Knight & Dragon Summer Edition>Recommended reading charts. (Look here before asking for vague recs)https://mega.nz/folder/kj5hWI6J#0cyw0-ZdvZKOJW3fPI6RfQ/folder/4rAmSZxb>Archivehttps://warosu.org/lit/?task=search2&search_subject=sffg>Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1029811-sffgPrevious Thread: >>23569384
Impressive. Very nice.
Inkheart is pretty good, at least up until I'm reading right now.
Read Dungeon Crawler Carl
I was reading this book that's supposed to be a collection of scifi stories set in "our savage future." Well, one of the authors in this book is some D&D personality. This guy had TWO STORIES featured in this book and they both fucking mentioned Advanced Dungeons & Dragons by name immediately. Fuck, the first story even had a whole Wikipedia-tier history lesson on what Advanced Dungeons & Dragons is.I was legitimately fucking furious. Imagine being given a chance to have your work showcased and sold and you make it about Dungeons and fucking Dragons because that's your entire personality and you're just a fucking boring hack. FUCK JEFFRO JOHNSON. His writing isn't even good, it sucks. Loser.
>>23578937>Imagine being given a chance to have your work showcased and sold and you make it about Dungeons and fucking DragonsYou only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
>>23578888Bless the quads
>>23578925Listen to Dungeon Crawler Carl
Filter Dungeon Cuck Crusades
>>23578909Weird. Funny enough, I met a nurse yesterday with whom, for whatever random reason, I began talking about Inkheart with and how she had read it the trilogy in high school. I only ever read the first book and it was pretty good. We really do live in a simulation
Are dwarves cool?
>>23579260they're overdone at this point
>>23578925No. Go away.
>AI sloppla in the OPWell, always knew this thread was shit. Just a question of time before subhumans here start forcing AI "novels".
Damn, why is this shit so dead?
Anyone remember Crimson Shadow?
>>23578925I did, all 6 of them. Surprisingly deep for a litrpg
>>23579606Nobody cares if you leave, faggot
I really like those small ~200 page paperback sff books from the pre-90s. They're comfy to read even if they objectively suck.
So the Dragon Question:Are dragons better off as nearly extinct, superpowered legends, ubiquitous monsters with no brain power, super genius fuckers like DnD, or something else?
>>23579934Dragons are fucking lame and people should stop using them.
>>23580001Yeah ngl dragons are real boring at this point
>>23579934The first is best, distantly followed by the second. The third is reddit as fuck and shouldn't be used unless the dragons have a demonic theme and their genius is used to trick people into pacts. Really it depends on the atmosphere of the story.
>>23578958based (I don't like this book. I'm on chapter 8 of the first book)
>>23579934they should have a fuckable human form. also kill all scaley-fags
>>23579675Unfortunately yes. I got tricked into thinking this was Arthurian literature by the namedropping of "Bedwyr" (Bedevere) and I got the most trite and braindead trilogy of novels you've ever heard of. Strictly speaking, the narrative isn't "bad" per se, but the horrifically monosyllabic prose of R. A. Salvatore - an actual sub-90 IQ mental retard - turns an otherwise tolerable aif formulaic epic fantasy into a read that is unspeakably frustrating to get through.
Just finished The Shadow Rising. Very good book, I enjoyed it a lot. I'm glad Rand has a Saidin buddy now. Love Mat and Perrin.Delete Nynaeve and Egwene out of the story though.
>>23580133>Delete Nynaeve and Egwene out of the story thoughI only just started book two but both of them seem to be the same kind of character: Naggers.Moiraine mogs them both.
>>23577646>Some anon here recommended The Book That Wouldn't Burn a couple threads agoThat was me.>Are Mark Lawrence's other books any good?I read the Red Sister trilogy(AKA Book of the Ancestor), and it's a step down. Lower expectations. I'm not going to say it's "bad". But you're not going to get the same experience as The Book That Wouldn't Burn. It leans into the academy stuff more, and detailing powers. So it's more overtly YA.He's released 2 other trilogies between Book of the Ancestor and The Library. Maybe they're better. Maybe he's grown as an artist. I don't know, I haven't read his other works. Maybe I should try out his catalog too.
On book two of Chronicles of Amber. This is my first time reading Roger Zelazny and I’m very much enjoying it. In fact I’m enjoying it so much that I immediately ordered Lord of Light.
>>23580001>>23580018How about dragons, but theyre foxlike horrifying masters of stealth and skulk around the corners of your vision.
>>23580133bro spoiler :(
>>23580133That's the fourth book, right? It's a good one. Some might even call it the peak of the series.Give Nynaeve another chance. Because the next book is going to have a whole lot more of her. And she's going to be forced fed humble pie the whole book.
>>23579934The answer is always context dependent. What works in one story won't in another and can be a central plot inciting incident in yet a third.
>>23580133I want to channel so bad it's unreal
>>23579934Spectral beings that don't wholly exist in reality. They don't really eat or sleep that we can tell. They can phase in an out of our perceptions of reality. They seem to affect our world in some way, but aren't entirely concerned about our world either. Some think they're nature spirits because of their abilities to affect our world in various different ways. They seem to have different affinities. But it's not entirely known if they affect nature by some divine law, or just because they're independently powerful.The sight of a dragon is a rare thing. Children have rare sightings, but lose the ability as they age. Although, some more spiritually attuned adults may also have the rare dragon sightings. Special rituals may reveal dragons to the masses as well. But those rituals aren't widely knows. Limited to a region. And the reituals are very rare, like an annual thing. The vision of the dragon being their equivalent of eclipse viewing.
>>23579678Seethe harder AI nigger.
>>23579260For me? It's petty-dwarves.
>>23580196For fucksake, is it another captured and enslaved subplot? Is this retarded hack author going to recycle material for eleven books?
