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Doorknob Slobber posted:all these people talking down at the guy did anyone actually read it yet? maybe its awesome. I would, but I don't know how to download mobi from amazon Forum accident posted:WARLORD is the first of an already-planned four part series based on a three year long Dungeons & Dragons game I ran
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May 2, 2017 08:04
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Just wait until the protagonist Mugen meets his antagonists Nismo and TRD.
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May 2, 2017 08:05
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Doorknob Slobber posted:all these people talking down at the guy did anyone actually read it yet? maybe its awesome. I would, but I don't know how to download mobi from amazon quote:Mugen Genshi was born as an Evitan, a human who’s inner glow meant he has a great destiny in front of him. He had spent the first decade of his adult life ignoring this destiny, instead choosing to test his fighting prowess against any monster he could find, the more dangerous the better. Tell me you think this is good writing.
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May 2, 2017 11:10
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Guys, I think he was making a joke.
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May 2, 2017 11:31
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He ignored his destiny for ten years and decided to fight monsters instead. Unbeknownst to him, his destiny was actually to become king of the monster fighters. Fate will not be denied!
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May 2, 2017 11:57
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Forum accident posted:I'm a new author and I just self-published my first epic fantasy novel, The Warlord's Crown, and since I'm brand new to this I have no idea how to get the word out! Hey dude. Congratulations on deciding to write a book and actually finishing one! This is a major achievement and you're ahead of 99% of everyone who's ever wanted to write a novel. The others here are busting your balls a bit and that's because most people's first written novels aren't really of publishable quality, you not really being an exception here, I'm afraid. (From what I've seen from other authors who aren't literary geniuses it takes an average specfic author about 5-7 novels'-worth written and shelved before you get good enough to write something publishable.) That said, you're already over the biggest hurdle of them all. You sat down and finished a thing. Good job! Just keep writing and finishing books and honing your craft and you have a great chance of getting there. I'd suggest joining an online or offline group of some sort for feedback on your writing and maybe writing stand-alone novels for a while instead of committing yourself to a series while your skill is still in the process of developing. Good luck!
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May 2, 2017 12:51
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Captain Monkey posted:Guys, I think he was making a joke. Yeah, I was certain that it was some kind of troll joke post. There is no way I'll believe that guy was genuine. 
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May 2, 2017 12:52
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Half the published books in this thread probably started out as D&D campaigns.
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May 2, 2017 13:15
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Half the published books in this thread probably started out as D&D campaigns. Wasn't Malazan outright stated to be inspired as a D&D campaign?
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May 2, 2017 13:21
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StrixNebulosa posted:Wasn't Malazan outright stated to be inspired as a D&D campaign? No, it was more original GURPS campaign I believe
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May 2, 2017 13:23
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:No, it was more original GURPS campaign I believe I love this genre. And it's Dragonlance that's the D&D campaign if I remember right, Raistlin was literally born in someone's living room as they dreamt up the best angsty mage they could think of.
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May 2, 2017 13:26
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Well dragonlance was an official d&d setting so that shouldn't come as a shock. Going way back, the Deed of Paksennarion was based on a d&d game IIRC.
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May 2, 2017 13:31
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andrew smash posted:Well dragonlance was an official d&d setting so that shouldn't come as a shock. Going way back, the Deed of Paksennarion was based on a d&d game IIRC. I really think this goes to show that in the hands of a skilled writer, they can take anything and make it good. Warhammer 40k books for example - take the goofiest dark setting you can think of and write something compelling about the people in it, and some authors can pull it off. ... I'm still impressed that we got Malazan from freakin' GURPs, lord of the tables. I'm rereading it (curse you thread you got me thinking about it) and it's the kind of dark that makes me happy I'm alive and well...and even the first book, Gardens of the Moon, is more than readable. That said I wish there were more White Wolf novels that actually were quality, as the setting is so ridiculous it could benefit from some slapstick novels. Or just good ones that grasp the pathos of all the darkness their settings have without going full goth vampire.
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May 2, 2017 13:35
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Perdido Street Station started off as a D&D campaign and you can tell
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May 2, 2017 13:52
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This topic made me look up the fantasy book written by one of the lieutenants I worked with in the army. Two five star reviews, one from a college friend, one from someone who misspells the title. Apparently he's written a couple of sequels in the last couple of years. E: A non-sequel scifi novel imaginatively titled Grass posted:On a planet that copies anything and everyone, particularly humans, Agent Dave Rancher is part of the thin line that has separated humanity from increasingly sinister imposters and spies for over 1500 years since colonization. The single increasingly creative alien intelligence that dominates Trius-Two-One has once again upped the stakes in a frighteningly insidious gambit that preys upon humanity’s very essence… their children. I lost it at "even little girls." And Dave Rancher is my new porn name. Still, I do respect that people spend the time on this and put it out there. Number Ten Cocks fucked around with this message at 13:59 on May 2, 2017 |
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May 2, 2017 13:54
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So, I have recently decided I am functionally illiterate when it comes to genre fiction and should expand my horizons a bit I am currently putting together a reading list of Sci-Fi and Fantasy "canon" to become a little more familiar with the genres So far I have Dune American Gods Childhood's End Foundation Neuromancer Snow Crash The Windup Girl Perdido Street Station Anything else I should add to get a good broad scope of the modern and classic paragons of the genre?
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May 2, 2017 14:03
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Mel Mudkiper posted:So, I have recently decided I am functionally illiterate when it comes to genre fiction and should expand my horizons a bit drat fine list. I'd personally add Starship Troopers and Forever War and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
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May 2, 2017 14:05
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Downbelow Station or Cyteen by CJ Cherryh. I, Robot by Isaac Asimov. I envy your chance to read these for the first time.
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May 2, 2017 14:10
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Also what is the current consensus on A Darker Shade of Magic? I keep seeing it advertised prominently at my book store and it won a few awards so I tossed it into the pile, but I have no idea about its actual reputation.
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May 2, 2017 14:11
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StrixNebulosa posted:Downbelow Station or Cyteen by CJ Cherryh. Downbelow Station is a brutal doorstopper of a book if it's your first A-U; I'd say start with Cyteen and maybe read Downbelow after all the Merchanter books and Devil to the Belt.
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May 2, 2017 14:24
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Mel Mudkiper posted:I am currently putting together a reading list of Sci-Fi and Fantasy "canon" to become a little more familiar with the genres https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SF_Masterworks and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantasy_Masterworks are pretty good collections. Mel Mudkiper posted:Also what is the current consensus on A Darker Shade of Magic? I keep seeing it advertised prominently at my book store and it won a few awards so I tossed it into the pile, but I have no idea about its actual reputation. It's... okay? It's not going to be a classic of any kind by any stretch. Megazver fucked around with this message at 14:28 on May 2, 2017 |
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May 2, 2017 14:25
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ToxicFrog posted:Downbelow Station is a brutal doorstopper of a book if it's your first A-U; I'd say start with Cyteen and maybe read Downbelow after all the Merchanter books and Devil to the Belt. Agreed, with emphasis on Cyteen as it's her best book. Sleepy me didn't have 'em in order.
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May 2, 2017 14:27
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Megazver posted:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SF_Masterworks and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantasy_Masterworks are pretty good collections. I appreciate the list, but was hoping to cull it down a little from the 70 or so books on there. I am not sure if I will even end up being a fan of either Sci-Fi or Fantasy, so I am currently trying to invest my time in a handful of really good examples to see if my tastes align with them. ToxicFrog posted:Downbelow Station is a brutal doorstopper of a book if it's your first A-U; I'd say start with Cyteen It looks like Downbelow station is shorter than Cyteen though? Do you mean that Downbellow is more "world-building" and Cyteen is more specifically plotted?
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May 2, 2017 14:30
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Mel Mudkiper posted:So, I have recently decided I am functionally illiterate when it comes to genre fiction and should expand my horizons a bit Books by women? Consider Left Hand of Darkness, Parable of the Sower, deffo some Cherryh, maybe The Fifth Season.
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May 2, 2017 14:36
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General Battuta posted:Books by women? Consider Left Hand of Darkness, Parable of the Sower, deffo some Cherryh, maybe The Fifth Season. Yeah, it occurred to me there was a stark lack of gender and racial diversity but I kind of figured that was the conceit of the genre. Definitely looking into expanding into different racial and gendered perspectives.
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May 2, 2017 14:38
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The Left Hand of Darkness (or really any Le Guin) is a good addition to that list. Could even tag her on both SF and Fantasy lists with Earthsea. Gateway is another SF great; the sequels are a mixed bag but I found them still readable, but honestly my favorite thing from Pohl is The Space Merchants
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May 2, 2017 14:40
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StrixNebulosa posted:I love this genre. The Expanse was also an RPG campaign originally. I was actually in an RPG that was fairly similar in theme and setting a decade ago, it wasn't the two guys behind the pen name obviously, but it's an interesting parallel. I remember our group finding an abandoned alien ship being studied by a megacorp in the upper atmosphere of Saturn and running into various misadventures for knowing too much. And then we also picked up a crateload of coke, which was primary currency among asteroid miners. If I wrote it into a novel today I'd get accused of copying James S.A. Corey.
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May 2, 2017 14:39
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Mel Mudkiper posted:I appreciate the list, but was hoping to cull it down a little from the 70 or so books on there. I am not sure if I will even end up being a fan of either Sci-Fi or Fantasy, so I am currently trying to invest my time in a handful of really good examples to see if my tastes align with them. Downbelow opens with world building, follows like 10+ major characters, and never stops to take a breath. It's cut so tight to the bone every scene pushes plot forward. It's good but whoof. (It's about so many things I can't summarize it shortly either.) Cyteen meanwhile breathes. It's about a human colony where a major politician/scientist is murdered and her supporters clone her and try to replicate her childhood as exactly as they can. It has three (ish) main characters, isn't as tough to read, and gets personal in some intense ways. It asks important questions about humanity and is incredible. I highly recommend it as one of the best in sci-fi. (And I, Robot is short, a classic, and you can do its short stories inbetween the other books!) Bonus: for fantasy, Lord of the Rings is a landmark for a reason. Try it or the Hobbit and enjoy how lush the writing is.
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May 2, 2017 14:41
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I read Hobbit and Left Hand of Darkness in college so I kept them off the list. I might look into Earthsea though. What is the best Atwood? I know Handmaid's Tale is the big one, but I feel like I know too much about that book through cultural osmosis at this point.
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May 2, 2017 14:45
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Mel Mudkiper posted:So, I have recently decided I am functionally illiterate when it comes to genre fiction and should expand my horizons a bit Moderm fantasy at least is almost uniformly terrible. Look into Jack Vance, Fritz Leiber, Clark Ashton-Smith, or Robert E. Howard.
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May 2, 2017 14:46
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andrew smash posted:Well dragonlance was an official d&d setting so that shouldn't come as a shock. Going way back, the Deed of Paksennarion was based on a d&d game IIRC. A D&D module (Village of Hommlet) but not an actual game  Mel Mudkiper posted:So, I have recently decided I am functionally illiterate when it comes to genre fiction and should expand my horizons a bit Are you feeling OK? Anyway, for sf: Dangerous Visions is an anthology from the 60s with major historical importance. Other early writers I'd recommend are Theodore Sturgeon and Robert Heinlein's short stories. Read the whole Foundation trilogy, it's not a novel by itself. Alfred Bester's The Stars My Destination. Ursula le Guin's Left Hand of Darkness and The Dispossessed Samuel R. Delany's Babel-17 and Nova Philip K. Dick's stories Joanna Russ' The Female Man Gene Wolfe's 70s books James Tiptree Jr's short stories Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy Maureen F. McHugh's China Mountain Zhang Ted Chiang's short stories Haven't read the Apex World SF books but they sound relevant. Also try looking for themes in the SF encyclopedia linked in the op. Fantasy Kwaidan by Lafcadio Hearn isn't fantasy but shows the influence of Orientalism on the genre, e.g. Lord Dunsany's stories, Oscar Wilde, and Lovecraft. Hope Mirrlees' Lud-in-the-Mist John Crowley's Little, Big Ursula le Guin's Earthsea books Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast books Thread title E: hopefully now more relevant I'm the Book Barn IK. Feel free to PM me or email bookbarnsecretsanta@gmail.com if I can help you with anything. Safety Biscuits fucked around with this message at 14:55 on May 2, 2017 |
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May 2, 2017 14:50
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I just sat bolt upright in bed: Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time. YA but YA like Narnia is, or His Dark Materials. It's a fusion of sci-fi and fantasy and please, please treat yourself to it.
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May 2, 2017 14:50
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Roger Zelazny's Lord of Light deserves a mention here too. Bester already got named but I feel like The Demolished Man is more important than The Stars My Destination. Both are fairly short and have aged incredibly well.
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May 2, 2017 14:50
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StrixNebulosa posted:I just sat bolt upright in bed: Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time. YA but YA like Narnia is, or His Dark Materials. It's a fusion of sci-fi and fantasy and please, please treat yourself to it. I think I read that like... twenty years ago? Might as well toss it on the list, I barely remember much more than parallel worlds and some kind of centaur
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May 2, 2017 14:52
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Fantasy list needs some Discworld IMO. EDIT: Also Dianna Wynne Jones wrote some cool stuff.
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May 2, 2017 14:54
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Chairchucker posted:Fantasy list needs some Discworld IMO. Discworld kinda goes in next to Hitchhiker's - and they start with Guards Guards, yes? DWJ though is good but I wouldn't call her essential.
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May 2, 2017 14:56
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Chairchucker posted:Fantasy list needs some Discworld IMO. I was looking at Discworld and Hitchhiker's Guide but I figured they were primarily satires of the genre. I am kind of worried most of it would go over my head until I actually get a sense of the tropes they are mocking.
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May 2, 2017 14:55
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Mel Mudkiper posted:I was looking at Discworld and Hitchhiker's Guide but I figured they were primarily satires of the genre. I am kind of worried most of it would go over my head until I actually get a sense of the tropes they are mocking. Discworld kinda starts that way but becomes something that stands on its own, and imo Guards Guards is the best starting point for that. Also Hitchhikers is not a satire of the genre, it's aburdist sci-fi.
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May 2, 2017 14:58
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Mel Mudkiper posted:Yeah, it occurred to me there was a stark lack of gender and racial diversity but I kind of figured that was the conceit of the genre. Also read Handmaid's Tale! e: whoops you already namechecked it
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May 2, 2017 15:00
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Mel Mudkiper posted:I was looking at Discworld and Hitchhiker's Guide but I figured they were primarily satires of the genre. I am kind of worried most of it would go over my head until I actually get a sense of the tropes they are mocking. Mostly Discworld's satire is aimed at the real world, it just uses the genre as the tool for it. Early Discworld is more similar to Hitchhiker's later Discworld is a bit more serious.
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May 2, 2017 15:02
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