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tokenbrownguy posted:I feel that. Despite liking DCC I couldn't get into Kaiju. Bailed when the MC had to watch his sister? partner? start using again as part of the torture porn. Definitely not my poo poo. I've been reading/skimming the I Shall Seal The Heavens series on KU, and oh boy could it be cut by about 60% and not lose anything.
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Oct 24, 2022 20:32
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tokenbrownguy posted:I only ever consume this thread's material when it's been packaged for audiobook / ebook. Are all web serials... insanely verbose by convention? For context the Super Powereds 4 audiobook was 60 hours long. Personally I make a distinction between serials where the quest just kind of feels huge in structure vs when the author is dragging things out through number of PoV characters or sheer verbosity. But it's true that there are few, if any popular short serials. A mere million words makes you short by the standards of the field, I think.
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Oct 24, 2022 20:42
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The impression I get is that the Chinese web serial market demands huge amounts of content and doesn’t place much importance on quality, so authors stuff huge amounts of filler into their books. I hear terrible things about Qidian, who publishes almost al of these books, so I suspect a lot of the pressure just stems from them demanding authors write a ton. There’s actually a joke in a Chinese web novel I read where a web author gets kidnapped by a cultivator and is forced to live in a tiny room and post huge updates every day. When authors are making those kinds of jokes, it’s not a good sign!
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Oct 24, 2022 20:58
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Yeah the tl;dr is that Qidian's monetization puts a huge amount of pressure on authors to update at least daily, if not twice daily, with ~2000-3000 words per chapter. It's super gross and it means that any author that gets successful, learns fast how to fill chapters with words if they want to stay successful. Cause drat that's just not sustainable or healthy. Edit: I forget the vast majority of the details, but IIRC Qidian uses some super harsh/brutal stack ranking mechanism for their stories. So if you are not updating *constantly* some other story will take your spot and you will be out money. BadMedic fucked around with this message at 21:53 on Oct 24, 2022 |
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Oct 24, 2022 21:46
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tokenbrownguy posted:I only ever consume this thread's material when it's been packaged for audiobook / ebook. Are all web serials... insanely verbose by convention? For context the Super Powereds 4 audiobook was 60 hours long. Pretty much? 1. Frequent publishing keeps your readership engaged and keeps you higher up in online ranking systems like RoyalRoad's. 2. A frequent schedule like that doesn't really allow for the back and forth of editing to trim the fat. 3. When it comes time to bundling chapters to publish, there still isn't an inventive to do a significant amount of editing. Too much and you may end up with a different enough book that the published web chapters may not match up well. 4. This may have changed, but last I checked the KU model incentivizes long books with the payout model. So more reason not to trim too much. Though in Drew Hayes's case, I'm not sure if #1 really applies. I think he was just publishing to his own website without additional engagement. tokenbrownguy posted:And on that topic, can anyone recommend good slice of life? I really liked Legends and Lattes and Winter's Orbit and am craving some low-stakes romance slash domestic stuff. It's not KU, but Becky Chamber's Wayfarer series. You might also give E.M Foner's Earthcent series a try, which is KU. Though it doesn't really have much romance stuff. Edit: Also, if you want insanely verbose: Pirateaba's Wandering Inn.
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Oct 24, 2022 22:05
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earthcent is totally a romance it's just not the mushy kind. every other book has characters getting set up together and there's like 4 generations of characters now
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Oct 24, 2022 22:25
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The Wandering Inn is up to 10.5 million words.
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Oct 24, 2022 23:51
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That's more than two entire wheels of time (4m words). But yeah some web serials are merely long, but reasonably so, like Mother of Learning or Worth the Candle. The insanely long ones have too many PoV's (Beware of Chicken), draw things out unnecessarily (Delve), or both (The Wandering Inn).
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Oct 24, 2022 23:53
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BadMedic posted:Yeah the tl;dr is that Qidian's monetization puts a huge amount of pressure on authors to update at least daily, if not twice daily, with ~2000-3000 words per chapter. quote:I'm happy to hear that there is still hope long term for an actual book. That being said, I think this move to a pay-per-chapter-section is awful, and it generally feels pretty scummy.