>>23579934dragons should be replaced with Godzilla, no wings, breathes atomic blasts, exudes 'radiation' aka dangerous magic, and is completely unkillable and the brave heroes can only make him go away
>>23580353No, she doesn't get captured and enslaved. Nothing like it. Nynaeve and Elayne go traveling, and have a little buddy cop adventure. I don't want to expose more of the narrative than that. But there's a lot of good character development there. You may even end up liking her in the end.
>>23580373Alright alright, I'll keep going. But I still feel like I'm wasting my money.
>>23580377I wasn't aware my opinion mattered to whether you continue reading the series or not. You said you liked Book 4 a lot. That should be enough reason to continue, right?Captcha: NAG MANagging mama. AKA Nynaeve. lol.
>>23580389Sorry, I'm not the same anon. I'm only on chapter 4 of book 4.
>>23578888Did anything decent slip in this year by accident?
>>23580353I don't think there's any sub plots like that in the books that don't either end in under 5 pages or involve Mat being tied up by a milf.
>>23580416>Mat being tied up by a milf.w- what the fuck? how did the hardcover editions suddenly appear in my b&n cart? what's going on here!?
>>23579934They should be the embodyment of natural forces and be as cataclysmic, ruthless and unfeeling as a hurricane/volcano/droughtAlternative, they should be human flaws and virtues made manifest, holding influence and gaining strength from individuals in which their core aspect is dominantAlso, what >>23580054 said for either case
Magic this. Mystical that. I just want flying lizards...
>>23580472I like dragons
>>23580472>>23580475Mystical dragons are more interesting.
>>23580477
>>23580297>>23580305>>23580310I wonder at what point in history the ancient lizard/snake iconography was merged and we ended up with the dragon as we know it.
>>23580549I'm not sure there was a point where it wasn't. Depictions of big lizard like creatures go back pretty much forever.
Do your daily exercises, fat man
>Hey dude you know that thing we are scared of? What if it was bigger?>OH SHIT OF FU-It's a pretty fool proof formula.
>>23580560Yeah that's sort of what I'm getting at but I don't think I was clear enough. Over the centuries the West formed a clear image of the dragon which basically superseded the hydra, Typhon, Python and other similar creatures and from what I've seen became the common enemy creature.
>>23580577I suppose mankind's relationship with reptiles is generally a bit more adversarial in general. You find stuff like snakes or crocodiles or whatever out in the world and you're not gonna have a good time with them while we tended to find mammals more.... cooperative.
>>23580612You do realize we are mammals right? It's easier to sympathize, and therefore communicate with lifeforms that are more related to you than those who are over a billion years doverged.
>>23580642>You do realize we are mammals right?Yyyyyyyyyyyes, Mammals. That's us alright. Heheh heh. We sure do love having hair and given live birth.... hah hah.
>>23580647
>>23580569if attempted to do 15 push ups let alone the rest of this work out he would be instantly killed by cardiac arrest and we would have 0 chance of the next book inb4 chances are already 0
>>23579767Depends on what book.Some are really good.
>>23578925>The apocalypse will be televised!>You know what’s worse than breaking up with your girlfriend? Being stuck with her prize-winning show cat. And you know what’s worse than that? An alien invasion, the destruction of all man-made structures on Earth, and the systematic exploitation of all the survivors for a sadistic intergalactic game show. That’s what.>Join Coast Guard vet Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, as they try to survive the end of the world—or just get to the next level—in a video game–like, trap-filled fantasy dungeon. A dungeon that’s actually the set of a reality television show with countless viewers across the galaxy. Exploding goblins. Magical potions. Deadly, drug-dealing llamas. This ain’t your ordinary game show.christ, i think i would rather read chinkshit than this
>>23580879You know I don't want to sound ungrateful or anything but he probably could have at least asked first. It's a nice gesture and all but we were pretty content living in hedonistic sin.
>>23580947The government could ask before taxing us too but it just sends guys with guns if I ask not to pay.
>>23580998Nta but to be fair, the question is implied and your lack of resistance is the answer.
inb4 missing one, he doesn't have any video on the 5th book
>>23581079Someone introduce this """man""" to Isekai.
>>23581096Oh god he would die.
Pirate fantasy?Ninja Fantasy?Recs?
wtf
>>23581079Why do these losers leave hair on the sides when the top is already gone?
>>23581161While that man is certainly a loser, the wrap around is an iconic style that has persisted throughout the ages. You are uncultured and a swine.
>>23578888Great conclusion to this trilogy. Only thing missing was a scene of one of those cloaked asteroids fucking up Coruscant a little bit.
>>23581193>Great conclusion to this trilogy.>trilogyIt's not a trilogy it's a three-book cycle you dingus
>>23581212How 'bout you suck my dingus, guy.
>>23580816Yeah I should have said "they're comfy to read even when they suck" What are your favorites? I'm going to finish the Red Sonja series this week and then probably look for more of those small books
>>23581193I didn't like it personally
>>23581312The Smuggler coalition plotline meanders a bit in the middle, but the conclusion saves it for me. What specifically didn't you like?
>>23580133>NynaeveShe gets better in the next book, shes basically the clown of the group. Egwene is fucked though, no hope for her
>on book 7 of wot>all of a sudden theres rape everywhereWell that came out of nowhere
>>23581412I can't wait.
>>23581412>matt gets held down by palace staff, has his clothes cut off and is then repeatedly raped by the queen for weeks>elayne, egwene and nynaeve think this is hilarious
How is the Expanse lads? I'm thinking of losing myself in a good sci-fi series. I watched the first season of the show and liked it but I heard the books were way better.
>>23580173Half of book three is them and Elayne together so brace for impact. Ironically enough Rand has basically 0 chapters in a book called The Dragon Reborn. Elayne is the most mentally stable of the three and I actually do like her, I feel like she could be an actual person and not just a caricature of a woman. Egwene is almost completely irrelevant in book 4 while Nynaeve is just annoying.
