THE COMPLETE title of this article is “Why Wattpaders can’t win a Nobel Prize for Literature, or the Palanca Awards.”
In Part 4, ThePSN discusses the snowflake attitude of Gen Z, Wattpad’s biggest users.
This is Part 5 and the conclusion of this mini-series.
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What triggered me to write this?
A sudden spike in Facebook friend requests, and membership requests for my community group page “21stCentury Literature with Peter Solis Nery.”
And I’m talking numbers in the hundreds.
I’m thinking, If I can reach out to Wattpaders and the “lost” of the Gen Z population, why not?
If they hate me, I lose nothing.
I do not know them, and I don’t care about their anger, oversensitivity, and snowflaking to the truth I’m telling.
But, but, but, if they see some sense in what I’m saying, then maybe I can affect them positively.
Maybe they will see that someone really cares about them, and the present and future of the Literature of the Philippines.
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Maybe they’ll idolize me, and would want to be like me.
And I’ll tell them, “I love my fans, but I don’t want fans.
I want people who can think critically, and creatively, when occasions demand it.”
I’ll tell them, “I don’t want you to be like me.
(Are you kidding me?!!!
You want me to compete with my clone?
You want me to share my spotlight with you?!!!
Note the three exclamation points.)”
Instead, I will tell them, “Do not aspire to be like me, but only to be the best version of yourself.
Because your best self can be better than me.
Can be the future of Philippine literature.
Can be the Nobel Prize winner that I am not.”
This is my story.
I thank you.
And yes, you are welcome!
***
The week that followed my posting of this essay on Facebook was crazy.
In seven days, 5.4K reactions, 3.8K shares, 1.3K comments.
In short, I became viral.
I kept following the threads, and thanking those who are showing their support.
I got a few bashers.
But way, way less than ten.
Still, I don’t give them a chance.
I immediately squash them.
I cannot show mercy at this time.
Those shitheads are only bold and daring because they are virtual entities.
I am Peter Solis Nery.
And I have a name brand to protect.
*
And thus, I earned new followers, fans, friends, supporters.
At least over a thousand new friends over the week.
You can check their overwhelming response on Facebook.
The comment threads are there for all the world to see.
All this is happening online in real time.
I am back to the high thousands of Facebook friends.
And where I only had 2,000+ followers before this Wattpad post happened, I now have at least 4,567.
People are talking about me, and people are creating hashtags, which I have easily adopted as my own—
#TatakPSN, #PSNLangMalakas
#AskForPSN, #LearnMoreAboutThePSN
*
And obviously, I added a few.
Because why not?
#YouDeserveTheBest
#YourModuleIsNotEnough
#ThePSNandTheFilipinoYouth
#ThePSNWillNotBeSilenced.
So yeah, I’m a rockstar.
But all the more I understand my power through all this.
I can actually steer the conversation about Philippine Literature.
And the young are ready to listen to me.
Because they understand that I genuinely care.
By my actions, you shall know me!/PN
