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<ul><li>Being in lockdown can be tempting for many but for readers, this may be a good time to curl up on the bed and catch up on all the unread stories. </li><li>This week, Business Insider brings you user-generated fiction stories to poetry and humor from the internet community <keyword id="1959531" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Wattpad">Wattpad</keyword>. </li><li>Check out the stories you can explore from the ‘Best of wattpad’ list.</li></ul>Being in lockdown can be tempting for many but for readers, this may be a good time to curl up on the bed and catch up on all the unread stories. The <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="coronavirus">Coronavirus</keyword> pandemic is showing no signs of dying down and social distancing and self isolation are here to stay. This is also causing anxiety among employees and even students who are stuck at home. Several studies point out that reading for merely six minutes can reduce stress by over half as it releases tension in the muscles. Business Insider collates interesting books to read, giving an outlook on career and professional growth, setbacks and opportunities. However this week, we bring you user-generated fiction stories to poetry and humor from the internet community Wattpad. Here are all the stories you can explore from the ‘Best of wattpad’ list. <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/765329-in-27-days-watty-award-winner-2012">In 27 days</a> Published by a college graduate Ally, In 27 days is a watty award winning novel from 2012. The book narrates the story of a young girl Hadley Jamison who is in complete shock when her classmate Archer Morales commits suicide. She starts to feel that she could’ve helped him in some way, though she didn’t know him much. But, on the very night of Morales’ funeral, she is offered the chance to go back in time to stop Archer — and has only 27 days to do it. What if she can’t? <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/143011222-heart-of-the-sky">Heart of the sky</a> Heart of the sky is a 2018 Watty award winner, written by Gavin Hetherington. Brando Hallward is stuck with his ex while he’s about to miss his flight. He happens to meet Daxten Lowe at dinner before the flight where the two bond well and continue to flirt. As the romance takes off, Hallward’s ex is increasingly jealous. But, something is wrong with the plane and Hallward’s life too. Will it be alright? <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/185650009-the-ants-that-carried-us">The ants that carried us</a> Written by a university student Minohava, The ant that carried us is a Watty Winner 2019. Shah Minos is very particular about order. Even if it comes at the cost of being brutally dominated by his father, who is also the Emperor. However, eventually the emperor loses power and his children are standing against each other to inherit that throne. <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/170779431-a-woman-of-the-sea">A woman of the sea</a> A woman of the sea is a historical fiction written by JM Frey. Jessie is a 21st century girl stuck in the Regency era. After the university degree, she has plans to celebrate graduation in Paris — kissing as many drunk French girls and boys as she can. Later, a mysterious accident happens and Jessie has no choice but to work as a maid in return for shelter and hide her sexuality. However, her boss finds out her secret. <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/99347340-i%27m-a-gay-wizard">I’m a gay wizard</a> I’m a gay wizard is a story of two best friends, written by VS Santoni. Ryan and his best friend Alison are brutally assaulted and bullied. But later, they find themselves pulled by a mysterious organisation — Marduk Institute that claims to be a school for wizards. In the secret wizard school, they eventually discover power, acceptance and love. Disclaimer: Business Insider and Wattpad both are Times Bridge partners in India See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/thelife/news/world-book-day-here-are-the-five-books-from-the-best-of-wattpad-list/articleshow/75313130.cms">World Book Day: Here are the five books from the best of Wattpad list</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/education/news/india-is-reportedly-planning-to-let-50-of-students-attend-classes-from-home/articleshow/75616865.cms">An odd-even plan for schools ⁠— India is reportedly planning to let 50% of students attend from home</a>

Wattpad’s chosen list of fiction on the reading list this week

<ul><li>Wattpad has 70 million users globally, and 2.6 million of them were <a href="https://tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/people/wattpad-appoints-devashish-sharma-as-india-head/66964720">reportedly</a> in India as of the end of 2018. </li><li>Wattpad uses machine learning to discover stand-out stories among the over 565 million stories on its platform. </li><li>The partnership with Times Bridge will help the company boost its presence in India and reach new users.</li></ul>The Toronto, Canada-based online publishing platform Wattpad has tied up with Times Bridge*, the global investments and partnerships arm of The Times Group, to grow its presence in India and reach new users. Aside from offering the publishing platform like Amazon and Fictionpress.com, Wattpad has created a community for writers. There are forums and contests to engage with peers around the world. Winners of these contests have been known to find publishers. "My Life with the Walter Boys" by Ali Novak, "The Kissing Booth" by Beth Reekles, and "Nothing Left to Lose" by Kristy Moresely, found publishers for the paperback versions through Wattpad, according to a review on another online publishing platform Odyssey. Novak’s work, for instance, had 33 million reads even before it got published, <a href="https://www.amazon.in/Life-Walter-Boys-Ali-Novak/dp/1402297866">according</a> to Amazon. That was the reach of Wattpad in 2014. Wattpad uses machine learning to discover stand-out stories among the over 565 million stories on its platform, the company said in a statement. In 2018, it also tied up with Sony, online streaming service iflix, TV show producers Huayi Brothers Korea and Bavaria Fiction, and the US cable television channel SYFY to turn many of the stories into books, TV shows, films, and digital projects. Wattpad has 70 million users globally, and 2.6 million of them were <a href="https://tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/people/wattpad-appoints-devashish-sharma-as-india-head/66964720">reportedly</a> in India as of the end of 2018. And its founder Allen Lau, an electrical engineer turned entrepreneur, wants more of the Indian pie. The India outreach will be led by country manager Devashish Sharma, who was <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/devashishsharma/?originalSubdomain=in">part</a> of the founding team at CoHo, one of India’s co-living companies founded in 2015. Wattpad’s partnership with Times Group, one of the biggest media conglomerates in India, will also be an advantage. “Wattpad is a bold, proven idea that has changed how audiences around the world create and experience stories. Our investment will advance Wattpad’s mission, and original storytelling, across the Indian subcontinent, unlocking the creativity of many millions along the way,” Rishi Jaitly, the CEO of Times Bridge, said. Times Bridge’s previous investments include Uber, Airbnb, Coursera, Houzz, MUBI and Smule among others. In January 2018, Wattpad raised $51 million from Chinese investment giant Tencent, Globe Telecom’s Kickstart Ventures, Peterson Group, Canso, and existing investor Raine. *Times Bridge is also a partner in Business Insider India See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/google-will-groom-these-10-indian-startups-that-use-ai-and-machine-learning/articleshow/68384856.cms">Google will groom these 10 Indian startups that use AI and machine learning</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/Spotify-got-a-million-Indians-to-try-its-app-in-a-week-but-they-will-only-stay-if-the-price-is-right/articleshow/68297160.cms">Spotify got a million Indians to try its app in a week — but they will only stay if the price is right</a>

Tencent-backed Wattpad has tied up with Times Bridge to woo more Indian writers and readers

<ul class="summary-list"><li>"The Idea of You" stars Anne Hathaway as a divorcée who falls in love with a fictional boy bander.</li><li>The movie is the latest rom-com to romanticize a relationship between a normal person and a celebrity. </li></ul>In the most famous scene in "<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/living-in-notting-hill-london-reality-compared-to-expectation-photos-2022-6">Notting Hill</a>," movie star Anna Scott declares her feelings for a bookstore owner named William Thacker."The fame thing isn't really real, you know?" she says. "And don't forget I'm also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her."The beloved 1999 film starring <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/all-of-julia-roberts-movies-ranked-by-critics">Julia Roberts</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/all-hugh-grant-movies-ranked-critics-notting-hill-love-actually-2020-10">Hugh Grant</a> is one of several rom-coms to depict a relationship between a celebrity and a normal person — including but not limited to "Win a Date With Tad Hamilton!," "Another Cinderella Story," and the<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-best-disney-channel-original-movies-ranked-2019-7"> Disney Channel Original Movies</a> "<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/camp-rock-unique-cool-things-about-movie-interview-2021-7">Camp Rock</a>" and "Starstruck." The dynamic usually follows a familiar arc. First, the normie is dazzled by the celebrity and their fame. Then, outside forces like the paparazzi or fans threaten to derail the relationship. But by the end, love prevails: The normie accepts the celebrity's lifestyle, and the couple overcomes their fame-related hurdles because rom-coms need happy endings."The Idea of You," now streaming on Prime Video, is the latest film in this sub-genre of rom-coms. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-idea-of-you-movie-ending-book-differences-explained-2024-5">Based on the novel of the same name</a>, the film focuses on 40-year-old divorcée Solène (<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/anne-hathaway-kissed-10-guys-gross-chemistry-auditions-2024-4">Anne Hathaway</a>) who falls into an unexpected romance with 24-year-old Hayes Campbell (Nicholas Galitzine), the lead singer of a boyband called August Moon, after they meet at<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coachella-festival-fashion-through-the-years-photos-2022-4"> Coachella</a>. If this sounds like fanfiction, it's because Robinne Lee's book was <a target="_blank" href="https://www.vogue.com/article/idea-of-you-book">inspired by Harry Styles</a>, the One Direction member turned Grammy-winning solo artist whose wavy brown hair, chiseled jaw, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/harry-styles-tattoos-photos-meanings-2023-8">tattooed body</a> inspired numerous <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/movies-and-tv-shows-based-on-fan-fiction-2022-11">Wattpad stories</a>.But as unrealistic as rom-coms often are, this premise isn't too far-fetched. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.vogue.com.au/celebrity/news/the-real-neverbeforeheard-story-of-how-matt-and-lucy-damon-met/news-story/823ebcc12e68ecc1f6f836db633599e6">Matt Damon</a> met Luciana Barroso, his wife of 19 years, while he was filming a movie in Miami and she was working as a bartender. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mhjYDNYeGs&amp;feature=emb_title">Taylor Lautner</a>'s younger sister introduced him to his now-wife Tay (née Dome), a "<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/twilight-movie-15th-anniversary-2023-11">Twilight</a>" fan who was on<a target="_blank" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CfaJdo1l5qe/"> Team Edward. </a> <a target="_blank" href="https://www.oprah.com/omagazine/oprah-interviews-jon-stewart#ixzz4SH6N2ocK">Jon Stewart</a> and his wife, Tracey McShane, met through a blind date shortly after she began watching "The Jon Stewart Show" and told her friends she was looking for someone "funny and sweet" like the TV host.But being in a relationship with a celebrity isn't all it's hyped up to be in the movies. Stardom has its perks, but the downsides — like unforgiving public scrutiny and a possessive, rabid fan base — can be major roadblocks for a couple. What happens when fame becomes the invisible third person in the relationship?Business Insider spoke to a celebrity PR expert and a therapist to ultra-high-net-worth individuals to explore how realistic these dynamics are outside the glamorous, seemingly enviable way they're portrayed in rom-coms — and what it takes for these relationships to go the distance.<h2>The glaring wealth and power imbalance is a major hurdle</h2><div type="image" title="the idea of you movie still" height="2000" width="3000" msid="109838788" hostid="261" sizebytes="501364"></div>The idea of dating someone who's the subject of magazine spreads and has money to burn may sound exciting for a civilian, but with more fame and money comes more problems."It's an unusual life, and I say all the time, money, wealth, and fame can be toxic. It can be dangerous," said<a target="_blank" href="https://www.walkandtalk.com/"> Clay Cockrell</a>, a psychotherapist who's been working with ultra-high-net-worth individuals for about 15 years. "There's not a lot of templates out there on how to do it well. And it's a lot to navigate. There's issues of isolation, issues of jealousy, of shame. Money and fame can be addictive."For the celebrity, dating a regular person may also come with concerns that an outsider is getting close to them to benefit from their high status.While wealth might be part of what makes a famous person attractive to someone — Cockrell acknowledged that "your money, your fame, is you" — if it's the only quality alluring to a non-celebrity, "well then we've got a problem."Even if the attraction is deeper than a celebrity's pockets, there will still be plenty of hardships working against the couple."Based on my experience and based on my personal perspective as a publicist — and of course everybody's experiences are different — I don't see it as the ultimate fantasy at all," said Liza Anderson, the founder and president of<a target="_blank" href="https://andersongrouppr.com/"> Anderson Group Public Relations</a>. "It is a very rare occasion, from my point of view, where it actually works.""I think it's very hard to be the non-celebrity in a relationship when your spouse is getting bombarded with constant attention and praise and accolades for just breathing," Anderson added.The celebrity publicist also said that inequality in this type of relationship is unavoidable."Everything is at their disposal," Anderson said. "So it breeds a lot of insecurity for the person that doesn't have the same access."It's no surprise, then, that so many celebrity power couples exist, from <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/taylor-swift-travis-kelce-relationship-timeline-photos-2023-10">Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce</a> to<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jennifer-lopez-ben-affleck-relationship-timeline-photos"> Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck</a>. In Hollywood, dating someone with a similar fame level is simply practical. "I'm not saying that they're going to live happily ever after, but at least they have a chance," Anderson said.Cockrell agreed. "You see celebrities marrying other celebrities because there's a commonality," he said. "You don't have to go through that work of bringing somebody into this bizarre world. And a lot of people don't want that. They want their privacy."In some cases, stars pursue relationships with people who are Hollywood-adjacent and not necessarily actors or musicians, but people who might be at least a bit more comfortable with the quirks of the celebrity's industry. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/julia-roberts-husband-danny-moder-relationship-timeline-photos-2022-7">Julia Roberts married cameraman Danny Moder</a> in 2002, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/patrick-dempsey-wife-children-family-jillian-fink-2023-11">Patrick Dempsey wed celebrity hairstylist Jillian Fink</a> in 1999, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/keanu-reeves-alexandra-grant-relationship-timeline-photos-2022-6">Keanu Reeves and artist Alexandra Grant</a> made their first public appearance as a couple in 2019."He's really the only person I could think of that is so normal about having a relationship with a non-celebrity," Anderson said of Reeves. "But he's a seasoned professional. He's not a young guy where all of this is new and different and exciting. He's been around, so he's got a lot of experience and knows what's important to him and knows the value of it. But otherwise, it can be across the board just very, very difficult."<h2>A celebrity's high-pressure world is one of the biggest threats to the relationship</h2><div type="image" title="Julia Roberts sits across the table from Hugh Grant in a film still from &quot;Notting Hill.&quot;" height="1677" width="2519" msid="109838789" hostid="261" sizebytes="188356"></div>A couple can have good intentions, solid communication skills, love each other, and want a healthy relationship, but their romance can still be derailed by everyone else."It's not the people in the relationship," Anderson said. "It's the way that the people around you react. That takes its toll."Movies about celebrity-normie relationships show the negative side of fame, like the constant, invasive <a target="_blank" href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/alexgurley/13-times-celebrities-called-out-the-paparazzi">paparazzi</a> attention and vicious tabloid coverage. But onscreen, these hurdles are primarily used as a plot device, creating a conflict in the couple's romance that will predictably be resolved so viewers get a satisfactory, well-earned happy ending.But in reality, these issues don't just disappear. In an age of social media, it's nearly impossible for a famous person to even go to a bookstore without a sneaky photo taken by a fan surfacing on Deuxmoi for the world to see. It's a big enough problem that celebrities use tactics like <a target="_blank" href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/kristenharris1/celeb-paparazzi-disguises">wearing disguises</a>, switching vehicles, avoiding certain restaurants, and using fake names at hotels to reduce unwanted attention.This persistent surveillance can be exhausting and strain a relationship, Anderson said. "And the fact that you have to be camera-ready at all times when you're going out with your spouse is a lot of pressure."<h2>To work, these relationships need time out of the spotlight</h2>Even though the odds might seem stacked against a celebrity and civilian couple, these relationships aren't necessarily doomed.Cockrell said it's imperative to establish ground rules, be mindful of the power dynamic, and shed the embarrassment around wealth. If a financially unequal pairing progresses to marriage or a serious relationship, having open discussions about money allocation and ownership is crucial."People are more likely to talk about their sex lives than their bank accounts. It's just very, very private," Cockrell said. "You have to have these conversations, and they're hard to navigate through, but you just have to because things are going to be <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kevin-costner-divorce-christine-baumgartner-yellowstone-2023-12">complicated really, really quickly</a>."In a public setting, Anderson said that the normal person has to accept that they'll be sidelined by their famous partner."If you go out to dinner with a celebrity that's very well known, and you're the plus one, you will literally get ignored," she said. "People can't help it because they just gravitate towards the celebrity."The publicist said that it's impossible to have a "normal life" as a couple in LA or New York, so there has to be a willingness to relocate to a less centralized, more remote location in order to create a healthy environment for the relationship.So while it's fun to fantasize about winning a date with a Hollywood bad boy or having a chance encounter with a music industry heartthrob at a music festival, most of the time, that's pretty much all it is — an escapist fantasy."Don't think you're missing out on anything," Anderson said. "I wouldn't want to be Hugh Grant in that movie."

Dating a celebrity is the ultimate fantasy. A PR expert and a therapist explain if it can actually work.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Karissa Wampler ditched her flight last minute after her friend convinced her to go on a blind date.</li><li>Millions are now gripped by the long-distance romance, which she's been chronicling on TikTok.</li></ul>Less than an hour before her Frontier flight home to Florida last month, while she was waiting at the airport gate, Karissa Wampler's friend begged her to stay in North Carolina for one more night to go on a blind date with someone she insisted was Wampler's "soulmate.""I'm not a very crazy person," the 23-year-old TikToker with 1.1 million followers told Insider. "I'll take risks, but I'm very calculated usually."On September 14, as her flight was boarding, she decided to take the plunge — and <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@k.wamp/video/7281347457768901930" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shared the saga</a> on TikTok to 2.1 million viewers. Wampler described the spontaneous event as "the craziest date of [her] life," which included a rooftop dinner, pickleball match, and deep conversations lasting long into the night. Wampler told Insider she filmed snippets to document the serendipitous whirlwind and in case her date — whose name is Christian but whom she publicly calls <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@k.wamp/video/7281394406907825450" target="_blank" rel="noopener">granola boy</a>, thanks to his love for nature — turned out to be unsafe.Since their fateful meeting last month, a corner of TikTok has become deeply invested in the budding romance and is passionately rooting for the couple to last. This is all as Wampler has chronicled the long-distance courtship in real-time. The attention has been "so weird," Wampler told Insider, but ultimately more exciting than anxiety-inducing."I'm enamored by him," she said. "Otherwise, I would never be making all of these videos."Two weeks after their first date, Christian — who does not have social media and is choosing to stay offline in order to get to know Wampler organically, she said — flew to Florida to see her again. There, she surprised him with a skydiving date and he asked her to be his girlfriend. The two <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@k.wamp/video/7288004480149261610" target="_blank" rel="noopener">soft-launched, </a><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@k.wamp/video/7288368166411996458" target="_blank" rel="noopener">then hard-launched the relationship </a>— two ubiquitous terms for making the relationship official — in a get-ready-with-me video earlier this month. <h2>Wampler called the brand interest in her love story 'a genius marketing move'</h2>In addition to fervent fans, brands have wisely gotten in on the action. Given that Wampler works in the social media space (specifically consulting with local businesses in Sarasota on online marketing), she respects the hustle. <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@k.wamp/video/7285415125442448686" target="_blank" rel="noopener">On October 2</a>, Frontier sent her an <a href="https://www.flyfrontier.com/deals/gowild-pass/?mobile=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">all-you-can-fly pass</a> and $1,000 in flight vouchers to fund their travel, which Wampler called "a genius marketing move." The CEO of Tarte, Maureen Kelly, also commented on one of her videos that she wanted to send Wampler makeup (which she hasn't received yet). Wampler keeps branded content on her page to a minimum "unless it's just a really great deal," she said. But she's currently in talks with several companies who want to sponsor her relationship with Christian. That said, posting personal content has been a "huge dynamic shift" for Wampler, who initially built her TikTok presence by sharing self-help advice and beauty hacks. She only started posting lifestyle videos earlier this year after her divorce from her ex, a pro racecar driver, was finalized. Christian, too, was initially "a little overwhelmed" by all of the attention – including some gentle ribbing from his coworkers. But he previews all of the videos before they're published and enjoys seeing the relationship from Wampler's perspective.The response has been almost unanimously positive. "This is one of the only viral videos I've ever posted that didn't have a very big negative reaction," Wampler said.Up next? Wampler is flying to Raleigh at the end of the month, and Christian's coming to Sarasota in November for Thanksgiving. She'll have her vlog camera in tow."I could definitely see it becoming a long-term thing where we create content together," Wampler said.

An influencer ditched her flight at the airport to go on the 'craziest' blind date. Then Frontier gifted her $1,000 in vouchers as millions root for their relationship to last.

<ul><li>Luminary has entered into a strategic partnership with <keyword id="4519251" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="times-bridge">Times Bridge</keyword>. </li><li>Times Bridge will enable Luminary to launch, scale and expand its reach in India, the world’s largest open Internet market.</li></ul>Luminary, among the world’s leading subscription platforms for high-quality podcasts, today announced a partnership with Times Bridge to bring its premium audio experience to Indian consumers. Times Bridge, a leading global investments and partnerships firm, will enable Luminary to launch, scale and expand its reach in India, the world’s largest open Internet market. With news of this strategic partnership, Luminary joins Times Bridge’s global portfolio of market-leading, mission-driven partners who see India as essential to their global business: consumer and enterprise businesses alike, including Airbnb, Coursera, Headspace, Houzz, Stack Overflow, Smule, Uber and Wattpad, have all generated outsized global value for themselves in recent years by partnering with Times Bridge in India. Times Bridge is a division of The <keyword id="11125" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Times-Group">Times Group</keyword>, India’s oldest and largest media and digital company. Founded in 2018 and backed by marquee global investors including NEA, Luminary has set out to transform the global podcasting industry by offering an elevated experience for both listeners and creators. The company offers a subscription service for its premium content - which features personalities such as Russell Brand, Lena Dunham, Trevor Noah, and Dave Chappelle - and has amassed a slew of accolades, most recently from The New Yorker, The Webby Awards and Adweek. In April, Luminary announced that its podcasts would be offered on the Luminary channel of Apple Podcasts, making them available globally. <a name="m_-7922449519507527228_m_-469251050635407937_m_6068447029345576171_m_-706644968640035600_m_2072713269564072058_m_6896817252801412630_m_6296800022619968465_m_4879747725434813834_m_-6029213800918870495_m_-8064029617444494804__2iiegcvfk1lq"></a>Luminary’s official launch in the Indian market coincides with exceptional growth in audio consumption across India in recent years. The country is now the world’s third-largest podcast market, after China and the United States, with a monthly listenership of 58 million and expected growth to 200 million by 2024. Luminary aims to meaningfully cater to India’s vibrant cultural, demographic and linguistic diversity with soon-to-be-launched exclusive Indian content. <a name="m_-7922449519507527228_m_-469251050635407937_m_6068447029345576171_m_-706644968640035600_m_2072713269564072058_m_6896817252801412630_m_6296800022619968465_m_4879747725434813834_m_-6029213800918870495_m_-8064029617444494804__z8u3paip9mik"></a>Drawing on Times Bridge’s local know-how, its operational support and the unmatched reach of Times Group assets, Luminary will forge strategic partnerships, launch original Indian content, build a localized brand voice and contextualize its product experience for the Indian market. Times Bridge’s unique influence-and-insight oriented approach and dedicated resources will accelerate the growth of Luminary’s platform and advance its mission in India. Simon Sutton, CEO of Luminary Media, said, “India is an incredibly exciting audio market, and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to serve it with Times Bridge. We cannot wait for Indian audiences to experience our unique content offering. Over the course of the next year, we plan on becoming a part of the robust Indian podcast ecosystem. “ <a name="m_-7922449519507527228_m_-469251050635407937_m_6068447029345576171_m_-706644968640035600_m_2072713269564072058_m_6896817252801412630_m_6296800022619968465_m_4879747725434813834_m_-6029213800918870495_m_-8064029617444494804__fgkqux3ldpd4"></a>Rishi Jaitly, CEO of Times Bridge, added: “Times Bridge’s mission is to bring the world’s best ideas to India and share India’s best insights with the world. Luminary is an original idea with proven appeal with audiences who are passionate about high-quality audio experiences. With podcasting as a medium on the rise in India, and with millions of Indians now developing a habit of educating and engaging via audio, we are confident Luminary will delight new audiences in India - and unlock new stories from India for the world.”

Luminary partners with Times Bridge to bring its premium podcast platform to India

<ul class="summary-list"><li>People can't get enough of the friendship between Dutch MPs Rob Jetten and Jesse Klaver.</li><li>They are collectively known as "Resse" on <keyword id="11894125" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="tiktok" source="Orion">TikTok</keyword>, where fans imagine they are in love.</li></ul>TikTok users are obsessed with the friendship between two Dutch <keyword id="11947783" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="politicians" source="Orion">politicians</keyword> - and now, people are even writing fan fiction imagining a romantic relationship between the two that the pair have firmly denied. MPs Rob Jetten, of the Democrats 66 party, and Jesse Klaver, leader of the GroenLinks party, are now known to fans by the portmanteau "Resse." On TikTok, there are fan edits which combine all of Jetten and Klaver's TV appearances. The hashtag #Resse has videos with over 45 million views in total. In one, <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@ressepeasants/video/7020161435544128773" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which has 3 million views</a>, posted by the account @ressepeasants, the video plays to the sound of the song "Never Enough" from the movie "The Greatest Showman," a song usually used on the app to depict love or awe.There are <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/stories/resse/hot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">72 stories under the category "Resse" on the fanfiction platform Wattpad</a>, a community site for amateur writers, including chapters of e-books with titles such as "Inseparable," "My Colleague," and "The Heart of <keyword id="11893346" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="politics" source="Orion">Politics</keyword>." In most of them, Jetten and Klaver meet at work and try to resist their feelings for one another, but ultimately fall in love.It's common for readers of fictional works to write stories that go beyond what's in the original books or movies, such as the "Harry Potter" series. Fans of real-world bands, musicians, <a href="https://www.insider.com/youtuber-fan-fiction-teens-exposure-to-violent-sexual-content-2020-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and even YouTubers</a> have also been known to get creative about what the lives of their favorite stars could be. But there aren't many cases of this happening with politicians. <h2>Psychologists say affectionate, platonic relationships between men may fascinate viewers</h2>Psychologist Avigail Lev, who specializes in interpersonal relationships, told Insider that people may be fascinated by this friendship because Klaver, who is a straight man, displays an "affectionate and respectful bromance" with Jetten, who is gay."During this time, with the 'me too' movement, Trumpism, and gender tensions, people feel touched when men in a position of power behave affectionately towards each other," she said.Psychotherapist Madalaine Weiss, who specializes in helping people find workplace and life fulfillment, told Insider a parasocial relationship - in which fans of celebrities form the illusion of a face to face relationship - is an "opportunity for people to practice seeing themselves in the kind of relationship they dream about.""The stakes are low, as people are less likely to get rejected than if they reached out to a real person in the real world," Weiss said.<h2>'Resse' reminds younger fans of a popular fanfiction created about One Direction</h2>The owner of the TikTok account <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@ressepeasants" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@ressepeasants</a>, which has 41,700 followers, whose first name is Eve but asked to withhold her surname in case it interfered with her own potential future in politics, told Insider that she believed the idea of "Resse" was born about six months ago. She says it all started with one video showing them looking at each other with a "kind of love" in their eyes, she said, which promptly spread internationally. Eve is from Canada and isn't sure how she ended up on Dutch TikTok, but she said she loved that politics didn't come between the Jetten and Klaver's friendship."Even though Rob and Jesse are not from the same party, there's still this really good friendship going on," she said. "By documenting their friendship, I thought it would be good way for other people that are not from the <keyword id="11893779" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="netherlands" source="Orion">Netherlands</keyword> to learn a bit more about politics."A fan who wished to remain anonymous and posts TikToks and Instagram photos under the name <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@dropjetten?" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@dropjetten</a> told Insider they grew up in the time of "Larry Stylinson" - a popular community of One Direction fans who used to write fanfiction about Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson having a secret relationship."This Resse ship reminds them of what Larry once was," they said.<h2>The fandom is navigating what content could cross the line</h2>Jetten commented on people "shipping" his relationship with Klaver back in April (shipping is a term used when fans want two public figures to be in a relationship). He shared <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@papajetten/video/6952163171931131141" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TikToks made by the account @papajetten</a> on his Instagram story.Jetten also posted a photo of him and Klaver and said there was no truth to the romance rumors."Sorry to disappoint all my new fans, but Jesse and I are just really good colleagues," he wrote with a winking emoji. He added that both he and Klaver enjoyed the TikToks, and going viral was a "whole new experience.""I will be sitting on the sofa with my boyfriend and Jesse will be doing the same with his wife and kids," he said. "We both wouldn't have it any other way."Both Eve and the user @dropjetten told Insider that they appreciate how Klaver and Jetten are communicative with their fans, and even play up to "Resse" a little bit.Eve said that while Klaver and Jetten seem to have "really good chemistry," fans need to be mindful that they both have partners."As long as the Resse edits are done respectfully and not too extreme, I think we can all still enjoy their lovely friendship," she said. "Resse is just an amazing thing that happened in people's lives, and shouldn't disappear because we took it too far!"Jetten and Klaver did not respond to Insider's requests for comment. <a href="https://www.insider.com/culture">For more stories like this, check out coverage from Insider's Digital Culture team here.</a>

TikTok users obsessed with two Dutch politicians are writing and posting fan fiction about their imagined relationship

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Breakout <keyword id="11894125" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="tiktok" source="Orion">TikTok</keyword> star PinkPantheress mixes bedroom <keyword id="12021085" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="pop" source="Orion">pop</keyword> with old-school UK electronic genres.</li><li>Her latest, "Just for me," is TikTok's "breakout track of the summer" and no. 26 on the UK Top 40.</li><li>PinkPantheress is known for her enigmatic persona, rarely revealing any personal information.</li></ul>8 months ago, British musician PinkPantheress started to upload song drafts to TikTok.They were short and addictive snippets featuring a catchy hook sung over frantic drum loops. PinkPantheress spliced these mini-songs into off-the-cuff clips that usually showed her looking into the camera, sometimes while using a zany filter."Day 2 of posting my song until someone notices it," the 20-year-old wrote in on-screen text for one of her <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@pinkpantheress/video/6910251567421639937?is_copy_url=1&amp;is_from_webapp=v1p=v1">earliest TikToks</a>.Now, she's climbing the UK Top 40 chart while scores of stars - including Bella Poarch, Charli D'Amelio, and Lizzo - use her <keyword id="11898471" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="music" source="Orion">music</keyword> with their TikTok videos.<a href="https://newsroom.tiktok.com/en-gb/tiktok-uk-summer-hits-of-2021" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">TikTok</a> announced in August that the artist's latest release, "Just for me," saw the largest percent increase in creators using it for videos from June 21 to August 10, making it the platform's official "breakout track of the summer." The song, a slow-moving ballad with gentle guitar strums and snappy drums, has over 20 million plays on Spotify globally and peaked at 55th place on Spotify's <a href="https://spotifycharts.com/regional/us/daily/2021-08-18" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Top 200 chart</a> in the United States on August 18. PinkPantheress' unique style of pop music, which she described to <a href="https://i-d.vice.com/en_uk/article/m7e3xa/pinkpantheress-" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">i-D Magazine</a> as "new nostalgic," evokes a combination of Lily Allen's <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WxDrVUrSvI">sulky mood</a> and Clairo's <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9HYJbe9Y18">intimate vocals</a>. Her songs mix fast-paced <a href="https://www.magneticmag.com/2015/10/electronic-music-101-what-are-breakbeats/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">breakbeats</a> with <a href="https://www.insider.com/how-asmr-can-help-with-anxiety-panic-and-loneliness-2020-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ASMR</a>-like refrains, striking a balance between rowdy club music and confessional-style bedroom pop.The enigmatic star has also remained somewhat anonymous, releasing hardly any information about herself. Her real name isn't even public knowledge. She's a 20-year-old university student from London, according to <a href="https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/53416/1/pinkpantheress-new-nostalgic-vocalist-blowing-up-tiktok-passion-interview">Dazed,</a> and she told i-D that she was born in Bath, England. That's pretty much all fans know as of now. The artist and Parlophone Records declined Insider's interview requests. "Social media is a very crowded place. I don't feel like I need to overshare and I do really respect my own privacy," she told the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-58319555">BBC</a>. "I don't like the idea of… my face being thrust in people's faces."Though there's something incongruous about a social media star who ostensibly doesn't want to be online, her reticence has helped her build an <a href="https://twitter.com/dangelno/status/1431664539993530373">alluring aura of mystery</a> as fans have clamored to learn more about her.<h2>PinkPantheress went <keyword id="11896837" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="viral" source="Orion">viral</keyword> on TikTok with multiple hit songs</h2>PinkPantheress told the BBC that she only shared her early songs to TikTok because she wanted "closure" after toiling on them for so long. But instead of closure, it opened up an unexpected career.Her first viral hit was "Break It Off," a chaotic remix of Adam F's 1994 song "Circles," a staple of drum and bass music - a fast-paced electronic genre with drum loops that creatively uses synthesizers and samples. To make the song, PinkPantheress lifted the jazzy beat from "Circles" and recorded her own bright vocals over it, adding a heap of reverb so the mix sounds misty and dreamlike. She recorded most of her music in her university halls at 3 a.m., according to i-D.The tune soared on TikTok from March to May, becoming the soundtrack to a viral fashion-<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@bellapoarch/video/6950346143582784774?lang=en&amp;is_copy_url=1&amp;is_from_webapp=v1ebapp=v1">montage</a> trend.Around April, PinkPantheress was <a href="https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/nick-burgess-mark-mitchell-parlophoneits-about-the-outsiders-and-the-weirdos-thats-kind-of-what-this-label-is-for/">signed</a> by the German-British label Parlophone Records."Just for me" is her biggest song thus far. It went viral on TikTok in July and August and has soundtracked over 1.5 million videos. "Just for me" hit the UK Top 40 chart on August 26 at 36th place, according to <a href="https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/59943/pinkpantheress/">OfficialCharts</a>, and climbed to 27th place on September 2.<h2>PinkPantheress combines genres and harnesses nostalgia</h2>PinkPantheress' rise comes as similar <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZhn-6WfPhM">internet-driven artists</a> are also blowing up within the "new nostalgic" genre, which filters UK electronic music from the mid-90s and early 2000s through the lens of <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/music/what-s-bedroom-pop-how-online-diy-movement-created-musical-n1131926">bedroom pop</a>, a lo-fi pop subgenre full of young artists making professional-sounding music from laptops in their bedrooms.There's something alluring and refreshing about how PinkPantheress' uniquely "hushed" vocal style transforms speedy electronic genres like drum and bass into an introspective, romantic bedroom sound, especially considering the <a href="https://www.beatportal.com/features/beatports-definitive-history-of-drum-bass/">longtime association</a> of drum and bass music with large crowds of dancers and late-night raves.For <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lw_XFnk5kwU&amp;ab_channel=Pinkpantheressress">"Pain,"</a> another one of her most popular songs, PinkPantheress flipped the instrumental music from duo Sweet Female Attitude's 2001 UK garage song <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iR2tIyj8_y8">"Flowers,"</a> which itself borrows its <a href="https://www.songmeaningsandfacts.com/pain-by-pinkpantheress/">main chord sequence</a> from Erik Satie's 1888 piano composition <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyUNbrgLezI">"Trois Gymnopédies."</a> The result is a mishmash of genres and time periods that evades easy categorization.Some fans have marveled at how PinkPantheress' music makes them feel nostalgic for a time they never lived through, a phenomenon John Koenig labels "anemoia" in his <a href="https://www.dictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/post/105778238455/anemoia-n-nostalgia-for-a-time-youve-never">Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows.</a> "For some strange reason this song is giving me 2004 nostalgia and flashbacks of that era," one comment on a video for "Just for me" reads. "It's new but feels like a throwback.""This song resonates with me in a weird way," a commenter wrote on an upload of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Szr5Dcwn4Y&amp;ab_channel=Pinkpantheressress">"Passion,"</a> another PinkPantheress hit. "I think it unlocked some memories from my childhood [that] my brain blocked out." <a href="https://www.insider.com/culture">Read more stories from Insider's Digital Culture desk.</a>

How a 20-year-old student used TikTok to become the summer's breakout pop musician

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div></div></div>When Anna Todd started posting&#xa0;<a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/5095707-after">fan fiction stories online</a>, she never expected that her love of boy band One Direction would turn her into a sensation with a reported&#xa0;<a href="http://authors.simonandschuster.com/Anna-Todd/474410587">six-figure publishing deal.</a>&#xa0;But it did.Now, Todd is a bona fide best-selling author thanks to a story&#xa0;she wrote mostly&#xa0;on her iPhone.Her&#xa0;five-book "After" series has been published in 29 countries&#xa0;and read over a billion times on <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/home">Wattpad</a>, the digital reading platform where she originally published it. Paramount <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/one-direction-inspired-fan-fic-800189">even recently purchased the rights</a> to turn "<a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/5095707-after">After</a>" into a movie.Todd's fanfic success story is far from a fluke. Publishing houses and movie studios are increasingly looking online for fresh stories that have a built-in fan base. "Fifty Shades of Grey"&#xa0;was first published&#xa0;online, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/fifty-shades-of-grey-started-as-twilight-fan-fiction-2015-6">presented as fan fiction based on the "Twilight" books</a>. As writer E.L. James'&#xa0;audience ballooned online, mainstream publishers and movie studios took note. She became a best-selling author and&#xa0;her story was then adapted for the big screen, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/fifty-shades-of-grey-at-the-box-office-2015-2">making millions at the box office</a>.And now, Todd is&#xa0;following in her footsteps. The main difference between their trajectories, though, is that Todd had the added benefit of the digital publishing platform&#xa0;<a href="https://www.wattpad.com/home">Wattpad</a>&#xa0;accelerating the&#xa0;process. So how'd she do it?A few years ago, Todd was working odd jobs and waiting tables after having taken&#xa0;some classes at&#xa0;college but never graduating. She'd married her high school boyfriend at 18 and moved to Texas to follow his Army career.&#xa0;After becoming obsessed with One Direction, she&#xa0;started writing standalone fan fiction short stories about the boy band on an unlikely medium: the photo-sharing app Instagram. "I had no intention of [formally] publishing them," she said of her stories. "I just wrote what I wanted to be reading."Even when restricted to writing her stories as lengthy&#xa0;Instagram captions, though, she started gaining a following. A fellow fan took notice and turned her on to the much more writer-friendly&#xa0;<a href="https://www.wattpad.com/home">Wattpad</a>.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_left"><div><div class="image on-image"></div></div></div>Starting in April 2013, she wrote and published "After" one chapter at a time on Wattpad, without any&#xa0;outlining or planning&#xa0;for the plot. "After" reimagines One Direction's Harry Styles as a bad boy college student with a girlfriend named Tessa Young. And yes, its sex scenes are just as bodice-ripping as those found in any romance novel."After"&#xa0;was&#xa0;written almost entirely from Todd's cell phone.&#xa0;Often, she'd write while standing in line at Target or the grocery store.She dedicated five hours a day to writing "After" and another three hours to promoting it within Wattpad and on social media. Soon, it turned into a 100-chapter, one-million-word juggernaut that was rapidly attracting a fan base in the hundreds of thousands. Todd become famous on Wattpad.The only issue: Wattpad and its writers don't have much name recognition beyond the site's&#xa0;rabid fan base.Wattpad is a platform for reading and self-publishing, and its reach is quietly enormous. The Toronto-based free digital reading site&#xa0;has more than 40 million users, <a href="http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/140926/dq140926b-eng.htm">more than the entire population of Canada</a>. These numbers are constantly increasing, with over 24 hours of new reading content being uploaded every minute, Wattpad CEO Allen Lau told <keyword id="72550" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="TI">TI</keyword>. So while Todd's fame on Wattpad was growing, her life continued normally. She kept waiting tables in her Texas town.&#xa0;But soon, all that would change.Wattpad had noticed how popular she was. They&#xa0;reached out to Todd&#xa0;and, within six months, helped&#xa0;her score a book deal with Simon and Schuster in April 2014. This was just one year after Todd had shared her first "After" chapter on Wattpad.The&#xa0;"After" now available in stores&#xa0;is an edited version&#xa0;based on Todd's Wattpad writings. The 100-chapter saga has been broken down across <a href="http://www.amazon.com/After-The-Series-Anna-Todd/dp/1476792488">four books</a>, while the&#xa0;original version is still available on Wattpad.&#xa0;When she got the book deal,&#xa0;Todd had&#xa0;to change her character's name from Harry Styles to Hardin Scott&#xa0;for legal reasons. This is a common practice when online fan fiction is adapted for print. Since&#xa0;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/fifty-shades-of-grey-started-out-as-twilight-fan-fiction-2015-2">"Fifty Shades of Grey" started out as 'Twilight" fan fiction</a>, the character names and settings were also changed when the stories were published.&#xa0;Since <a href="http://www.amazon.com/After-The-Series-Anna-Todd/dp/1476792488">the first "After" book&#xa0;was published</a> in October 2014, her audience has only continued to grow."At [book] signings, I'll have everyone from 15-year-old girls to 45-year-old women coming up to me," Todd explained.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div></div></div>Todd's&#xa0;success has&#xa0;opened the door&#xa0;for other fanfic authors. Wattpad writers like&#xa0;<a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/5449917-body-rock">Doeneseya Bates</a>&#xa0;and <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/1333719-backfire-niall-horan">Bel Watson</a> have gained millions of reads on the platform for stories featuring&#xa0;characters like Justin Bieber and, of course, members of One Direction.&#xa0;Despite their fan fiction origins, there's still one major difference between&#xa0;"Fifty Shades of Grey" and "After."&#xa0;While Todd's&#xa0;books have plenty of sex scenes,&#xa0;the couple isn't suspending each other from the ceiling with&#xa0;rope."If you read 'After,' you won't find any BDSM stuff," Todd said of her characters' sexual encounters.&#xa0;"After" is also&#xa0;inspiring a new generation of readers."A lot of parents have said, 'My daughter never read before your books and now she loves reading," Todd told TI.Not everyone is a huge fan of Todd's writing style. Critics&#xa0;have been brutal, calling her work "<a href="http://jezebel.com/book-is-supposedly-new-50-shades-but-is-really-just-sl-1564444771">sloppy</a>," "<a href="http://www.sheknows.com/entertainment/articles/1055203/anna-todds-after-is-an-insult-to-intelligent-readers-everywhere">lacking in style</a>," and a "<a href="http://www.sugarscape.com/bookclub/reviews/a1072004/book-review-after-anna-todds-one-direction-fan-fic-turned-novel/">letdown</a>," but Todd and her loyal readers remain unfazed."Love fanfic or hate it, it's getting thousands of people to read and write who otherwise would not have," she told TI. "Reading and writing isn't supposed to be this exclusive club, it's just supposed to be entertaining." <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/hackers-ashley-madison-client-information-2015-7">Here's the type of info hackers have after breaking into the extramarital hookup site Ashley Madison</a></h3> <div> <div> <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="ViaDFkdjqYAnmokhNuwEhJWAd8e5-lu0" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div> </div> </div> </div>

This woman wrote One Direction fanfic on her phone and ended up with a massive six-figure book deal

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Warner BrothersThese "Harry Potter" fan fiction stories are best read by wand light.</div></div></div>"Harry Potter" fans are an obsessive bunch, so it should come as no shock that thousands of fan fiction chapters have been dedicated to expanding J.K. Rowling's wizarding world.Some of the stories are decidedly anchored in Rowling's original canon - think the James Potter, Lily Evans, and Severus Snape love triangle - while others completely reimagine the series and invent new plot lines.We scoured <a href="https://www.fanfiction.net/">FanFiction.net</a>, <a href="https://www.wattpad.com/signup">Wattpad</a>, and <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/">Archive of Our Own</a> to find the 11 themes that Harry Potter fan fiction writers love to visit again and again.

You Searched For "original stories on wattpad" and got 9 results

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TikTok users obsessed with two Dutch politicians are writing and posting fan fiction about their imagined relationship

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