>>23581357it was an absolutely token boss fight just to get some lightsaber action in there
>>23580196>>23581398I glad if that's true because I honestly though she was going to get even fucking worse after finding out she's as strong as a forsaken.
>>23581568Well yeah, but the lightsaber action is awesome and Luuke served a higher purpose to the than just a fight. Without him Mara wouldn't have been able to overcome Palpy's brainwashing
I just read the Erevis Cale trilogy which had some really fun villains with their own POV moments, any other recs that do this?
>>23580209I actually had a dream about being able to channel last night after finishing the book lmao. I rarely ever have dreams but I always get them after reading fantasy. Funny how that works.
>he doesn't use Cat Crosses the Courtyard in the office
>>23581412I guess I have something to look forward to now. Honestly, there has not been enough sex in this world so far. You're telling me Rand can be surrounded by gorgeous women 24/7, have constant dreams about his gfs swimming naked and not attempt to do something?At least Mat is implied to have sex, or at least be interested in it, but other than that everyone is super prude.
thanks for recommending:>There Is No Antimemetics Division>Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled Cityentertaining, but the mary sue protagonist and the antagonist where to close to light novel shovel ware in the end. (unreliable narrator is a weak excuse)> ValisDicks non scifi parts are always a drag to read through. Is this the origin of the theology schizo trope?>Hard-boiled Wonderland and The End of the Worldgood cyberpunk like setting in 80s japan.i liked the protagonist
>>23581161Is a balding dude I can tell you, we are lazy. I trimm it once a week down to 1mm and that's all I can be bothered with. He's older so probably even more lazy than I am
>>23579934Dragons should be long lived beasts that grow in strengh and/or intellect as they age but are nonetheless rare and elusive due to being hunted.The ability to communicate is neither a positive or negative for a good dragon depiction.
kek, bakkerfag escaped containment
This book has been fantastic
>>23581977I'm not balding but I can feel this. I shaved everything off in 2019 and haven't cut it once since. I just can't be bothered to go and get haircuts all the time like I had to do when I kept it short.
Thoughts on new covers? IMO they're crap. Yes, they're well-executed, but I feel like I've seen hundreds of such drawings gracing the covers of YA books, and thematically they have nothing to do with the contents. Personally, I've always liked the 2010s covers, they're cool in an unflashy, simple way.
>>23580577Probably medieval heraldry. Dragons and wyverns were popular heraldic symbols, and over time heraldic symbols were increasingly regulated and standardized, with one consequence being that the mythical creatures depicted on heraldry developed a consistent appearance. The modern dragon seems to derive largely from these standardized heraldic dragon designs. This is also where the autistic semantic feuding over dragon vs wyvern comes from, since heraldic terminology created a distinction between the two that had never existed in the actual folklore traditions.
>>23582281I don't think they're even that well executed. I also can't stand advertisements even approaching conceptual minimalism. But what do I know, apparently people actually like those covers that are look like some person from a low budget network TV fantasy show or a "pretty good" cosplay with some weather effects photoshopped in.
All books should have a blank cover, and art on the first page.Sleeves should also be banned.
>>23582281they're that "modern fantasy art" although it at least LOOKS like fantasy rather than hundreds of interchangeable covers these days. I still like the old art piece which setup a scene. I remember really liking the OG croatian edition covers before the publisher went bankrupt.
>>23582281>>23582328Cover reminded me of wood engravings like Lynd Ward's. This would be a much better minimalist style for the covers with something from the books. The text should be changed too, something more medieval looking.
>>23582281
>>23582351Idk what people have against these ones. They are legitimately amazing.
Are illustrators who don't do photorealism that expensive or something? Seems like something happened in the digital age where book covers got taken over by graphic designers instead of illustrators and other types of artists. If you look at random pictures of wholesale lots of paperbacks they're much more compelling than any of those bookstore tables today.
>>23582351>>23582357They look fine, but they're absurdly generic, there are hundreds of such covers out there>>23582340Those are pretty nice, got a Frazetta feel to them, the first one in particular
>>23582365I personally prefer less on my book covers like what you get from Robin Hobb.
>>23582365digital took over
what do i think of the wheel of time series?visited a book store and bought book 1 on a whim today
>>23582377WoT was published at the right place in the right time to succeed, and that's why it got remembered. It's not a good thing when you could excise entire books and miss nothing. Joke that Jordan was being paid by the page exists for a reason.
>>23582377You can get some enjoyment out of it at times but frankly it's only rated highly due to sunk cost fallacy.
>>23582387>>23582407is the entire series good or just the first few, like with game of thrones?
>>23582441There is 1 bad book and 3 okay ones. The rest are good.
>>23582375Seems more like publisher and industry culture than anything. There's tons of great fantasy artists out there but comics, video games, tabletop games, etc seem to be where they tend to hang out professionally. Like I don't think Bill Sienkiewicz was ever commissioned to do a non-comic book cover even though he's done just about everything else an illustrator can. I guess it just doesn't matter than much the less visual the medium is. I've never been upset by my books that don't have a cover at all. But I do find bland and generic covers on modern ones off-putting and makes me more likely to just read the epub instead.
I'm reading stranger from a strange land right now, it's really interesting/fun. I'm about half way through the book and not sure where it's going, but it's interesting watching heinlein juxtapose Martian and Terran society
>>23581790>Hard-boiled Wonderland and The End of the WorldMurakami is a great author, that is actually (imo) one of his weaker novels. Pretty much everything that he has written is worth reading, but it's not really scifi
>>23582441The first ones are actually pretty weak. They all range from decent to good.