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Oct 25, 2022 06:36
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Finished On Lavender Tides, which is a progression fantasy heavily 'inspired' by Pokemon. It's competently done enough I suppose for YA progfantasy, but nothing really grabbed me either, and the Gary character/rivalry felt kinda amateurish. I might still read the second one, but so far while the magic system is fine, the characters and plot just aren't terribly interesting. The MC is a pretty generic progression protagonist who's spunky and kinda angry, the deuteragonist is just kinda confusing because she just seems...apathetic? She's on a pilgrimage but doesn't seem to really give a poo poo about it, or anything really; the most interesting thing about her so far is that her parents are really garbage people. And there's only some vague bits of mystery and shenanigans for a main plot. With Cradle being the undisputed champ of progression fantasy you'd think other authors would clue into how it handled characters and plot more.
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Oct 26, 2022 06:32
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You'd think with the whole oceans of semi identical garbage out there people would be doing anything to set themselves apart, but nah.
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Oct 26, 2022 08:41
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Forge of Destiny is pretty verbose and the author said Amazon money isn't enough to justify an editing pass
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Oct 26, 2022 10:13
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30.5 Days posted:Forge of Destiny is pretty verbose and the author said Amazon money isn't enough to justify an editing pass ...especially considering that itself is already an edited version of the fourms COYA it's originally written as
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Oct 26, 2022 10:43
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Larry Parrish posted:You'd think with the whole oceans of semi identical garbage out there people would be doing anything to set themselves apart, but nah. On Lavender Tides tried to set itself apart with some Hawaii culture/fashion stuff in addition to the Pokemon-esque magic system, but I just found the characters really boring. I think I put the story down about a third of the way in.
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Oct 27, 2022 01:47
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Larry Parrish posted:You'd think with the whole oceans of semi identical garbage out there people would be doing anything to set themselves apart, but nah. Different things don't sell, though.
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Oct 27, 2022 04:02
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Eason the Fifth posted:Different things don't sell, though. based upon the kindle rankings, neither does being too similar.
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Oct 27, 2022 09:13
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I'm reading through book three of The Brightest Shadow right now, currently 12% through, and while I'm still enjoying it, this whole series feels so weirdly unfocused. The writing in it is largely fine, which means it's a lot better than average for progression fantasy, and I really like the worldbuilding, but I can't really tell where the plot is headed or what the point of it all is. None of the three main PoV characters seem to have a concrete primary objective for the plot. Yeah obviously they're training and poo poo, and they take pains to try and minimize bloodshed as they go around, but an overall outcome they're aiming for? There's just nothing there. Particularly Tani and Slaten are just groupies for an rear end in a top hat Hero, getting dragged around every which way. That was an interesting premise for a little while, but now it just feels tiresome. Big picture, they have little to no real agency.
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Nov 3, 2022 07:52
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CivCEO is kind of painfully boring and I'm still reading it
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Nov 3, 2022 19:32
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Eminent Domain and it's sequel were decent, although I'm still loling at how fast the book did a speedrun on the system apocalypse part of the book. And at how utterly disinterested the MC is in other humans.
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Nov 3, 2022 19:50
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Happiness Commando posted:CivCEO is kind of painfully boring and I'm still reading it It's just so perfectly straightforward and vaguely pleasant with nothing particularly interesting outside of a couple sentences per book.
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Nov 3, 2022 20:00
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Not a book review, but I just went to cancel my Kindle Unlimited subscription (I'd only gotten it to cover my vacation) and it popped up with a "special offer" to get 3 months for the price of one if I wanted to stay. Probably they're hoping I forget to cancel, but I thought I'd mention it in case anyone else wants to try their luck.
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Nov 14, 2022 02:52
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I shifted over to Sufficiently Advanced Magic. It's not bad? The main character is pretty explicitly written as having autism spectrum disorder - at least in terms of social relationships and physical touch - which is kind of interesting I guess. And it's not a terrible take on the horribly overplayed magic school setting. Solidly mediocre-good for what it is.
