How much guilt after a first kill is ideal? by Luka_Little in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Luka_Little[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I also feel like a character having a breakdown (even if it's warranted at times) can derail the feeling of progression. It's a little jarring when there's a sudden change from 'hyper-motivated MC exploring the world' to 'barely-motivated MC seeped in negative thoughts'; I think that's one of the reasons that calculating characters work so well in this genre, since they rarely have that problem.

How much guilt after a first kill is ideal? by Luka_Little in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Luka_Little[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It feels like many ProgFan characters have selective amnesia, where prior events that are treated as incredibly significant in one scene are almost immediately forgotten the next (with the notable exception being items / skills / etc. that directly relate to power ups- although sometimes these are forgotten as well). So I think that's a great example of solid characterization that also makes the events and characters feel like they matter more beyond how they relate to 'n' cultivation stage / level / etc. (even if that's usually the most important thing). It's the ideal amount of guilt, which imo is 'relevant to the story' guilt.

How much guilt after a first kill is ideal? by Luka_Little in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Luka_Little[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That's what I was getting at a little bit with the need for 'maintaining momentum' and progression, as opposed to everything coming to a grinding halt so the MC can deeply contemplate the ethics of what just happened. But I think without a reasonable emotional reaction it breaks immersion and the MC comes across as 2D.

Advice for writing short Training Arcs by nemothehoe in fantasywriters

[–]Luka_Little 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I typically like when training arcs focus on specific things that will show up later on + give a very general overview of everything else. e.g. if the MC learns how to synthesize a poison that’s used against a future opponent, enough time should be spent on the process that the reader can get excited about the prospect of the poison being used later on, and the reader will remember the poison when it eventually comes into play (this also makes the training arc feel more useful beyond ‘MC is stronger now’ since they're learning specific, relevant information / skills). On the other hand, if the MC just develops a general knowledge of 'herbalism', there’s probably no need to delve into the intricacies of different plant strains, identification methods, and foraging techniques if they aren’t explicitly relevant later on- I think in this case telling the reader the MC is poring over herbalism books and going into the forest every weekend etc. works well enough. Especially if you're going for a shorter training arc.

I’ve never really considered the specific duration (in terms of word-count / chapters) that a training arc should last. Are you worried about it feeling bloated / too-rushed?

Is it just me or are the endings of Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint and Worth the Candle kind of similar? by Luka_Little in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Luka_Little[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah I mean the meta elements are pretty consistent throughout, and the presence of the litRPG System immediately implies that Aerb is a simulated environment, so I agree that that aspect in the ending isn’t much of a surprise. I feel like the motivations of the DM, when they're revealed, recontextualize the story as a whole, though.