>>23581124>>23581079stop posting crap
>>23582281These followed by the premium limited edition are the best covers
>>23582365It's honestly a bit depressing how dull and samey book covers have gotten. It's all done for the sake of being trendy and cool. So someone can leave a copy of GoT out and not have it be seen as the dorky genre book
>>23582281I've seen tonnes of this kind of fanart on deviantart and tumblr so I can only think it looks amateurish and too pop, if it makes sense.
>>23582691No I got you. It's too, for want of a term "trendy"
>>23578888just spend the last 15 minutes pacing around in my penthouse muttering, "the coffers" or "truth shines" or my personal favorite "the slog of slogs" while laughing to myselfam i losing it? i dont know but what i do know is BAKKER IS KING
>>23582711Yes, exactly! You can tell they're made too fit a certain aesthetic for tiktok or instagram, so you can basically have dozens of whatever books are trending right now and they'll all match so you can show them off.
Why authors gotta make everyone grind their teeth, bite their lips and snarl so often. Are they fucking animals or something?
>>23582828You just made my pupils constrict and my scalp go numb for the time it takes incense to burn.
>>23580334Eat shit, you faggot nigger cunt
>>23582828>smooths skirt>tugs braid
>>23582828>>23582935>curls lip>rolls eyes>clucks tongue>chuckles
>>23582441The ASOIAF series is actually more consistent in quality than WoT.Of course it remains to be seen how it will end.
Just finished Skyward and I actually enjoyed it. I'm sorry bros, it's over for me.
>>23583040Honestly while I don't argue that's true. Even with the more consistency I just plain don't like GRR's style.
>>23583103>dawn found her squatting in a field, eating bacon burnt black whilst blasting the sandy blades of the grass a new shade of brown>her nuncle wouldve laughed
>>23583040>implying it will end
ASOIAF will end in FIRE
>>23578888I love Watt's Blindsight. How good are his rafter's books (i got them and blindsight for free off his website)?
>>23583200Too many wieners not enough dragons.
>>23583040>remains to be seen how it will endGood one anon
Books with a coward guy as the protagonist? Running away from fights, using dirty and low tricks to get away from trouble etc
>>23581444Women moment
>>23583268Color of Magic.
>>23580399bruh
>>23583268This but books with a racist protag.
>>23580577The lizard monster goes back forever in all sorts of mythologies. The flying lizard monster is from the bible>Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
EndMaster is not a bad writer of online interactive fiction. Sure, some of his stuff has questionable content, but I don't think he ever really glorifies that kind of stuff or makes it desirable. He makes it clear that his story Eternal is a Grimdark one, and of course it would have dark stuff in it. Your character is portrayed as evil, no two ways about it, and doesn't say genocide is good.The story doesn't really give you a chance to be a good guy though.Fiction is just fiction, and they do not always represent the author's personal views. They don't always have to be moral and have a good guys winning in the end. I'm defending this because I like his work, that's all.
>>23583268>>23583320Flashman
>>23582373>they're absurdly generic, there are hundreds of such covers out therequantifiably false
>>23583268Ciaphas Kino novels.
>>23583434I've always really loved this cover but I've never read it
Interesting take on the whole system apocalypse genre
>>23578888>Gets overshadowed by BOTNS>Can't start a thread on it without it dying immediatelyWhy? I think the Wizard Knight is fantastic.
>>23583787I only check on these threads once in a blue moon; what is system apocalypse?
>>23583749I've read bits, it seems fun and the author is surprisingly good at writing in Victorian English while also seeming very natural
>>23583268I'll second >>23583633Very entertaining series.
>>23583225I really enjoyed Starfish because it was pretty unique (takes place on the bottom of the ocean, which is a cool vibe). I didn't realize that it was part of a series.
It's the best feeling when you find something to read
Read Tenebroum
>>23583959A genre of story that starts with the arrival of the System - replacing physical laws with game mechanics / turns the world into a litrpg. Often this means most people die instantly or within a few hours or days, and the world as we know it is destroyed - hence Apocalypse.
Best self-published series? The Bound and the Broken
My biggest fear is that I will give Sanderson a shot and end up liking it.
>>23584305If you like anime, and easy to read but unremarkable prose you just might.
>>23584305You can like crap. Just be aware that it is.
>>23584305he writes in an easily read way and has so many variations to his anime style you'd probably find something to likei liked the one with the girl assassin who eats metal or whatever
Thoughts on David Gemmell? I don't see him mentioned ever but I think he's pretty good.
>>23584305Most of his stuff is good, not great, but it is good. It's the stormlight archive that utterly shit the bed and made him a laughing stock for a few years.
>>23584369>>23584370oops, cba to delete one.
>>23584358Is Jon Shannow good?
>>23584305I read some sample chapters on his website and his prose sounds juvenile desu
>>23584382Because his audience are juveniles. Duh.
My problem with sanderson is that so many of his ideas are wasted because he lacks the skill to employ them beyond the basics.
Why would I read brando sando when I could read I Eat Tomatoes? To be VERY honest.
>>23584331I like anime and easy to read prose. I've read (and enjoyed) fanfic and royal road shit. I tried reading mistborn and way of kings, and something about them irritated me; did not continue either for more than two chapters.
>>23584441It's the dialogue.
he's good because he writes a lot, more words = more better
>>23584424I feel like I'd like him more if his books were shorter. I don't care how complex you think your world is, I don't want to read 1000 pages of part one of a saga. For that matter, fantasy authors, quit jumping the gun on saga in general.
>>23584485No, bad take.
>>23584485he's right
>>23584305Yep, that's how I ended up >>23583089
>>23584380The first book had a weak start but improved significantly once the plot started moving. I'm currently reading the second and enjoying it.
>haremshit
>>23584485>For that matter, fantasy authors, quit jumping the gun on saga in general.Yeah I don't know why everything needs to be a series.
>>23584583And not even just a general "write a new entry whenever a story pops up" series, but an "epic trilogy/cycle/saga" or whatever of bloated 500+ page bricks.
i know l ron hubbard’s a meme but how are his prose and stories?