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Nov 14, 2022 17:02
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Happiness Commando posted:I shifted over to Sufficiently Advanced Magic. It's not bad? The main character is pretty explicitly written as having autism spectrum disorder - at least in terms of social relationships and physical touch - which is kind of interesting I guess. And it's not a terrible take on the horribly overplayed magic school setting. Solidly mediocre-good for what it is. Agreed, book 4 was painful only because MC spent too much time failing at social things, 1-3 have lots of action and are fun.
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Nov 14, 2022 22:55
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Question Time posted:Agreed, book 4 was painful only because MC spent too much time failing at social things, 1-3 have lots of action and are fun. IMO the side series War Of Broken Mirrors and Weapons and Wielders are very fun too. War of Broken Mirrors is even a complete trilogy though it leads into Weapons and Wielders which sort of leads into the main storyline.
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Nov 15, 2022 02:16
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A quarter of the way through Menocht Loop 5 and isn't Maria twice Ian's age or more? He was in college right out of high school, she had a kid in like his late teens I think?
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Nov 26, 2022 00:35
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The OP posted:Are you fine with bad prose, worse grammar, and sometimes even a lack of cohesiveness in the book? Though it's book one in a series, (a) book two is already written and being edited, and I hope to have it out by the end of February, and (b) most everything is resolved in book one rather than leaving everything on a lazy cliffhanger. I hope some goons check it out and enjoy it!  Blessed with Power Unwanted (The Thawing of Magic: Book 1) Breaking the rules of magic was never part of the plan… Serious-minded Durndan Shrivester is a wizard with a blueprint for his life: a steady job, a beautiful fiancée in his village, and a safe, stable future. Then he starts exhibiting new powers – powers that break the rules of magic. With the help of his friends, he tries to keep everything on track. But a mysterious series of prophetic elf-dreams begins, pulling his whole life further away from his plan. Finally, a botched spell and a disgraceful scandal force Durndan to flee his comfortable existence. He must journey far, alongside companions old and new, while fending off the king’s wizard, who would seize these incredible new powers for himself by taking Durndan apart, piece by piece. Can Durndan make it all the way to the Top of the World, where the elf-dreams say his answers await? Or will he fall before the sinister minions and overwhelming might of the king’s wizard? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BPF5DVB...ps%2C132&sr=8-1
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Dec 8, 2022 02:00
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My writing group buddy put his novella up on KU. It has that progression/robinsonade feel where the protag tries to gradually improve his lot, a sentient mushroom character called the Shiitake, and a lot of dark humor. I loved it (or I wouldn't bother posting it). Here's the Amazon page pitch: Eating the Exhibits posted:Before the fungal apocalypse, I worked at the Palermo Zoo, giving train rides to bratty kids aboard Rexxy the Lion's Roaring Railroad. The job sucked, but one thing kept me showing up to work--a major crush on Mandy, aka "Dolphin Girl", the human star of the Fins and Flippers show. When the city got evacuated, she's the reason I stayed behind with the other volunteers to care for the animals.
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Dec 17, 2022 19:20
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Crossposting from the main SFF thread.Leng posted:To contribute: there's a huge indie fantasy sale being run on r/fantasy right now with a whole bunch of books either $0.99 or free. YMMV as to quality but there are a fair few Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off finalists and semi-finalists in the list: https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/zvmmxt/over_450_books_free_or_099_almost_175/ Mother of Learning and a whole bunch of other LitRPG/KU books are also included.
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Dec 26, 2022 21:38
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Thanks for the recs for Beware of Chicken, which I finished last week, and Kaiju Battlefield Surgeon, which I'm reading now. Both are books that are probably too quirky for a trad publishing release, but they are absolutely great for KU. For all the criticisms I can point at them, they are both just fun reads. Beware of Chicken just kind of ended, and Kaiji might be read faster if it took the Stat dumps out and went for total immersion like Ian M. Banks' Surface Detail, bit I can't fault either of them for their idiosyncrasies.
