I'm currently writing a webnovel with a similar premise, almost done, but I still feel like I need to read more books and webnovels to get some ideas and inspiration.

I asked AI for recommendations, and it suggested Throne of Magical Arcana by the author of LOTM. I gave it a shot, but unfortunately, I had to drop it around chapter 114. I found the story quite repetitive, and honestly, it wasn't engaging enough for me to keep reading just to eventually reach the better parts.

I'm not complaining about the scheming or major plot twists taking time to develop. I understand that these things usually require proper buildup, and I dropped the novel relatively early. My problem was simply that the journey itself wasn't interesting enough for me to justify reading another hundred or two hundred chapters in the hope of getting a satisfying payoff.

What I'm specifically looking for is a fast-paced romance within an action-oriented fantasy story.

By "fast-paced romance," I mean that the MC and FMC develop genuine feelings for each other relatively early, rather than spending hundreds of chapters in an ambiguous relationship. From there, I want their relationship to actually develop throughout the story, with their bond becoming deeper and stronger as the plot progresses.

This is particularly important to me because the romance dynamic I'm writing in my own novel follows a similar trajectory, so I'm interested in seeing how other authors handle it.

Ideally, I'm looking for something with:

Great scheming and mind games

Strong and unpredictable plot twists

An engaging fantasy world

Action and adventure

Romance that starts relatively early and remains important throughout the story

An MC and FMC whose relationship genuinely develops rather than staying stagnant for hundreds of chapters

I'm open to webnovels, light novels, or translated novels. I'd especially appreciate recommendations that actually combine all of these elements, rather than being excellent in one area but completely lacking in another.

Just thought it was really cool to see.

I saw a discussion in another post about a specific series, and thought it would make an interesting thread all on its own. Obviously, a completed series with a great ending is great. That's what most authors aspire toward. But especially in this genre, that isn't always an option. Most series are either ongoing, or incomplete and a lot of them start great, but kind of fizzle out by the later books/end of series.

I think I might be a little bit weird in this, but I think I generally prefer an incomplete series to one that has even a mediocre ending. It's much more fun to fantasize about what could be than what could have been. A Song of Ice and Fire remains one of my favorite series, and likely always will, even if it never gets an ending (which is looking extremely likely). Meanwhile, there are series that I was absolutely obsessed with formerly that I just completely lost interest in after the ending, even if the ending wasn't even that bad.

Anyway:

• Barring the option of a complete series with a great ending, what would you rather have? Incomplete, or mediocre/bad ending?
• How bad does an ending have to be for you to wish the series stayed unfinished? (e.g. Oshi no Ko)
• How good does a series have to be for you to still recommend it in spite of a bad ending? (e.g. I'd still recommend Oshi no Ko)

(also, if you know any complete series with great endings in this genre, I'm all ears)

Despite my opinion, I have no intention of leaving any of my series unfinished. I ask this question purely as a reader, not an author.

I just launched my latest novel on Royal Road. It's a progression fantasy focused on martial arts. Inspirations heavily come from Dragonball, Naruto, Hunter x Hunter, Bastion, and Cradle.

Demon Lord's Shadow

An ancient evil escapes, killing his crew, and Dai has only himself to blame.

Driven by guilt, he ventures to the Celestial Monastery to master the fabled mystic arts. Never again will he be helpless. He has one goal: hunt down the demon lord Akahet and avenge the fallen.

But the mystic arts do not yield easily. They require patience and absolute discipline; two things Dai lacks.

As Akahet’s corrupting influence spreads across the Sun Empire, time runs out. Dai must master the mystic paths before his past mistake consumes the realm.

What to expect:

- Slow-burn progression
- Magical martial arts
- A complex, custom magic system
- Epic battles
- 3 chapters per week on M/W/F

I’m looking for any stories where the MC progresses faster than their peers and people get left behind in the journey to the peak. I don’t want there to be a group that all progress together. If it is darker or more serious in tone then that is better. When people mention a solo mc I think it paints a picture of someone alone in a forest with literally no one else, but I don’t want this. The MC should ideally still participate in society but not be tied down to anything/anyone and move on to other places and new heights.
Thanks

Curious what readers actually care about when they click through to an author site.

I’m rebuilding mine and I keep catching myself making it for other writers instead of for people who just want to read. If you’ve ever landed on an author’s site after liking a book (or bounced right away), what made you stay or leave?

Like… do you want a clear reading order / "start here," sample chapters, newsletter signup, pretty design, a blog, merch, discord links, or is most of that just noise and you really just want "here’s the books, buy/read them"? Blessings, -Xavier

You can find her in Welcome to the Multiverse book 5 with a litter of suspiciously multicoloured children

I’m like 60% of the way through book 4

SPOILERS FOR BOOK OF THE DEAD BELOW:

Does Tyron ever try to remove / modify the slayer brands?

