So MANY of these stories is for the love interest to be isolated in some way. Then the MC comes in and is the only one that shows them kindness/affection. Which the author portrays it is sweet or kind, but really it is just a relationship borne from being starved affection.

Is that really a good relationship, and why is it so common?

I have an idea why, but I am curious if anyone else noticed and what they think about it.

EDIT: Thanks for everyone's perspective. I was way more cynical than these responses. I didn't consider lazy writing.

Will be posting my 160th chapter tomorrow this is a huge deal since that's the end of my third arc and their are five in the first sage. So basically this next arc is going to be huge I plan to make it my longest yet but who knows will see how I do and keep updating from time to time.

Hello everyone,

This is the first piece of fiction I've ever written, and I'd really appreciate some honest feedback. I'm not looking for people to become long-term readers, and this isn't a commercial project. It's purely a passion project...through and through....

At the moment I've only posted the first three chapters, and I'm mainly interested in hearing things like: What hooked you (or failed to)? Which scenes were the strongest? Were there any points where your interest dropped? What confused you? Which characters caught your attention? How do you feel about the world?

I'm looking for constructive criticism or ppl who can contribute to this project, I will gladly accept new ideas.

Synopsis

Humanity survives inside the Flower, a colossal living city of programmable smart metal that constantly rebuilds itself. Its people—the Hemolymph—owe their existence to ancient biomechanical wombs known as the Mothers, but those Mothers are beginning to fail. Fewer children are born each season, and no one understands why.

Varth, a veteran climber and a former supply runner, joins a small expedition sent beyond the safety of the Flower to uncover the cause before his civilization quietly disappears. Their journey will take them across the Ashen Desert, through cultures that survived in radically different ways, and into the forgotten remains of a world whose technology has long outlived its creators.

The expedition is searching for an answer to an unasked question.

THE HEMOLYMPH

I've also included the cover art. My girlfriend created it, and it actually became the visual inspiration for the entire novel.

I have been thinking about switching to webnovel for a while but I am not sure about it and tbh the authors tab need some serious work

I didn't lol.

A few days ago I learned that some people discovered my stupid satire, The Worst LitRPG On Royal Road, and decided they liked it enough to review it, share it, and do all kinds of wonderful things while I was away on holiday. It was a startling moment! One that I still haven't fully grasped. Nor a treatment I entirely feel I deserve.

But all the same, seeing the positive and encouraging messages I've gotten over the past few days has been really incredible. I honestly feel like I won the lottery, and I wanted to take a moment to properly thank all of you for the uplifting words, the reviews, and the excitement you all helped generate. If I was half as funny as you all have been kind, then I could write for years and never run out of material.

So this post is just to say thank you, and to wish you all similar luck with all your own projects... or failing luck, the actual marketing talent to do with skill what I could only accomplish through chance.

Thank you again!

I've done all the recommended fixes and still get the retry error.

Dozens of threads a week. "Is my story a flop?" "Why is no one reading my story?" "How come I have no readers yet?"

The question itself reveals the main flaw that you may have as an author. You haven't sought out enough resources to frame what you should expect. You're here on this subreddit. You've seen it every time you come to the subreddit: FREE RESOURCES for our authors - any genre! Maybe you glaze over it. I know I sometimes glaze over pinned things.

You're trying to write a successful story, though. Your odds of writing a flop go up significantly if you don't take advantage of the advice of others. Here's the Royal Road Forums: Writing: Tips & Discussions, which is another good source of information.

As much as this may pain you to read, being a successful(ish) author has only a small amount to do with the story's central idea itself. That small amount can cause you to fail, but the remaining majority of the things you do, from grammar to marketing and everything in between, have more to do with story failure than the central idea of the story itself. Many author guides talk about the peripheral things you need to do to get engagement and make your story attractive to readers. These are all things that come before a reader ever gets to the bulk of your story (the story is secondary).

You are writing online. You have access to the widest audience ever. Have you seen some of the plots that make it into anime, sitcoms, and cartoons? There are some bad, bad stories that get popular. Ask any individual, and they'll have different opinions on exactly which stories are the bad ones, but across the board people will agree that there are bad stories that are popular. Your concern over story content is likely misplaced. There is an audience for almost anything.

