Goodreads vs Wattpad

2023. Goodreads introduces new Giveaway marketing tool for authors



Goodreads has unveiled its latest initiative, the U.S. Giveaways program, introducing two comprehensive packages equipped with impactful features aimed at boosting book discovery and garnering reader reviews. Tailored to address the requests of authors and publishers, the program provides enhanced marketing advantages, facilitating diverse ways to connect with an author's audience and automatically adding giveaway participants' Want-to-Read lists. Notably, Kindle Direct Publishing authors now have the opportunity to host giveaways for Kindle ebooks, a feature previously exclusive to traditional publishers. The all-encompassing benefits of the Standard package, priced at $119 for up to 100 copies (either Kindle ebooks or print books), include these new features. Additionally, the Premium package, available for $599, offers exclusive "Featured" placement on the prominently visited Giveaways page along with all the perks of the Standard Package, catering to both print books and Kindle ebooks.


2023. Wattpad Premium subscribers now have access to 5 free monthly Wattpad Originals



Wattpad has unveiled a new feature called "Premium Picks," as part of its freemium model, providing Premium and Premium+ subscribers with five complimentary Wattpad Originals each month. This innovative approach eliminates the need for users to make individual payments to access content, instead offering a curated selection of stories chosen by Wattpad's team of experts. The assortment includes both popular hits and undiscovered gems, showcasing works from established authors as well as emerging talents. To ensure subscribers make the most of this offering, the selected stories are available for free until the first day of the following month, after which users can opt to purchase any unfinished reads. Wattpad has enhanced user experience by incorporating a countdown timer on the Premium Picks screen and enabling app notifications to alert readers about the availability of the next set of stories.


2023. Wattpad has launched Publishing Scheduler



If you are an author on the Wattpad self-publishing platform, you've probably considered the idea of scheduling your Story Parts in advance to provide a seamless reading experience for your audience. Thankfully, this is now possible with the newly introduced feature called the "Wattpad Publishing Scheduler." This initiative by Wattpad aims to help authors maintain a consistent publishing schedule, leading to a more engaged readership. With the Wattpad Publishing Scheduler, you can plan and set the release dates for your story parts ahead of time, ensuring a continuous flow of content even during your breaks. Presently, this feature is only accessible on the web version of Wattpad, but the platform is actively working on making it available on the app as well. To manage your scheduled Story Parts, you can easily check them in the My Stories section. This new tool offers an efficient way for authors to connect with their readers while maintaining flexibility in their writing routine.


2023. Wattpad improves its Creator Program for writers



Wattpad, the popular online platform for storytelling, is preparing to revamp its creators' programs in order to enhance accessibility for writers. The Wattpad Creators program, currently in its second year, was launched a year ago to provide various benefits, opportunities, and practical assistance to writers. It aims to equip writers with the necessary tools to create exceptional stories, offering editorial support and resources tailored to creators. The primary objective is to boost their Engaged reader metric and offer them the recognition they deserve. Until now, participation in this program was by invitation only. However, with the new program, the company is expanding beyond providing stipends based on tiers. Wattpad acknowledges that not all writers have the luxury of time, resources, and privilege to attend writing workshops and retreats. Consequently, the company intends to foster a similar sense of community, support, and valuable insights within the Wattpad Creators Program.


2019. Goodreads starts Giveaways to help authors promote their books



The new tool Goodreads Giveaways provides valuable support for authors aiming to launch their debut book, maintain momentum for their latest release, or reinvigorate interest in a previous title. This platform serves as a creative tool utilized by authors and publishers to promote their books to potentially millions of readers, injecting an element of excitement into their marketing strategies, and allowing readers to introduce their favorite books to friends. Goodreads Giveaways offers numerous marketing benefits, including the opportunity to expand your audience and increase book discovery. Giveaways are prominently featured in the popular Giveaways section of Goodreads, enabling readers to stumble upon new and exciting titles. Furthermore, your giveaway is prominently showcased on your book page, encouraging more entries and further growing your book's audience. Additionally, your followers on Goodreads and individuals who have already added your book to their Want-to-Read list receive automatic notifications about your giveaway, maximizing the reach of your promotion.


2019. Wattpad launches book publishing platform



Wattpad, the social storytelling platform, has recently introduced a new publishing division called Wattpad Books. These titles will not only be accessible as ebooks through various online retailers, but they will also be available in physical bookstores like Indigo Books and Music and Barnes and Noble. Wattpad Books will unveil its first list in Fall 2019, featuring six titles set to be released this year. The 2019 list from Wattpad Books comprises six young adult books across a range of genres including fantasy, romance, mystery, and more. These stories have gained immense popularity on Wattpad, accumulating over 100 million reading minutes collectively in 2018.


