Tom McGee

Content Education and Creators lead

Tom has spent a lifetime telling stories and helping people tell the best version of their story possible. He's an award-winning puppeteer, writer, director, dramaturge, performer, gamer, taught playwriting at his alma mater, was a tour guide on double decker buses, and runs a very silly Dungeons & Dragons podcast.

Make sure you give your reader a reason to care IMMEDIATELY. We've got so many stories we can read, watch, or listen to, we need to know RIGHT AWAY what your story is about, what your character wants, what is preventing them from getting it, and what will happen if they fail. Give your reader a reason to care!

Suzanne Sutherland

Content Lead

Suzanne manages the Wattpad Originals program and coaches the editorial team—making sure editors have everything they need so that they can make sure writers have everything they need to tell great stories. She's also a published children's author and loves stories where characters discover something new about themselves for the first time. Her biggest writing tip would be to have fun! Your readers will be able to tell 😊

Sarah McDonald

Senior Editor

A published writer, Sarah has been working with Wattpad content since 2019. The Wattys is her favourite time of year, because she loves being able to review new and fresh content from our writers! She's a sucker for a good genre-bender and a spooky thriller, but recently she's gotten very into fantasy romance. Her tip would be: think about your characters even outside the world of your story. Always be asking yourself: how would they respond to this specific situation? This will help you breathe life into them on paper! 

Sunita Singh Hans

Editor

Sunita joined the Wattpad team in early 2022, with a background in publishing, TV and marketing. She loves working with writers and helping them bring their serialized story ideas to life. Her writing tip would be to connect with other writers. Writing is often a solitary activity, and building a community to share ideas and learn from can be very helpful. It's also one of the best parts about Wattpad! 

Ronan Sadler

Sr. Content Education Specialist

Ronan (they/them) is the Sr. Content Education Specialist at Wattpad; they design and write the educational materials to help Wattpad authors succeed on the platform. Ronan has almost a decade of experience in publishing and is also a writer in their spare time.

Ronan's writing tip is to open strong–you only get one first impression, so make sure that first chapter pops! Open with a problem or a new situation for your characters to bring us into the world of the story immediately. 

Rawles Lumumba

Editor

Rawles has worked with stories for many years in the publishing industry and followed that longtime passion to an editor position at Wattpad. She loves romance and speculative fiction and is invariably drawn to stories with strong emotional journeys and organic relationships.

Her top writing tip is to know what your story is about! Think about what journey you want to take the audience on, whether it's a steamy romance or a sweeping fantasy adventure. Make it clear from the very beginning of your story and keep that promise to your readers!

Lena Gilmour

Editor

Since joining Wattpad in 2019, Lena has had the good fortune to live in a world of stories all day every day. As an editor on the Content Development team, it's her job to obsess over content a little too much and be a dedicated cheerleader to Wattpad's top creators. Her literary tastes range from sweet romcoms to twisty psychological thrillers, but heartfelt stories with sharp prose, clever characters and a healthy dose of witty dialogue will always catch her eye.

Lena's tip for writers: Let your main character's interior world colour the story. How does their unique perspective shape the narrative and how can you show us who they are through all things said (and unsaid)?

Nick Uskoski

Head of Content

Nick Uskoski is the Head of Content at Wattpad and has been a writer on the platform since 2011. He once announced the winners of the Wattys in a COVID-lockdown livestream from his bedroom.

Nick's writing advice is to think about how you verbally tell a story. Listening to someone go on tangents setting the scene and thinking "get to the point!" is something we all experience. Readers do too.

Julia Litzbarski

Operations Specialist

Starting as a writer herself, Julia joined the Wattpad team in 2021 to help creators around the world to realise their dream of turning writing into a career. If she could give writers one tip to create an engaging story, it is to think about the why for all the characters in the story, from main characters to minor ones. What motivates them, what is their goal, and following that why should readers care about the character's journey?

Katie McLean

Editor

Before joining Wattpad as an Editor in 2022, Katie worked in television development on award-winning series for Showtime, ABC, and Disney+. As a Wattpad fan for over a decade and a past writer on the platform, Katie loves character-driven stories of all genres with fresh voices, quippy dialogue, and compelling hooks.

Katie's tip for writers: Never give readers an easy offramp to put your story down! Ending every chapter with a cliffhanger—be it a big choice, or a question left hanging, or an unexpected twist—will make your story feel unputdownable. We want your readers to think "I need to know what happens next!", making it impossible for them to stop clicking to the next chapter. 

Harry Hanson

Content Education Specialist

Harry joined the Wattpad team in the summer of 2022 and is thrilled to be a Wattys judge again! A professionally produced screenwriter and story editor, Harry brings a deep love and understanding of narrative to the wild and wonderful worlds created by authors on Wattpad. He's convinced that the best way to get your readers emotionally engaged in your story is to give your characters something emotional to respond to. 

Ashley Posluns

Content Marketing Manager

Ashley joined the Wattpad team in early 2022, bringing a background in publishing, marketing, and a passion for all kinds of fiction. With a love for storytelling, she is dedicated to helping writers succeed on Wattpad.

Her top writing tip? Take a break when you need it! Having a healthy lifestyle, setting realistic goals, and taking breaks are essential to.

Xavier Garcia

Editor

Ever since Xavier's father sat him down as a kid to tell him scary El Salvadoran ghost stories without his mother knowing, he's been obsessed with storytelling. And though his tastes still lean towards the spooky side, he firmly believes a good story is a good story. This belief and love of all tales has led him to Wattpad, where he dedicates his time helping aspiring writers down their own literary journeys. In his own free time, he writes his own horror stories and his work has appeared in various magazines and anthologies.

His biggest tip would be: figure out what your story is about. You don't need to know every detail before you start writing, but having a strong idea of what its core appeal is will not only help you find your readers, but it will help guide you in creating characters, narratives, and stylistic choices which will better vibe with the kind of story you've set out to write.

Alexandra Jones

Creator Contests Specialist

Alex joined Wattpad in January 2022, bringing a rich background in Magazine Editorial, Website Design and Playwriting! With a deep passion for captivating narratives, she eagerly anticipates participating as a judge in the Wattys.

Alex's advice for writers is simple: embrace your authentic voice. Wattpad offers a plethora of phenomenal resources to enhance storytelling and writing techniques, which have helped support countless writers on their journey to discovering and honing their unique voices. When a writer's voice resonates through their work, that's when they truly captivate others. 

Gavin Wilson

International Ambassador Lead

Hi, my name is Gavin and run our International Ambassador team. I love weird fiction, particularly dark fantasy and science fiction. In my spare time I listen to and play music, and am currently studying for a black belt in Kenpo Karate.

If I could give a writer one tip for using Wattpad it's to make use of all the wonderful resources the team have put together to help you in your writing journey. Delve into what makes an amazing Wattpad story and get writing. And remember, the more you do, the better you'll get.