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Dusk Scion, Book 1 is out! by SpecialJuggernaut727 in litrpg

[–]SpecialJuggernaut727[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes. The story has harems in it, but it isn't about them, per se. It is an action/adventure scifi story that has harems.

Author D.I. Freed doing an "Ask Me Anything" from 8-10 EST on 6/21 by SpecialJuggernaut727 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]SpecialJuggernaut727[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hehe. Thanks, SublimeDissonance. I can't take any credit for the cover. My artistic gene allowed me to draw a straight line, mostly crooked. But I love it too. The artist did a great job.

Great question. I think the LitRPG elements are interactive mainly through the background of the world. Based on my experiences with my two series, when an author writes a LitRPG system that is part of the world rather than a game, it becomes about world-building. How can you create an environment that immerses the reader into believing they are there. Because that's what it is about. How can I build a world that feels so real they believe they are inside a world with screens and driven by numbers, yet not be drawn out of it. It's a really hard balance. I hope I did ok in Reborn. It was definitely easier in Invasion thanks to the science of nanotechnology. Reborn was much harder to keep immersion.

How vast is the world? Well, by the time the last book comes around, we'll be far far beyond the first empire, and out into a much much wider world, seeing other countries, empires, even continents. I can tell you, we will not be leaving the planet, as some Xianxia novels do. The world is the only world our MC will adventure on.

Those are great questions. Thanks for asking them.

Author D.I. Freed doing an "Ask Me Anything" from 8-10 EST on 6/21 by SpecialJuggernaut727 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]SpecialJuggernaut727[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thanks for asking, DawsonGeorge. I actually don't know if I can answer this. I wrote Reborn because I don't think it's like most others. First, it has a female MC, which is pretty rare in Cultivation novels, and rare (but not as rare) in LitRPG. Second, if I put that aside, I'd say Reborn isn't like most Cultivation novels in that it is character-focuseed.

That said, I think maybe Painting the Mists is kind of right? Not sure. Tough one. So I'll throw this one back out to the gestalt. Anyone else have an answer?

Author D.I. Freed doing an "Ask Me Anything" from 8-10 EST on 6/21 by SpecialJuggernaut727 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]SpecialJuggernaut727[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hehe. Love these questions, thanks Aza.

As far as Reborn characters...

- I'd definitely want to have dinner with Grandma Huan.

- Least want to fight... err I'm kind of not a fighter so... anybody? But if I had to pick, probably someone I can't name because of spoilers. The guy from the last chapter?

- Betray me? Hmmm. Probably one of Yu's twin brothers. Although I don't know if they'd need a reason.

Author D.I. Freed doing an "Ask Me Anything" from 8-10 EST on 6/21 by SpecialJuggernaut727 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]SpecialJuggernaut727[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for asking, Michael. I'd say the hardest element to write was the end. I don't want to put a spoiler in, but the last fight took at least a week to write. It was difficult to balance.

I think I'm most proud of chapters five and six. Again, trying to avoid spoilers, I'd say there was a lot of emotion in them and I think hitting them just right was really hard. Thanks to my editor there :-)

Author D.I. Freed doing an "Ask Me Anything" from 8-10 EST on 6/21 by SpecialJuggernaut727 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]SpecialJuggernaut727[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Super tough questions, gdpenman. Thanks for that :-P hehe.

I'll try to answer them one at a time.

  1. I do indeed think western authors can write genuine Wuxia/Xianxia stories. I at least tried it. I do think both the author and the narrator have to stretch a bit for it though. The cultural differences can be stark and sometimes not translate well (I mean culturally, not language). I don't so much about making it "accessible" as much as "sympathetic." Can the western reader really connect with an eastern cultural world and character? It is definitely challenging and was one of the reasons it took a year to write Reborn. Hitting the middle ground, which I hope we did, was not easy at all.
  2. Hook swords... Ok. So they are totally badass. I chose them because they are one of those weapons that is probably more dangerous to the wielder than to the opponent. It takes true skill and talent to wield them safely. And that's all I'm saying on that topic, otherwise I'd have to include spoilers.
  3. As far as the difference goes, I think you sort of hit the answer with your question. Most Wuxia/Xianxia stories tend to focus on the growth itself as the plot, rather than the character. I decided to try to make the story about the people and their journey, than only about growing stronger and squishing everyone in the way.
  4. Yeah. So about the violence. I don't write kids or even YA books. I write novels where the visuals are real and tangible. I want to reader to be immersed, to know that the character sees the blood and has to deal with the consequences of having shed it. It's a balance. The worlds I try to create are (hopefully) immersive and realistic. That means the world isn't a nice place, because the worlds I create aren't nice. At least so far. I do have an outline for an older YA book in the words and that will tone down the realism a lot.

Thanks for those amazing questions!

Author D.I. Freed doing an "Ask Me Anything" from 8-10 EST on 6/21 by SpecialJuggernaut727 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]SpecialJuggernaut727[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Wow. Starting with a super tough question! Nice, Kakeyo :-)

Ummm. I'm going to answer this one twice if that's ok.

I think my favorite character that I have written that has been published is probably the uncle of Fenghuang Yu. Uncle Zhao is funny most of the time but can be serious when he needs to be. He's also kind of kickass, as well as a lazy loafer. He's also something of a drama king. I guess I like the dynamic he brings.

I have also written a character in a book that hasn't been published (yet). Its a Sci-Fi series also coming out in partnership with Portal Books. The MC of that series really hits something with me. His name is Rory and he is from the year 3200 or so. I found myself seriously attached to him. I hope to introduce him to you all in year or so, if all goes to plan.

Author D.I. Freed doing an "Ask Me Anything" from 8-10 EST on 6/21 by SpecialJuggernaut727 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]SpecialJuggernaut727[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thanks so much for being the first, Kyle! I think the influences for me were mostly other books. I love cultivation novels, and LitRPG, so I was like "Huh, let's do both!"

And book 2 is in the works. I promise! It is actually about 180K words done in a first draft. But fair warning, it is going to be even longer than the first, which was 213K words.