2018. Goodreads launched new Android App



Goodreads has unveiled its latest Android app, offering an enhanced ebook discovery and social community experience. With this app, users can conveniently scan book covers to quickly locate titles on Goodreads, explore personalized recommendations, and effortlessly add recently finished books to their Reading Challenge. The app's refreshed design and intuitive interface make navigating Goodreads from an Android device simple, fast, and enjoyable. Furthermore, the app is optimized for tablets, providing an excellent user experience across different screen sizes.


2018. New Goodreads app for Android is available



GoodReads, the renowned social book community owned by Amazon, has rolled out an update for its Android app. The redesigned GoodReads BETA app offers improved speed and enhanced usability, with a visually appealing interface that is optimized for both mobile phones and tablets. With this app, users can effortlessly search, rate, and review any of the 12 million books available in the catalog. Additionally, they can stay updated with book reviews and posts from friends, engage in discussions by commenting on them, provide status updates and track page numbers for books they are currently reading, and efficiently add their book collection using the barcode scanner feature.


2017. GoodReads is rolling out the ReRead system



Numerous GoodReads users set annual book goals for themselves. In the past, if you wished to revisit the enchanting world of Harry Potter or immerse yourself in the captivating pages of the Divergent series, those rereads would not contribute towards your goal. However, all of this has changed with the introduction of a new BETA ReRead feature that will be gradually made available worldwide in the upcoming months. Now, when you decide to revisit a book that you have previously marked as "Read" on Goodreads, simply update its status to "Currently Reading." Once you have completed your reread, mark it as "Read" once again. You can perform these actions through the Goodreads iOS and Android apps, on Goodreads.com, and even within the "About the Book" feature on Kindle. This exciting development ensures that your rereads will now count towards your book goal, allowing for a more accurate representation of your reading accomplishments.


2016. Amazon is closing book cataloging service Shelfari, merging it with Goodreads



Amazon is to close Shelfari, a social network for book lovers with various recommendation and cataloging features. Since Amazon purchased Goodreads back in 2013, it has been neglecting Shelfari for years, and now it’s officially getting the ax. If you login to Shelfari you get greeted with the following message: "Shelfari is in the process of merging with Goodreads and is no longer accepting new accounts. We recommend joining Goodreads.com if you haven’t already done so". Calling it a merger is just a nice way of saying Shelfari is closing down for good.


2015. Goodreads adds Audible integration to let you listen free audiobook samples



Amazon's popular platform Goodreads has introduced an exciting new feature that allows users to listen to free audio samples of 180,000 titles. This feature is made possible through a "Listen" button that taps into Audible's extensive digital audiobook catalog. All Goodreads users, regardless of whether they have an Audible subscription, can access these samples. Additionally, as part of this feature, Goodreads is offering a 30-day free trial of Audible, which is also an Amazon-owned service. Initially available on the Goodreads website, the streaming feature is set to expand to the mobile site and apps in the near future. This move aims to facilitate the discovery of audiobook content for ebook readers and aligns with ongoing efforts by publishers and retailers to encourage cross-usage and exploration between the two formats.


2014. Goodreads mobile app gets a makeover



Amazon's Goodreads has introduced a significant redesign for iOS (coming soon to Android) in response to the desires of regular Goodreads users. Instead of presenting users with an outdated, grid-like homescreen upon launching the app, it now immediately showcases a dynamic "news feed." This feed is populated with recent updates from your friends on the network, including information about the books they've read, rated, reviewed, and more. Within this feed, you have the convenience of easily liking and commenting on your friends' posts. This update fulfills Goodreads' commitment to functioning as a social network for book readers, going beyond its original purpose of merely cataloging individual reading progress.


2014. Wattpad will be free forever and make money from native ads



Wattpad, the social reading app that allows authors to share their stories with a vibrant community of readers, has achieved remarkable user engagement, with 27 million out of its 30 million users active on a monthly basis. Despite this, Wattpad has made limited efforts to monetize this activity, apart from exploring crowdfunded self-publishing initiatives. However, this is now changing as the company has launched its first native ad campaign and has plans for more in the future. Similar to ads on popular social networks like Twitter, Wattpad has integrated promotions for user accounts and individual titles into its regular recommendations. While the company is still in the early stages of its ad experiments, CEO Allen Lau has already stated that Wattpad itself will always remain a free app, emphasizing its commitment to accessibility for all users.


2014. Goodreads allows to import books, purchased on Amazon



Users of Goodreads now have the convenience of automatically importing their purchased print and ebooks from Amazon directly into their Goodreads accounts. Goodreads presents an enticing incentive for linking the two accounts, stating that the more books added to Goodreads shelves, the better the recommendations tailored to the individual's reading preferences. Goodreads utilizes a highly intelligent algorithm to analyze the books users rate, providing personalized suggestions to enhance their reading experience. Furthermore, this account linking serves as another means for Amazon to identify which of its customers are also Goodreads users. However, Goodreads ensures users retain complete control over which books to add, allowing them to exclude any books purchased as gifts. Books that are neither rated nor added to a shelf will not be included in the Goodreads account.


