My name is Syd, and I had the honors of interviewing the wonderful author known as  NatalieTaehyung! She is the writer of the well-known book The Second Chance, which is a YiZhan fanfiction, and has 110k reads!

Nice to meet you Natalie! So, what brought you to Wattpad? How did you know you would want to start writing on this platform?

I first registered here in January of 2016, but to be honest, I don't remember the reason for doing it. I do know that I did it to read a lot of books, but I never intended to write my own! But then I watched the chinese drama The Untamed, and I fell in love with the story! I also read the novel, and went on to continue reading a lot of fanfictions until I decided to write my own! I read, and am still reading, so many good books from authors here on Wattpad, that I have decided I wanted to write too... and so here I am. :)

Wow, that's very inspiring! It's amazing how other authors or even movie writers can inspire you with amazing ideas! So you write fanficiton, have you ever considered writing a novel outside of that genre?

The Idea of writing a book of my own sounds really interesting, but to be honest I am not really sure about it. I love reading and writing, but I don't think I would be very good at writing a book outside of fanfiction. I might in the future, but for now I will be sticking with only fanfiction!

Aw I understand that, just know that your fans and I will be cheering you on from the sidelines either way! Speaking of writing fanfiction, will you write another series of YiZhan? Or another fanfiction book after The Second Chance?

Yes, I will be writing another series of yizhan, but only after I have finished writing The 2nd Chance. I will probably first publish a ZhanYi Fiction, which is already in progress, and after completing that I also have 3 Ideas for more YiZhan stories.

I just hope that my readers can give my ZhanYi story a chance as well. :)

I'm sure they'll be ecstatic! I have so many questions to ask about whether you plan on writing more books or not, they really love your writing! So, I see that your book has over 110k reads! How does it feel to have that many readers, and how much editing and revising have you put into your book for it to be where it is now?

I was overwhelmed when I saw the increasing number of reads, which I never thought would happen! When I started writing my book, I had only planned to write around 12 chapters because it was my first book to be written in english.. I wasn't very confident in my english skills at the time, but apparently they were better than I had thought! After I had started, so many ideas were flooding into my head, and then my book got longer and longer. The words in each chapter were also increasing!

About the editing: I write a chapter until I don't have any more time for that day, then the next day before I continue writing, I will re-read everything I had written and correct mistakes I see Once I've done that, then I will continue writing.

Once I'm done with that process, and the day of the update comes, I will paste my story into Wattpad step by step, and then re-read it again to correct any other mistakes before finally publishing it. Of course there are always still mistakes, but not as many, and my readers will sometimes help me by pointing them out.

Wow, you must be a very dedicated writer, because that seems like a daunting task! I know that for me, editing is for sure a hard process. So, in The Second Chance, what is your favorite moment or moments that you've written?

I have a lot of fun when I write the conversations between the irritated, annoyed, and jealous Wang Yibo, and the gentle and teasing Li Bowen... who enjoys Yibo's behavior.

I also love the family moments in the Wang House and seeing Xiao Zhan slowly growing into a confident adult.

That's wonderful! You must be really good at writing character development if you like watching Xiao grow into an adult. So have you ever experienced writer's block? If so, how were you able to overcome it? I know it can be a very difficult thing to deal with.

The actual problem is that I have a lot of ideas at unfavorable times. For example, instead of working, I would always daydream and think about ideas for my books that seemed to just pop into my mind!

As for actually having writer's block, I can say that I have not yet had it, and hope I never will. I know it can be very frustrating to deal with at times.

Sometimes, when I am writing and trying to finish a sentence, I experience a mild version of writer's block and don;t know how to finish my sentence. All of the words seem to spin around in my head, but I just can't form a normal sentence! Whenever that happens, I usually just take a break and listen to some music, watch an episode of a drama or just look at some YouTube videos to help me clear my head.

I'm glad you haven't had to experience it in full force, it can be so horrible! As for music, what kind of music do you like to listen to? Do you have specific songs you listen to so you can get in the mood when writing?

I often listen to only Asian music, but sometimes I'll listen to Korean, Chinese and Bollywood music as well. I might have K-Pop playing on the radio, or I might just use my own playlist. For example, I love listening to groups like Itzy, (G) IDLE, BTS, Stray Kids, Chung Ha etc.

But at the moment, I am super addicted to the song Lit by Lay Zhang, and of course to the OST of The Untamed!

That sounds amazing! Those songs must really help you while you write! So, when writing your characters, do you ever base them off of yourself or someone you know? If so who and what is your relation to them?

Some characters I write are like how I personally wish I was in real life. For example, take Yibo, Li Bowen, Ji Li or Meng Ziyi. They are wild, confident , funny, mischievous, and I would love to be like them!

There are also characters that I wish I wish I had by my side. In this case, it would be Haikuan, Xiao Zhan and Yibo too. I would love to have them as my brothers, or even as my Father(s).

I can definitely relate! Sometimes we just create the most amazing characters, and wish for them to be real and by our side. Are there any authors here on Wattpad that you look up to or inspire you to write? If so, who are they and why do you look up to them?

There are many authors I love, for example:

GandalfofspaceAnli

eroticfictionauthor

einfach_Eileen

akaiseirei

InfinityLM44

Especially after reading GandalfofspaceAnli's stories, I knew I really wanted to write a fanfiction of my own. All of the Authors have written so many amazing stories. I always check every two days if there is an update for one of their books because I love them so much! So if someone is interested, they should check them out! ;)

Oh that's wonderful to see that you love so many authors, especially since we have also interviewed a few of them here in our interview book *winks*! So, are there any pieces of advice you'd like to give to a new and aspiring fanfiction author?