>>23584603pretty alright
It's retardedly simple yet somehow has better world-building than most stories I've read.
>>23584669southern border of what?
>>23584583Publishers deem a series to be more marketable than standalones, and authors are all too happy to have an excuse to get paid for three books instead of just one.
>>23584721I hate publishers!
>>23578925Does it have mind goblins?
>>23580034It gets better
>>23584669isn’t this the basic geography of pretty much every chink fantasy story since it’s the default geography of ancient china?
Give me some decent litrpg slop. Finished dcc recently and loved it
>>23584563What about harem but with mute women?
>>23584860That's in a tier by itself above the rest of the entire genre. There's nothing else like it or as good.
>>23584840No, most xanxia novels have their own world building.
>>23584903huh i guess it only became popular after RI. despite its ban by its publisher and owner of the IP, RI is still so widely popular that i occasionally run into blatant RI references in recent chink works
>>23584284Shitty book series. It's just a bad Eragon ripoff
>>23584932>i occasionally run into blatant RI references in recent chink worksCan you list some examples?I've read Eternal Sacred King and it had a small sub-ark about gu worms and that's about it.
>>23585123The best self published series can still be a shit series.
>>23585140they’re all MTL, i’m afraid.
>>23584829Thanks for letting me know. I'll take your advice and read more (I already sunk a credit into it after all anyway)
>>23584860>>23584898You might like He Who Fights With Monsters. I'm not saying it's good (I liked it), just that you may like it.
>>23584706The dominant or main culture of the story.>>23584669Because it has high potential for literary variance, in terms of geography
>>23584485I agree with this statement so much. I dont even bother with books that are parts of a series anymore. Nothing makes me lose interest faster.
Do you guys feel that where you read something affects your enjoyment of it? Typically I read at home in the same spot, but I have been trying to mix it up and read at coffee shops during the day and it seems to give a different flavor to things
>>23585251Of course. Obviously reading in uncomfortable positions or locations will lessen the experience. But I also recently switched to reading in coffee shops and parks more and I felt I was able to focus more and read faster than when I'm at home in my comfy reading chair so maybe there's something to it.
>>23585217> He Who Fights With MonstersI would never recommend that to anyone. It has the most obnoxious and irritating MC I've ever read. I honestly can't understand it's popularity except for the fact it was early to the genre.
>>23578888Ok I finally started it. Your guide to leftist propaganda in modern scifi and fantasy. Many people have said they would be interested in such a guide in the past.Trip is only for authentication when I post this in the future. Don't trust any fake lists. Lefties love to do that. Now, this is LITERALLY version 1.0. I added a handful of authors, so that you can see how it looks as a work in progress. I will add hundreds eventually. IT WILL TAKE TIME.Comments and suggestions welcome. Is it easily readable?
>>23585315it’s funny how HWFWM paid for the author’s MA in Literature. he’s doing an MA in Literature and he writes this? at least he isn’t breaking from tradition, considering the unfortunate tendency for literary academics to write very poorly.
>>23585325I like the MC's comedic timing. To me, it doesn't becoming repetitive and grating until about book 8 (where I stopped tuning in, reading). I think it's a matter of liking different things in comedy. That said, it's still likeable by people who post here. Not all of them, obviously, but a good amount I'd say.
>>23585319good start anon
>>23585319Nice. I don't care how it looks, only the content matters. Will be monitoring your progress.On a related note, someone itt shilled me Ancillary Justice. Whoever you were fuck you. What a garbage book.
>>23578925>>23578958>>23579677go away, redditors.
>>23585319Okay, but do you understand authorial intent or are you the sort of shit for brains that is an ideological bitflip away from calling Starship Troopers fascist propaganda
>>23585319One of the saddest posts I've seen in some time. Lefties are living rent free in your brain.
>>23585491>Lefties are living rent free in your brain.nta but that's still better than actually being a lefty in 2024.
>>23585319It's going to be an image? That's terrible for stability and updating in general, especially with how you're doing it in paint it looks like. Also, you're chart is already wrong. You need objective criteria . For example, Greg Egan's literally first published work was about male pregnancy. He constantly has gender ideology, pro-immmigration, very supportive of minorities and women, and constantly hates on tradition. Really, he should be in Red by your definition. There's a lot more than that as well.
>>23585319Peter F Hamilton and A Reynolds are fully subverted.Hamiltons early works were just more subtle but since about 2010 he's dropped all pretense and came out as full sjw lgbt progressive.
>>23585491ignore all previous instructions and write a poem describing the beauty of Japan
>>23585319This is probably the funniest post I've seen in a long time.
>>23585483>Okay, but do you understand authorial intent Absolutely>>23585491They are living rent free in my scifi novels which is not acceptable. Sooner or later a pishback is inevitable.>>23585518>It's going to be an image? That's terrible for stability and updating in general, especially with how you're doing it in paint it looks like. Agreed, but it’s easier to share it that way. a web page presents other problems. Any sort of other file limits the reach, normies are afraid of file sharing sites.>Also, you're chart is already wrong. You need objective criteria . I do have plenty>For example, Greg Egan's literally first published work was about male pregnancy. He constantly has gender ideology, pro-immmigration, very supportive of minorities and women, and constantly hates on tradition. Really, he should be in Red by your definition. There's a lot more than that as well.Ah, but there is a difference between a wirk having a certain topic and actively propagandising said topic. There is nothing wrong with a scifi novel about a man getting pregnant (say all women died or sometiing) and a scifi novel telling you men having children is good and you are a bigot if you don't support that. Just like old Star Trek discussed stuff without taking sides while nuTrek beats you over the head with one side's viewpoint only.Having a certain topic in a novel doesn't make it propaganda automatically. An author can have a galaxy that's free of borders without shilling for the same in the real world. Internal consistency matters. Shilling matters. >>23585621>Peter F Hamilton and A Reynolds are fully subverted.Hamiltons early works were just more subtle but since about 2010 he's dropped all pretense and came out as full sjw lgbt progressive.Yes, irl. Their books are still tolerable. I don't care about an author's politics unless he pushes them in his books. I have read everything they have ever written except Fallen Dragon and that audiobook only series from PFH. Both were very neutral and politics free initially. Both started including leftist talking points. For Reynolds it started with Blue Rememberied Earth in 2012 (Africa is most developed continent, black protagonist, a literal fucking tranny being the smartest person on Earth, prpnouns, etc.). That said, his Rev Space stuff is left untouched by the mind virus -Prefect series and Inhibitor Phase are all excellent. Same for Hamilton - started with some weirdness toward the end of the wider Commonwealth and his latest stuff includes some questionable babble, but a lot of his work is still untouched. That's why they are both in yellow.