2014. Wattpad raises $46 million to build a global literary community



Wattpad, an online community dedicated to writers and readers for sharing and discovering captivating stories, has recently secured $46 million in funding to drive the acceleration of product development and expand its user base. Allen Lau, the co-founder and CEO of Wattpad, expressed their ambitious objective of reaching a billion users, which is precisely why they pursued this round of funding - to expedite the realization of their vision. Currently, Wattpad boasts approximately 25 million registered users, a significant increase from the 15 million reported at the same time last year. While this growth is remarkable for a platform centered around reading, it still falls short of the billion-user target. Lau acknowledges the lofty nature of this goal, admitting that it may not be achieved within the next year or two, or even within three to four years.


2014. Amazon adds Goodreads integration to Kindle Paperwhite 1



Amazon has commenced the rollout of a software update for the first-generation Kindle Paperwhite, introducing various new features to the e-reader, including Goodreads integration. The second-generation Paperwhite, which is already available, acquired Goodreads support in November of the previous year. Additionally, the update incorporates Kindle FreeTime, an element that curates books for children and enables parents to allocate dedicated reading time. It also introduces Cloud Collections for efficient organization, Page Flip for seamless content scanning, and quicker access to the Bookmarks, Highlights, and Notes feature. The update will progressively reach devices in the United States, Canada, and Australia within the next few weeks. For more information, refer to: Why you need Kindle collection manager.


2014. Goodreads competitor Slice Bookshelf shuts down



Unfortunately, Slice Bookshelf, a social community for readers that aimed to offer a more modern and user-friendly alternative to Amazon's Goodreads, will be discontinuing its services. The company has decided to shift its focus towards enhancing its core product, Slice, a mobile shopping companion. While operating Bookshelf, Slice explored the use of its innovative inbox-scanning technology in a new domain. Instead of tracking general purchases, the technology specifically identified book and e-book receipts, enabling the automatic creation of users' libraries. By leveraging data from Facebook, the service eliminated the need for manual data input, a requirement still present in competing platforms like Goodreads.


2013. Amazon integrates Goodreads into Kindle Fire OS



Earlier this year, Amazon initiated the integration of the renowned book recommendation site Goodreads (which it acquired in March) into its tablets. However, with the latest release of Fire OS, Goodreads has been seamlessly incorporated directly into the reading experience. This integration enables readers to actively engage with the Goodreads community without the need to exit their book and launch a separate application. Now, readers have the ability to effortlessly capture and share their favorite quotes to Goodreads from within the book itself. They can stay updated on what others are reading, provide ratings and reviews upon finishing a book, and even import their entire collection of purchased books from Amazon, whether in print or Kindle format, into their Goodreads account. This feature proves particularly useful for individuals who may have not actively maintained their Goodreads account in recent years.


2013. Kobo stops showing Goodreads ratings and reviews



As you may recall, Amazon completed its acquisition of the book-review social network Goodreads in March. Consequently, it is unsurprising that Kobo has ceased using the Goodreads API on its website and apps. This means that Kobo book pages will no longer display Goodreads ratings and reviews. It appears that this decision was made by Kobo rather than Goodreads or Amazon. Michael Tamblyn, Kobo's chief content officer, mentioned to Good E-reader that there is a possibility of Kobo reintegrating the Goodreads API in the future. However, this move highlights the risk of relying on an API provided by a competing retailer. It is worth noting that Goodreads itself encountered a similar predicament in the past. In early 2012, it shifted from utilizing Amazon's API for book data to relying on Ingram, a book wholesaler, instead. Currently, Goodreads states that it combines metadata from various sources including Ingram, WorldCat, and ONIX feeds.


2013. Wattpad, the social network for aspiring writers, launches a crowdfunding feature



Wattpad serves as a social network catering to aspiring writers, often referred to as the "YouTube of writing." It provides a platform for amateur creators to share their work with a global audience and cultivate a fan base around their writing. Recently, Wattpad has introduced a crowdfunding feature, similar to Kickstarter, known as "Fan Funding." This feature enables members to easily leverage their fan base as a means of monetizing their work. Additionally, it offers an opportunity for the network itself to monetize its user base by charging a fee for the process. With Fan Funding, you can now support your favorite writers in innovative ways, contributing to their aspirations and receiving rewards in return. To support a project, you can select the desired reward level and indicate the amount you wish to pledge. Please note that a valid credit card is required to support a project.