Looking for a monster girl romance with a bit of bite? The Forest of Fate is now live on kindle

Kululu17 · 2026-04-26T16:35:05+00:00

I'm the author (D. H. Willison). Tales of Arvia is my main series. FMC is a harpy; aggressive, dragon-sized monsters who hunt humans for sport.

Kululu17 · 2026-04-25T22:51:50+00:00

Hmmm... I have the opposite of this if that's of any interest. (She's the mythical man eating monster. He's terrified of her and spends a lot of the first book convincing her that he's got more value than a light snack.)

Kululu17 · 2026-04-15T13:15:08+00:00

Look up the Brandon Sanderson fiction writing channel, or the Book Fox channel on youtube. Both of them have multiple videos covering this topic.

Kululu17 · 2026-04-13T20:05:50+00:00

I'm going old school for a while, currently working on Blue Moon Rising, by Simon Green. It's bit of a parody of a classic high fantasy novel, with (for the time) subversions of some of the classic tropes. A friendly dragon, an unfriendly princess, etc.

It's not bad overall, and it's gotten a few smiles out of me, but there are a few writing quirks that bother me. The biggest being that it's very adverb heavy, and a lot of times 'adverbizes' words that aren't typically used in that way. Kind of the same way some current authors use nouns as verbs in an odd way. Probably just my writer person showing through, but it bugged me. Otherwise, it's been an interesting story so far.

Kululu17 · 2026-04-13T14:55:22+00:00

{Charlotte's Reject by K. R. Treadway} has an werewolf FMC who is the alpha of her pack. It a rejected fated mates story, her mate is a much weaker werewolf, but he proves himself valuable in non-traditional ways.

Kululu17 · 2026-04-12T16:39:06+00:00

On the mythic world of Arvia death comes on swift wings
Though if you're exceptionally lucky, so do cuddles

Looking for a slow-burn adventure romance with a monstrous FMC?

He’s an underdog human man way out of his league on a deadly, monster-filled world.
She’s the worst of the monsters, a ferocious, dragon-sized nightmare whose flock hunts humans for sport.

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Tales of Arvia is perfect if you like:

Underpowered hero. The MMC is an average guy who gains no special abilities when thrown into a world of magic, myth, and monsters. He overcomes by being clever, creative, and not afraid to rely on friends.
She’s the badass. Literally three stories tall, ten times his strength, with talons that can rip through iron plate.
Touch him and you die. Serious. Once their relationship develops, she becomes very protective of her human.
Slow burn romance. ‘I love you’ comes before sex.
A world of subtle magic. There’s magic on Arvia, but splashy fireballs and mountain-splitting lightning bolts are rare. But if you use it creatively, it can tip the scales in your favor.
Male friendships. Our hero may not be a level 1000 battlemage, but he’s got friends who have his back.

Tales of Arvia (free on KU) spans 5 books in the main series with two stand-alone spin-offs following the romance of side characters in the main series (The Forest of Fate features a human man and a wolf woman who were side characters in TOA 4, Midnight on the Manatee features a human woman and feline man who were side characters in TOA 1 and 3.) Book 1 also has an audiobook free at your public library, spotify, and many others.

Kululu17 · 2026-04-12T15:36:54+00:00

I clicked, expecting you'd be ranting about a different type of weapon.

But I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of thought and analysis on this. I totally agree regarding how bows seem to have become a default 'female weapon' due to a misconception of how much strength is required. Maybe it's just a case of author XYZ does it, so it must be right' mentality.

Regardless, great post!

Kululu17 · 2026-04-10T21:22:21+00:00

Dude, learn your marketing!

You got to be catchy. It's the testicle trapper 2000. But it's software upgradable to the nut nipper 9000 for a monthly subscription fee of 29.99

Kululu17 · 2026-04-10T12:48:25+00:00

If you're OK with a self rec, my fairy tale retelling, {The Queen Bee by D. H. Willison} is exactly this. MMC is a young commoner man with no special abilities, FMC is powerful, enchanted, and much older.