Advice? From me? Alright, here it is:

Do your thing. At first it may seem difficult but actually, it's really not! Just think of the story you want to write... and whenever you have a good idea that pops into your head then write it down. It will be useful someday, if not for your current book then maybe in your next one! Don't try to change your story just because there are people who want something to happen differently, because it's your story, not anyone else's!

Also, if anyone gives you or your book a hassle with grammar or just being outright rude, then just let them be. You focus on doing your thing! Someone told me (Yes my sister, I mean you <3) that it takes a lot of effort to point out grammatical errors.That person who might be hassling you to help you become a better writer! Just take it as a compliment, and do your thing!

To make it short: Do your thing the way you want and think positively. You can do it!

That's wonderful advice! I'm sure all readers will be happy to hear that, and take it to heart! So I was wondering, what is your all time favorite book? Either here on Wattpad, or published.

I love the book series Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy, Shadow Falls Camp by C. C. Hunter, and Bodyguard by Christ Bradford.

And here are a few that I love on Wattpad:

Us and Them by GandalfofspaceAnli

The lonely Bridge by GandalfofspaceAnli

Dusk and Dawn by GandalfofspaceAnli

Lan Zhan's Untamed by eroticfictionauthor

Kindred Souls by eroticfictionauthor

Black by eroticfictionauthor

Coma by einfach_Eileen

The Untamed: World Of Darkness by akaiseirei

The only one for me by nnaj2004

Those are only a few of them but I love them so much <3 <3

Oh wow, those all look amazing! So I see you're quite the reader! Are there any cliches or character tropes that you absolutely hate, and if so why?

I do, here are a few of them:

1. When "A" did something wrong (trust abuse, cheating, breaking one's heart, lying, etc. ) and "B" repeatedly forgives him/her over and over again with no anger or emotion!

2. I don't mind people falling in love at first sight, but it should not be too obvious . I do hate it, however, when they talk for a short time, and then "A" confesses his/her feelings to "B", they agree and then they're suddenly a couple.

3. And my final one is when this typical rich person buys a lot to impress his/her poor lover ("I would like to purchase everything from here to here"), and that's literally all their relationship is.

Yup, I 100% agree with all of those! I know that each and every author has at least one or two cliches that they just absolutely hate, and I'm sure most of us would agree with yours! So, are there any quotes or sayings you live by? Who were they said by, and have you ever incorporated that idea into your book?

"Love yourself" by BTS :)

I don't think I tried to incorporate it into my book purposely, but I guess I did!

For example, Xiao Zhan at first didn't communicate a lot because of his characteristics, but after Haikuan and Yibo showed him they accepted him the way he was, they also signaled him to do the same. They had shown him how to accept himself, and eventually love himself!

Later he decided that he wanted more than just staying like the way he was... he wanted to change. Not because he hated himself but because he wanted to know the truth of his past, and wanted to make his family (especially his father) happy by trying to lose his anxiety about women.

Oh that's an awesome saying, and it seems you were able to add it into your book subconsciously, which means it will probably have more of an impact on your readers. You want to plant that subtle seed in your readers minds, and let them do the nurturing and growing of the idea if you know what I mean ;). So after all of the time you've been a writer, what is one thing that you have learned from the experience? Whether that be a trick for writing, or even something about yourself!

I have been a writer since the 26th of January... and I learned that my english skills were not as bad as I thought. I learned that writing is so much fun.... but it's also hard work.

I also learned that, when writing my first book, it is important to write down any ideas that pop into my head as I know it will help me a lot in the future. For example, I started writing The 2nd Chance with just the plot in mind. I only had the beginning and the end, yet nothing in between. So first I wrote down whatever came into my mind while writing, then once I was done, I would decide whether to add that idea into my book or not. I used to have ideas at the most inconvenient times where I couldn't write them down! For example, when I was in my work office or on a train, and if I didn't at least note that idea down, I would forget it and get so angry with myself.

When I am working on my ZhanYi story, I find that I have been using what I've learned. Now it's easier for me because I know what I want to write, and haven't forgotten anything!

That's very true! You get an amazing idea, but if you don't write it down, then it's gone with the wind... forgotten! That can be so frustrating, trust me I know! So, do you ever sometimes feel uninspired when writing? How do you re-inspire yourself if you do and get your creative juices flowing again?

I will take a break, whether that be just for an hour or a whole entire day. During that break, I will listen to my music, audiobooks, watch asian dramas, or read other fanfictions... and try not to think about my book at all!

Wow, so you wouldn't think about your book at all? That's very... interesting! I guess it's a mind refresher, I'm going to try that with my next book! As for my next question, if you could dedicate your book to anyone who would it be?

I would dedicate it to everyone. Literally everyone.

For those who loves to read, for those who may have suffered something similar as Zhan, for all the new aspiring authors who are still not sure if they should start writing their own stories... for all my readers who continuing reading and loving my story, and for those who need a break after a very hard and stressful day, and of course to my fellow Authors who encouraged me to continue writing.

I hope that counts! ^^

Aw that definitely counts, our readers are for sure very important, which leads me to my next and final question, what would you like to say to them?

I would like to say thank you for accompanying me through my first book! I thank you for all the beautiful and funny comments and theories that I love to read, which also includes spying on your guys' conversations within the comment sections xD.

I hope you will stay with me and give my future books a chance too.

Wonderful words from a wonderful person! Thank you for the lovely interview Natalie, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did, and I wish you luck with finishing The Second Chance and all the books to come! <3

Finally I can go to sleep now as it's already 1am xD, but I don't regret it.

Thank you for having me! ^^