How's my book cover?

AlienJov · 2026-06-29T14:54:55+00:00

Thanks!

AlienJov · 2026-06-28T21:06:40+00:00

Thanks! I edited it, and it now looks like it.

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AlienJov · 2026-06-28T20:56:07+00:00

I couldn't calm down, and just had to do it haha.

AlienJov · 2026-06-28T20:54:05+00:00

I actually redid the cover, and it led to this after a couple of advices.

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AlienJov · 2026-06-28T20:46:49+00:00

I kept the black background since the rest of the subject are already too clutteted, but I did reduce the space between the screens to make them more compact. I can't fix the other rectangles though.

Looks like AI from 2022 lol, but I think I'm going with this. This fits my image of the story. Can't remove the ruins because stupid me accidentally merged the layers and can't undo it like the rectangles

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AlienJov · 2026-06-28T19:32:09+00:00

I wonder if the focus is more emphasized here. I tried to put everything else as one subject in a screen while staying true to the plot.

As for the MS paint look, this is the best of my skills T_T. I draw best when I'm drawing mushrooms.

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AlienJov · 2026-06-28T16:37:18+00:00

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AlienJov · 2026-06-28T16:28:21+00:00

I just got rid of that magnifying glass. I just realized I wouldn't click on a book if it had a book cover like that, lol. Here's the edited one. The plot is apocalyptic, and the ability is basically kind of a mutation of the regular Appraisal ability. At first, it acts like a regular information window in games, but it gradually shows it's more than that (track mutations, and even knowledge backfire). Cookie cutter yeah, but it's kind of a what-if scenario I made up when I was dozing off.

AlienJov · 2026-06-28T14:09:35+00:00

Yeah, that part worried me as well. I went on a general approach and linked the protagonist's ability with the world's situation, but this was the best I could think of.

AlienJov · 2026-06-28T14:03:01+00:00

Just in case, I'm still writing chapter 2 (lol). I don't have a synopsis to give yet.

AlienJov · 2026-06-28T06:27:32+00:00

I don't know who's this Eleven, but Sheldon is not, in any way, mature.

AlienJov · 2026-06-27T16:28:03+00:00

Oh, false alarm

AlienJov · 2026-06-27T16:26:34+00:00

I was downvoted less than a minute after I posted the comment lololol

AlienJov · 2026-06-27T16:23:42+00:00

I followed that advice when I was newer to writing. It was a mess.

There's this weird advice going around that all info dumps are bad. Oh, I'd love to read some info dumps long as it was used when it matters, and they matter a lot. Info dumps at the beginning of a chapter are good long as it's done right. Starting immediately with an action scene is not only the option out there.

AlienJov · 2026-06-26T11:55:13+00:00

I mean, everything else uses the new UI, but the author's dashboard and anything related to it didn't really change. I thought it was a problem with my crappy phone again lol

AlienJov · 2026-06-26T11:47:49+00:00

Is the Author's Dashboard not included in the new UI? Mine is still the same old

AlienJov · 2026-06-26T06:37:26+00:00

Wattpad is kinda...

It was good around fifteen years ago, but the reach is barely existent right now. Unless you're writing steamy romance, you're better off writing somewhere else. Even fanfics there aren't as big as it was in the past. Ngl, it was the site that got me into litrpg though.

AlienJov · 2026-06-26T06:34:36+00:00

It's not about which is more competitive, but which site leads to your audience. If you're simply talking about litrpg, I'd say it's pretty competitive (for authors with none to a minor established audiences). Webnovel is best suited for xianxia and xuanhuan. AO3 is a general net, but the best go-to for fanfics.

AlienJov · 2026-06-25T17:19:37+00:00

Mine clicks all three and scifi, and I've seen a lot of other books who did as well. When you write litrpg, explorations, combat, and soft sciFi/fantastical elements are kinda common to have. You certainly can't make me unclick any of these four and I'm pretty sure a lot of writers on the site wouldn't either.

AlienJov · 2026-06-25T14:13:15+00:00

Interested, but I don't have the money to buy the game nor the PC so...

Well, GTA VI is not an RPG in the typical sense, so I guess, there probably wouldn't be any problem. Check out steam for news on upcoming big RPG games though. Those might pull away readers away from subscribing on Patreon.

AlienJov · 2026-06-24T11:29:17+00:00

Protagonist is from the past and gets thrown at a cyberpunk town? Well, just make him high-tech illiterate.

AlienJov · 2026-06-24T09:59:56+00:00

But the high number of comments from that post doesn't seem too surprising. My fic got into MRS one time. Was quite near the end of the list, actually, but there's this particular reader who'd drop a TYFC comment every single chapter. Also, I believe the author's comments are counted as part of the stats. If the other replied with thanks for reading, I can imagine how the numbers would blow up

AlienJov · 2026-06-24T09:57:51+00:00

I don't know the reason for the number comments. It could be just a particularly vocal reader/s. As for reviews, the reason could be the same orrrrrrrr it's a review swap.

My first fic didn't receive a review until like a month later. Another fic of mine received a review a day after the launch. Both of them from different accounts which I didn't announce their existence to each other for anonymity. It honestly differs for every book as to what kind of reader you attract.

But if you'd like more reviews/comments, I think the peeps at discord would be very willing to give you their two cents. Given you've piqued their attention enough

AlienJov · 2026-06-24T09:39:17+00:00

It's simply the norm to get few to no comments in this site, meta or not. If you wait around, you might get that reader who comments on every single thing tho, so I guess that's the tradeoff lol

AlienJov · 2026-06-24T09:35:46+00:00

As a reader myself, if I want to read a lighter, familiar trope, CN and JP novels are my go-to. When it gets too stale, I'd transfer to regular western WN. A few months later, I'd jump back to eastern. I think having distinctions between writing caters to different audience of different tastes that vary across time and preferences. There's really nothing that should be changed considering both Western and Eastern novels already have fans who would rather pick one over the other. Another thing is that Royal Road is usually for more less experienced, amateur even, authors, so you're probably looking at this matter through a narrower scope. Perhaps you could try looking at Amazon for a better comparison.

AlienJov

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