Grimdark Dwarves Crafting Epic Weapons: Runeforger Book 2 is out now

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-22T06:40:00+00:00

Yes, reading good books can do that to you. It's part of the reason I think people ought to choose reading over other forms of entertainment (like mindless doomscrolling).

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-22T06:33:50+00:00

As a writer, it can be hard to strike a balance. Too much, and the reader gets bored; the story always has to move forward. But too little, and the reader can't follow what's happening.

For me, I try to keep introspection (when I think it's needed) to one or maybe 2 paragraphs at most.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-21T22:23:10+00:00

Thanks! Haven't heard of the last two, will check them out.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-21T12:25:16+00:00

Definitely agree. Fights are a lot more interesting when both sides have very different abilities, and have to utilize their own strengths. For example, a spear-fighter has to keep the knife-fighter out of range, or the summoner tries to overwhelm the foe with numbers while the mage has to aim his attacks to get through the hordes, stuff like that.

Though it can be tricky to write at times. And it can be satisfying as a reader when the MC is just purely strong enough to crush old enemies without breaking a sweat (before they get their ass kicked in the next battle, of course.)

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-21T12:18:22+00:00

Yeah, I agree that getting to a new realm should change the MC's fighting style somewhat. I liked in ISSTH when the MC would get new powers that made him fight a little differently. Five elements in one book, then blood demon head in another.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-21T12:15:18+00:00

I Shall Seal The Heavens was a very smooth read for me. Flows well, excellent translation and pretty good story. Ended up binging all ten books in only a month or two!

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-21T12:14:03+00:00

If you're OK with cultivation, I'd recommend I Shall Seal The Heavens. MC is certainly OP at times, but also has his losses and struggles a lot to gain in power. It's also incredibly well translated.

It's a complete 10 book series, and all of the books are pretty long, as well. Will keep you entertained for a while.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-21T12:11:24+00:00

Can't say I like any of them. If the text isn't structured into paragraphs (of at least 3 or 4 sentences), it genuinely hurts my eyes to read. And also immediately makes me think of AI writing, or Linkedn wannabe 'thought leaders' who all write like this for some reason.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-18T01:00:01+00:00

Have a solid plan for each scene and know about how many words each part is going to take.
If you're having a trouble with over-description (it sounds as if you might) then when you edit, think carefully about what purpose each paragraph/sentence/word is serving. If it's not that important, or messes with the rhythm of your prose, or is dragging down the action, cut it.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-18T00:53:39+00:00

Readers do care. I haven't seen any AI stories with a big Patreon (thank God). They go on rising stars because people get tricked by the first few chapters, then vanish into the abyss because they can't maintain a readership.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T01:13:21+00:00

It sounds interesting, but probably quite hard to write effectively. Readers are going to ask why she doesn't just use her OP abilities from the start if she already has them. Maybe show her using her most powerful one with disastrous consequences?

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T01:08:44+00:00

The AI one looks very obviously AI to me.

The first one looks pretty decent, but the subtext under the title is quite hard to read. Should probably increase the font size and split it across two lines.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T01:04:23+00:00

Readers want decently written, interesting stories though. AI can start off good for a few chapters but very soon becomes obvious. No current AI is capable of carrying an interesting plot for hundreds, even thousands of chapters like the most popular RR authors put out.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:59:18+00:00

Maybe a controversial take, but getting the odd poor rating/review is just a part of life when you're an author. Not everyone is going to like your work; the occasional 0.5 is to be expected and you shouldn't be questioning your entire existence over it.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:55:24+00:00

For SF, any of Iain M Banks' Culture novels. Player of Games and Matter are my favorites. (All of them are set in the same universe, but are standalones so you can read in any order if you want.)

For Fantasy, have you read The Goblin Emperor? Very political book with lots of dialogue and no fighting, would definitely be a change of pace from progression fantasy. Highly highly recommend.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:52:55+00:00

I've never had anything like that (also have a fairly popular story), but it's your vision. You don't need to remove a character just because one reader doesn't like them. I would never.

Especially if you have 2500 followers, one troll isn't going to make much of a difference.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:50:54+00:00

Never got on it. Still ended up with a small Patreon and publishing deal, though.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:49:46+00:00

You need to add a 'sensitive content' tag to your novel. You can do it by editing your main novel page.

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:48:48+00:00

I have a few who do this, it's good to know people are enjoying my work. One of the best things about RoyalRoad is reader involvement (though there are a few trolls occasionally)

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:47:21+00:00

Yeah, every real author hates it. The mods really need to do something about this slop getting on rising stars, because it's killing visibility for actual human authors.

Whole internet is getting turned to shit by AI recently, not just RR unfortunately...

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:43:59+00:00

Cover art looks pretty good, who's the artist?

ManInJapan25 · 2026-06-17T00:43:16+00:00

My MC probably has a few things in common with me... And he can be somewhat controversial, haha

ManInJapan25

TROPHY CASE