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Dec 29, 2022 03:24
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Beware of Chicken ebook is only like 1/2 or 1/3 of the total available story from the ongoing(?) serial in ebook form is why it feels that way.
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Dec 29, 2022 03:35
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AARD VARKMAN posted:Beware of Chicken ebook is only like 1/2 or 1/3 of the total available story from the ongoing(?) serial in ebook form is why it feels that way. The arc after the KU book was pretty good I think, the current arc remains to be seen whether it goes anywhere.
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Dec 29, 2022 03:39
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I read the first three books of Tower of Somnus and I really liked it. It's the only good VRMMO I've ever read and it's because it's not "really" a game (that is, not an entertainment product produced by a game company). Doesn't hurt that outside the game the world is a really solid by the numbers cyberpunk setting.
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Dec 29, 2022 04:39
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I finished book 5 of the dreadfully named Weirkey Chronicles and they are pretty good. Definitely better written than usual ku. Probably the best ku fantasy I've read aside from Cradle. It's progression fantasy that's very systemic in a similar way to Cradle. It starts off kinda lame but it quickly does a shake up like Cradle that reframes things. I was hesitant through book 1 but now I'm eagerly awaiting the next one.
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Dec 29, 2022 05:46
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PerniciousKnid posted:The arc after the KU book was pretty good I think, the current arc remains to be seen whether it goes anywhere. going somewhere is kind of besides the point
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Dec 29, 2022 10:51
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I’ve spent my time traveling over the past few days binging the first 3 books in The Frith Chronicles and it’s been surprisingly fun. I would say they are some of the best non-Cradle profession fantasy I’ve read on the platform. Some of the characters are a little thin but the prose is competent, which is better than most KU poo poo can manage. And not a stat box in sight!
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Dec 29, 2022 18:31
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MartingaleJack posted:if it took the Stat dumps out I'm not sure I have ever read a book in the genre where the stat dumps actually improved the book or that replacing 90% of them with "And this caused his strength to go up somewhat" wouldn't have improved the book. Maybe if the authors didn't feel the need to drop them in over and over and over. Maybe if more authors did interesting this with them it would be better, but God it is just a meaningless block of numbers my eyes glaze over immediately. Very, very rarely they are worth including for a cool reveal, like in the beginning of Iron Prince (even if the entire grading system was kinda silly), and even then the message spam for the rest of the book was absurd. Heck, a few books I've read have pointed out that the in-universe message spam is bad and distracting. But acknowledging that its annoying doesn't make it less annoying. But I guess it wouldn't be a LitRPG if it didn't cram all that RPG in there.
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Dec 29, 2022 21:53
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Silynt posted:I’ve spent my time traveling over the past few days binging the first 3 books in The Frith Chronicles and it’s been surprisingly fun. I would say they are some of the best non-Cradle profession fantasy I’ve read on the platform. Some of the characters are a little thin but the prose is competent, which is better than most KU poo poo can manage. And not a stat box in sight! I really like that same author's Nexus Games series, so i'll have to check out the frith chronicles.
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Dec 30, 2022 02:02
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Arbetor posted:I'm not sure I have ever read a book in the genre where the stat dumps actually improved the book or that replacing 90% of them with "And this caused his strength to go up somewhat" wouldn't have improved the book. Maybe if the authors didn't feel the need to drop them in over and over and over. Kindle unlimited pays by the page so there is a perverse incentive to cram easily duplicated with slight changes word count. Conveniently, readers can trivially bypass the stat dumps if they bother them so it’s somewhat the winning strategy for pleasing the reader too. I am certain if someone comes up with something better it will show up.
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Dec 30, 2022 04:39
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I could do without full stat dumps, but I'll admit that I am exactly the sort of moron who enjoys an MC pondering over a huge list of character build options.
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Dec 30, 2022 04:51
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For a slight change of pace, anything in the KU wasteland with decent romance?
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Dec 30, 2022 12:57
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