The best-selling Bloomsbury author of ‘Love in the time of Affluenza’ will shed light on the writing process and how to build a compelling narrative

Wattpad, the global multi-platform entertainment company for original stories, and Shunali Khullar Shroff, best-selling Bloomsbury author of  ‘Love in the time of Affluenza’ and ‘Battle Hymn of a Bewildered Mother’ are teaming up to host a Master Class in writing. Hosted on Wattpad India’s Instagram page and on the Wattpad Platform on April 29, the Master Class session will help demystify the writing process, including developing characters, writing dialogue, and giving the Wattpad community a professional’s perspective on the craft of storytelling.

The master class will involve a primer on how to go about writing. Shunali will share insights on three broad topics:

• The Blank Slate: How to move from an idea to getting the first words on a page 
• Technique: Researching and planning a story, and how to create a consistent voice

Reaching the finish line: Writing as rewriting, the editing process and how to land on the best version of a finished story 

The session will culminate in a contest encouraging aspiring authors to share their short stories on Wattpad. Three winners will receive personalized feedback from Shunali.

Devashish Sharma, Country Manager, Wattpad India, said: “Community and connection are cornerstones of the Wattpad experience. Writers around the world know that Wattpad is a place where they can hone their craft, find a community of other writers, and build a global audience. We’re thrilled to introduce Shunali Khullar Shroff to the Wattpad community and offer this unique opportunity to learn together in a Master Class setting.”

Shunali Khullar Shroff said: “This is an interesting collaboration and I look forward to taking this masterclass and discussing the craft of writing. I look forward to speaking with the Wattpad audience through this initiative.”

Viral Jani, Senior Vice-President, Investment Operations, Times Bridge, said: “Wattpad is democratizing storytelling and we are constantly finding ways to create value for our users.  Through the association with an author as well-known as Shunali Khullar Shroff, we want to encourage users to write and expand their horizons by helping them understand the writing process better.”

Previous editions of the Master Class had the likes of Anand Neelakantan, author of the ‘Bahubali’ trilogy, and Durjoy Datta, author and screenwriter.

Known around the world for its engaged community of readers and writers, Wattpad has a growing pan-India community of 2.6 million users who have shared more than 4 million story uploads. . The global Wattpad community is made up of 80 million people, including 4 million writers.  

Readers and writers all over India have participated in the company’s ‘Wattpad Campus Talks’ and the ‘Wattpad India Awards.’ In India, Wattpad has also partnered with publishing giants such as Penguin Random House, Harper Collins and Aleph, as well as with leading music labels and entertainment companies. 

Wattpad is backed by Times Bridge, a leading investment firm that seeks to bring the world’s best ideas to India and India’s best ideas to the world

About Shunali Khullar Shroff

Shunali Khullar Shroff is a Mumbai-based writer who has worked as a journalist, a corporate communication professional and been the owner of a successful PR firm. She is the author of the bestselling book ‘Battle Hymn of a Bewildered Mother’ and “Love in the time of Affluenza” she writes regularly for publications such as Conde Nast Traveller and HT Brunch on modern Indian life and feminism.

About Wattpad

Wattpad’s vision is to entertain and connect the world through stories. Using the power of community and technology, the global multi-platform entertainment company is unleashing the full potential of stories to the world – in any format. Wattpad’s flagship app is the world’s leading social storytelling platform, home to a community of more than 80 million people who spend over 23 billion minutes a month engaged in original stories. Wattpad’s Story DNA Machine Learning technology allows the company to understand and discover stories among the more than half a billion uploads that have been written on the platform. The company is proudly based in Toronto, Canada. Learn more at http://company.wattpad.com/

About Bloomsbury India

The India office of the leading Independent Publishing House, Bloomsbury India upholds Bloomsbury Publishing’s tradition of publishing books of the highest quality in Fiction, Non-Fiction, Children’s, Academic, Business, and Education by both Indian and international authors. Our prolific catalogue of authors includes J.K. Rowling, Khaled Hosseini, Elizabeth Gilbert and Kamila Shamsie; Nobel Prize winners Nadine Gordimer and Patrick Modiano; Booker Prize winner Margaret Atwood; Pulitzer Prize winner Elizabeth Kolbert; Orange Prize winners Madeline Miller and Anne Michaels and cookery books by Michelin-starred chefs Anthony Bourdain, Vikas Khanna, Heston Blumenthal, Atul Kochhar and Raymond Blanc.

https://www.bloomsbury.com/in/