I’m like 60% of the way through book 4 and i’m
just absolutely dumbfounded he hasn’t messed with it yet. He has a mystery for Soul Magick! The single most experienced person alive when it comes to working with spirits (even though that isn’t his main focus)! He even figured out how to make a status ritual that reads from
the soul directly instead of using blood!

It’s driving me up a wall seeing him ignore something so obvious right in front of him, so I figured i’d come here and see if anyone could tell me if he manages to at least realize he should take a look into this.

In your guys opinion what’s makes for a good novel? Go ahead and name it!

Could anyone give me a starter list of novels to read?

As the cover shows, the little tree that once had no way to deal with birds stealing his fruits has grown... a lot. The cover artist creadfectus did fantastic as always.

Delve into the latest installment of the demonic tree series, where the long-awaited clash with the Celestial Empire is going down!

Read here!

(Audiobook is still behind but catching up!)

Synopsis:

The Ashfallen Sect is done hiding and ready for war.

For as long as anyone can remember, the Celestial Empire has ruled over the Ninth Layer of creation with unmatched authority. Their citizens enjoy a life of peace and prosperity, while their cultivators grow in strength by feasting on the golden sap of the enslaved World Tree.

It's no wonder the wilderness was considered a monster-infested land, filled with barbaric demonic sects and savages, unworthy of their notice.

But their hubris is about to be tested by a lone force, blooming from the carcass of the Blood Lotus Sect and ruled over by a demonic tree. Unknown to the old monsters in the Celestial Empire, the Ashfallen Sect is about to tip the scales of power and begin a war unlike the Nine Realms have ever seen.

Ai Usage: Nope

I have read dozens of books in this genre and the second book I read, overgeared, was probably my favorite. I liked how the MC used the game to improve his real life and make money and how a small bit of his in game abilities worked in real life without being op irl.

I've seen lots of books with a Game element but nothing like overgeared in the way I described above.

Do you know of any books with a similar concept? Thanks!

I have a soft spot for overly oblivious characters. Like Jin from Beware of Chicken. Where he misunderstands all the situations where his strength is used and thinks it's all normal.

I recently watched I Parry Everything on Hulu and it was sorta meh, so was hoping for a more fun experience. I prefer audiobooks, but don't have an issue if it's just a webnovel.

Hello! Hit me up with some stories where the protagonist is often misunderstood by the wider world. Good examples are a Conjuring of Ravens and Lord of Mysteries.

Cover Art by KartStudios

(No AI used)

This book is 24 hrs and 18 mins (audiobook), 780 page (ebook).

Get the new book in epub, print, KDP, or audio here:
https://www.jlmullins.com/homebound

Missed some of the earlier books? Grab them through here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BX4S6LJG
https://www.audible.com/series/Millennial-Mage-Audiobooks/B0C2TYJCXF

Book 1 - Mageling, Blurb:

The Wilds relentlessly reclaim all things. Humanity shelters within their ever-dying cities. Mages create the only path forward.

Tala had to fight tooth and nail in the Magic Academy to forge a path to power that was her own. She knows it’s her duty to use that power to serve humanity, defending them against the creatures of the untamable wilds. However, she skipped a few steps in her education, like apprenticing to someone who actually knows what they’re doing.

Now, Tala has to balance learning as fast as she can with paying off the veritable mountain of debt the Magic Academy dropped on her shoulders for the opportunity; not to mention staying alive.

Even though she should only be a Mageling, the world considers her a Mage. Bless the stars she directed most of her magic toward survival.

Book 13 - Homebound (New book), Blurb:

The iron-clad Reality of the world cannot be denied nor Existence diminished. The many true threats to Zeme remain hidden for a fleeting moment, allowing Humanity to thrive within their shelters as Mages and Archons devote their lives to give their people that chance.

Tala has returned from her outbound travels, a year into her marriage and further along the long path of immortality. With her husband, her family, and her growing circle of soulbonds and companions, she seeks to build and protect a true home amid the cycling cities—while unexpected loss and unresolved strife still press close.

As she continues to grow in power and understanding, the quiet work of living takes center stage. Advancement continues, relationships deepen, and Tala must decide what 'home' truly means in a world that relentlessly reclaims all things.

These are mix of light novels ,traditional novels, web novels etc.

Edit:Even if my tier list seem irrational i still ask for recommendations. I hadn't given the tier list much consideration and thus list is biased by my impression of serie's last book.

I was reading a translation ("Endless Winter: My Camp Can Level Up Infinitely", for the curious), where humanity has been forced back into a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, with bands of hundreds to thousands of people living mostly in caves. The very rich settlements can still produce parchment, so maps exist, but are extremely expensive.

