how can i make slavic-coded wuxia-inspired novel appealing to readers?

[lerasycamore]

hi everyone. i'm a big fan of xianxia/wuxia but i don't feel comfortable writing the genre since i'm afraid of messing up something so deeply ingrained in a foreign for me culture.

so i decided to maintain 'the vibe' but write smth closer to me and have fun with my own cultural roots.
but now i realize i'm either misleading the people who enjoy xianxia/wuxia webnovels or confusing the people who like, let's say, the witcher and would enjoy smth slavic-coded.

oh, and the worst part is that i can only write BL but the gays can't carry that much weight, i guess...

i'd be happy if you took a look at the novel page and gave me your feedback on how you see it. maybe i'm just spiriling and overthinking?

The Scum Warlord Stabbed Me In The Back [BL]

The barren steppes of Wildfields had, for decades, been roamed by the Kingless Knights — remnants of the once-great broken empire. Now, they recognized no king, but chose their own High Warlord to lead them. To be chosen was to be acknowledged as the mightiest, the keenest, the one fit to...

www.scribblehub.com

i'd appreciate your help greatly, thanks!

 

[Vivid_dreams]

hi everyone. i'm a big fan of xianxia/wuxia but i don't feel comfortable writing the genre since i'm afraid of messing up something so deeply ingrained in a foreign for me culture.

so i decided to maintain 'the vibe' but write smth closer to me and have fun with my own cultural roots.
but now i realize i'm either misleading the people who enjoy xianxia/wuxia webnovels or confusing the people who like, let's say, the witcher and would enjoy smth slavic-coded.

oh, and the worst part is that i can only write BL but the gays can't carry that much weight, i guess...

i'd be happy if you took a look at the novel page and gave me your feedback on how you see it. maybe i'm just spiriling and overthinking?

The Scum Warlord Stabbed Me In The Back [BL]

The barren steppes of Wildfields had, for decades, been roamed by the Kingless Knights — remnants of the once-great broken empire. Now, they recognized no king, but chose their own High Warlord to lead them. To be chosen was to be acknowledged as the mightiest, the keenest, the one fit to...

www.scribblehub.com

i'd appreciate your help greatly, thanks!

I remember reading a novel Warlock of the Magus World long ago,
It was Wuxia as hell, 'the concept was', but it was incredibly westernized.
I don't remember if it was Chinese, but I am pretty sure it was.

Nonetheless, It achieved what you seek for. Give it a read ig.
I remember reading it and God of Slaughter together
I didn't think the eastern progression mechanic was perverted but rather written with a western sprinkle. So, don't fret.

 

[lerasycamore]

I remember reading a novel Warlock of the Magus World long ago,
It was Wuxia as hell, 'the concept was', but it was incredibly westernized.
I don't remember if it was Chinese, but I am pretty sure it was.

Nonetheless, It achieved what you seek for. Give it a read ig.
I remember reading it and God of Slaughter together
I didn't think the eastern progression mechanic was perverted but rather written with a western sprinkle. So, don't fret.

thanks for the recommendation, i appreciate it a lot and will definitely check it out! i tried looking for the type of novels you recommended but it was a concept i struggled to describe and it was a fruitless search. so, thanks, you really helped out a lot!

 

[FRWriter]

As much as I want to help you... I don't see this combination of genres working out.

Still, give it your best; the most important thing is that you yourself enjoy your story.

 

[tiaf]

xianxia and wuxia are undeniable coined with values of martial arts and Chinese culture

There are westernized xianxia, but it always feels very Chinese nonetheless. Like spare me great lord

 

[RainyLiquid]

Just write well.

 

[lerasycamore]

As much as I want to help you... I don't see this combination of genres working out.

Still, give it your best; the most important thing is that you yourself enjoy your story.

true-true, it's a stretch from my side.

i thought of mixing it up bc my culture has a history of 'martial artists' who banded together into 'sects' and operated as an independent martial power. the majority of them were from humble origins, and the 'sects' accepted anyone and taught them martial skills, though without the strict master-disciple tradition. later, they got idolized as chivalrous heroes saving the land from enemies. there's even a well-known trope in local literature of some of them having mystical powers because their martial prowess was so great.

so i thought, what the hell, sure, has wuxia enough vibes for me

gonna try to make it work since, as you said, i enjoy writing it. thanks for entertaining me anyway!

xianxia and wuxia are undeniable coined with values of martial arts and Chinese culture

There are westernized xianxia, but it always feels very Chinese nonetheless. Like spare me great lord

exactly this, i don't feel confident enough to do justice to this culture and, frankly, i'm too lazy to properly reseach confucian values. i'd hate to write something that smashes together tropes i picked up from different novels without understanding whether those novels even used those tropes correctly.

thanks for the recommendation, i will check it out!

Just write well.

indeed, that's a very good advice. will have to...

 

[pangmida]

So, I'm Chinese, and indeed xianxia and wuxia are deeply rooted in Chinese and Daoist culture, with some elements from Buddhism as well. It could be difficult to make it Slavic-themed, but it could work! My story is a Gothic fantasy romance with vampires—very European. However, the small "twist" is that it has reincarnation and lots of Daoist elements (yin yang)—very Chinese. Though I doubt most people will realize there's Daoism in the story because the overall aesthetic is still very Gothic. In this case, we are quite similar. You can even say you and I are yin yang in this matter. ?

Do you have specific elements of xianxia and wuxia that you like that you're putting into your Slavic story?

 

[tiaf]

There are actually tons of xianxia out there that don't rely heavenly on culture or confucian values, it's just that those lack world building as a result

you could also take a look at "the outcast" manhua/donghua, it's modern wuxia, just to get another unique take on martial arts

 

[pangmida]

There are actually tons of xianxia out there that don't rely heavenly on culture or confucian values, it's just that those lack world building as a result

you could also take a look at "the outcast" manhua/donghua, it's modern wuxia, just to get another unique take on martial arts

THE OUTCAST?? Boy oh boy I did not expect anyone here to know that show. It's peak.

 

[tiaf]

THE OUTCAST?? Boy oh boy I did not expect anyone here to know that show. It's peak.

you don't know how long I waited until crunchy updated the long overdue seasons and how I suffered through the mtl with bad quality video

 

[pangmida]

you don't know how long I waited until crunchy updated the long overdue seasons and how I suffered through the mtl with bad quality video

Imagine needing subtitles ? jk jk

 

[CharlesEBrown]

Thinking back to the Baba Yaga stories they serialized in one of the children's magazines I got when little (Highlights, maybe, or Boy's Life -Early to mid-seventies), I could see going back to pure alchemy, essentially the European "version" of xianxia, but with a focus of transforming base metals instead of the self, and a quest for the Philosopher's Stone, the key to simplifying all transformations, at the center, instead of ... whatever the heck it is at the core of Xianxia/Wuxia stories (seems to be "the author's fantasies of having unlimited power" form the few I've struggled through) might work better.

 

[lerasycamore]

So, I'm Chinese, and indeed xianxia and wuxia are deeply rooted in Chinese and Daoist culture, with some elements from Buddhism as well. It could be difficult to make it Slavic-themed, but it could work! My story is a Gothic fantasy romance with vampires—very European. However, the small "twist" is that it has reincarnation and lots of Daoist elements (yin yang)—very Chinese. Though I doubt most people will realize there's Daoism in the story because the overall aesthetic is still very Gothic. In this case, we are quite similar. You can even say you and I are yin yang in this matter. ?

Do you have specific elements of xianxia and wuxia that you like that you're putting into your Slavic story?

Hi there! Ahaha, indeed, it seems we all long for some foreign culture, maybe it's the mystery of it, heh.

Oh, your novel sounds pretty interesting! I actually feel like I have a similar thing -- I don't think the majority of people will realize the wuxia inspiration since the premise is different and there are no standard martial artists, sects and master-disciple relations.

As to the specifics -- I enjoy the wuxia standard plot of a hero suffering through a major tragic event, then training to become a strong martial artist to get revenge.Also, I need some sect politics. I absolutely love when sects exist along the Imperial governance and are actually a part of the political world (like Thousand Autumns by Priest). So these tropes were my major inspirations, along with the way Chinese authors portray BL relationships :)

There are actually tons of xianxia out there that don't rely heavenly on culture or confucian values, it's just that those lack world building as a result

you could also take a look at "the outcast" manhua/donghua, it's modern wuxia, just to get another unique take on martial arts

Exactly that, I don't want to kill worldbuilding, I actually love worldbuilding so much I spent a few days designing a world map to track down military campaigns in the story better

Thank you for the recommendation, adding it to my list!!!

Thinking back to the Baba Yaga stories they serialized in one of the children's magazines I got when little (Highlights, maybe, or Boy's Life -Early to mid-seventies), I could see going back to pure alchemy, essentially the European "version" of xianxia, but with a focus of transforming base metals instead of the self, and a quest for the Philosopher's Stone, the key to simplifying all transformations, at the center, instead of ... whatever the heck it is at the core of Xianxia/Wuxia stories (seems to be "the author's fantasies of having unlimited power" form the few I've struggled through) might work better.

Damn, it's actually a very good comparison, European alchemy lore really resembles xianxia a lot! Though I'm writing closer to wuxia without magic, I now have a good reference to use, thank you!!

Also, agree, I often times also don't understand what part of some stories I've read is meant to represent the core values of the xianxia/wuixa genre. Some novels I skimmed through as the most popular stories trickled down to power fantasies where cultivation/martial arts were just aura farming tools... That's why I feel wary of writing in the genre - I'm not sure I have good influences...

Once again, thank you!