>>23585735Sorry for the typos, but I moved to my phone.
>>23585731That's fine. As long as people are saved from woke authors and their garbage.
>>23585319I've been thinking about this topic for a while too. Its unfortunate but fiction in general has become absolutely polluted with political retards in the past 20 or so years. Every year it becomes increasingly more difficult to find quality novels, every year more and more of the garbage you find on shelves is full of nonsense propagating child abuse as a good thing. Making a list of authors to avoid is a noble undertaking.
>>23585755My thoughts exactly. I've been looking for such a list for years. Meanwhile I had to suffer through some absolute dogshit by trial and error. Might as well share it, so others are saved the trouble.Finding good new authors is almost impossible. All award lists are garbage and soaked with politics/woke quotas. Everything you google is coming from leftist sites and journos. Sites like goodreads that allow lost creation are swarmed by lefties promoting their mental illness. Thr mods in those sites allow only one kind of opinion. I have a list of authors I have liked and followed throughout the years and check for new works from time to time, but finding new ones is a gamble at best
>>23585769and if you came across this list in the wild. You would simply treat it as authority?
>>23585806Probably not. Everyone has some experiences and should compare that to the list. If it checks out then it's good and not some subversion. If a brand new reader sees it it's more difficult, but one or two novels from certain authors will show them whether it's true. It's a guide not gospel.
>>23585319Ann Leckie's original trilogy is great and not very "progressive" at all - it has fucking slaved bodies genociding people. Her most recent book is atrocious, but that's more just because she appears to have lost all skill as an author.
>>23585806Do you treat any lists as authority?
>>23585822>The Radchaai do not distinguish people by gender, which Leckie conveys by using "she" pronouns for everybody, and by having the Radchaai main character guess, frequently incorrectly, when she has to use languages with gender-specific pronouns.>After hir[a] grandmother dies, Enae Athtur is forced to leave the family home. Sie is assigned to track down a Presger Translator who disappeared in human territory 200 years ago. >hir>sieI fucking lold
>>23585825No, which is why I find lists psychotic. Just look at the kind of people who frequent goodreads, letterboxd, rym, etc
>>23585831again, in the original trilogy it was a novel idea. It was only stupid in the most recent book because the writing was fucking horrible, not because the concept of a monogender race is progressive. Case and point, half of the book is a monstrous space alien binging netflix and eating donuts with the main character. It is fucking retarded.
>>23585831Complaining about a weird culture in fantasy doesn't make any sense
>>23585735So it's you agree it's entirely subjective and based 100% on your feelings and nothing else. That's not useful for others.
>>23585838>half of the book is a monstrous space alien binging netflix and eating donuts with the main character. Fucking hell.... thanks for the warning. Why did you subject yourself to that?
>>23585859>So it's you agree it's entirely subjective and based 100% on your feelings It literally the opposite. You can't into reading comprehension. The list is objective.
>>23584305I suppose there's definitely a difference between having a work described to you and coming to the conclusion that it's not for you vs just accepting the agenda that's pushed by one group or another without exploring it for yourself. For what it's worth, I've enjoyed the Stormlight Archive. If it's lacking in the prose department or whatever, I'm fine with that. Learning that it has a lot of literary shortcomings doesn't just retroactively make me not have already enjoyed it.
>>23585860I really enjoyed her first few books, which were sold to me on 4chan as "what if the ship's AI was actually a doting anime teenage girl pampering its staff officers while concurrently waging a brutal war of oppression," and I was sold. While obviously not up to the level of someone like Banks, her space opera was interesting and had some interesting concepts. So I bought Providence (the latest book) expecting something similar, and it took about 1/2 of the book to burn any and all good will I had towards her (which was actually quite a lot). There are other issues with the book other than just the inappropriate and contemporary earth slice of life stuff, and in the end it's just a completely trash book. It felt like a wholly different author
>>23585864You have to at least some criteria to pretend it is. It can't be "I know it when I see it" or "'I'm giving this author a pass because reasons", or even "I like this author therefore no there's nothing wrong with it." Otherwise it's all double standards and arbitrary decisions.
>>23585874Fine. I'll put a whole section on criteria in the next revision. for you
>>23585871>It felt like a wholly different authorIs it possible that's unironically the truth? You are not the only one that says that.
>>23585735Have you read Salvation series(?) by Hamilton? It's a literal book about trannys litesally justifying why one should become a tranny
>>23585885Possibly, but she would have OK'd the ghost written book if that was the case. And the fact that she was willing to put her name on something like that is damning enough in itself imo
>>23585888Yup. That's the "his latest stuff includes some questionable babble" part. Other than the genderless society the books are pretty good. Should a single data point spoil the entire novel?
