The title says it. I have a short story on Royal Road that is complete. The tag says HIATUS. It's a short high fantasy story that I uploaded to learn how to upload and use the interface. I have something much longer and very GameLit in progress. I haven't stopped it, I ended it and I don't know that I will continue it. The story is The Ebon Swamp.

So far I haven't found anywhere that says how to do it on RR, the dashboard, or anywhere else. I've just made a note in the blurb saying story complete.

So, writeathon has three more days until it is over. What was your end result on word count you were able to crank out!?

I was so head’s down for Writathon someone had to message me to tell me. I was so happy I cried.

It’s been a tough couple weeks (my company laid me off the week before Thanksgiving while I was at the hospital for my dad’s cancer surgery) so rising stars was a welcomed bright point.

If anyone here is reading, thank you ❤️

If anyone here would like to read, also thank you ❤️

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/97997/starbound-ascendent

It’s a cozy - hope it’s as happy an escape for you as it is for me.

I was watching a video on book marketing, and the author talked about attracting the right readers to your fiction by being upfront with your tropes and setting expectations with the cover and all blurbs. They said that if your audience isn't "primed" to like your stuff, they won't stay.

Then I thought about reviews on RR. How possible is it that a reader gets mad because of a misleading ad, blurb, or tags and punishes the fiction with a sub-2 star rating? Like how movies get review-bombed out of spite?

Anybody experience this one way or the other?

Yesterday I got roasted cause my ad was bad, thanks for that, it was a learning experience. However, I am back having caved in to the memes. Let me know what you all think. (Images already shrunken down)

Ad One - The Gru for my 1st Story - Check it out in RR Here or Blurb and 1st Chapter in profile.

https://preview.redd.it/q24a823b7i4e1.jpg?width=300&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3a9582fd227b4e68ab71405c8daea81eb9608f75

Ad Two - Left Exit for my 2nd Story - Check it out in RR Here or Blurb and 1st Chapter in profile.

https://preview.redd.it/k49iw8xl7i4e1.jpg?width=300&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7e2de9f92930551038764f06dd3bbdf7581b5a89

I know that sci-fi isn’t a big category on RoyalRoad but it’s not a big category anywhere. The story is complete and posted to Inkitt where I have received a fair amount of good feedback and reviews. Is this normal for RR or is it not being received well?

Hey I know it's not much to go off but I've been trying to find a book that I read a bit of a few years ago. The details are sparse and It might have even been on kindle that I read it but the power system has based on planets and stars. The MC had a crafter set up at the start I think and they were the son of the king? The system also included cantrips to start off with and you used them to build your stars. Another character that I can remember had light magic I think and they spoke about x -rays.

🌌 Embark on an Epic Journey in Mine Imagination: Flight of the Hummingbirds! 🌌

What happens when a legendary captain, betrayed and cast into timeless exile, suddenly returns to a universe that's forgotten him? Dive into a world where the impossible is the norm, and every twist reveals a new wonder—or danger.

🔸 Six Centuries Lost: Captain Mine Heart has been trapped outside the flow of time, stripped of his power and his freedom. But even the strongest chains can’t hold forever. 🔸 A Universe Like No Other: From bustling saloons to cosmic culinary arts, and from ancient galactic wardens to mischievous plush companions, Tucy is a realm full of surprises, beauty, and peril. 🔸 Allies, Enemies, and Legends: Follow Mine as he tangles with knights, protects new friends, and seeks to reclaim the life stolen from him.

✨ Mine Imagination: Flight of the Hummingbirds is a tale of betrayal, wonder, and redemption set in a vibrant world that will spark your imagination and tug at your heartstrings.

Click Here

💬 I’d love to hear your thoughts on the story! Who’s your favorite character so far? What mysteries are you most excited to uncover? Let’s talk in the comments!

This is a cross of self-promo and an actual question. I just started on Royal Road about a month ago. I've written and self-published several books already, all of them on Kindle, but I decided to try this out for a new series I've been working on - Goblin Hunter. It's an urban fantasy, not really progression fantasy or litrpg which seems to be what Royal Road is really known for, so my question is what kind of expectations should I have for this kind of book/series here?

