Creative writing is a uniquely personal process and it can be incredibly daunting to share it with friends and family, let alone strangers online. While confident writers may have their own websites to showcase their writing to the world, those still developing their skills and confidence may prefer to use a pseudonym and an established sharing platform.
Exploring your passion for writing is exciting, and you can draw inspiration from the fascinating stories behind M1’s BE campaign, where 7 local Singaporeans display an unmatched passion for their craft!
Top Blog Writing Apps to Explore
Whether you’re trying to complete your first novel, write a poem, or stitch together a short story, there’s an online platform with a supportive community for you. Here, we pick out some of our favourite apps and websites so you can build up your audience and skills as a wordsmith. All you’ll need is access to good home fibre broadband internet access and a portable personal computer, and you’re all set!
1. Medium
Medium has risen to become one of the world’s most popular blogging platforms, and anyone can get started quickly and easily with Medium. The platform is renowned for hosting some of the top thought-leaders, journalists, and subject experts from around the globe.
Publishing on Medium is a streamlined process, with a clean interface and user-friendly UI making it a cinch to add text, images, and videos. Then, all you have to do is click publish to reach readers.
With Medium acting as a home to more than 100 million monthly active readers, there’s no shortage of people who'll be ready to appreciate your creative work. Plus, if you manage to qualify for the Partner Programme, you can access a range of new features and even earn money from your content.
Wattpad
Described as a ‘social storytelling platform’, Wattpad has a worldwide community of 90 million readers and writers. Anyone is welcome to join the platform and start posting their stories. Through Wattpad, many writers have transformed had their highly successful novels even adapted into movies. From The Kissing Booth film series to After, a Young Adult novel by Anna Todd, many of these stories rose from humble beginnings on Wattpad.
A great place for those who love to read or create stories with a niche audience too, Wattpad caters for that, with genres ranging from LGBT+ to Historical Fiction, and Romance. There are also regular contests and awards are given to stories making waves on the platform, ensuring new authors are being discovered all the time.
3. HubPages
Want to write about a topic you’re passionate about while earning some money? HubPages might be perfect for you. This network of websites enables any writer to make an account, with a series of display and affiliate marketing ads running alongside your content.
With HubPages sending the blog writer a cut of the ad revenue, this is a great way for beginners to experience professional blogging while also developing their skills. Although you’re not likely to earn a fortune writing on this platform, it’s still a worthy endeavour for writers who are still figuring out how to write a proper blog and want to learn more about the industry.
4. Vocal Media
Vocal Media works similarly to Medium and HubPages, but with a few key differences. Once you’ve made an account and submitted your carefully crafted article, editors will review your story and determine whether it meets their standards. If it does, you'll have the opportunity to earn a few dollars per thousand views.
While that doesn’t sound like a lot, a viral article can attract a lot of traffic. Although you can’t directly publish your own work on Vocal Media, the screening process might encourage you to take extra care throughout the writing and editing process. Whether you want to write fiction, opinion pieces, or movie reviews, there’s a community in the network that matches your interests.
5. Tumblr
Launched in 2007, Tumblr has long been a cornerstone for the online blogging world. The platform makes it incredibly easy to produce and publish any kind of content, including text posts, quotes, and photos.
Tumblr also has powerful analytics tools so you can better understand how your content performs. Plus, you can find out where your readers are located around the world to create better targeted content. Tumblr also has a strong social component, and carefully crafted hashtags help your work find readers who might want to comment on and share your writing. There's even an app, available on both the App Store and Google Play Store. So, what are you waiting for? Get connected to your home broadband, and start posting or blog writing!