I just want to vent

[WasatchWind]

I was clearly in a bad mood when I made my original post. So I've deleted it.

I've gotten some useful advice and some needed humility. I just was frustrated that non - isekai fantasy has a harder time on this site.

Despite this, I will continue with my work nonetheless, even if my methods impact my readership because i am choosing things like not using a NU style title.

 

[BlissyMKW]

Why is it so hard to get people to look at my original fantasy novel? Yeah, they'll look at my fanfiction, but my actually good fantasy novel they will not. At this point, maybe it's just time to sell my soul and write an isekai because my story clearly isn't interesting enough as is.

I want to answer your question with a question. What is your reason for writing this original fantasy novel? Is it for your own satisfaction or just for the popularity points? If it's for your own satisfaction, why should it matter that not a lot of people look at it as long as you're satisfied at how it's going? If you're aiming for trending territory, then yeah, going the "sell my soul to the Isekai gods" might work out better, but at the end of the day, it would (at least in my opinion) depend on the quality of the product.

...but all of this is just my opinion.

 

[High-in-the-skys]

Go sell your soul and write an isekai. Then when people least expected it, go introduce mermaids as the main characters like the 'demon army'. You still have the chance since April fools is near...

On a serious note, the reason I can think of it's probably early with few chapters and the sypnosis is a bit 'bulky', which don't entice the sheeple with their low attention span...

 

[Valmond]

Go sell your soul and write an isekai. Then when people least expected it, go introduce mermaids as the main characters like the 'demon army'. You still have the chance since April fools is near...

On a serious note, the reason I can think of it's probably early with few chapters and the sypnosis is a bit 'bulky', which don't entice the sheeple with their low attention span...

This person is onto something...


That or the world is ending. ?

Anyway, it is naturally much harder to get noticed on an online platform. Typically, Fanfictions will do a lot better. The way I worked around this, is to expand my grasp. Multiple sites eventually lead to some kind of following.

Know the base you are writing for, and keep at it. Expand on different sites, and eventually a little from everywhere will start to show. They might be silent, but amongst those that are silent, some may personal message ya. Over all, this is really the only solution I have seen that works.

The other is much less likely, and that is hoping for a miracle to happen.

 

[Reisinling]

Once upon a time I was also angry at why people like stuff X and not stuff Y. Like why do people watch trashy movies/play trashy games/read simplest and most baisc novels?

But then I realised- so do I. And so do most of the people who are annoyed at the popular stuff. I do read more ambiitious books, but statistically, only like 5% are what I would not consider pulp.

I wrote isekai story, because it's fun to read those after a hard day of work, and because they feel slightly fresher than standard fantasy, even if they are as (if not more) full of tropes.

I just realized it didn't exactly answer your question. Well, whatever :P But to seriously answer your question, It's the problem of all new media, with all being able to write, it's harder and harder to get noticed.

Look at novels from readers perspective, try imagining what they do to find novels and adapt. Consistency might bring results- look at the visounts tale, i'm pretty sure it was a novel with <100 readers, and then one day it managed to get on trending and since it's pretty consistently landing on there and growing.

 

[Tessa_Renalds]

I’m enjoying Rip Current, it’s something I had tagged in my reading log. Just caught up.

 

[WasatchWind]

I’m enjoying Rip Current, it’s something I had tagged in my reading log. Just caught up.

I haven't been very aware you were reading it - the annoying thing is that it's hard to know if someone is reading unless I'm getting comments - which is the thing I actually want. I want to hear what people think of characters, of plot points, or even just nitty gritty things I can work on in my writing.

I want to answer your question with a question. What is your reason for writing this original fantasy novel? Is it for your own satisfaction or just for the popularity points? If it's for your own satisfaction, why should it matter that not a lot of people look at it as long as you're satisfied at how it's going? If you're aiming for trending territory, then yeah, going the "sell my soul to the Isekai gods" might work out better, but at the end of the day, it would (at least in my opinion) depend on the quality of the product.

...but all of this is just my opinion.

I'm sure anyone would love to go on trending, but what I'm looking more for is a consistent amount of feedback. I want multiple people reading my story and not just saying its good, but actually telling me what I can improve or what specifically they enjoy.

 

[Valmond]

I haven't been very aware you were reading it - the annoying thing is that it's hard to know if someone is reading unless I'm getting comments - which is the thing I actually want. I want to hear what people think of characters, of plot points, or even just nitty gritty things I can work on in my writing.