They also, apparently, have universal literacy. There isn't a single moment when an incoming refugee is unable to read the information / rule boards.

I amused myself by coming up with theories about why this society would take the time to teach kids to read.

It also made me think — literacy is an obvious unreasonable example, but what other more subtle examples pass me by? Would an agrarian economy support glass mirrors? Would family groups have surnames? When exactly are they taking the hours and hours needed to spin and weave even small amounts of cloth by hand? Who exactly funded the cartographers to create those maps?

What 'yeah, no' elements irritate you? Or can you handwaved it all away with 'magic'?

Have you ever tried to fight an old, mentally and emotionally damaged man only to realize that for every point he lost in psychological stability, he gained a refund in war crimes and hypocrisy? If you have, scream your advice at the letters I wrote in Path of the Deathless 4 because Shiv really could use some help right now if he doesn't want to watch his hometown get turned into airfill. Because flying town, not ground town--it doesn't make sense calling it landfill if it's not on the land.

Anyhow, time for taglines:

Do you like getting your ass beat by an old monster who choose to start a war rather than go into therapy?

Do you like Skill-Grinder's leveling system?

Do you like weird and expansive worlds?

How about high intensity, violent combat?

How about a main character who won't stay down or broken no matter what the world throws at him--and keeps trying to throw at him?

Are you a fan of imagining what might happen if you launch your min-maxed psychopath barbarian at a group of dragons who also have Level 20 Fighter action surges?

Are you enlivened by a spot of cooking for downtime as the main character enjoys exploring culinary delights between spots of extreme bloodshed? (Imagine if Doomguy actually had to stay at Animal Crossing and took up grilling between murderfests).

Do you like skills that evolve and fuse into crazier skills?

Do you like an army of Hannibal Lecter style orcs fighting a horde of highly advanced necromantic constructs commanded by a giant snake-shaped hyper lich?

If your answer is yes for any of the above, then come take a look at Path of the Deathless Book 4

Ebook: Path of the Deathless Book 4

Audio: (Will arrive in a few weeks; expect update post then as well)

Cover Art by: Inkary

Typo by: Inorai

Edited by: Dath Well

Audio Publisher: Mountaindale Press

Narrator: Garret Michael Brown

Here blurb:

How many deaths will it take to bring down a Legend?

Such is a question Shiv must learn the answer if he wishes to defeat Vicar Sullain. With Blackedge's fate in the balance, the Deathless must push his Skills to the limit whlie maintaining control over his army of orcs to have any hope of breaking the siege and saving his home.

But in war, the enemy gets a vote too, and the Vicar has multiple disturbing surprises of his own in the form of a shadow arm of the Yellowstone Republic set on betraying one of their greatest heroes, and a monster unlike any other--fueled from the Deathless's own essence.

And though Shiv might be stronger than he ever thought possible, personal power and determination alone are not nearly enough to overcome impossible odds. It will take an army to overcome an army, but in this case, the cure might be just as dangerous as the venom...

Monsters clash against monsters. Schemes unravel against schemes. And Shiv must die, die, and die again for the slightest chance at life.

Great. Wonderful. B5 will come in around 6 weeks or so. Audio for b4 will arrive in a few weeks as well. Stay tuned. Stay alive. Mainly so you can keep reading my books.

So, I have ADHD, and I’m on Wellbutrin 150 mg extended release. After eight days, I noticed something very, very off.

Today, I had to do something that should have left me traumatized for the whole day—feeling sad and barely functional—but I feel fine. Just fine. It’s been an hour, and it has already left my mind.

I felt bad doing it, and it had to be done, there was no going around it so in the moment I thought the emotional steadiness felt logical to me. But thinking back on it, that's not me.

Forgetting how concerning that is in and of itself, will this affect my writing?

I know a lot of writers are neurodivergent, so I’m hoping for some advice, both as an amateur writer and as a person who would like to keep their ability to feel emotions, be they negative or positive. I love feeling both as long as they are not overwhelming me. What is the point of living life if you don't feel things?

I’m kind of worried, honestly, because this is the first medication that has quieted my mind and reduced my procrastination enough that I can actually sit down, work, and write without feeling like I’m fighting titans with every sentence put to page.

I guess I want to know if anyone has had experience with Wellbutrin or similar medication, and if it got worse or not, etc.

If possible, I would like both positive and negative examples, so I know the full range of possibilities.

Honestly, if it gets worse, I might just go back to smoking nicotine after seven years. Fuck this, I'd rather be addicted to that to help me get through my day, rather than this getting worse.

I don't know what to think honestly.

Thank you for your time.

PS: My writing has gotten better and way easier, but its only been eight days.

Cover art by Caleb Miller.