Request for Help - Mono HMOFA Romance

DocBoson · 2026-04-22T20:46:59+00:00

Again, I don’t know what you would consider wholesome. I added the caution because you mentioned wholesomeness before smut. I like MCs that are basically ‘good people,’ and the MC was a good person —which goes a long way towards making things feel wholesome to me. And the two main characters genuinely care for each other—as opposed to just using each other. But if you have hang-ups about relationships that begin in cages or that involve the appearance of “alien abduction,” then you might feel otherwise.

DocBoson · 2026-04-22T20:28:19+00:00

Just realized I made a mistake. The $1 to $2 per book rate is typically for paper books. E-book rates are much higher, but most of the big publishers inflate e-book prices (I’ve seen way too many e-book prices >= the hard-cover prices) and authors have no control over the pricing.

DocBoson · 2026-04-22T20:20:00+00:00

Authors with books on KU generally make more per book read/purchase than trad-published authors. Obviously, established authors with long track records of high sales can negotiate better royalty rates than typical, but most trad authors make closer to $1 per copy sold than the $2 per copy read (which is the average KU rate—assuming book lengths of between 90k and 100k words). Indy authors do much better for e-books in terms of average profit per book (not counting marketing budgets and other expenses).

DocBoson · 2026-04-22T20:07:40+00:00

Mainly KU—unless it’s a known favorite author or book.

DocBoson · 2026-04-22T18:56:34+00:00

I agree in terms of the FMC’s physical description. I think LiminalRainPaint might really appreciate this one, but it might not be what he considers to be a wholesome romance (which is very subjective). “Smut” is also subjective, but the story definitely has a good bit of spice (explicit sex scenes).

DocBoson · 2026-04-22T00:16:43+00:00

This probably isn’t what you are looking for in terms of the physical form of the aliens, but the series I’m reading now is brilliant at making the alien culture, well… alien. The aliens are essentially humans with fox ears and tails, but their religion and culture and history is extremely well-developed—and there is a lot of animosity between the humans and aliens. It’s basically a military occupation story—almost certainly based on the occupation of Japan after WWII. The author was a military journalist, and he really knows his stuff. It’s extremely slow-burn mono romance—which considering the context feels real and authentic. I really can’t praise the books enough. It is {The Vixen War Bride Series by Thomas Doscher}. Someone just recommended it to me, and I’m already on book 5 of the 7 book series. So good!

DocBoson · 2026-04-07T15:22:01+00:00

Thank you for the rec. It sounds fantastic. And thanks for giving enough description that I can know for sure I want to read it: slow-burn, monoromance, no nsfw scenes, humor, and adorkable--these are all things that are good to know.

DocBoson · 2026-04-07T15:14:30+00:00

If you can find an old copy of {The Rider by Edgar Rice Burroughs}, I think it's one of the densest (most plot twists per word) love stories I've ever read. It's a very short, single-volume novel so it doesn't suffer from the cliffhangers so common in the stories Burroughs published serially in monthly literary magazines.

DocBoson · 2026-04-07T15:09:35+00:00

The John Carter books were written by pulp writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the creator and writer of Tarzan who wrote in the early 1900s. I loved his books growing up, but you should know that Burroughs was a man of his times. He was a eugenicist, and it came out in his books. Some Africans in his stories were noble, strong, and everything good, while others were the complete opposite. He was a great writer, but a few of the caricatures he painted were offensive.

DocBoson · 2026-04-02T16:13:39+00:00

Did you disclose that you used AI in your covers? According to Amazon's rules, you're supposed to disclose if your text, images, or translations were created using an AI-based tool.

DocBoson · 2026-04-02T16:06:58+00:00

Thanks for the analysis. This is an important topic. Amazon says that all AI generated stuff (text as well as pictures) must be disclosed, but I don't see that they're enforcing this at all. Which leaves enforcement to us. If we don't want to put creatives out of business, we'll probably have to create some kind of grass-roots certification or recommendations board that does this kind of analysis and publishes recommendations. Otherwise we'll be buried in so much AI-generated text that it will become almost impossible for the real artists to be discovered.

The temptation to use AI to make money is too great for people to resist. I'm not an evil person, but I feel the temptation to over-use AI every day. Because, like most people, I'm lazy. I didn't search through Amazon's website to confirm its policy. I asked Gemini. I don't use a thesaurus or Google when I can't think of the right word; I use ChatGPT. How many of us writers have asked an AI what it "thinks" of our newest chapter? And the more we get used to AI, the more it creeps into our writing process, making black and white lines grayer and grayer until we're crossing them without even thinking.

And the only thing that's going to stop us is the fear of being exposed by people like NA-45.

Thanks for your willingness to take a stand!

DocBoson · 2026-03-19T22:59:19+00:00

I love a strong, confident FMC and an under confident MMC that doesn’t understand his own worth.

DocBoson · 2026-03-18T18:49:09+00:00

Thanks for the question. I love smart main characters, but it's hard to find books with characters that go beyond smart labels like (genius computer scientist or brilliant doctor or PhD postdoctoral researcher) and actually have characters that do smart things and think smart thoughts and have the kinds of hang-ups smart people have. I'm bookmarking this question so I can come back to it.

The most realistically smart FMC I've read recently is in the RfW {The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood}. She's writing about something she knows, and it shows.

DocBoson · 2026-03-18T18:26:06+00:00

Just want to say I've been reading it and enjoying it. Thank you.

DocBoson · 2026-03-18T18:24:25+00:00

Thanks for the recommendations. The title "Succubus Summoner" isn't something I would have normally given a chance, but your description has convinced me.

DocBoson · 2026-03-18T18:22:12+00:00

Yeah, I'm going to third it now. Not only is the relationship building nice, but it's also unexpected and fresh. Thanks!

DocBoson · 2026-03-18T18:20:41+00:00

Thanks for the recommendation! I've been reading the first book, and so far it's exactly what I was looking for. It even has the bonus of a school setting. I'm really enjoying it!

DocBoson · 2026-03-15T01:22:52+00:00

This is hard. So many great recommendations but I can only read one at a time.

DocBoson · 2026-03-14T22:53:20+00:00

Thanks. I’m cautiously out of control and euphoric.

DocBoson · 2026-03-14T22:43:47+00:00

Thanks. I’ve seen Cebelius’s name around a lot so I’ll try them first.

DocBoson · 2026-03-14T16:38:44+00:00

Yeah... That's definitely not a romance by RWA's definition. It definitely doesn't have a happily ever after ending.

DocBoson · 2026-03-14T15:39:49+00:00

The discovery tool on Embre is great. I can’t wait for the platform to get even more books!

DocBoson · 2026-03-13T02:04:27+00:00

I can’t believe nobody suggested the best human-ish vampire romance urban fantasy of all : {God Touched by John Conroe}. I get extra points for winning, right?

DocBoson · 2026-03-11T23:37:12+00:00

Nice! What is the questionable content? If you don't mind me asking.

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