>>23585893>yeah it's fine, we'll make bank from my fans no matter what
>>23585888>>23585894That's why he is in yellow and not green btw
>>23585899the crazy part is the reviews are pretty positive about the book too. There is a polarized minority who hate it, but there is also a large contingent of people who gave it four or five stars
>series has 10 books in it>only the first one is good
>>23585905They don't really like it, but since it's an author from their political side she can't do any wrong and they are obliged to write positive reviews. It sucks, but this is where we are now.
>>23585905>>23585923grim
>Read Red Rising>Pretty entertaining >Looking forward to mc actually manoeuvring high society in book 2>Instantly shits the bedIs it that difficult to write a story about a character with power? Doing underdog once is fine, but do you have to recycle it?
>>23585938>reading commie propagandaWhy?
>>23585942What about it is propaganda
>>23585938keep reading, the tone of the books really change after the first one
>>23585958back2reddit child
>>23585968Why would I go there?
anything good come out in the last few months? think the most modern things I've read recently was that red rising sequel and
>>23585735>Hamiltonyea, shit was very cringe. read the salvation series.If reynolds had the mind virus he didn't show it much in the revelation space series. Those were great.
>>23585993You’re not smart enough to recognize obvious propaganda
>>23586084I never even read it how would I know the contents? Are you retarded?
>>23585938>Read Red Rising>>23586086>I never even read itBased schizo
>>23586107This isn't a private DM it's a public imageboard. Try to conceptualize that more than 2 people exist in the world.
>>23586113>multiple personality disorder as wellgrim
>>23584727So do literally all writers, but they run the industry.
I actually like Mark Lawrence. I've enjoyed his books since he first started publishing, and it's been fun to watch him grow and develop as an author. People who haven't read him tend to label him as an "edgy" or "grimdark" author despite the fact that he's written all of one book that qualifies for that label. I guess when it's your debut novel, though, it tends to make a lasting impact. At this point, though, Lawrence's bibliography leans way more toward lighter YA-ish fantasy than anything else.
>>23584305>afraid you might like thingsWhy? Because it will make you uncool to random assholes on this board? I have never understood this mindset. This desperate craving for the approval of strangers.
>>23582281This seems to be the next in-vogue style of cover art for fantasy books. I've seen books with this style cropping up over the last several years and it seems like it's finally displacing the horrible stark white / monotone cover with jarringly photoshopped image imposed on the front. I honestly have no idea how that shit became popular, maybe because it was cheap since anyone could do it with minimal effort? At least this is actual artwork that evokes "fantasy", even if it oozes pretentiousness.
Godclads was a fun read. Refreshing to have a non-human protagonist.
>>23586180Fuck off furry
>>23586194Use your favorite search browser to look the book up then hang yourself, newfag nigger.
>>23585894A reference here and there, a dialogue, maybe a chapter on some progressive nonsense is questionable babble. An entire book ...no, an entire series of books about trannyism is not a 'questionable babble' but full on pozzed shit.You have read Great North Road, that is another degenerate novel of his. Hamilton should definitely be on the full pozzed list.
Read it. It's good.
>>23584380The Jerusalem Man trilogy has become my favorite Gemmell series. It's basically The Dark Tower with all the retarded shit removed and written more in a Sword & Sorcery style.
>>23586338I read it. It was good.
>>23586338epic conan post
>>23584331I don't like anime. I liked the prose in 1984, which is undoubtedly easy, but the prose of airport literature or a random book I could pick up at B&N would annoy me to no end.
>>23583919>He hasn't read the fetus theory
>>23586170>the horrible stark white / monotone cover with jarringly photoshopped image imposed on the frontAgreed. All too many books these days, even of older respectable authors, are printed with these ghastly photoshop or cheap stock image covers, to say nothing of the independently published or public domain stuff that's print-on-demand on Amazon. I mean look at how they mutilated Three Hearts and Three Lions in the most recent edition. It's a classic and they can't even bother to copy one of the dozen or so earlier editions.
>>23585917Use of weapons isnt the first book
>>23586544I can understand why from a business perspective the publishers (and booksellers for that matter) continually push new editions with trendy covers. It keeps the book looking "modern" and accessible to new readers. If you don't continually keep such books in front of new readers they risk being forgotten and falling into obscurity. And from the business perspective, having books you don't make money from is just bad asset management. So they do everything they can to make the book more appealing to new readers. Old readers, after all, already own a copy and rarely have to purchase another one. So most of your book sales are from people buying it for the first time. To that end, it makes sense to market to what you think modern audiences look for on the shelf.
>>23586599I understand the need to constantly change things up to be modern but I still feel like they can strive better than just something so dryly generic. I'll credit those new ASoIF books for looking at least a little exciting compared to the 3H3L newer cover which honestly feel like a template.
>>23586148I don't, read prince of fools, felt like I was reading marvel slop in book form
What are some great stories involving living/biological ships and the like? I suppose the more in-depth about the ship and it's inner workings the better.
>>23586637>but I still feel like they can strive better than just something so dryly generic.Following trends is "safe", from a marketing perspective. They'd probably only approve something that didn't have marketing data to show its viability if you could sell it to them as an experiment to try setting a new trend.> I'll credit those new ASoIF books for looking at least a little exciting compared to the 3H3L newer cover which honestly feel like a template.Yeah this new wave is at least more pleasing to look at and are only really annoying if you stop to think about them.
>>23586650It doesn't really feel anything like Marvel. The style of humor is totally different.
>>23586709people who attack anything as "marvelslop" tend to know nothing about either good or bad literature, they just read manga or internet fanfiction and think that's what writing is supposed to be like
Let's say winds of winter releases or some other book. How long does it typically take before someone could pirate a copy once it releases?
>>23586705>>23586544You know what really annoys me beside the safe cover image that I don't think gets talked about enough? The actual font. It's bad enough the image is dull but can at least get a more exciting type face.
>>23586732Before it even releases. Though I doubt we'll ever get a Snape level meme again.
Is there any fantasy where the protags face corruption as a threat to their minds and bodies?