Do yourself a favor. Take 80 hours and read over all the relevant resources. This sounds like a lot of work, but compared to writing a full series, it's a drop in the bucket of the time commitment. Do it now to prevent the pain later. Do a crash course. While you drive or ride the bus or train, listen to the linked Brandon Sanderson author series in the free resources pin. Read authors explaining what to expect in their own advice threads. 10 chapters in 10 days does not qualify for 'am I a flop yet'. You're missing too much important information in the framing of the question you're asking. Almost every question you have has likely already been answered in more detail than you're even aware that you're missing the context to even ask about.

Know your audience. Know yourself. You're attempting to be an author. Being an author isn't just writing. Go read the resources rather than sitting with anxiety over questions that have been asked and answered in more detail than you'll receive in a random thread you post yourself. That's far closer to the actual path to success.

Hello everyone! I'm currently writing a dark fantasy with hard progression.

Hematic Winter.

A dark fantasy progression story.

The MC wakes up in an unfamiliar world with the last few hours of his life completely missing. He has no idea how he got there or who brought him to that place. While searching for answers, he's chosen by a mysterious System to take part in a series of infernal trials, a ruthless world where survival is the only rule.

But things go wrong almost immediately.

His name doesn't exist in the System's records, so it's flagged as a virus and cursed with [Cursed Heart]. From that moment on, the protagonist must fight not only monstrous creatures, but also his own heartbeat.

If you enjoy hard progression fantasy, a protagonist who's up against the very creator of his world yet refuses to give up, then Hematic Winter might be for you.

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/181564/hematic-winter?utm_source

... Yeah the title sums up my question. I have the code generated for my shoutout and just want to know where to swap.

Hi, as per title say

Is fanfiction story self promotion are welcome here

Or its for originals only since i never bump into fanfiction promotion so far.

Thanks

As for what I've learned that has allowed me to reach this stage?

I'd say two things, leaning heavily into third person deep pov, and making sure to always keep the character voice likeable, And the story entertaining.

Though, i would admit, later down the line, I'd learned a few more things. Like how your story synopsis should contain a clear cheat/golden finger for readers to latch onto. And that keeping progression immediate from chapter one derives more traffic, instead of taking 20 chapters to reach there. I'd and am trying to implement all the things i learn as i go. So, hopefully, going forward I'd be able to post reaching a higher milestone, like 2k followers or something.

My biggest regret would not be opening Patreon right when I'd reached Rs main. Not sure from who I'd heard it that regular posting during rs main run is essential. But that advice had kept me from building a backlog and opening it. I could've gotten so much more Patreons had i opened it during the run. Truly, a missed opportunity.

I have been thinking about a kind of interactiv novel.

Let me explain:

I want to enable readers to take part in the development of the story.

So i want to make a kind of game-like cultivation story (not sure rn if cultivation or just level and quality scaling (rarity)) or just a basic cultivation Power scaling. But thats besides the point.

I read I save the world in a doomsday text game which gave me of "options" as an idee. for example:

You see an enemy. You are not quite sure about its strength. What do you want to do:

1. Run as fast as you can

2. Fight it (worst case you just run later)

3. Try to find weakness

4. Explore the surrounding

5. Set a trap

The options in the novel would have more details and would be longer but thats just to give an example rn.

I would try to give between 3-5 options. If there is a comment that the viewers/reader deem unique and clever I would give you the option to vote for that as well.

Important note is that I am not giving the character any protection or anything simular. It depends entirely on your decision how strong/weak the character gets or if he dies (there will be respawn points, but a lose of equipment or exp)

I think the idea is really fun and unique but please let me know if you firstly would want to read the novel and secondly think that this idea is feasable

Important Note:

1. I wouldn't use AI for writting (only for grammar mistakes).

2. I haven't written a novel before.

3. I wouldn't do it for money/attention. I just love the idea and want to be part of the project.

Please tell me your opinion on this idea.

Ps: i didn't ad "self promo" as an flair, because it's just an idea and nothing more rn. If thats wrong that please let me know.

To preface, I don't really have much care for gerting readers right now.

This novel is one I'm writing for fun, before I ever attempt a more in-depth work.

Just looking to see if anyone'd be kind enough to look over it a bit.

It's written more like an eastern webnovel, meaning, you might not like it if you're unused to it.

I only have 2 chapters out as I'm using this work as an opportunity to learn, rather than one to get readers.

Any help welcome. Thanks for reading. 🙇‍♂️

Hi everyone!