Even if the interest is low, I'm still really motivated to try the serial release thing for these books, especially since I already have the first two books in the series (mostly) queued up. It's something I've wanted to try for a long time and if Royal Road provides that sort of audience, then I'll be happy with even a little bit of interest or feedback. I guess I'm just trying to figure out what sort of ballpark numbers or typical for this genre?

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/97880/goblin-hunter

As I told someone else, it is a rite of passage and kind of means you're having success on RR. So...I'm in the club now, I guess.

Still feels bad, man. I submitted a ticket but didn't get a response, yet.

I just started out on Royal Road with my first book and I hit the writathon target with 3 days to spare. I'm still figuring out how all of this works but I'm excited to hit this milestone. And I still have almost 20 chapters to go in this book.

https://preview.redd.it/y615145c3g4e1.png?width=539&format=png&auto=webp&s=c1b185519caac1d10efaeac5379b9362a9cc99b9

https://preview.redd.it/ujg6y8xqwf4e1.png?width=1084&format=png&auto=webp&s=1acdb56167f9f39ba960381c91795ab382d9ff33

Aaaaaa! Haven't cracked {all}, but we're at #14 on Contemporary, #32 on Psychological and #36 on Romance! Only genre I missed on was Drama!

Now, what the heck do I do to keep momentum going? What's the next step in trying to rise/stay on RS?

Edit: osnap, didn't know I was allowed to link it here: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/99736/phoenix-reignited-edition! Since it doesn't have to be anonymized, I've also replaced the image so you can see the blurb and cover art.

Anybody else just sitting down watching their work on hiatus?

https://preview.redd.it/qe5qo5hwre4e1.jpg?width=227&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fbd96b39de4cf22832f6b7f3ccaac98bbca87b93

https://preview.redd.it/cyneakw0jd4e1.png?width=1622&format=png&auto=webp&s=98dd043de83049725a6e6764237097991282ca5b

I am so excited I somehow made it on to RS with my first novel! Just about to finish the writathon as well!

Check my book out here: System Breaker

Synopsis:

Lua never asked to be the Demon Lord. However after being murdered by her own parents, she isn't left with much of a choice. Waking up in a forest filled with powerful monsters and finding herself pitted against the suspicious World Order System, Lua needs to lean into her role to survive.

Now barreling through her new life with nothing but an eclectic group of supporters, lots of trauma, and a pointy stick; Lua is trying her best to make the world a better place, even if that means making an enemy of the entire world in the meantime.

[participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge]

What to expect:

- An MC who is a bit too casual despite the chaos around her (most of which she is causing)
- A LitRPG system that is frequently ignored by the MC
- Redefining the term "Murder Hobo"
- Fantasy world that is a little closer to a modern world thanks to "magic technology" or whatever I decide to name it when the MC makes it back to civilization

What not to expect:

- Complicated stats
- Hard numbers
- Ethics

[Daily Chapters]

Does anyone know what happened?

I am a mongoloid. Plain and simple.
I can't come up with names or titles to save my life.

I've seen a lot of people ask if using AI assistance for certain issues like grammar checks, or coming up with titles or scenes is bad.

I don't think it is. AI doesn't write your book, nor does it write mine.

But it does help when I put my blurb in as a prompt to come up with a title that isn't atrocious.
I am very bad a naming things. If words and names hold power, I pity the fool I name, for it shall hold no power.
I never could come up with in game character names, cool account names and I still struggle with titles and character names.

So yeah, as a tool for such use, AI isn't all bad. I'm still gonna put up a poll on RR in the following chapters to ask readers and get human feedback on which name sounds best.
Sometimes it just slaps, I'm sorry. The machine sometimes comes up with some fire shit.

Here's the top 6 of my favorite ones that it came up with:

- Realmbound
- Shadow of Forgotten Gates
- From Beyond the Gates
- Beyond the Mana Veil
- No Magic, No Mercy
- The Final Gate

I'm 50-50 on that last one, consider it an honorable mention.

I would have come up with something similar eventually, but it would probably have taken me three times as long to do it.

So, I have been wondering, once you finish putting out new chapters for your book and it doesn't appear in the "recent updates" section, but hasn't reached rising star, popular this week or any of the other lists, like best ongoing or best completed, how do you get your book on those lists?

I've come across a good few number of authors, as I love checking the lists from the back, with finished books that have very little views, very little engagement or reviews.

