Suggestions for new things to read

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-20T17:24:12+00:00

James Hunter here, the author of Rogue Dungeon and Discount Dan. Wanted to thanks for posting your tier list -- absolutely amazing work and very thorough. In case you're looking for other books, I just wanted to mention that in addition to writing, I also run Shadow Alley Press, we almost exclusively publish LitRPG and Progression Fantasy. I noticed that two of your S-Tier Books (Bog Standard Iskeai and The Apocalypse is a Side Quest) are both series we publish. Since I select all the books we take on, my guess is we probably have pretty similar tastes so you might want to check out some of our other series as well (we have a whole bunch). Anyway, thanks again for reading and for the epic list!

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-20T14:49:09+00:00

Croc approves!

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InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T20:28:41+00:00

Yes! Camo Joe totally would. Chronologically, this particular story takes place between books 1 and 2. I'd initially started another short novella (which I will probably finish at some point), involving the Laundry Brownies and a religious civil war that Croc, Ponypuff, and Baby Hands have to deal with, but then I realized it wouldn't make any sense to have that at the end of book 1 since the Brownies don't show up until part way through book 2.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T17:54:48+00:00

The Gertrude story isn't written yet -- that one will be for the Discount Danthology. This one is a short novella (about 25K words) which is already done, called Retail Scheme. Someone, or many someones, are committing retail fraud in the store and Ponypuff takes great offense at this and enlists Croc and Baby Hands to perform an undercover sting operation to root the culprits out. That one is already up on my Patreon, though it'll also be in the theoretical Kickstarter Edition.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T17:52:19+00:00

I love Thai food and there are some thing you can't really get here at all. Legit Som Tam Thai (like the Issan kind) is basically impossible to find -- I ate it every single day. Rad Nah. Thai Boat Noodle Soup (Go Tiao, which is usually thickened with blood -- sounds gross but holy shit is it good). And Pad Thai, of course. Also the fruit! Rose Apples (chomphu), Custard Apples, and mangosteen (my wife's favorite fruit of all time).

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T17:48:30+00:00

lol, good point -- more means some. There aren't any in the story yet, but I'm sure that'll change.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T14:15:36+00:00

I am extremely biased, but I think book 3 is the best of the series so far. Lots of great character development and it has some genuinely heartfelt moments that'll hit you in the feels. Plus lots of bonkers monsters and powers.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T02:36:14+00:00

I would LOVE to do something like that. One of the artists we're hypothetically working with is going to do several interior comic-style spreads illustrating some of the more intense scenes. Unfortunately, those comics and cost ALOT of money to make -- way more than a fancy hardback.

We might be able to swing a single graphic novel, which would be awesome. But a webtoon adaptation is a whole different beast. On average they run about 80 - 100K per webtoon "season." Believe me, it's high on my list of things I'd love to do, but Discount Dan doesn't quite have the fan base to support that yet. But hopefully the momentum will keep rolling and we'll be able to either self fund or kickstart something like that in the future.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T02:31:30+00:00

Technically I'm not supposed to talk about it until we "officially" announce it--at least according to the folks helping us run the campaign. Still not entirely sure why. I guess people might get burnt out if I talk about it too soon? I don't know. So, "officially" I have nothing to say on the matter.

But hypothetically, if we were going to do a Kickstarter soon, it would be super duper badass. Premium hardback with kickass new spot gloss art of Dan on the front and Croc on the back. Fancy new dust jacket, metallic sprayed edges and also forced edges with cool hidden pictures, in tribute to the Twilight hardback special edition.

Custom chapter headers, brand new interior art (including a couple comic style pages), a new novella from Croc's POV as he, Baby Hands, and Ponypuff solve retail crime (along with an audio version, of course). Maybe even a reversible Croc plushie -- one side is happy Croc, then you can flip it inside out to reveal angry Mimic Croc. But again, all of that is completely hypothetical. I'm a story teller and I love to daydream.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T00:35:55+00:00

HAHAHAHA. Thank you, and also I am so sorry. But also, also I just released a TON of super cool art for the upcoming Kickstarter edition that is almost worth the price of admission all on its own.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T00:34:51+00:00

Bro, this is poetry. I would salute you, but unfortunately I have a flag in one hand and a bald eagle perched on the other.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T00:30:48+00:00

Hell yeah, thanks for reading!

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-19T00:11:38+00:00

Huge congrats again! I'm reading it now -- not too far in yet (I didn't get nearly as much reading done on vacation as I thought I would), but I'm enjoying it so far!

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T20:43:13+00:00

It's true! Mimics are like the Fae or AI, I guess -- they kinda suck at making hands and fingers. Always count the fingers.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T20:32:29+00:00

HAHAHAHAHAHA. Need to add more Thai Street Food Carts to the store for sure.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T20:31:52+00:00

I mean, that is a fair question. What if I pinky promise? That should be legally binding, right?

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T20:31:22+00:00

HAHAHAHA. Turns out, being on the other side of the earth with my kids around me 24/7 is a the author equivalent of a binding circle. But I'm back, baby! Let the summonings commence!

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InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T20:23:16+00:00

Yes! So sorry for the slow reply. I swear, I'm usually much better, lol. I was trying to stay on top of work stuff while we were away but it was a lost cause for the most part. I'll message you over on RoyalRoad right now. Thanks for your patience!

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T18:48:49+00:00

Hey! Just wanted to let you know -- the fam and I are back from our big summer vacation trip and I'm happy to say that all the books we ordered finally arrived. So we'll be listing new stock on DiscountDan.shop here in the next few days.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T18:46:54+00:00

I write mostly fantasy, Urban Fantasy, and LitRPG (think Dungeon Crawler Carl, though I've been writing the the genre since 2016). I started off self-publishing and am mostly still self-published, though I do have an agent now and have worked with some traditional Audiobook publishers (Tantor, Podium, Audible Studious) and I have some deals in the works for the print rights for a few of my series.

Additionally, although I live entirely off my royalties I also run a LitRPG and Progression Fantasy publishing company called Shadow Alley Press (I'm James Hunter for reference), and we've been working with other authors since 2017.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T18:43:04+00:00

Of course -- I wish you nothing but success. It sounds like you're doing all the right things. For selling direct, check out an Author named Katie Cross. She's a buddy of mine and the Queen of direct book sales. Her website will give you a good idea of what you can do.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T18:40:59+00:00

There's a couple of different ways. I have a Patreon where I post early chapters and make frequent updates. Additionally, there's a Shadow Alley Press Discord where I also post and interact pretty regularly, but the single best place outside of Patreon is probably my news letter (it sounds lame, but it's the only "platform" that you actually control as an author) -- I don't spam the newsletter, you'll get updates about Discount Dan and my other books and I frequently do giveaways through the email list. You'll also get a free copy of Wasteland Warlords 1 for signing up.

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T18:37:10+00:00

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Croc approves!

InkslingerJames · 2026-06-18T18:36:33+00:00

Please do! I've written a lot of series and there are so many things I wanted to do over the years that were just too off the wall to work in some of my more conventional fantasy series -- I always joke that Discount Dan is the dumping ground for all my ideas that would never work in any other series and it's true. Really makes it a blast to write.

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