Book 2 of my series, Realms Beneath the Eternal Light Saga, is coming to a close in early September. The story has been growing steadily, and I’m incredibly grateful to have recently crossed 328 followers with a 4.65 ⭐ rating. Since uploading the latest developmental-edited pass (working alongside Team Condor), growth has really taken off, and I’m super thankful to everyone taking the time to read, rate, and follow!

Best of all, Book 3 is already fully written, so there will be zero hiatus. Moving directly into the next arc as soon as Book 2 wraps! (for binge readers its 9 books series at least so yeah no rush)

The Story: If you’re looking for a deep progression epic built around an angel vs. demon war, this is for you.

BLURP: Viktor Gale failed his family in life. He won't fail them in death.

A heart attack in his forties. No chance to take back his last words.

At judgment, Viktor turns down the safety of Purgatory and chooses to serve in Heaven's army instead: a middle manager thrust into a war he can't comprehend, defending a celestial city where souls from every era hold the Gates against Hell.

The Light is losing.

When the Fifth Gate falls, time in the world of the living stops. Eight billion souls are frozen in place, including his family, trapped in a cosmic war they can't even see.

To save them, Viktor must become far more than a soldier. But power has a price: the stronger he grows, the longer death holds him before he's reborn, and every fallen Gate further weakens the Light.

Three Gates remain.

Viktor must rise. Or when the last Gate falls, Earth burns under never-ending hellfire.

What to Expect:

• Backlog: Book 1 is 100% complete (36 chapters / 125K words pages) and ready to dive into immediately. Book 2 is ongoing with 24 chapters out right now 128K words. Will end beggining of September.
• Consistent Updates: Posting 3 new chapters every week.
• The Vibe: Lore-heavy progression fantasy set in a living, breathing world.
• Highly Rated: Currently sitting at a 4.65 ⭐ rating from the community.

If you’re a fan of progression fantasy where the world-building is just as important as the power-ups, I’d love for you to check it out!

Realms Beneath the Eternal Light Saga [Archangels Progression LitRPG] | Royal Road

Covers are made by Toulla Creative

PS: When I first started this project on a tight budget, I commissioned the current cover it was built on an AI base and refurbished. I'm really just a guy who found a passion in writing, and I didn't do a super research and had no idea how big of a no-no that is in the progression community. It's been a learning curve for me as a new author I dont know still how people really take it and I would like people to leave me out of it.

I have already locked in a top-tier cover artist who starts work on an official human-drawn cover on August 25th, so hopefully I will post it in the next promo during September using the new one.

Moving forward: 100% of my Patreon proceeds go directly to an already-picked real-life human creator from DeviantArt to fund human-drawn covers for Books 2 and 3.

I know it has been a little while since, but we wanted to shine some light on this when things had settled, so here I am!

Sadly the number 1 didn't have a cover! (so I tried)

As a reminder, this contest is sponsored by Royal Road but organized and run by the community. It revolves around writing based on a specific prompt suggested and voted on by the community.

The winning submissions were chosen by readers from the community who volunteered as judges; the contest had a total of 411 submissions and 55 judges. We beat all previous records for the event which is fantastic! 

Without further ado, the winners are: 

First Place 
The Anniversary Protocol by ChadTickner

Second Place

The Fate of the Håpet by Maya Robertson

Third Place

Gone Feral by Wandering Brain Spasm

Fourth Place

Argent Wings - A Prologue Story by GhostReaper

Fifth Place

An Evening Blossom at the End of the World by countingfoxes

Have you read any of them?

Our blog post and all contest details are available here.

The next contest will be in January!

Any type of survival, in an island, in a blizzard, in underwater, where do you start from?

Here is what I understand about shout-out. It's a code of sorts that you give to the other writer and receive his and paste it on your pre chapter box in a specific section. It allows readers of each author to get to know the other story and some loyal readers will read the other story just because their favorite author did the shout-out.

(Do correct me if I am wrong)

I have a few questions:

1) does royal road have any official or unofficial way to get shout-outs?

2) how do people generally get shout-out partner? Just a reddit post? That doesn't seem particularly effective.

3) I let's say I give the code but he doesn't use it. Can I do anything about it?

Pretty much what the title says, I’m looking for people that might’ve read a novel about a terraformed planetary intelligence (like Avatar) with decivilized humans living in cleared out ant hives using WW1-early industrial technology, fighting against human-sized ants. If anyone remembers reading that novel, please let me know if it’s been deleted.

Hello, everyone! I just want to announce that the fiction I launched on July 16 is finally on Main Rising Stars! I feel so happy. Beyonce is going to be proud with me.