Agonizing over 2 story concepts

[StaleRice]

So I decided to fall for the Scribblehub meta and write smut, but I really can't stomach churning out boring or meaningless stuff.
A lot of the story concepts I discussed with writer friends so far didn't have good reception, though, so I'm turning to you guys 'cuz im indecisive. Both of these are isekai at the core, with reasonably detailed meta stories about why people travel between worlds, at all.

In the first concept, the story takes place in a very grounded, (mostly) low magic setting, and centers around 2 characters who are recently married villagers A and B. The protagonist is the husband, a reincarnated person with some backstory baggage, who spent his early years in the other world as a wastrel, but was spurred to turn his life around and reawakened his drive after meeting the FMC. It would be mainly about their relationship, land development, and eventually things like economics and strategy, with scale and fantastical elements slowly ramping up as the effects of other reincarnates' actions destabilize the world.

In the second concept, the protagonist is taken from his world and implanted in a sort of mind-flayer-esque monster. Most of it takes place in an expansive (and impossibly huge) cave system that stretched through layers and layers of ruins (the worldbuilding here is *deep* in a literal sense), taken over by nature and nonhuman races. This one would have kingdom building elements, significantly more fighting and a somewhat darker theme with less wholesome elements like the dreaded harem tag.

I'm not asking which one of these is objectively better, whatever that means, just what you, random forums user, think is more interesting subjectively.

 

[Corty]

From the two I'd read the first. It simply sounds more relaxing to read.

 

[thefinal13]

If you are writing a shorter one, I will like to read the first one with vanilla tag. If you stretch it will get boring very quickly. However, as a smut writer myself, I would like to read the second one, especially for the kingdom building element.

 

[Tyranomaster]

Honestly, imo, the meta is any of the big three, and isekai is already one of those.

If you want to write smut, go ahead, but it is by no means required to do well.

The first story would do better.

 

[ThrillingHuman]

2nd obviously. I mean, a villager fucking his wife is objectively more boring that mindflayer fucking a demon cow.

 

[StaleRice]

Honestly, imo, the meta is any of the big three, and isekai is already one of those.

If you want to write smut, go ahead, but it is by no means required to do well.

The first story would do better.

Thats true... Will both at once work better or worse, though? Purely metrics wise?

 

[CupcakeNinja]

So I decided to fall for the Scribblehub meta and write smut, but I really can't stomach churning out boring or meaningless stuff.
A lot of the story concepts I discussed with writer friends so far didn't have good reception, though, so I'm turning to you guys 'cuz im indecisive. Both of these are isekai at the core, with reasonably detailed meta stories about why people travel between worlds, at all.

In the first concept, the story takes place in a very grounded, (mostly) low magic setting, and centers around 2 characters who are recently married villagers A and B. The protagonist is the husband, a reincarnated person with some backstory baggage, who spent his early years in the other world as a wastrel, but was spurred to turn his life around and reawakened his drive after meeting the FMC. It would be mainly about their relationship, land development, and eventually things like economics and strategy, with scale and fantastical elements slowly ramping up as the effects of other reincarnates' actions destabilize the world.

In the second concept, the protagonist is taken from his world and implanted in a sort of mind-flayer-esque monster. Most of it takes place in an expansive (and impossibly huge) cave system that stretched through layers and layers of ruins (the worldbuilding here is *deep* in a literal sense), taken over by nature and nonhuman races. This one would have kingdom building elements, significantly more fighting and a somewhat darker theme with less wholesome elements like the dreaded harem tag.

I'm not asking which one of these is objectively better, whatever that means, just what you, random forums user, think is more interesting subjectively.

harem FTW

 

[Tyranomaster]

Thats true... Will both at once work better or worse, though? Purely metrics wise?

I personally don't know, so it's just hypothetical, but both together probably has a faster growth curve, but has the same market cap as smut. A lot of isekai readers won't read it because it is smut. The smut readers won't care though.

More important than any tags though is a good story. Most people ignore this fact.

 

[Theirl]

harem FTW

The cookie slut member of the harem are always the best type

 

[Temple]

You should go with what you think you can write for a long time. You're gunning for numbers, and numbers are a very good motivator. But they can't keep pumping you with dopamine forever. I have several writer friends who turn meta to have a taste of numbers but then quit several months down the road because what they're writing is not their thing.

The two choices you presented have their share of the popular tropes. Just pick one you'll be able to write for a long time.

What do you want the numbers for anyway? Just dopamine or going to make a Patreon?

 

[ThrillingHuman]

You should go with what you think you can write for a long time. You're gunning for numbers, and numbers are a very good motivator. But they can't keep pumping you with dopamine forever. I have several writer friends who turn meta to have a taste of numbers but then quit several months down the road because what they're writing is not their thing.

The two choices you presented have their share of the popular tropes. Just pick one you'll be able to write for a long time.

What do you want the numbers for anyway? Just dopamine or going to make a Patreon?