I'm sure anyone would love to go on trending, but what I'm looking more for is a consistent amount of feedback. I want multiple people reading my story and not just saying its good, but actually telling me what I can improve or what specifically they enjoy.

That is going to be quite difficult to do unless you are expanding on multiple sites. One way I used silence in order to improve, is studying the statistics. Ranging the rate of completion. Afterwards, I would go back and reread the part.

This usually pointed out mistakes, such as inconsistencies, or grammar errors. Which at a later point it gains more traction. Other than this really tedious method. Another option is to do long term exchanges.

 

[Tessa_Renalds]

I haven't been very aware you were reading it - the annoying thing is that it's hard to know if someone is reading unless I'm getting comments - which is the thing I actually want. I want to hear what people think of characters, of plot points, or even just nitty gritty things I can work on in my writing.

I'm sure anyone would love to go on trending, but what I'm looking more for is a consistent amount of feedback. I want multiple people reading my story and not just saying its good, but actually telling me what I can improve or what specifically they enjoy.

I’ll do my best to comment on stuff that I can see. I like my commentary to be beneficial to the writer and not something like: “I enjoyed this chapter! Can’t wait for the next one!” It’s not very helpful to get those remarks either, at least in my opinion.
Though I also tend to wait until I catch up and then I post comments on the current chapter.

 

[DarkGodEM]

Eh... I saw this novel as soon as it released. It just didn't ring me any bells. Your cover just screams "I aim to print this one day", which is not what I'm personally looking in a webnovel. Not that it's a bad thing either, some people would definitely give it a shot.

Aside from that, you don't name your chapters so there's nothing for me to go and say "Oh, this looks interesting, I wonder what this author means with this." which is a mistake I also made when starting and that cost me an arm and a leg in a couple novels.

Being fair, I legit thought your novel was about a sea current being gone as in "R.I.P. Current" and it took me a fair while to understand the concept even after reading the synopsis. It's just long and starts off with an infodump.

The novel content is better than average, but try to make your synopsis more interesting... It really should help your novel.

edit: I know how you feel though. The novel I cherish the most didn't work out how I had thought it would.

 

[Jemini]

Why is it so hard to get people to look at my original fantasy novel? Yeah, they'll look at my fanfiction, but my actually good fantasy novel they will not. At this point, maybe it's just time to sell my soul and write an isekai because my story clearly isn't interesting enough as is.

Ok, I just looked at your story just for a first impressions value. (Didn't read any chapters, and I didn't even read tags.) I can tell you just from looking at the cover, title, and chapters that you actually are doing a lot of things that can be improved upon.

Starting with the title, "Rip Current." It is not a strong enough title, it does not peak curiosity. You need something that sparks the imagination a little more like "20,000 leagues under the sea," for example. Even "Rip tide" would have been a better title, although I don't know how accurate to the story that one would be. "Life in the Abyss" might also do the trick, the area so deep under the sea that light doesn't reach was actually the original use of the term "abyss," so it could fit.

Your synopsis does not have a good hook either, and does not keep the reader's interest. It reads like a boring history lesson. Try coming up with something in the first 15 words of your synopsis that gives at least 4 pieces of information to your reader while also raising a question in their mind. I have given my first 11 words for my "Key to the Void" story once and detailed out how that does what I have described above.

"Asaren and Tiaren are the first Elven twins to ever be born." It tells you the names of the 2 leading characters, tells you they are twins, tells you they are elves, tells you this is a fantasy setting, and tells you twin births are usually a near impossibility among elves, and tells you they are the first to meet these conditions. That's 5 pieces of information. It also raises several questions. You are left to wonder if there is some kind of magical shinanagans afoot to cause this twin birth, and it also raises the question as to why twin births usually do not happen among elves. So, that's 2 questions.

The purpose behind raising questions is because it serves as a hook to keep the reader reading through the synopsis. The reason for packing in as much information as you can into those few words is because 1. 15 words is about the average reader's attention span. They will have usually made their decision on whether or not to continue reading by the time they get to the end of those 15 words. 2. The information you can pack in is an essential part of what makes the question to follow interesting. The question is the most important part, but the information you front-load it with is what raises the interest.

These first 15 words really are incredibly important in your synopsis, but the rest of your text is important too. However, if you have formed your first 15 words correctly, the remainder of the synopsis should flow out from that as a result.

And, the third thing you should REALLY consider doing is name your chapters. If you name the chapters, those chapter names will appear in the "last updated" section of the stories. This means that the chapter names can serve as another way for you to generate interest for your story.