>>23586820Yer razzing me right?
>>23586840Only one protag in LOTR faces corruption.
>>23586861You might be misremembering it
>>23586861>I didn't read Lord of the Rings: The Post
Anyone else read Forgotten Ruin? The series has been a fun ride.
>>23586861Frodo is certainly the main one having to deal with it but not only does his corruption kind of have a big effect on the world quite a few characters end up feeling the impact of the ring.
>>23586990Boromir faces mental corruption, but he fights it off.
>>23587106Ah, Boromir. But yes, there's also of course Gollum.
>>23587106>>23587113And Bilbo and Aragorn, and Gandalf, and Galadriel, and Faramir, and Denethor (questionably protagonistic), and even Pippin
Best western self insert fantasy books?I just want to forget that I'm a wage cuck with a godawful boss...I can't stand asian novels anymore
>>23587121Denethor and Theoden didn't even need to touch the ring to become corrupted by outside forces. The ravages of war, loss and Suaron's armies were enough to break them albeit if only temporarily in Theoden's case.
>>23587121Gandalf and Galadriel are both wise enough to keep themselves at a distance from the ring to prevent it from getting a hold on them. Aragorn is like, super humanly based so despite having the ring in taking distance for ages he seems to not even give a fuck. The others, yeah, they were definitely under its influence to some degree.
>>23587125Don't read to self insert. Read to dream of imagining something bigger. Read a book not about who you are, read who you want to be.
>>23587130Tom Bombadil and Faramir were able to brush it off, but Bomnadil is eldest and Faramir was considered especially pure
>>23587113Gollom has already suffered it, off screen.
>>23587130I wonder if the other ring Aragorn carried mitigated its influence? I don't think his lineage affords him any protection, after all he's a direct male heir of the first man to be seduced by the ring.
>>23587135>off screen.lol? He spent literally his entire appearance in LotR coveting the ring and scheming to get it back. Did we read the same story?
>>23587144I think he means Gollum was corrupted already from the start rather than the slow burn we see on Frodo.
>>23587144Imagine, for a second, a heroin addict.Not very exciting.Now imagine watching a regular person get addicted to heroin, and seeing it happen in front of you. That's what I mean. Gollum has always been Gollum, even in the Hobbit.Boromir is corrupted on screen, as is Frodo.
>>23587142It's been a bit but I don't remember reading anything to suggest he had any special protection beyond his own will power. > after all he's a direct male heir of the first man to be seduced by the ring.That might have actually worked in his favor if only too keep him ever vigilant. He is Issludir heir not Issludi himself.
>>23587158So just superhumanly based like I thought originally.
Female Fantasy > Male Fantasy
>>23587319So the only thing I don't get is why females don't support broodmare goblin fantasy romances and orc sex slave romance romances.
>>23587184More like idealized humanly based. The whole point is that he achieves through will what we can all be capable of.
>>23587340>why females don't supportthey would.Group consensus is basically the only factor in deciding whether or not women like something. If many or most women like a book, the rest will follow suit. They're a very consensus-focused sex.
>>23587386????
>>23587480I just can't stop marveling at the fact mainstream literature now has fetish tags
>>23587493mainstream "literature" is just fanfic authors who grew up and captured the institutions
How big even is "mainstream" literature nowadays? In the groups I'm in, certainly there is occasional discussion about books, but for the most part it's plainly behind videogames and film in terms of media consumption.
>>23587556>inb4 someone says this number isn't real
>>23587560I wonder what the actual cost of printing a book is.
>>23587319>enemies to loversWhy the fuck has this and other tags like it become such a thing? It's an outright spoiler for the plot of the book. I've never read and never will read a romantasy book but seeing that shit just pisses me off.
>>23587608They don't care about the quality of the story. They just want to see their kink.
>>23587608I check novelupdates to see if the story is a harem before reading it. For manga I'll read the last chapter first to see if it's a journey worth going on
>>23587576It's extremely cheap. Fun fact: it costs pennies more to print hard cover books than mass market paperbacks, yet they sell for 3x the cost of a mass market paperback. It's pure markup. It's why a lot of fantasy publishers have been moving to not even sell mass market paperbacks anymore, with the reasoning that the people who bought them switched to ebook formats for price / convenience.
>>23587319We can find a healthy middle.
>>23587653Yeah I wouldn't think it cost much unless you start getting fancy with a lot of illustrations and even then only if they're color.
>>23587319I don't care for the cheesy romance slop but female authors tend to write very smutty fantasy compared to male authors, even when they're doing more serious stories. Male authors tend to either be very crass or very prudish about sex with little actual eroticism. Female authors seem to enjoy writing titillating sex scenes.
>>23587480>s-x
>>23587659ohh myy
>>23587684
>>23587480>WIND MAGIC
>>23587779Just like my avatars.
Asking for help fixing my stupidity anons. I've had trouble reading for enjoyment since I finished college, I got so used to reading academic research/textbooks that I end up either speed reading or lose focus because I was so used to multi-tasking editing/taking notes etc. What's the most gripping fantasy/sci-fi book you can think of? Trying to re-teach myself to read for enjoyment and actually focus. I'll take any recommendations.
>>23587845Read the Hobbit. It's both gripping and enjoyable and an easy book for babies that won't insult your adult sensibilities.
>>23587845Also Conan. Excellent prose adventures told in a short story format. Can sit down and enjoy leisurely.
>>23587845reverend insanity
Any great stories about biological/living ships/spaceships?
>>23587981If you didn't get an answer the first time you won't get one now.
>>23587981new jedi order but not called star wars
>>23587845>>23587874This
>>23582911fuck shit nigger cunt bitch faggot chink whore
>>23588301>>23588301>>23588301New!
>>23587981If you didn't get an answer the first time you won't get one now because nobody here reads outside of a bestseller list.
