Wattpad Logo
Wattpad is a digital platform that revolutionizes storytelling by allowing users to publish, read, and interact with diverse narratives. Originating in 2006, it’s become a global community where budding and established writers share their tales, spanning genres from romance to sci-fi. Readers dive into a vast sea of stories, offering feedback, and forming connections with authors. Furthermore, Wattpad has bridged literature and entertainment, with some works transitioning to film and TV. Emphasizing inclusivity, it breaks traditional publishing barriers, making storytelling accessible to all. This online haven fosters creativity, shaping the future of literature in the digital age.
Meaning and history
Founded in 2006 by Allen Lau and Ivan Yuen, Wattpad began as a visionary idea to revolutionize the world of reading and writing. Their mission? To create a platform where anyone could share and discover stories, spanning genres, and breaking traditional publishing boundaries.
As mobile technology burgeoned, Wattpad tapped into its potential. They introduced an app that allowed users to read on-the-go, transforming idle moments into reading adventures. This digital accessibility attracted a growing global community, with millions diving into a universe of stories and countless authors showcasing their creativity.
The platform’s unique interactive feature set it apart. Readers could not only consume content but engage directly with authors, offering feedback, voting on chapters, and even influencing plot directions. This dynamic relationship fostered a tight-knit community where stories evolved based on collective input.
Diversity became one of Wattpad’s core strengths. With no gatekeepers, voices previously sidelined in the traditional publishing world found a home. Stories from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives flourished, painting a colorful tapestry of human experiences.
Recognizing the wealth of content on its platform, Wattpad expanded its horizons. They launched Wattpad Studios in 2016, aiming to transition popular stories into movies, TV shows, and digital projects. Collaborating with entertainment industries, numerous Wattpad tales found their way to screens worldwide, proving that the platform was not just a reading hub, but a goldmine of adaptable content.
Wattpad’s impact on the literary world was palpable. By democratizing storytelling, they redefined who could be a writer and who could be a reader. Their success stories include authors who began on Wattpad and transitioned to traditional publishing deals, and even bestsellers.
In essence, Wattpad’s journey from a simple idea to a global phenomenon underscores the power of digital transformation in the arts. It stands as a testament to the timeless allure of stories and the modern ways they can be shared and celebrated.
2006 – 2019
In 2006, the Wattpad initiative was set in motion by its namesake organization. This very name was ingeniously woven into the core of their brand identity. The chosen typography was presented in a crisp white hue, enveloped by a bold, tangy orange outline. To craft a unique and memorable wordmark without incurring hefty design expenses, Ivan Yuen, one of the visionaries behind the project, sourced a distinctive free font. Interestingly, they opted for an unorthodox touch: substituting the traditional “w” with an inverted “m”. This quirky element didn’t just serve as an artistic flair but evolved into the app’s distinctive icon. To accentuate its prominence, it was further adorned with a white border and encapsulated within an eye-catching orange square.
2019 – Today
In a bold move in 2018, the firm embarked on its inaugural rebranding journey, retiring the original free font in lieu of a bespoke typeface featuring soft, rounded contours. This evolution led to the vanishing of the outlines, rendering the logo entirely in a vivid shade of orange. A unique touch was added by linking the twin “t”s centrally in the logo with a unified horizontal stroke, symbolizing the unison and interaction within the platform’s vast community.
Concurrently, a fresh icon was introduced for the Wattpad reader app, marking a departure from its predecessor. This emblem, representing the letter “w”, resembles a casual brush smear. It can be showcased in tandem with the brand name or independently, set within a square frame. The masterminds steering this transformative rebrand were the creative mavens at DesignStudio.
