As the previous notice, for this month theme - Retelling, we have agatharoza to be featured as our first WattpadESL Spotlight Author!

AJ/Agatha herself is a Wattpad Star and Wattpad Ambassador, moreover, an author for her exclusive mythology retelling  themed triology - ENTWINED written in English. And she uses English as her second language, AJ also knows Bahasa Indonesia, Javanese, English, and Korean.

About her: "I'm a fantasy and romance writer. My first book is called Entwined. I dreamt of each scene on Entwined when I was thirteen and then again when I was twenty-three. This time I decided to write and publish it on this wonderful platform we all love. I am lucky enough that Entwined aka my first book was published by Wattpad Books last year. I love writing, reading, watching c-drama (esp palace drama), outreaching, and sleeping. You can find me on Wattpad or social media as *agatharoza* and should you wish to talk to me, feel free to DM me here or on WP anytime! I wish you all the very best with the training! And most of all, I hope you enjoy it."

About her book:

Avery Montgomery is a part of the Hellenicus, descendants of Greek gods and goddesses. On her eighteenth birthday, her clairvoyant ability will be awakened and she will be reunited with her soulmate. 

We have interviewed her centered around writing, English writing and some of her favorite thing. We also have received many AMA (Ask Me Anything) questions from users to her! Please scroll more to know!

What makes you start writing on Wattpad?

I was trying to find a platform where I can fully express myself and won't be judged for expressing myself. I found Wattpad and saw how engaging and supportive the community is thus I decided to publish my story there.

What are the challenges you faced when writing in English?  

Repetition words! I often use the same words over and over. So I picked up dictionary and tried to vary them.

What is the best way to go about constructing a story? Whether its a series or standalone? (from users StephRose2101 and emmaeverafter)

Honestly I am not sure because each author has their own writing style. For me, it's best to simply focus on one story and at least write once or twice a week. That way you will still remember the story and its progress. Cos sometimes author put their work on hold and when they return to it again, some parts are not consistent because they forget about a few, small stuffs. This happened to me too when I wrote my 2nd book.

When you write, how do you try to update? How do you stay motivated?  (From users novahsnow and fantasygirl_72901)

My angels (readers) are what keep me motivated. Their comments encourage me to keep on writing. I complete my stories faster when I update daily or on regular basis.

What do you do when you have a writers block or a lack of motivation? What tips do you have for young writers dealing with this situation? (From users LivingWithMyLife and cup_0f_ta3) 

I would take a small break and play games or watch dramas. It will take my mind off my story for a bit and when I return to it, I feel fresh.

What are your most commonly used figures of speech? And why so? 

I would say euphemism*. I think it's because I try to make it more polite and also to vary my choice of words.

*euphemism (n) a mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing. (via Oxford Dictionary)

What do you do to improve your vocabulary even more? 

Read more books and look up words that I don't know in Oxford Dictionary (instead of just translate it directly). This way I could see the synonyms and antonyms. I could also see the sample usage of these words in sentences. 

Your famous trilogy is about retelling, why did you choose to write it like that? 

Do you have any favorite retelling story? Wattpad one or published one? 

Yes! "Prince Charming Must Die" on Wattpad and "An Offer from a Gentleman" by Julia Quinn.

What is your writing playlist if you have one? 

Classic musics. Because whenever I write while listening to songs with lyrics, I get distracted 😂

Spending days at a library or Chilling beside a sunny beach? Why?

Depends. If I'm alone (or with my sister) then library it is, but if I'm with my friends, I think they would prefer sunny beach 😂

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Thank you Agatha so much for accepting our invitation! And a special thank to all the enthusiatic users for sending questions, we are glad to receive some very good response to our AMA-typed interview. 

We still have one more surprise from Agatha herself, please stay tune for next week to find out what it is! Thank you very much for reading.