Somebody hasn't read Big Rick Energy to not understand the supremely based appeal of Numbers Go Up

 

[Maldrasen]

For what it's worth my vote is for the second as well. I'm a big fan of smut myself, but boring vanilla smut seems pointless to me. Unless what you're trying to do is a serious romance or something, then I say go for the more interesting option. Mind flayers and dungeons sounds much spicier, but that's just my bias.

 

[Temple]

Somebody hasn't read Big Rick Energy to not understand the supremely based appeal of Numbers Go Up

Haven't read that story, but I do know the appeal of rising numbers. The thing is, only very, very few stories continue their growth at the same pace as, let's say, their first trending.
In LitRPGS, numbers just shoot up.
In writing webnovels, authors will be lucky to have a modest growth over a long period of time. Even the more popular stories will slowly plateau.

 

[StaleRice]

For what it's worth my vote is for the second as well. I'm a big fan of smut myself, but boring vanilla smut seems pointless to me. Unless what you're trying to do is a serious romance or something, then I say go for the more interesting option. Mind flayers and dungeons sounds much spicier, but that's just my bias.

A smuthead, if you would. A smutter.
How far would you say the whole mind flaying thing should go, in this concept? Im sure things like mind control or body alteration, or full on body horror, would turn a lot of people off. Actually, wouldn't mind control be against Scribblehub's TOS?

 

[Succubiome]

Actually, wouldn't mind control be against Scribblehub's TOS?

There's a Mind Control tag, so I'm pretty sure it's not in itself against ToS.

To go back to the original question: if you're confident in your ability and/or very enthusiastic about writing relationships, land development, economics, strategy, and sociopolitical change, I'd write the first one.

The second one is further from most people's experience (...I assume), so Making Stuff Up that's wildly incongruous to people's understanding of those things won't suspend disbelief as much.

Like in drawn art, people are much more able to notice minor flaws in drawings of humans than drawings of other animals, because they don't interact with them as much, you know?

But if you can capture something that's resonant with people's experiences, I think that's stronger, in the long run.

 

[MouseDestruction]

I think the first one would be interesting if it was a married couple, then one of them was replaced with a isekai'd character.
Essentially going through the death of their partner while staying with the isekai'd character who replaced them. Or something idk.

 

[KrakenRiderEmma]

A smuthead, if you would. A smutter.
How far would you say the whole mind flaying thing should go, in this concept? Im sure things like mind control or body alteration, or full on body horror, would turn a lot of people off. Actually, wouldn't mind control be against Scribblehub's TOS?

Stand out from the crowd! Do the mind flayer thing and get weird with it, but resist the typical edgy/wholesome stuff (“i mind controlled all these secondary characters into being my harem”) Since it’s a reincarnate why not do “I reincarnated as a mind flayer but I think the other mind flayers are horrible rapey fucks, so I’m trying to keep my morality (mostly) intact!”

Ofc most of my series involve unexpected body alteration and dealing with the problems of mind control without falling into the typical BS, so I’m biased

 

[StaleRice]

There's a Mind Control tag, so I'm pretty sure it's not in itself against ToS.

To go back to the original question: if you're confident in your ability and/or very enthusiastic about writing relationships, land development, economics, strategy, and sociopolitical change, I'd write the first one.

The second one is further from most people's experience (...I assume), so Making Stuff Up that's wildly incongruous to people's understanding of those things won't suspend disbelief as much.

Like in drawn art, people are much more able to notice minor flaws in drawings of humans than drawings of other animals, because they don't interact with them as much, you know?

But if you can capture something that's resonant with people's experiences, I think that's stronger, in the long run.

I guess its not noncon if you gaslight, i mean, magic, someone into consent LMFAO
I did see a few novels here that go even further than that, so, who knows.

The second concept isnt anything like xenofiction, its just kind monstery and designed to feel like its taking place in an actually different world compared to Earth. The different fantasy races there would still be recognizable as people and have understandable motivations and relationships, so its gonna resonate on some level no matter what. Of course there'd also be things that you cant hold a conversation with, but nobody wants to bone a homicidal amoeba made of pure magic

Its true that the first one demands a lot more writing skills that I'm not sure I have, so, that's that

I think the first one would be interesting if it was a married couple, then one of them was replaced with a isekai'd character.
Essentially going through the death of their partner while staying with the isekai'd character who replaced them. Or something idk.

That would be so unfortunate lol imagine finding out your partner got replaced by a ghost of some otherworldly loser

The current concept is, the switch takes place gradually after a traumatic event in the vessel's life somewhere during childhood. The reincarnator's consciousness slowly merges and overtakes the weaker host mind, basically becoming a composite personality. Less "i remember this guy's life" and more "i am the dragon ball fusion of old me's consciousness and that guy's"

Interesting suggestion though maybe ill do something with it

 

[Succubiome]

...I mean, there's also a Rape tag. You may be thinking of some other platform ToSes?

I mean, that is something to consider if you're considering selling it on Amazon one day or something, which is the big ebook place these days? Including rape in a smut story is absolutely against the rules there.

 

[StaleRice]

This is a huge revelation for me what the hell
So SH allows it as long as the story doesn't glorify it or something? That's actually nuts