connection
towards each other. It makes both of them feel appreciated.”

Analysis
Most of the respondents somehow become socially interacted with the said authors.
Twelve (12) of them communicate with other reader and also with the authors. While two (2)
respondents stated that they would idolized those authors they had communicated with. And the
last one (1) had imitate the words of the said author upon interacting with them.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…

5.0 Discussion
This chapter gives the readers an overview of the results gathered for the whole study. It
introduces the questions that challenged the researchers and it also presents the summary of all
the answers for each of the chosen problems.

5.1 Findings

1. Most of the respondents are females. Fourteen (14) out of fifteen (15) of our respondents
are females and only one respondent who answer our questionnaire is male.

The ages ranges are from sixteen (16) to nineteen (19). Most of the respondents were
seventeen (17) years old.

2. Most of the respondents are influenced by the popularity of Wattpad. They tend to become
out of focus. There were some that stated that Wattpad doesn’t affect their academic
performance and it helped them to improve their reading comprehension. Some had a poor
performance because they tend to no longer do their tasks due to reading Wattpad stories.

Because of the Wattpad’s popularity, respondents tend to differentiate reality with

imaginations. They become positive thinkers and developed a strong personality and with
that, respondents tend to socialize more.

3. With the use of Wattpad as a reading and writing app, readers and writers had a great time
communicating with each other. By using Wattpad as a reading app, the respondents learnt
how to handle happenings in their life upon learning from the stories that they had read.
Most of the respondents experience mixed emotion and most of them has more than one
pick of their prefer genre. Based on the data we had gathered, the respondents’ way of
choosing what to read is through the recommended stories to them.

5.2 Conclusion
1. Based on the data gathered, most of the respondents were females. The researchers
concluded that Wattpad is used by girls than boys and also, we used snowball sampling
technique in our data gathering. Most of them recommended girls than boys.

Most of the respondents is seventeen (17) years old. The researchers concluded that
the respondents with the said age were tend to enjoy reading Wattpad stories because
of the context of the story that are relatable with them.

2. Based on the data gathered, it shows how the Wattpad’s popularity affects the
respondents. The researchers concluded that, all things has always bad and good
effects. The same way with Wattpad. It is an app that maybe for some, make them out
of focus and will have a poor performance. But there are also respondent who improve
themselves upon reading Wattpad. Wattpad is not just about bad affects, it also gives
good effects to the respondents.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
3. Based on the data gathered, it presents the socializing of respondents through the use
of Wattpad as a reading and writing app. The researchers concluded that the
respondents had a good social interaction because of Wattpad. They learnt how ro
communicate with one another. The researchers also concluded that the respondent
somehow applied the things they learnt upon reading Wattpad stories.

5.3 Recommendation
1. What researchers recommend with the respondents for those girls who reads Wattpad
stories, they should know their limits. They should become a role model to everyone.

2. Wattpad is really popular nowadays, the researchers recommend those respondents to

learn to manage time. They shouldn’t always read and let them be out of focus. Almost
all the respondents is still studying. The respondents should continue to use Wattpad
to improve theirselves. It is not always about the story, they should learn too upon
reading Wattpad stories. The popularity of Wattpad had made its way to show the good
and bad effects of being addicted to reading Wattpad.

3. Wattpad also help respondents to communicate with each other. The researchers
recommend that not all they read should be apply in true life. They should learn to limit
theirselves with reading Wattpad. Reading Wattpad is really a good thing but it will
make you poor in some things if you would neglect the things you should have do.

4. Through Wattpad you can also make friends. The researchers recommend that you
should also be careful on who you meet and make friends in the internet. Don’t trust
too soon. Not all you meet in the internet is a good person.

5. Wattpad has also made some respondents become too much emotional. Some of them
neglected the presence of their teachers when they are in the school. They tend to
continue reading even though it is not time to read. The researchers recommend to the
respondents with the same experience that they should limit theirselves. If it is time to
study the respondents should study because somehow if they don’t prevent theirselves
on reading on studying time. They might have a bad grade or they won’t learn on what
their teacher is discussing.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
Acknowledgement
First and foremost, we would like to thank God who guided us, for us to finish the research, we
thanked God for giving us strength, keeping us healthy with his mighty hands.

The researchers would like to express our sincere gratitude to the people who help us in the process
of completing our research paper. We would also like to thank the people who helped us in this
study, our family and friends who gave us their moral support, to the respondents who sincerely
answers our question, to the school administration and to the librarians who we borrowed book
from. We would also like to acknowledge the hard work of each of everyone in the group, whom
who didn’t gave up and worked hard to finish our thesis.

Last but not the least, researchers would like to thank Our family: Our parents, for giving birth to
us at the first place and supporting us spiritually throughout our life.

References

Reid, C. (2016). How Wattpad Became a Multiplatform Entertainment Venue. Retrieved from
https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/digital/content-and-e-books/article/72190-how-
wattpad-became-a-multiplatform-entertainment-venue.html

Bold, M. R. (2016) The return of the social author: Negotiating authority and influence on
Wattpad. Retrieved from
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/304070253_The_return_of_the_social_author_Negotiat
ing_authority_and_influence_on_Wattpad

Harrison, K. (2016). How I Went From 350 to 10,000 Reads on Wattpad in a Month,. Retrieve from
https://medium.com/the-aglet/how-i-went-from-350-to-10-000-reads-on-wattpad-in-a-month-
5348b0cf345b.

Kirci, H. (2014). The tales teens tell: What Wattpad did for girls. Retrieved from
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/aug/16/teen-writing-reading-wattpad-young-
adults.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

THE POPULARITY OF WATTPAD AS…
According to Chapman, G. (2014) Writers and readers go mobile and social at Wattpad. Retrieved
from https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/content/381220/writers-and-readers-go-
mobile-and-social-at-wattpad/story/readers.

Anderson, P. (2016), ‘The Pulse of Trends All Over the Planet’. Retrieved from
https://publishingperspectives.com/2017/10/watpad-ya-trends-publishing-insights-millennials/.

Gaughran, D. (2012), What's Up With Wattpad? Retrieved from

https://davidgaughran.com/2012/01/09/whats-up-with-wattpad/.

Popescu A. (2013), Wattpad is the Most Active Social Site You've Never Heard Of. Retrieved from
https://mashable.com/2013/09/30/wattpad/#m87cN4803aqf.

Streitfeld, D. (2014) Web Fiction, Serialized and Social. Retrieved from

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/24/technology/web-fiction-serialized-and-social.html.

Artwood, M. (2012). Margaret Atwood: why Wattpad works. Retrieve from

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jul/06/margaret-atwood-wattpad-online-writing.

OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT