Thread 24642980

Dungeon Core Edition

Stubbed >>24637098

>What is Web Novel General?
A general for readers and authors involved or interested in the growing phenomenon of 'web novels', serialized English fiction posted to websites such as: Royal Road, Webnovel, Scribblehub, Wattpad, Archive of Our Own, Spacebattles, HFY, various personal author websites, and more

>Why read web novels?
Not for prose or tight editing or deep themes, frankly. As a whole, web novels are infamous for content sprawl and pacing issues. If you enjoy having millions of words to sink your teeth into to get to know the world and characters, though, you may be interested. Keeping up with other readers on a weekly basis to discuss the story's events unfolding is another perk, in the same way discussing an ongoing TV show might be.

>Why write web novels?
Ease of access & potential for Patreon earnings. Many successful authors gain an audience on their website of choice and funnel their readers into a Patreon. See graphtreon.com/top-patreon-creators/writing for an idea of what some are earning.
Also, once an author has earned a fanbase, transitioning into an Amazon self-publishing career is several orders of magnitude easier than starting 'dry'.

>Advice for Noobs!

##READ THE FOLLOWING BEFORE ASKING FOR HELP##

Running your story like the business it is:
www.royalroad.com/forums/thread/116847

On writing web serials:
alexanderwales.com/how-to-write-a-web-serial/

Sanderson's Writing Lectures 2025:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEUh_y1IFZY&list=PLSH_xM-KC3ZvzkfVo_Dls0B5GiE2oMcLY

Recommended web novels
rentry.co/d2yvczro

Anon's guide to success
rentry.co/RRBasicGuide

FAQ
rentry.co/pytefpxn

I've written 0 words in the past 16 days. How over is it?

left necroepilogos for a couple months and binged back up to date today
god this feral half-retarded apex predator slime is so cute

>>24642999
Funnily enough, I've written 0 words in the past four days, but now I'm 600 words in my next chapter after browsing /wng/ this morning. I think anxiety plays a big part in affecting productivity, and the solution is to dwell in a space where people around you all toil along on the same matter, leaving no space for different topics, a bootcamp mentality to immerse yourself so to speak.

Banger review, if one of you anons left it thank you very much. Pushed me into the top 10,000

>>24643022
>strictly formatted list of vague praise
that's AI bro

>>24643027
Don't make me sick broschizo on you again, ___

>>24643022
>>24643032
if I can't tell which fic it is from the review, it's AI

>>24643032
et tu, bro?

Make a writing workflow adapted to your needs to boost your productivity.

While in my opinion AI can't (and won't) remplace writers, it's kind of useful to feed it author books and video transcript
>(I used : Robert McKee + Sanderson 2025 video transcripts+ other ressources. But of course, chose whatever you like. My reason is that they avoid telling that X methods work and instead give us the tools for us to find out how to write )
, then feeding it my writing as I go, with some questions
> (knowledge questions, neutral analysis questions (be sure to not just agree with what it output, really) , not specific questions (like should I do x, etc), don't fall for this trap, you won't improve, you are meant to answer these questions)

Then finally ask it why you are so barely productive and help you make a workflow.

The answer depends based on you.

In my case, it was a autistic need for perfectionism for my draft, instead of just writing, then going for a second phase, then another one.

I went from one chapter per 3-4 days from one chapter per day.

>>24643022
This review leaves me particularly mad in a meta way. Dude starts with the statement of said fiction being the best-written in the entire RR platform, but then proceeds to summarize every point that's supposed to be a standout with the most vague, broadly applied statements possible, which makes readers immediately doubt whether this was a blatant review swap and lose trust before opening the first chapter. If I were scrolling for novels, I would immediately assume that's the case. I mean, there's not even a single "THIS part of the story stands out", so you could tell an LLM to make a similar review without even feeding it a single chapter. I hope you got another review on top of that one to improve the impressions

>>24643071
What would you say of this review?

Is sky pride decent?

>>24643032
There's fingerprints all over it. As said above I would report this one if I were you because unless you really need that (1) five stars rating, it does more harm than good to have AI reviews from people too lazy to write proper ones poluting your impressions page.
>>24643086
This at least mentions the name of the character, it's barely better but acceptable since people are able to paint a two-dimensional picture of what they're getting rather than zero-dimensional.

>>24642999
in one of the discords I'm in and that I loathe with the burning passion of a thousand suns, there's an award for having the highest wordcount per diem

the current title holder wrote 23k in 24h or some shit

John Doe
Professional human webnovel reviewer
+3000 Goodreads and Royalroad reviews given
25$ per book
+5$ for 5 stars
+3$ comment in the most recent chapter
+3$ follower status
Hit me up on my Fiverr page
https://archiveofourown.org/works/41112099

>>24643118
Anyone can become a necromancer with the size of that skeleton draft

>>24642999
I'm having a similar issue. I wrote like 300 words in the last week. I sit on the couch and think about ways I should kill myself. The meds aren't working.

>>24643126
>Professional human webnovel reviewer
There's no way there isn't a thirdworlder offering such services already. 25$ is too much for what amounts to high schooler homework.
>https://archiveofourown.org/works/41112099
kek, I had a smile while reading this one, good shit. But considering the "advancements" of the newest version of AI, this one is a fantasy that techbros masturbate to.
>>24642999
When I'm in a slump, I work on other ideas I have for the day, either something I would post or just personal smut.

>>24643118
>in one of the discords I'm in
Anon I think I spotted the problem.

>>24643071
It's an AI generated review, and it's in EVERYBODY's best interest if it got reported and removed, including the author's. If I got such a review (thank goddess I haven't) I would want it removed asap.

>>24643154
Just write bro. Just tap out a few words. Don't even write it good, just write down what happens in the story. Maybe a line of dialogue the character wouldn't say because it sucks but it kinda gets close to what they mean.

>>24643071
>>24643097
>>24643199
But it’s definitely a real person thoughbeit, he’s commented on my stuff before

I'm not one of those anti-AI zealots and I think it can be useful but it has done immeasurable damage to online discourse, I can't believe I'm unironically seeing people using ChatGPT to create arguments and post them against people like it's some sort of "own"

>>24643294
Oh, thank God I'm not the only one. I mentally file someone asking AI for arguments—or worse, using AI to write their posts—as mentally retarded.
AI is doing the same thing to the mental faculties of people the same as GPS did for wayfinding, but way way worse.

>>24643282
Then DM him asking why he used an LLM to generate a review of your work instead of just leaving it at five stars.
Seriously. I have a few reviews and ALL of them it's extremely clear that the reviewer read the work, they reference specific things, and they give a nuanced opinion that they think might help other people decide whether or not to read it.
I'd rather have an informative 1 star review than ten LLM-generated 5 star reviews.

>>24643301
>I'd rather have an informative 1 star review than ten LLM-generated 5 star reviews.
Suuure. It's a race and we'd all take a free 5-star review even if an amoeba posted it. bros are just mad jealous

>>24643330
install the theory of mind firmware
no, not everyone is a soulless insect like you

>>24643338
>not everyone is a soulless insect like you
Most of them are though. P-zombies are everywhere man, especially on RR.

>>24643330
NTA but the argument is sound; a more engaged reader could think that the author is using sockpuppets to boost their fiction and may be appalled by it, for example (not saying that it's happening but it could happen). Having a fleshie human tell you why a novel is worthy reading is 10x better than someone letting a bot do it.
In the end, anon is just happy that someone is reading his work, leave him be.
>bros are just mad jealous
Don't bring out the 'crab' argument. People who actually value writing also value reviews.

>>24643298
Evolution always chooses the path of least resistance. Future humans will be akin to the male anglerfish, embryo-looking semen producers that lost the survivalist need of cognition since all thinking can be delegated to the bigger organism

>>24643330
>It's a race
Nope. I have a story, it's outlined, I'm telling it, it'll be written by the end of the year and done posting a few months after that. Then I have four or five MORE stories that I have very rough ideas for, that I will outline, and continue posting. I'm taking the iterative approach, and I'm in it for the long haul. Eventually I'll a large following and enough patrons to cover my living expenses, and a back catalog of enough books that even sporadic purchases will help pad my wallet.

Feedback matters quite a lot to this iterative strategy. If it's LLM-generated and not honest, I'll never identify flaws in my writing and will never improve. I'll just have some machine jacking me off while I waste away in a hovel.

Tell me, what's actually helpful in that review? Where's the critique? If you want a fluff piece you could just go to an LLM and gas yourself up directly.

>>24643282
>>24643330
Honestly, you already got 4 solid good reviews that seem to be written by genre-savvy users. This isn't a case of having that sketchy one as the sole high-rating giver, so I don't know why you would consider leaving it next to the promising ones — on top of them, actually, as we can see it appearing as the headline review here:
https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/93931/born-under-a-black-sun
As the author you do know better than anyone else what's better for your work though.

>>24643430
Oh, I thought this was a review of /wng/'s local sperg's novel.
Take everything I said but assume I meant it in the best, kindest way.

>>24643430
Wait why did he bother with hiding info in his pics? He's a known poster

>>24643474
Second one wasn't his actually, I just wanted to see what anon would say about my review. I removed the info so it wouldn't be obvious. Dunno about his original post though.

Why do so many prog fantasies stop the progression or invent some new side progression system?

I recently read He Who Fights With Monsters. Bro got to Silver rank in like 3 books. Then it took him another 8 books to get to gold. Instead we're dealing with this nebulous aura crap and the major plot power progression. At the end of the day though, when a fight breaks out, he's still just a beginner gold ranker. Why do authors do this?
Why not just have a consistent level of progression for the characters over time?

>>24643521
zoomies get bored/authors are scared of readers getting bored
awkwardly forcing in cultivation aesthetics has been a slop meme for awhile. it pretty much always makes the story worse

New fff out

New FFF-Class 'Unlucky Antagonist' is out!
In this chapter, Jacques plays with his little black cat.

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/119783/fff-class-unlucky-antagonist-villains-origin-story/chapter/2524004/man-part-two

>>24643551
Late

>>24643548
you beat me, holy shit.

>>24643548
>>24643551
>Less than a minute apart
???

>>24643551
Isnt this sigvald looking fuck dead for the last 10 chapters?

>>24643555
>>24643553
my greatest fan

>>24643521
I haven't read it, but some of it could be poor planning, some of it could just be power gaps. Having a steady ramp isn't cathartic or satisfying, however. You need flat parts, maybe even some dips, and then "breakthrough" moments where the ramp jumps, and then grows steeply for a bit. It's quite a balancing act.

>>24643555
I have notifications on for his chapters...

>>24643558
Never read your story. But you seem to indeed have a fan.
>>24643561
This one aparently.

>>24643558
Yes sire, how is my doll wife fairing?

>>24643557
His spirit lives in the body of anyone who falsifies his age to do..things...with...high school students.

>>24643565
In the next volume there will be a kino scene with Elf-GF, but for now her fans will have to suffer a little longer.

>>24643569
Im letting chapters buildup anyway its chill

>>24643573
if you missed her fan-art

>>24643597
Made for (not)italian btw

>>24643645
Which of the two?

>>24643385
Evolution does not ALWAYS choose the path of least resistance. In fact, that's one of the defining characteristics of evolution.

Imagine you're blind and halfway up a mountain. Your goal is to find the lowest valley. What do you do? You check in every direction and head in the direction where the ground is descending. You continue doing this until you reach a point where the ground is ascending in every direction.

Have you reached the lowest valley? Maybe, but maybe not. You could've just walked into a hole in the ground. If you want to find the lowest valley then sometimes you have to actually go uphill - do things that decrease your fitness.

Evolution does the same thing. That's what all the randomness (mutations) and recombination are there for. These are the steps that make you go uphill and perhaps find a lower low in the process.

>>24643749
This is /lit/, please use a LitRPG or xianxia analogy for evolution thx

>>24643559
I don't disagree there. You need variation, but imagine you're reading a progression fantasy novel. In the first year you read 3 books. In those 3 books the MC goes from level 1 to level 40. You continue reading those novels as they release. Over the course of the next 3-4 years the MC goes from level 40 to level 50. In fact for 3 of those years the MC remained at level 40.

>>24643749
>>24643385
>Anons are talking about evolution
>It's local maxima-minima all over again
God dammit

>>24643768
Yeah I agree, what you're describing is unsatisfying, and the rest of the book had better be really good to justify the chart crabbing for so long. Everybody hates a crab market.

>>24643521
I stopped at book five, but I'm pretty sure it was established early on that it takes exponentially more experience to rank up as you go higher. Lots of talk about how it takes years to reach gold and how rare it is to get there at all.

>>24643770
It is the defining feature of evolution for me. It's not a pure gradient descent ("always take the path of least resistance"), but it's also not random search. It's a guided search with enough randomness in it to hopefully not get stuck.

Lamarckposters gtfo to /sci/

I just finished a new chapter while in a nightclub party with soundboxes well over 85 decibels ringing in my ears. Not even Jericho's trumpets can distract me anymore.

>>24644013
>goes to a club
>sits in a booth
>hunches over his phone and slops
anon this isn't what they meant when they told you to get out more

>>24643521
>invent some new side progression system
Prog fantasy isn't different from a Shonen manga. New power-ups and means of getting power-ups are a way of maintaining readers' interest.

>>24643749
Reminds me of that experiment where they made fungus grow in a maze until it reached the exit and we're like, "omg it knew where the exit is! Fungi are basically clairvoyant and super smart!" No, it got out by growing branches into fucking every part of the maze until it stumbled upon the way out. The only function driving it was "grow".

>>24644013
Now why would you do that? Did you get some atleast?

>>24643597
Not fan art if you paid for it, it’s a commission

>>24644890
Well, he didn't pay for it afaik, but he asked a resident artist. So not a fan art either?
Not that matters, he will say and spam whatever.

>>24644890
it was provided by the charity of /wng/

>>24644890
This was made for free.
I tried to contact that anon for a commission for the 10k views special, but he didn’t reply.

It seems he’s a free spirit, creating art for beauty alone and not for mere money.”

How many characters in a RR Summery before it gets cut off by Show More?

>reading LOTM after watching the anime
>tfw it's mostly things that have already happened in the anime
>don't want to skip over because i know that the animators skipped tons of things from the webnovel
the slow pacing combined with reading through something you've already been through makes it a slog - like the entire chapter of Klein drinking a potion and awakening his beyonder powers. i don't think i needed to read an entire paragraph on what color each part of the body looks like in spiritual vision.

It's very interesting to look at the filters people use to search for new novels on RR

>>24645114
Your speedreading skills?

>>24645131
>Your speedreading skills?
non-existent. i'm a very slow reading, and if i try to read too fast then i don't internalise it at all and it goes through one ear and out the other.

>>24645139
i'm a very slow reader*
apparently i'm slow in other areas, too.

>>24645125
The top one is me but also remove chinese tags

What are the best lewd webnovels?

>>24645231
Depends on your fetish
I'm into female degradation so goblin or ugly bastard stuff makes me goon like a king

>>24641197
>>24641588
>>24642033
>>24643679
The posters in that /g/ cross thread are so pitiful, I hope no anon here fell for the meme of expending their time trying to summon a divine textpad to earn its fabled productivity blessing through a thousand-macro schools. If anything, had they simply taken more Sun and minerals the effects would be far more concrete and immediate on productivity.

>>24645231
The one (you) want to write. Seriously, writing your fetish smut is very fun, just don't let it ruin your non-smut writing.
None are focused on lewdness but I find the lewd parts of Blue Core to be top level tentacle smut. Everybody Loves Large Chests also has lewd scenes, but they are mostly comedic.

It's just the best when a bipolar schizo finds your story and proceeds to unload manic epistles in the chapter comments. Only the unrestrained mind of a lunatic can grasp and appreciate the true depth of my composition, until their medically assisted enlightenment inevitably wears off, and they implode amid incoherent rage and screeching. It's never not entertaining.

>>24645275
>until their medically assisted enlightenment inevitably wears off
These schizo commenters are hazardous. You should try to interact as little as possible with him because while he may be an especially invested reader, his mood is also extremely volatile, which means if you leave him dissatisfied (moreso after giving him attention) he will actively tarnish the comments' mood until you listen to him again.

>>24645125
How do you like Author Premium? I'm already paying j-novel club $5/mo and it's my only subscription, so I don't want to add an RR sub to it.

>>24645242
I just use notepad, librewriter, or sometimes kwrite. What are people even using macros for? There's already keyboard shortcuts for italics and bold and that's all you need for good old fashioned litrpg slop.

>>24645298
Yeah I don't even have a manic schizo, just some guy who's really enthusiastic and it turns me off. Why can't he just 'tftc' like everyone else? Why must he ask for spoilers and errata? This shit ain't the silmarillion, sometimes a color is just a color.

>>24645298
Yeah, I've seen enough of these people to avoid responding. The most excited readers are always also those who take off with the biggest drama when the wind happens to change direction.

webnovels with a focus on ryona?

FurReader

Chapter 110 of asking the author to turn the protagonist gay

Reply Rep (200) Report

>>24645371
thanks for reading — all will be revealed...

>>24645409
chefs kiss

>>24645409
You just reminded me of how much I hate people that won't shut the fuck up and stop asking questions during movies like you dumb nigger how should I know? Fucking pay attention to the plot instead of yapping every three seconds and your stupid questions will get answered

>>24643474
>>24643484
I hid the name of the reviewer because I didnt want to post some random reader of mine on a Mustang Valley Kingdom yak-herding forum

>>24645327
>Why can't he just 'tftc' like everyone else?
It's called a parasocial relationship. A schizoid reader does not think of his obsessive pestering as being inconvenient to the author, because every time you reply, you validate his assurance of mutual interest. After a certain threshold of time X interaction is crossed, he will think of himself as some sort of community authority, someone who influences your work, and start making demands and suggestions which if not attended often result in swelling antagonism and long-winded rants that drama may as well obfuscate your entire chapter. Thankfully I have guiltless containment plans for these profiles, it's very simple once you apply platform interchange ops.

>>24645327
>I just use notepad, librewriter
Same, plus grammarly.
>Why must he ask for spoilers and errata
As a reader, usually when I post a question I'm trying to raise discussion, not the author's direct input, and I usually think the same when I see others. But by the sound of it, that reader wants your attention, just give them none and they'll (hopefully) stop.

>>24645371
>>24645409
>proceeds to reveal that the protagonist is ungayable
what happens then? will readers chimp out?

>>24645478
I would literally report that fiction for homophobia.

>>24645455
>schizoid
Schizoid =/= schizophrenia

>>24645483
>Dear mods
>The author didn't make his characters have hot and passionate gay sex
>Plz ban him for homophobia
>k thx bye
>t.fujo

>>24645478
your only promise was that you'd eventually reveal something in the fullness of time

>>24645125
First person in that screenshot does something very similar to what I do. I am a demon though and will go like 20 pages deep.

>>24645496
>The author of this fiction refuses to acknowledge homosexuality and homosexual relationships, especially with their main characters. They are dismissive in relation to the LGBT community, the abuse they receive, and view LGBTAQI+ members with abhorrence and disgust. We will not tolerate authors like this in our community, and we demand they be banned.

I'm going to write BL bait and cure every fujo through it. I will single handely stop the tomboy to ftm pipeline. Tomboy genocide shall end.

>>24645563
>he was a girl all along
nice

>>24645563
One of my cute 4'10" ex gf's is a man now.

>>24645578
No, she's not.

>>24645578
I'm sorry I couldn't make it in time.. Tell me, did she change her to name to Damien or Kai?

>>24645594
I do write lesbian scenes but only in a fetish context, away from prying eyes.
Can't let readers get the wrong impression.

I finally got a flyby ratenuke
Anybody have experiance in getting the jannies to remove these? Like, do I just open a support ticket and bitch about my average rating going down, or is there some secret activation phrase I can utter to get them to do my bidding?

I think RR is ready for hagmaxxing
get in before the curve, lads

>>24645622
they only remove if they investigate and its suspicious afaik

>>24645622
Mad jealous of that number of ratings.

>>24645622
>~90 five stars ratings
I wouldn't be so worried about it if I were you. Did you take some story decision recently or did someone post something in your comments? If yes, maybe you could cry about it to them, say that it was biased or something. But I've never contacted them, so honest good luck anon.
>>24645654
Top 1-pecenter dabbing on litwangers.

>>24645586
I mean, they did make a transition. Your opinion of their current gender is irrelevant to my statement.
>>24645587
No, it is a reasonably common make name like Matt, John, or Kyle.

>>24645622
Ratings themselves are very difficult to get purged because there's usually little to no evidence to suggest foul play unless you can like directly link the account that bombed you to someone you had an argument with off-site

Reviews are much easier.

>>24645682
If you have 4 reviews at 5 stars each, you have 20 total rating points.
>(4*5) = (5*4) = 20
If you have 4 reviews of 5 stars each, and gain 1 review of 0.5 stars you have 20.5 rating points.
>(5*4)+(0.5*1) = (4.1*(4+1)) = 21
If you have 99 reviews of 5 stars each you have 495 total rating points.
>(99*5) = (5*99) = 495
If you have 99 reviews of 5 stars each and going 1 review of 0.5 have 495.5 total rating points.
>(99*4)+(0.5*1) = (4.955*(99+1)) = 495.5

tl;dr - There is never a reason to remove any rating regardless of what it is. All reviews bump your rank, you are stupid if you remove them.

>>24645714
rating bombs reduce your ranking are you retarded
you can literally see it go down on the dashboard

>>24645714
>All reviews bump your rank
a 3 star review made my rank go down

>>24645714
less people will read your story if they see you have a bunch of reviews saying that your story is bad
r u dumb ??

>>24645714
>(99*5) = (5*99)
why did you write this? Do you need to have the smaller number first to do multiplication and so you re-arrange the numbers like this in your head and were simply showing your work?

>>24645672
>>24645672
Bro your statement is just confessing you're retroactively gay then why would you post that bro

>>24645714
i've seen a lot of nonsense posts here but this is one of the funnier ones. how do you people state shit like this with so much confidence when you're so obviously wrong? and it's so easy to disprove? literally just go look at "best rated"

>>24645714
>makes shit up

>>24645722
>>24645725
>>24645729
>>24645730
>>24645730
>>24645762
>>24645780
You are literally too fucking stupid to understand. Complete retards. An absolute waste of time to engage with even when I try to help.

>>24645785
link your fic so I can give you .5 """rating points"""

>>24645714
>>24645785
This person is a fucking moron.

>>24645791
Google "Mother of Learning"

>>24645791
Here you go bro! https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/119783/fff-class-unlucky-antagonist-villains-origin-story

>>24645785
dipshit, that simply isn't how the ranking system works

Your all retard

That dumb whore is up to 24k a month. i really thought it would spike and then fall but it's just steadily going up. how? what is this bullshit?

>>24645806
>bro doesn't know he can just subscribe to himself to keep numbers artificially high

>>24645806
We don't need to know about your mother's rates. Sorry I couldn't resist, you're talking about Archmage?

>>24645806
Bots, obviously

>>24645810
>>24645812
how does that make any sense
they're paying him with intergalactic credits?

>>24645806
how? it's the best story ever released on royalroad. of course it's popping off

>>24645825
it's mid incarnate

>>24645730
>number_of_votes*rating_value {per_rating} = average_rating*number_of_votes = rating_points
It just so happens for those examples the rating_value and average_rating are the same because there is only one type of rating value being counted.

>>24645828
it takes a miserable normie premise and does it well enough that even 4chan fags who absolutely hate isekai trash only calls it mid

>>24645806
I honestly suspect it's got at least some level of money laundering in it. It's just a crazy amount of money for a new fiction new account.

>>24645843
don't be a schizo

>>24645847
I also think it's a chinese money laundering operation.

>>24645847
I refuse wholeheartedly.

>>24645843
>>24645861
>>24645862
I understand the suspicion but the markers aren't there. The story has performed shockingly well on every website it was posted to and all metrics line up as expected. Most importantly, the fan engagement is there: every chapter gets a ridiculous amount of patreon likes, comments, rr chapter comments, sh comments, spacebattle discussions, discord discussions...etc. A money laundering scheme would have a massive patreon with a ghosttown following. It's undoubtedly legit

>story finds success
>anons are convinced it's somehow money laundering or "bots"
No. I just had a lucky break. Maybe you will have yours too, keep it up :^)

>>24645874
Fuck off OccultBeat.

>>24645878
That wasn't me, that was a larper

it's an industry plant like they do in the music industry
soon they'll be "organically" scouted by one of the top publishers who will then enter the webnovel scene with a huge platform and start buying out all the sloppers

>>24645881
>He's still doing it

>>24645884
>buying out all the sloppers
starting with FFF anon. you heard it here first

>>24645870
Cluster of AI agents.

>>24645890
AI = actually indians

>>24645881
You aren't me, you're a larper.

>the year is 2028
>Netflix presents: FFF-CLASS UNLUCKY ANTAGONIST starring Pedro Pascal

>>24645893
Cluster of actually indian agents.

>>24645870
The story is definitely mid, straight out of the genre-fare bag, and there's even plot holing already, but anons are missing the link of digital PR. The author has done a lot of discord aura farming from what I've seen. He even posted his story there first, which may have solidified a prone supporter base depending on how many servers he was in

>>24645911
>The author has done a lot of discord aura farming from what I've seen.
what does this even mean lol
>He even posted his story there first
to a writing discord? near certain that you're wrong, but how would posting work to a discord server contribute whatsoever to a rising stars run? you sound kinda clueless ngl

just gonna take this golden opportunity to repost my once seminal memorandum here for everybody's consideration:
>Feels like on top of writing a good serial story, I also need to be an active and visible member of genre-specific and adjacent fandom communities, a marketing executive, a graphic designer, a brand identity designer, a PR manager, a copywriter, etc etc

just be lucky

>>24645924
it's really not that complicated. you just need to write a story people want to read (the only hard part) and have a good cover, title, blurb. and run an ad for early exposure. alternatively, shout out swaps. that's it.

>>24645911
>The story is definitely mid, straight out of the genre-fare bag
I once wanted to post half a dozen light novels that had the same elements that show up on it.
>plot holing already
I missed it, what was it?
>>24645924
That is, running your story like the business it is?

just don't fucking suck at writing slop tbqcth

>>24645940
>running your story like the business it is

>>24645940
>I missed it, what was it?
the mc could simply mind control everyone causing her problems. big plot hole

>>24645923
Bro can't aura farm his writing in 2025 and still try to score a RR victory royale lol

>>24645950
fr on fonem blood is buggin.

>>24645870
A good money laundering operation, one I planned (not that I ever would), would have a ton of fake engagement. I'd have a team of guys doing nothing but that all day long.

There's success, and then there's six sigma success. Six sigma events simply do not happen in our universe.

execution > originality
*mic drop*

i was shaving my pubes the other day and my massive cock was too massive to not accidentally graze and there was so much penisblood for such a small cut

Mexican kingpin of the Sinaloa Cartel has found this one sneeky method to launder money and basically glowniggers are fucking retarded. Click here to find out how!

>>24645968
Trvke.

>>24645968
Exactly. It's what makes a classic a classic. Why read the first hundred bad to mid isekai stories when you could just read the first two classics (Mushoku Tensei and Ascendance of a Bookworm)?

I can't wait to see the classic, good version of BTDEM and Azarinth Healer (feMC, healer/fighter, fire-aligned powers outside of healing, fantasy isekai).

MagicRhythm is basically perfecting Overlord right now.

>>24645988
> good version of BTDEM and Azarinth Healer
You might not like the style or the story but both do exactly what they set out to do - ignoring Dragoneyes after the timeskip. Especially Azarinth which executes the "punch stuff and power up ad-nauseum" extremely well.

>>24645988
so Overlord is MySpace,
Fresh Start as a Level Cap Arch-Sorceror is Facebook?

>>24646008
Overlord is a hundred times bigger lol. this is still a royalroad english web novel we're talking about here. the biggest you can possibly get in this space is like ~2mil a year, primal hunter. im sure overlord made more than that with its manga and anime
....actually, how much money DO the creators get from their manga, ln, anime royalties? how much did eg overlord make?

>>24645900
>Pedro Pascal as Esteban Diaz
KINOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

>>24645900
>>24646016
who would play Jacques?

>TBATE was originally posted on Tapas
why is this not/no longer the meta?

>>24646006
AH is good, definitely better in totality than BTDEM, but it's obvious the author wasn't sure how he was going to end things. At least he DID end things, and the ending was fairly satisfying, but it wasn't extra enough at the end. It just felt like the end of every other arc prior. Hopefully the edited RL pubbed version enhances things. BTDEM shat the bed hard and has been bad more than twice as long as it's been good.

>You might not like the style or the story
I do like it, I've enjoyed both stories. AH I'd give a 9/10, BTDEM I'd give a 5/10 (9/10 prior to timeskip).
So I'm being sincere I honestly can't wait to see someone take the building blocks and make it really really good. It shan't be me, I'm a shitter.

>>24646008
Yeah kinda. I'd definitely recommend Max Level Archmage over Overlord. The novels are just tedious.

>>24646019
The GOAT

>>24645833
This slop blatantly rips off a bunch of jap LNs, which do the same thing a lot better, but their authors with all their anime adaptations can't even dream of the piles of money archmage rakes in. It's just insane

>>24646022
looks like the site is all yaoi vampires now

>>24646015
>actually, how much money DO the creators get from their manga, ln, anime royalties? how much did eg overlord make?
Don't think they make as much money as western web novel authors, even if comparatively their mainstream success is larger; going by how much they fleece their IPs.
>>24646026
Funny, I thought Overlord's anime was boring at some parts but I was never bored with the novel. But last 3 volumes were a wet fart as the author is rushing to finish.

>>24646032
>a bunch of jap LNs, which do the same thing a lot better
I read damn near all of the officially translated LNs. The premise is "transmigrated into my max level MMO character and there's a mystery why that happened, and I'm looking for guildmates." I can think of two LNs that do that: Overlord and Log Horizon, and LH doesn't really fit since it's about a lot of people transmigrating, not just one, and Overlord matches on a few other things as well.
There are a lot of VRMMO setting stories, but the mystery and starting at the top and focus on NPC interaction means it's basically just Overlord. If I'm wrong, please let me know, I'd love to stop reading Dungeon Diver Stealing Monsters Skills before I get caught up.

>>24645622
There's always THAT guy, welcome to internet. What's the point of begging to remove them? Another cunt will show up sooner or later, or they'll just make a new account to drop another bomb if they feel like it.

>>24646038
How about a yaoi vampire reincarnated as a lesbian vampire

>>24646046
A Wild Last Boss Appeared, In the Land of Leadale just off the top of my head. I know there are more but I don't have a real time slop database in my brain.

>>24646046
NTA but:
>She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man
Is gender bender with basically the same promise.
>How Not to Summon a Demon Lord
Has a max level character MC with all the silliness that it entails.
>In the Land of Leadale
Was admited as one of the inspirations.
>Skeleton Knight in Another World
Basically same idea with a fighter MC.
>Did I Seriously Just Get Reincarnated as My Gag Character?!
OP femMC gender bender.
>Disciple of the Lich: Or How I Was Cursed by the Gods and Dropped Into the Abyss!
This one isn't really that related but one female character being OP and emotionless screams Vivi for me.

And that's out of the top of my head.

'OP isekai' is an extremely common trope in light novels.

>Dungeon Core Edition
The dungeon core is deep inside a colossal monster. The two work in symbiosis: the dungeon core spawns monsters and takes care of the beast and guides it, the beast protects the core.

>>24646069
Fair, I forgot about wild last boss (dropped early when it was looking boring) and never read Land of Leadale. Thanks.

>>24646072
I'm spoiled for choice, thanks.
>Skeleton Knight in Another World
>How Not to Summon a Demon Lord
Weren't these not MMO?
Gag character I also dropped (felt the writing was lackluster) and Pupil of the wiseman I was really hyped for but fell off between volume releases and the conflict wasn't compelling enough to keep my interest, so I've been paused for years.
I'm also behind on Max Level Archmage.
Someone should make a video essay analyzing all these stories.

>>24645833
>>24646046
>>24646072
>>24646080
The New Gate. It's basically the same story:
>https://www.novelupdates.com/series/the-new-gate/

In The New Gate MC was a very powerful swordsman in the top guild that defeated the evil. He appears inside the game as his avatar hundreds of years later. He sets out to find his old guild NPCs.

Max level archmage is better because she's a mage. The apprentice is another good addition. Female MC might make it more boring, but that hasn't happened yet.

>>24646091
>Weren't these not MMO?
I'm positive that Demon Lord was MMO, as I think another isekai'ed character shows up latter, don't remember about Skeleton Knight.
In the end, beyond Log Horizon, the fact that the game world was an MMO doesn't really matter after a few chapters.
>I'm spoiled for choice, thanks.
You are, Archmage takes the most generic approach to the genre desu~. But that may be why it's so successful.
It's ~serialized~ white bread.

>>24646108
Even MC's support character that he goes out to look for had become extremely powerful and famous.

>>24646072
the problem with all the eastern OPMC stories is that translated prose makes me want to kms
what are some english original OPMCs that aren't horrible?

>>24646150
Rebirth as a Skill Ceiling Arch-Shaman

>>24646157
>Arch-Shaman
Ur-Shaman.

>>24646150
I've read a lot of japanese sloppa, but I don't know what to recommend that is english original. So read Archmage if you aren't already. It's like someone put all those stories in a blender but writen in english.

How do I make my story grab readers from the very start should it be an action sequence or sex scene maybe something else?

How often do you imagine novel-sized stories in your head while gaming? This happens all the time when I used to play sandboxes so now I have a lot of contrived plots left in the backburner to the point I quit gaming because I couldn't afford being haunted by one more fiction in line waiting to be given form

>>24646163
this might legit be why its doing so well. steal another culture's meta but write the ideas in prose efls can stomach

>>24646184
The trouble with both of those is that the reader doesn't care about the protagonist yet. They won't feel emotionally involved in the fight or sex. You need to somehow endear the MC to the reader, then throw them into a fight or sex or mystery.

This genuine schizo murderhobo slop novel is decent. I just finished binging all of it. Any good murder hobo recs aside from the common ones?

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/80031/mask-of-humanity

>>24646291
>>24646184
I forgot to add start the novel with something unusual. Have something bad or weird happen to the MC. For example, start the book with MC getting slapped across the face, then proceed into a fight or sex.

>>24646078
>Onbu: Dungeon Core Edition

>>24646184
>in media res
>waking up
>dialogue
>scenery description
the holy quaternity of slop openers

pick and choose; mix and match

>>24646346
>"Hey, was that a fucking qi explosion?!"
>The unfamiliar voice tore Gong Wang from his slumber and his eyes opened to a scene of fire-lit carnage in the once jewel-green valley below.

>>24646376
swearing is cringe in prose
coming from someone who swears all the time. idk i just find it amateurish

>>24646387
that's your only complaint about that shitpost?

>>24646184
Introduce the concept and purpose of your story asap. I will read something that has mediocre writing solely because the setting and plot are unique and interesting. If you wait to provide the hook, or your hook is shit, nobody will read your story.

>>24646394
that's a better opening than almost anything I've seen posted here. unironically.
the only shitpost is the name Gong Wang. otherwise great sloppa opening

>>24646346
>>24646376
another anon followed this blueprint last it was posted too and it turned out good too lmao is this really the secret sauce?

>>24642999
the 'log will absorb this blow, that's what it's for. just make sure to replenish it by grinding twice as hard for the next 16 days

>>24643765
Reborn with the worst F ranked cursed skill that everyone says is useless but after three chapters it leveled up into a World-Dominating Cheat Skill?? [Weak to Strong] [Fast Progression]

>>24646502
You forgot [It's Serialized]

>>24645231
The ones I've liked on scribblehub are
>Capture Target
>Succeed, or Fall into Depravity as a Witch
i'm sure my fetish is obvious from that

>>24646528
>Succed, or Fall into Depravity as a Witch
You really like this novel, huh, anon?

I see plenty of isekais into games that are good, but where's the poor bastards who got sucked into shitty games? Where's the guy who was unfortunate enough to get put in a scam mobile game? I want to see someone go from Level 0 Retard to Level 99 Boss.

New FFF-Class 'Unlucky Antagonist' chapter is out.
This time, Jacques teaches English to an illegal immigrant.

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/119783/fff-class-unlucky-antagonist-villains-origin-story/chapter/2526323/man-part-three

>>24646551
>mc gets sucked into shitty games
Amazing Digital Circus was pretty amusing

>>24646551
sounds like dungeon crawler carl (i never read it btw)

>>24646566
Fuck I was busy reading other shit and missed the notiff... You win today

>>24646617
eh not really, it's a alien reality TV show with gaming thematics. not an "isekai into shitty game"

>>24646647
Rip bro

>>24646487
sometimes topping up the 'log feels like pushing out a log...

>>24646551
>isekaid into scam mobile game
I can see it now. Something titled like "I Will Become An SSS-Pull In My Favorite Gacha Game". However he is ugly as sin and everyone is model-like in beauty. The economy runs off dozens of stupid types of currencies that you get for daily tasks that are tedious to do. I don't play gacha games but I am sure someone could cook up something truly awful.

>>24646551
>>24646709
anyway if you want bottom of the barrel there's plenty of isekai'd into a gacha game slop on scribblehub

>>24646758
That's just smut fanfics thougheverbeit.

>>24646763
This, AO3 is consistently higher quality if we're talking about gacha smut. Heck, I became an FGO fan even though I never played the gacha because there were so many great fanfics there

>>24645806
Overlord, OPM and Frieren were some of the most popular series around. Mix them together, with have a good cover too and of course its popular.
And also, >>24645911
They actually shilled it.

FFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

>>24646758
That's just Genshin. I'm talking about stuff like Mafia City or Hero Wars. Many of these ads would qualify for web novel kino if they were written, especially since they love having numbers go up.
https://youtu.be/6gHF6_X8F6M?si=WaHhgUaRoZbiXGv0

>>24646758
That's just Genshin. I'm talking about stuff like Mafia City or Hero Wars. Many of these ads would qualify for web novel kino if they were written, especially since they love having numbers go up.
https://youtu.be/6gHF6_X8F6M?si=kbctSRb-D7F7HYf4&t=26

People say that the first 3-5 books you write will suck. Should I just wrote 5 books and throw them away before I start trying to post web novels?

>>24646848
You can just make a new account/identity whenever.
To some degree you gotta post the stuff that sucks and see feedback to grow from it

>>24646848
Write those books and still post them. Even if they suck, there will still be those who enjoy what you've made. You'll get an audience and hopefully feedback to make the learning process smoother.

>>24646848
Nobody wants to read an author's first book. Odds are it's bad. So you might as well get it out of the way and then go hard on your first good one, fifth overall, and market that hard and when people check they'll see you have four out already and breathe a sigh of relief: oh good, this guy knows what he's doing. Then you can fuck up your dialogue tags and use inconsistent tenses and it's too late; they've already paid.

>>24646848
No? That's how you grow an audience. Like, dude, almost every author has a shit ton of books before their famous works? Right?

>>24646848
you have to start doing something to learn
you must write

>>24646304
>still no Onbu isekai
i suppose i’ll have to write one

>>24646782
>They actually shilled it.
the author did not shill it until it was already popular. and even then the "shilling" is just a reddit post and that's it

>>24647122
Nah I saw a few ads for it on RR right as it launched, and just saw another ad for it last night. Ads do make a huge difference.

>>24647124
wtf paid ads are shilling now?

>>24647128
You're thinking of "viral marketing."

>>24647135
paid site advertisements are neither shilling nor viral marketing lmao

>>24647122
>is just a reddit post and that's it
That's an effective form of shilling, anon. Along with paid ads. Advertising goes a long way.

>>24647141
but im saying that didn't happen until after it was already popular
did you even read the post i was replying to? or the content of my own post? lol

>>24647146
>did you even read the post i was replying to?
Yes, because it's my post. Archmage's popularity isn't a mystery to me.

>>24647153
the author ran a single ad and did nothing else. no shout outs even. they made a comment about it. certainly no discord bullshit like some people are writing fanfiction about
so no, the author did not shill the story and that's not how it got popular

>>24647153
also stop calling paid site ads shilling, there's something weirdly beginner-y about that. even promotional posts on reddit/tiktok/etc isn't really shilling. shilling is the guerilla marketing shit that people like FG does (and FFF anon)
a shill is literally:
>an accomplice of a hawker, gambler, or swindler who acts as an enthusiastic customer to entice or encourage others.

>>24647159
>so no, the author did not shill the story and that's not how it got popular
I fully acknowledged its popular because it has a good cover and a good premise.

But ArcaneCadence also wrote on RR under a different pen name before publishing the story.

>certainly no discord bullshit like some people are writing fanfiction about
I would be shocked if they weren't in RR discords, though.

>>24647164
This site has trained me to think of all forms of advertising as shilling. That's fair.

>>24647167
but the topic is how the story got popular. and i was responding to the comment "it got popular by shilling".
what does what you're saying have to do with that
am i being retarded or you?
the story did not get popular by shilling
you agreed with >>24645911
>They actually shilled it.

>But ArcaneCadence also wrote on RR under a different pen name before publishing the story.
also doesn't have anything to do with anything? it's a totally unlinked pen name and he didn't leverage his prior fan base or connections with other authors

>I would be shocked if they weren't in RR discords, though.
okayyyy? but did he shill to those discords or use shoutouts? (he didn't)

>>24647175
>am i being retarded or you?
I'm sorry, dude.

But this was my actual statement:
>Overlord, OPM and Frieren were some of the most popular series around. Mix them together, with have a good cover too and of course its popular.

Even in the context of this post, shilling was used as a euphemism for advertising.

>>24647181
ugh but i was literally exclusively replying to the shilling comment where you agreed with >>24645911

>>24647187
Oh, sorry, I was being retarded too. But yeah its popular because it does a lot of things well, it has a good cover, and the author bothered to advertise it.

Honestly, I've read a few chapters of it too and I can immediately tell what the author has done right, where I've done wrong. Its very competently done.

>>24647189
i just think attributing advertising to the story's success even in a small way is silly because all he did was run a single ad early on. probably like 70% of rising stars stories do that lol. and they don't get 12k followers before falling off rising stars
he actually did significantly less shilling than most authors

>>24647193
That's fair. What's really silly in my opinion is attributing it to actual bots however. Which I've seen some people here do.

I do also think we should be studying it too, honestly. Its a genuinely successful series.

>>24647197
what is there to study? It does nothing particularly original and attempts to imitate it are guaranteed to flop

sell a feeling

>>24647343
How it handles an overpowered protagonist. How it manages to feel exciting for readers despite not much going on. How it manages to catch and draw attention, etc.

You don't need to imitate it one for one, it's good enough understanding how the author catches and maintains attention.

all popularity is just luck

>>24647355
Well, I lost interest halfway through chapter one, so guess I'll never know

>>24647364
Just read it, academically, dude. I don't even care for it and even I managed a couple of chapters.

>>24647197
there are no words you can say to convice me to study something I don't respect, enjoy, or appreciate in any form

>>24647369
You can't really understand interest unless you feel it yourself, or become a psychic. An emotional experience is not something that may be logically inferred. I mean, sure, you can try, but the results are unlikely to capture the magic.

>>24647375
You can understand structure, pacing and how certain narrative beats are handled by checking something out.

There are certain structural elements to a story that can be understood. Otherwise why bother studying any of the greats?

Ergo "how does this story work? Why does this story work? What did it do right? What can I learn from it?"

>>24647386
You can't even understand a 4chan post, what makes you think you could understand these actually complex concepts?

>>24647355
But I already read the story when I read The New Gate almost 10 years ago.

>>24647387
>You can't even understand a 4chan post
Dude, I'll say it as kindly as I can. There's nothing to be gained from a useless sequitur of "you can't understand interest."

What do you want me to say?

>>24647388
Why not both?

>>24647395
>What do you want me to say?
Nothing, I want you to stop responding. It's not a useless sequitor, it's a basic truth. I was kindly trying to tell you not to waste your lifespan on an effort that's unlikely to yield the results you want, but I've yet to meet a single person in all my life who actually took that advice.

>>24647412
I knew you didn't care with your first post, and I know you'll contrive more reasons to "not care."

I respond because at the bare minimum I hope others may have a look.

RR needs to allow more fetish fiction

Hey guys, I just joined A03. Is that site just for fanfiction, or can I also post my original story?

>>24647435
Just go to scribblehub

>>24647488
you can just tag it as original work/no fandom but it's super hard to get readers for posting purely original fiction there

>>24646848
The thing is with art, especially novels, is that you can edit and rewrite them an infinite number of times. It doesnt matter if it's bad. Just rewrite it. And if the rewrite is bad. Rewrite it again. Just be sure you know why you're rewriting it.

>>24646346
If we're talking about strong openings, I've yet to see anything better than Dresden files one, "The building was on fire and it wasn't my fault."

>>24646376
>>24646394
I mean, it IS exciting

>>24647607
>The building was on fire and it wasn't my fault.
Trying way too hard. There's a point where trying to hook readers crosses over from effective to comical and this is up there

>>24647618
clearly someone liked it
and judging by its general popularity, im sure it's more than just anon

>>24647622
I doubt the opening line alone is solely responsible for the book's popularity. There may be some more to it

>>24647618
It's the Dresden files. It was effective.

>>24647618
I don't like the Dresden Files but I disagree
it's exactly the type of opener slop should have/can get away with whether it's web slop or paperback slop. I suspect you're approaching it from the perspective of a writer with "high(er)" standards for himself which will only hold you back from earnest slopping

>>24647641
You could just, you know, come up with an actually good opening line that doesn't scream "pls don't stop reading"

>>24647658
That is a good opening line, you big retard.

>>24647658
I'm sorry but I don't think you're cut out for this slop business, slick...
Time to cut losses...

>>24647661
It's easy to forget that a lot of /lit/ is functionally illiterate.

I love cheesy AND corny sloppa openers
I want that shit dripping with cheese and corn, brehs...

>>24647159
>be archmage guy
>have 4+ big RR authors as your discord mods to earn shoutouts in the RR discord from the get-go
>they have simultaneous 2000+ sales webtoons/tapas/amazon/kickstarter linktrees
>it-it's actually ORGANIC GROWTH guys I swear!
I'm gonna have to call your bs out, it's idiotic and dangerous to sell anons the illusion that some author spedran record-breaking success under a month by posting his chapters alone. Nobody is landing there without jumping through distinct meta-platform networking hoops . It's the same on YouTube, it's the same on Twitch, it's the same everywhere.

The only observable scenario here is that he used his previous profile to cement connections with other Royalroad figures before setting up the launch of his newest fiction. That, or they got a cut of patreon earnings to give shout-outs to his work, because you just don't get that level of backing out of thin air.

>>24647833
Why are you shocked by this? That just means the author understands they system and knows how to make the best of it. As you said this happens *everywhere*. Being a successful author isn't just about putting words to paper.

>>24647898
>Why are you shocked by this?
>anons analyze this slop academically to discover the recipe for success
>the author just bought shoutouts
KEK

>>24647942
if it works it works.

>>24647833
he didn't get shout outs dipshit, you can find that out just by using Google search for his fiction link

im in The Order. he was invited well after the story blew up. same for immersive ink, which is public and you can go check his chats and join date yourself

I get you're stupidly jealous and a seether but writing cope fanfic is super pathetic. the growth was organic and its easy to verify that.

even if he did get shout outs, almost every story does and they dont get anywhere near the growth and
patreon conversion

EsotericTempo simply wrote a masterpiece
please understand

He didnt get shout outs, it's AI clusters for money laundering. We've been over this.

>>24647833
>it's idiotic and dangerous to sell anons the illusion that some author spedran record-breaking success under a month by posting his chapters alone
Wild success stories do happen anon. And this is one.

Just for the record, this level of growth is ONLY possible organically. It doesn't matter how many dicks you suck; that just gets you onto Rising Stars, not a legion of patreon followers in 2 months. And anyone can get onto RS by running an ad or two and not having a shit story.
Cope mindsets are terrible for personal growth. Accept some responsibility in your life

>>24648012
>read Novel Existence As A Superlative Level Archimage
>prose is competent but reads like a well translated Japanese WN
>near everything is told to the reader
>plot happens, the MC happens
>Herbert-esque “this character thought”, etc
does competence really get you this far as a writer in the WN scene?

>>24648048
competence + wide appeal yes. its really that simple

>>24648048
it is literally all luck

slop thrives and slop fails based on the whims of fate

>>24648056
>Cope mindsets are terrible for personal growth. Accept some responsibility in your life

>>24648021
>top-earning cabal clusters

>>24648059
pretending otherwise is the cope here

realize that it's all luck, accept it, move on

>>24648056
this is true to the extremes (like archmage's bizarre success), but hitting rising stars and getting like 3-5k followers if easily repeatable if you're writing on-genre and aren't shit
>>24648064
I'm genuinely certain I could do it with like a 90% success rate (currently at a 100% success rate)

to my 2 readers, I apologize but I'm busy and won't be able to upload a chapter for a few days

>>24648044
>>24648005
Bro you've been taking this guys pains like no tomorrow while telling us there's no shilling related to that novel because we're jealous we don't have discord full of big author mods from your server, and you expect us to just nod along to this narrative?

>>24648048
Yeah competence is big. Go read the ten first chapters from rising stars right now. The sentence construction generally ranges from painful to mid. The premise or coverart does most of the heavy lifting, and then those stories generally decline after the boost from being on the front page of the website.
Then read the first three chapters of Beware of Chicken, which has an incredibly niche premise: isekai of a western blue collar dude into xianxiaslopworld, and his farm animals become cultivators. But the grammar is good, the sentence construction is good, the characters are good, the plot development is good, it's just really good. It blows every current RS out of the water.

People have no idea how much NOT being able to competently write sentences that are enjoyable to read is a hard cap on potential success.

>>24648079
bro if there's so much shilling where is it? royalroad fictions, chapters, and author notes are google indexed. quote-search "New Life As A Max Level Archmage" or the fiction link and provide the massive stories providing the shouts. Find the public discords where he shilled (and they would have to be public to have any large reach). give ANY proof whatsoever
I'm annoyed because you're obviously a seething coper. This shit is so easy to verify but you desperately, DESPERATELY need to convince yourself that natural success can't happen, because that breaks your worldview and you'll have a mental breakdown over it

I can even go pull the chatlogs where AC joins The Order/makes his discord link and invites those big authors to his server. the reason he has a bunch of big authors as mods is because members from The Order helped set it up and he gave them mod

if this shit was shilled like no other story ever was there would be shitloads of obvious proof???? you're braindead bro

just tell me exactly what I need to do

>>24648095
>royalroad fictions, chapters, and author notes are google indexed
not true, at least not for shoutouts created using the shoutout creator that everyone uses

>>24648102
>the shoutout creator that everyone uses
What is that again? I have enough followers now and enough average views on recent chapters I think it's worth offering trades with other stories if their first few chapters are good.

>>24648096
[Serialize It]

>>24648087
even to me i think ObscureRhythm’s sentence construction ranges from passable to painful.

>>24648102
why are you gaslighting me ill go check (i've 100% done this before to see where authors were getting their shout outs from)

>>24648006
the authors of "almost every story" aren't best buddies with some of the biggest names in the WN scene

>>24648108
shoutouts are always worth it no matter how many views/followers each of you have because there's always a chance the guy you're shouting out blows up
>>24648112
my novel's been shouted out many times and not a single one of those shoutouts comes up when googling my own shit

>>24648118
ah, yes, i remember now. you have to exact search the fiction's blurb and use "site:"

so look, do a google search for exactly:
"the end of the world, and all Dave wanted to" site:royalroad.com

and you'll find the literal billion shoutouts that Magical Engineering got

you can do this for any fiction that was shouted out a lot. Archmage doesn't have any

>>24648087
Every reader praises my writing, even those who don't like the story itself agree the writing is flawless, but I'm still forever stuck in obscurity, while MTL-tier gibberish gets thousands of followers. Having competent sentences means nothing.

>>24648115
he became buddies with big names in the WN scene because he became a big name in the WN scene and got invited to the in-group lmfao. your logic is ass backwards

>>24648122
>Did that for archmage
>Author of The Perfect Run has it favorited
Yeah that's not suspicious

>>24648109
:(

>>24648123
Good technical writing is a force multiplier but not a prerequisite. Story, character, ideas, flow, pacing, etc is what matters
It's funny that one anon used BOC as an example because the grammar is horrible. He doesn't know how to punctuate dialogue and constantly uses comma splices. It flows fine enough though, I suppose

>>24648123
Having mastered the art of brickmaking, you must now make a house that is sturdy and safe to occupy; and then make it look nice and advertise it to potential buyers.

>>24648166
Since it was stubbed I read the first five books, and the grammar was polished noticeably. When I got back to what was still on RR, I did notice a slight decline, but the writing was still decent. The important thing was that, as you said, the sentences weren't painful to read and parse.

>>24648211
This is the original opening to BOC:

Lu Ri stared at the disciple. The boy had his arm in a sling, a black eye, and several other wounds marring his body. A quite pitiful sight, all told.

“You wish to leave the sect?” He asked, repeating the disciples request..

“Yes, Senior Brother,” The disciple said. “This Jin Rou’s abilities are lacking, and I was defeated by others two years my younger. I would leave before I bring greater shame upon this Cloudy Sword Sect."

Lu Ri nearly sighed. In all honesty, him being crushed by one of the inner disciples looking for someone to “practise” with was a forgone conclusion, even with the age difference. The elder disciple considered the brown haired boy. Indeed, Jin Rou was not powerful, but he was diligent, and always willing to tend to the less desirable tasks around the sect. Losing him for his attention to detail in caring for the compound and lowly spirit herbs would be a minor blow… but it was hardly anything that the sect would notice losing. The boy had no real training, or techniques of the sect yet either.

***
It had professional editing done and that improved it noticeably. His writing naturally got better over time too. But to start off with, it wasn't that great (and the grammar and proofreading was especially bad). Point being: grammar isn't that important for RR success, though a natural ear for sentence flow is, I think

>>24648123
If every reader praises your writing but you're stuck in obscurity, the story itself must be truly awful kek

>>24648277
NTA, but I'm reading a story that anon posted and it's fun; not amazing, but it's a fun adventure. Yet it sits on ~50 after 2 years of their work.
Maybe the RR crowd doesn't see it as good, which I find unfair as it's better than stuff I've read with a lot more followers.

Characters > Story > Prose

>>24648291
Waifu-ability > all

Feels good

>>24648301
vivi is just a budget frieren thoughever

>>24648370
even budget peak is still noteworthy

FFF-anon, what happened?

>>24648087
You vastly overestimate how much sentence structure and prose matter. It just needs to be good enough to get out of the way of the reader. The ideas are what matter.

Beware of Chicken did well, because it's the same kind of silly premise that's pillar in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean novels. An absurd concept to drag readers in, then keep them engaged with an alright story.

>>24648291
This.

>>24648398
BOC does have good sentence flow though, the grammar is just bad
I can't really name many massively popular stories where the sentences are outright unpleasant to read (which is very common in amateur writing).
prose does matter, just not in the punctuation-grammar sense. clunky and awkward phrasing is a huge turn off even to sloppers.

>>24648370
cute elf femc is always good

>>24648291
Mmm idk i've seen a lot of stories with boring as shit characters but good systems/pacing/etc. Lots of sloppers are cool with a good story and mid characters.
It kinda depends on the niche. System Apocalypse stories for example is Story>characters>prose IMO. But softer litrpg (or non-litrpg) will definitely need good characters

Rate and self-assess your own work. Honestly. Sincerely.
>Overall Score ?/5
>Style Score ?/5
>Story Score ?/5
>Grammar Score ?/5
>Character Score ?/5

Optional: justify your highest score(s) and/or share what you're doing to improve your lowest score(s)

>>24648140
What about it? Cry about it.

>>24648515
Repetitive sentence structure comes off amateurish ("about it"), I suggest Strunk and White

>>24648521
What are you insinuating? Cry me a river!

>>24648481
>overall reader enjoyment score 4.5/5
>overall author enjoyment score 0.5/5

>>24648529
Fixed the original problem but introduced others. 'Cry me a river!' is too juvenile to act as an impactful 4chan-style instigation. Consider something like:
>And? Cry about it.
or
>What about it? Cry more.

>>24648481
I wouldn't rate my own work desu, I have more negatives than positives and I don't like being harsh to authors. At least something like 3 people enjoyed it, so I'm happy.
>Overall Score 4/5
It's short and worth a read I think, but not it's not really good.
>Style Score 3.5/5
The author changes POVs too much, leading to confusing scenes. Chapters are too many and too short to justify their existence. Descriptions are barebones.
>Story Score 4/5
Mashed two concepts together. The story is tropey and is mostly an outline. Forgetable action movie script. At least it has beginning, middle and end.
>Grammar Score 3/5
ESL work edited by grammarly. The author doesn't know how to use dialogue tags. Probably has clunky sentences.
>Character Score 4.5/5
The author managed to fit development of two characters in a short length, though the female main character is rather passive and the background for the male one isn't well explored. Secondary character aren't explored at all.

I think I'm ok at writing characters, but I've been told my setence structure and word choice is poor. I'm taking more care when I write and I've read "How To Write a Sentence". But I still haven't started on "Elements of Eloquence". I'm paying more attention to the prose of the novels I read.

>>24648536
Classic tortured artist. Though, I think it mostly refers to life rather than their own work.

>>24648225
He does good sentences, even if they're not grammatically perfect.

>Lu Ri stared at the disciple. The boy had his arm in a sling, a black eye, and several other wounds marring his body. A quite pitiful sight, all told.
Short, long, short sentences, simple, but instantly sets the POV and raises questions. Why is he wounded?

>“You wish to leave the sect?” He asked, repeating the disciples request..
Medium length, introduces a minor conflict, hints at a larger conflict, repeating the request characterizes Lu Ri as someone diligent enough to confirm things.

>“Yes, Senior Brother,” The disciple said. “This Jin Rou’s abilities are lacking, and I was defeated by others two years my younger. I would leave before I bring greater shame upon this Cloudy Sword Sect."
Short sentence, then long sentence, explains the wounds from the second sentence, introduces character motivations and relationships.

>Lu Ri nearly sighed. In all honesty, him being crushed by one of the inner disciples looking for someone to “practise” with was a forgone conclusion, even with the age difference. The elder disciple considered the brown haired boy. Indeed, Jin Rou was not powerful, but he was diligent, and always willing to tend to the less desirable tasks around the sect. Losing him for his attention to detail in caring for the compound and lowly spirit herbs would be a minor blow… but it was hardly anything that the sect would notice losing. The boy had no real training, or techniques of the sect yet either.
Short, long, medium, long, longer, medium length sentences. It's got good length-diversity, which many writers don't see to understand. It's either all short sentences or all long sentences and gets tiresome to read. Mixing it up is good, lets you get a rhythm going. There's a bit more characterization of Lu Ri and the Sect, and an outside perspective on Jin Rou, who it's not for sure is the main character yet just from this passage, but if one had read the blurb then it's clear he's the main character.
It's also really good that later in the story Lu Ri returns and plays an important role in the plot and development of the setting.

I'd say casualfarmer does far more good than bad in this opening.

>>24648398
Nah, ideas are a dime a dozen. Execution is what matters, and prose is a huge part of that. People say not to miss the forest for the trees, but the trees are what makes up the forest. Can't have a good forest with shitty trees.

>>24648602
a lot of your comments are about content and not the prose lol
setting that aside, I did say his flow was acceptable, so we were never in disagreement. His prose overall is not great though (by pro or even semipro standards i mean). His word choice and sentence flow is merely acceptable, not good by any means

Is there an Audience for space opera?

>>24648481
My story is too fucked up to rate
>MC is passive for first third of the story, plot just happens to him and all he does is react
>I wrote over a hundred chapters of the MC isolated in wilderness with no dialogue
>way too much foreshadowing and letting mysteries build up and linger without being resolved until way later if at all: unsatisfying to edge readers that long
>middle arc drags way too long and should be trimmed way down but I kinda don't want to
>probably too much torturing the MC until he gets strong enough to be someone people would want to insert into for power-fantasy
I'm in too deep and too close to the end to start over, and have too many ideas to do a full re-write, and when I'm done I'll be tired of it anyway. My next story will do better, or at least not have these problems.
I guess I'd give my current story 3/5 stars on Amazon if I really had to. 4/5 compared to most RR stories.

>>24648639
Where do you think he could have improved his word choice?
>a lot of your comments are about content and not the prose lol
True, but I do think his rhythm of sentence and even paragraph length stands out as good. Although it's something I'm actively working on myself so maybe that's why I notice it.
Yeah generally I think we agree.

>>24648641
I believe that no matter what it is about, someone somewhere will enjoy it.
But that isn't the answer you want, so I'll say that the audience is smaller but it does exist. Post/crosspost on SpaceBattles, that's where your audience is.

>take my meds
>writing a ability dies
...so that's the deal?
Being a nonstop risk to yourself and others or no creative juice?

>>24648650
>Where do you think he could have improved his word choice?
It's not bad, as I've said, which makes improving it tricky, but there are some lines or word choice I especially dislike. I picked a few:

>This Jin Rou’s abilities are lacking, and I was defeated by others two years my younger.
>This Jin Rou's abilities are lacking, and I was defeated by a disciple two years my junior.
(Pretty sure "younger" is just wrong?)

>Losing him for his attention to detail in caring for the compound and lowly spirit herbs would be a minor blow… but it was hardly anything that the sect would notice losing.
>The sect would suffer in some small way for losing Jin Rou's studious care for the compound, and especially his diligent tending of the outer sect gardens...but they would not truly miss his absence.

>In all honesty, him being crushed by one of the inner disciples looking for someone to “practise” with was a forgone conclusion, even with the age difference.
>In all honesty, any inner disciple seeking a victim to "practice with" would crush a member of the outer sect. Jin Rou's defeat had been a foregone conclusion.
Original just feels clunky to me

Dunno

More interestingly, you could go check out the web novel version vs the professionally edited one on amazon and compare.

>>24648702
>In all honesty, him being crushed by one of the inner disciples looking for someone to “practise” with was a forgone conclusion, even with the age difference.
>In all honesty, any inner disciple seeking a victim to "practice with" would crush a member of the outer sect. Jin Rou's defeat had been a foregone conclusion.
Hm I'm not sure if I like my change any better on rereading

>In all honesty, Jin Rou's defeat was a foregone conclusion. Any inner disciple seeking a victim to "practice with" would crush a member of the outer sect—regardless of the age difference.
Perhaps?
It's a bit of a dense thought to break up smoothly

anyone read mech touch?
it was my very first webnovel and i got around 2300 chapters in before stopping - wondering if it's worth getting back into it. i liked it, but the author pivoted from the [system] progression later on which made me feel blue balled.

>>24648642
Go over the story and add some proactivity to the MC that lands him in the trouble where he has to be passive.

>>24647942
marketingslop to get more eyes on the story only helps if the story itself is marketable. you keep acting as if it has to be exclusively marketing or writing rather than the reality of a breakout success needing both. note that "good writing" does not mean "wins literature awards for prose", it means something that appeals to and hooks its audience

>>24648863
But you don't need much marketing. You just need to get onto RS and then organic growth is responsible for almost everything. Archmage didn't DO marketing besides a single ad, and it's arguably the biggest instant-success ever (for web novels)
So it's 95% writing and 5% marketing for the web novel scene. The niche is small enough & there are enough trending/algorithm/etc pages that the story will succeed on its own merit. Merit meaning, as you said, not "winning literature awards" but that the story has the x-factor.

>>24648123
>Why do you guys keep saying a car needs good tires to drive well. My car has better tires than most of the ones on the road but still won't start! Clearly you're all retards, only filling the gas tank matters and tires are optional.

I didn't realize that pic related got a complete (16 volume) English release. Maybe I will reread it after all now that I don't have to wade through MTL fanlations on chapters 122+

as the mixed race essence of east asia, with familiarity and actual presence in my ancestral homelands, the number one thing that gets me about BoC and other xianxia is how they mix Chinese, Japanese, and Korean names, often times in the same name.

it is profoundly jarring, to the point that i stopped reading because i could barely tolerate it

>>24648901
if westerners can read and enjoy LOTM which has characters named Isengard and Ed Sheeran I'm sure you can survive a western author mixing a Korean and Chinese name lmfao. you're being neurotic

>>24648911
I just got to a chapter where the MC sets up a fake identity as a rich white londoner named Dwayne.

>>24648875
>Archmage didn't DO marketing besides a single ad
Besides this exception already crumbling your entire argument, there is no such thing as a "single" ad in an ad campaign.

>>24648963
Seeing how my argument was 95%/5%, which concedes it's a factor, just a small one, it doesn't crumble my argument at all. Yes, you need to advertise a bit, but it's hardly the main driver in what causes a story's success. For the millionth time, you just have to get onto RS somehow, which takes very little advertising for a good story (just one ad).
And a "single ad" means one instance of an ad rather than running tons in parallel. Royalroad has super slow burn rates and "a single ad" takes more than a month to go through. A "single ad" means you're limited to like 10k views a day. The term has plenty of meaning
Just because you don't know how this stuff works or what kind of verbiage regulars use doesn't mean it's nonsense--you're just ignorant

Give me one reason why I shouldn't hire an indian on Fiverr to shill me here for 5 bucks/month

>>24648911
>>24648921
chinese webnovels that have western characters clearly named something chinese also bug me like nothing else. otherwise they name their western characters such unhinged names that it doesn’t attack my sensibilities, unlike western xianxia where the author clearly wants to be “authentic” but has mostly consumed anime, korean webtoons, and maybe just one or two xianxia webnovels and so make names that would work perfectly fine if they were just Japanese, or just Chinese, or just Korean. but they mix it.

>>24648976
For 5$ a month you will get 7 followers from the regulars here and then never any more, plus you'll get a shit load of negative associations for being 4chan-aligned
Save up for a year and buy a royalroad ad for 55$ and you'll get >100 followers to possibly launch you onto Rising Stars on your next release.

>>24648072
Jacques...

>>24648072
just unfollowed. punctuality is key.

>>24649008
k well im killing myself then

>>24648641
>>24648657
The other space opera dude here. There isn't much of an appetite for space operas either, at least in the scope and themes of LotGH. My older deleted 400k fic I had crossposted there didn't have much traction and only had like 20 watchers after like 2 1/2 years of being there. My current story on there has only garned 500 views, no comments, likes or watchers.

>>24649011
did i get u right

also new cover art finished. It was by https://x.com/Gie__s so if you fancy his style check him out.

>>24648290
What story?

>>24648979
>For 5$ a month you will get 7 followers from the regulars here and then never any more,
I got it for free (and I'm thankful for it).
>>24649058
Nice, is that for the ptds captain?
>>24649061
>>24641000

>>24649063
>Nice, is that for the ptds captain?
yeah

>>24649058
Who's this? Lawrence Mengde?

>>24649067
Nice, looking foward to when you post. I still haven't read rabbit and other anon's fiction though, but it's on my list.

>>24649077
yea

>>24649080
nice I am beginning to remember the regulars' protagonists

>>24649000
Not me, but today I couldn’t post because I fell in the train, exhausted after two hours of sleep and eight hours of work, and now I can’t sit without feeling pain.
I’ll try again tomorrow.

>>24649110
Sleep well, lad.

>>24648290
>>24649063
Glad to hear you're enjoying it! I'm not overly concerned about the metrics since I just wanted to make a good story and learn how to better write. That people like reading it is the cherry on top.
That said, it reached the top four thousand rank since posting it here, so I'm pretty happy about that too.

>>24647833
I'd say this very clearly proves the author is an established presence. So keep in mind that Archmage is not their first fiction.

>>24649234
They actually alluded to this when they mentioned he wouldn't bin up his previous pen names on the Ink botnet.

>>24649239
Yup. So it's worth keeping in mind for anons here that success like this only comes after a long time

In short, keep writing

>>24648005
>im in The Order
btw, what is it? Some big author discord? I know Immersive Ink.
And no, I'm not asking to join or anything, networking is too much for me.

>>24649244
yeah its the one with probably the biggest authors on avg, though its not super exclusive or anything. its not like II which is public tho

This is it, I'm starting the IRC channel Writterwaffen to counteract the RR discord cabals filled with Israeli handlers

>>24647607
I like one of the Mike Hammer ones, though I forget which book it was in.
>They found me in the gutter.
Straightforward, immediately shows where he is in his life, and is an inciting incident all on its own with you wondering why someone was looking for him.

i am struggling with depression. I wrote 200 words today. I want to cry myself to sleep.

>>24649436
Not everyday is a winner, anon. Hang in there.

>>24649436
Time to write 800 more. I believe in you!!!!

>>24649436
Unless you're a woman, life is too short to remain with depression

New:
>>24649494
>>24649494
>>24649494