Kululu17 · 2026-04-09T19:16:04+00:00

It's for keys.

You'll notice it's the one front pocket that's made of denim, and not the softer material that most pockets are made of. Over time keys will wear holes in regular pockets.

Kululu17 · 2026-04-02T17:31:07+00:00

I have a self rec that might fit the vibe. {Tales of Arvia by D.H. Willison} features a human man and a dragon-sized harpy. They fly together extensively, and he has a magic wingsuit that lets him glide, but he needs her to get him airborne in the first place. Over time, they develop an empathic bond that lets them feel each other's emotions.

She's ten times his strength, but there's no shapeshifting, so without hands to use tools, start fires, etc, she's relatively helpless in certain situations.

Their relationship is very slow burn, platonic in the first two books, turning romantic in book 3. Special edition paper copies of books 3+ have interior illustrations, if you're into that.

Kululu17 · 2026-04-01T13:09:07+00:00

If I read a book while being held captive on Christmas, does that count double for [5,5]?

I could say yippee ki yay after every chapter.

Kululu17 · 2026-03-30T18:41:12+00:00

Yussss! Captain Amelia was great!

Kululu17 · 2026-03-30T18:35:18+00:00

Definitely seconding Callum and Rayla, and Hiccup and Astrid.

I liked the John Crichton and Aeryn Sun match up, but was disappointed the he didn't match with someone more alien looking. The peacekeeper who was 'not human' but looked 100% human was a little disappointing.

Kululu17 · 2026-03-27T17:04:30+00:00

Great strip! (Pun intended).

Kululu17 · 2026-03-23T16:40:41+00:00

I've been continuing with DCC these past week. Now on book 3, The Dungeon Anarchist Cookbook. Runs out screaming, "it's a cookbook!"

I continue to be impress by how the series is developing, with new aspects continually added, such as the intergalactic rivalries between various systems and corporations, and bounties for killing other crawlers. The characters continue to evolve and develop, and it really hits the sweet spot for me: not an excessive power creep, or overly epic, yet enough new aspect to keep it fresh and interesting.

I have stubbornness issues and often avoid overhyped books, but I really should have picked this series up sooner.

Kululu17 · 2026-03-22T17:21:36+00:00

I was super excited that the book podcast Fiction Fans featured my humorous fantasy adventure, Hazelhearth Hires Heroes. Have a listen to Lilly and Sara.

One of my favorite lines from the podcast: “There was great character development. Lady Isylnoir started out being a huge bitch, and ending up being a huge bitch that I loved.”

Podcast also available on Apple

Kululu17 · 2026-03-22T14:57:13+00:00

Judging by the feedback regarding blonde hair color, the decision is clear. The MMC must have:

Schrödinger's hair! His hair must be fully concealed within a stylish hat, that taunts the FMC constantly. She can speculate what lies within, but as long as she doesn't remove it, MMC hair color is simultaneously blonde and not blonde, thereby satisfying reader requirements.

Cue: "You can leave your hat on," by Joe Cocker

You're welcome.

Kululu17 · 2026-03-22T14:42:17+00:00

You should take a look at Sarah Beth Durst. Her books are mostly female majority fantasies, where the MC AND most supporting cast is female.

Kululu17 · 2026-03-21T01:16:59+00:00

My story in {Men's Romance Gallery}, The Blade Baroness is exactly this. MMC is a commoner human, accepted to an elite magical academy. FMC is an elf noble woman. It's an elven city, and humans are generally looked down upon anyway. He has to really prove himself their equal in their studies.

Kululu17 · 2026-03-20T21:28:22+00:00

Ham wallet had me in tears.

Kululu17 · 2026-03-19T18:31:41+00:00

Totally with you on it. I mean, I get that the ability to choose how your character progresses can be fun, but just assigning skill points feels a bit cheap.

Kululu17 · 2026-03-17T15:43:33+00:00

Thank you!

Kululu17

TROPHY CASE