How do you change that, so your book can see light of day?

https://preview.redd.it/k95q8n9e2b4e1.jpg?width=436&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6857e3f9473c0a037ff78e2338997c71653ea2ec

I have a scenario and a question first I'll give the scenario.

You read a high fantasy novel, the hero who is yet to properly make a name for himself gets involved in a civil war. Due to his notoriety that already exists he takes the seat of the general's table as the general plans to make him the head of a spear attack meant to pierce the enemies defense. The hero and main character the story overhears The general talking about the enemy's formation and makes notes of certain points of it while speculating on possible strategies that the enemy could be implementing. With these strategies in mind he comes up with some of his own before eventually settling on a battle plan. This plan is carried out with the hero is the head of a spear attack as mentioned earlier. however upon piercing through the enemy's defense he finds that it was a bait and he is surrounded he's forced to show his true power and manages to force his way out of the enemy alliance dragging as many of his troops as he can with him. Battered and broken they return to the heroic general where are they reformulated a plan they send a new information and eventually when the civil War.

Here's the question

You find out that the author used AI during this specific Arc of the story, where? The enemy's battle plan. Is this a problem for you? Even if the plan was only given to you in small pieces that the general told to the hero.

Let me clarify that only the enemy plan was created by AI none of the dialogue or descriptions or anything was done by AI only the plan itself.

Phoenix: Reignited Edition cover

Here's Phoenix: Reignited Edition: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/99736/phoenix-reignited-edition

I've been working on Phoenix for 18 months, and there's currently more than 360 published chapters/840k words. The original story has consistently gotten 4+ star reviews, but I botched pretty much everything about the launch on RR and readership numbers have been abysmal. I'm taking another whack at launching it, at the advice of the community and the mod team. I've rewritten and remastered every chapter with 40% more content, added new chapters and deleted scenes, the works to give the whole thing a refresh and have it not just be a naked readership grab with no value add for the new content.

Because it's not in one of the major fandoms (Ranma 1/2, though absolutely no fandom knowledge is required to enjoy the story), I will be taking the penalties for it not being an original fic in terms of people filtering it out without getting an offsetting boost from people searching for a popular fandom. I can't rely on ads or anything, because fanfic.

I'm obviously not trying to monetize, but I'm really hoping to use the relaunch as a way to build a following in the hopes of an eventual original fic launch. To do that given the penalties I'm starting with, I basically have to hit Rising Stars. So, I'm doing the full court press to try, even though I know it's like trying to thread a needle blindfolded in a hurricane.

I dropped Chapter 1 just now, with chapters 2-10 set to go out at 1-hour intervals today. After that, it'll be a chapter a day for the rest of December and then fall back to a Tues/Thurs/Sat release schedule. By that point, I'll either have hit RS, or know it's not likely to happen for me.

It would mean the world to me if you'd give it a click and help algorithm go brr, even if the story itself isn't your bag. Here's the story blurb:

You ignite, and you RISE!

A pair of curses have conspired to leave 17-year-old Ranma trapped in a feminine body she never asked for, and too physically sensitive to take a hit. Both are big problems for a martial arts master who used to be an arrogant boy. With no way back to the life she knew, she flees the home of her abusive father and leaves her fiancée behind in search of a life she can call her own. 

But, life on the streets of 1989 Tokyo isn't easy. After months alone and barely surviving, she stumbles hungry and broken into the Phoenix, a dive bar run by a hard-edged but kindly woman and the four hard-luck girls she took in out of the cold.

Make that five.

Ranma's new lease on life - as Ranko - gives her the chance to work through her trauma and experience the first unconditional love she's ever known. Empowered by the support of her new family, the partner she never expected to see again, and a newfound passion for music, Ranko begins to embrace her new identity as a young woman and rises from the ashes of the person she used to be.

What to Expect

Phoenix: Reignited Edition is a special edition remaster of the entire Phoenix Saga, with every chapter re-edited and new scenes/chapters added. You'll experience:

* A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction that assumes no knowledge of the canon material

* More than 350 chapters of content being remastered and re-serialized
* Found family, slow-burn F/F romance and an inspiring trans-positive throughline
* More than 30 original songs
* 3+ chapters a week posting schedule (Tuesdays / Thursdays / Saturdays)

Thank you so much for giving it a look! <3

I guess I am officially a publisher author now.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DMKQKTSZ?tag=r0b5d-20