So, it's really a lot more than just whether or not you have an "isekai" tag. If you have all these failures to appeal to the audience, even adding an "isekai" tag is not going to help you. Yes, it DOES help generate interest, but you have a lot of other opportunities you are not capitalizing on here. I think each of the 3 things I just recommended has about the same level of power to fan appeal as adding an "isekai" tag. Some of it may even be more powerful.

 

[Deleted member 45782]

Sorry @WasatchWind I haven't read yours yet. I haven't read much of any stories just for pure fun in a while.
If it was like Wattpad, I would inline comment if the story was great or to give some feedback since I had the app before.

For SH, I joined mostly for writing, not for reading. So when I log in to SH, it is only to write and create stories. I haven't really put much out there though since I have to slowly reabsorb myself back into the real world and do stuff. That is the main reason why I don't feel as salty that some of my stories don't get as much views as others (but for the views I currently have, I feel grateful about it. It feels nice to be seen. ^^) + I know my writing is still amateur level.

I hope you get some views someday though. I understand how you feel. Personally for me, I love fantasy and I dislike how limited tags and genre are on SH. Maybe someday your story might make the break on SH and spur on a new trend. Then there'll be bouts of mermaid stories on SH following your story route. Just finish your story first. Then re-write and branch out.

Online sites you're more likely to get others look at your works if you read and comment on other stories. That was what someone mentioned to me on Wattpad, but I have a feeling it is a bit more true on other online writing platforms as well - its how you get noticed. Branch out to several different sites like what others said besides Wattpad and ScribbleHub.

Good luck merbuddy.

 

[Deleted member 29316]

Why is it so hard to get people to look at my original fantasy novel? Yeah, they'll look at my fanfiction, but my actually good fantasy novel they will not. At this point, maybe it's just time to sell my soul and write an isekai because my story clearly isn't interesting enough as is.

First, I'll let you know that it's good you're venting out your frustrations.

Second, remember your reason why you write. Treat popularity as a bonus, and not as a goal. I know this sounds kind of cheesy and idealistic, but don't you ever write with a purpose of 'getting popular'. You'll only be dismayed. Write because you want to tell a story. A good story, something that your serious readers would like. A good story isn't always the popular one; and understand that there are times that popularity wouldn't come or is slow to come. (Let's hope it's the latter)

Third, and this is optional, expanding the sites where you upload would help you too. But of course, if you won't pander to the readers' wishes, it's hard to get your story to be read by a lot of people...especially in these days where readers would just 'drop and go'. Trending and popularity depends on what's 'in' anyways, so don't be disheartened. So if you got loyal readers, value and appreciate them.

In the end, just continue with what you write, and write because you wanted to, not because you like to be popular. Do what is necessary to improve. Popularity would come as a bonus.

 

[Jemini]

Ok, I only just skimmed the first paragraph of your infodump of a synopsis the first time I looked at it. (Bad sign for all the reasons I said above.) However, I just went back and gave it a closer look to get some idea of what a better first 15 words might look like for you. Try out something like this.

"Irian is a scale farmer, trying to live by selling the scales of captured merfolk." Something along those lines. After reading through your synopsis, THAT is actually the core premise you are working with here. All that history lesson on the war and such is background that you can supplement later after you actually have the reader interested. It also hits a lot harder. It personalizes things by introducing your main character, naming him, telling you his occupation, and then gives the gut-punch by telling the reader he's actually stripping the scales he farms off of other sentient creatures.

That last bit has the power to make the reader to a double-take, and it will leave them with a lot of unresolved feelings and questions that will get them wanting to know more. It will also prime them to become more interested in hearing about this war going on. From there, you can also try to make the info on the war a little more interesting, but putting this part first is absolutely essential.

EDIT: Also, I rounded these 15 words off as a complete sentence for example's sake. It does not actually HAVE TO be a complete sentence so long as you have successfully hooked a person within those 15 words. The example I gave there actually could be extended out a few words further if you want.

 

[WasatchWind]

Ok, I only just skimmed the first paragraph of your infodump of a synopsis the first time I looked at it. (Bad sign for all the reasons I said above.) However, I just went back and gave it a closer look to get some idea of what a better first 15 words might look like for you. Try out something like this.

"Irian is a scale farmer, trying to live by selling the scales of captured merfolk." Something along those lines. After reading through your synopsis, THAT is actually the core premise you are working with here. All that history lesson on the war and such is background that you can supplement later after you actually have the reader interested. It also hits a lot harder. It personalizes things by introducing your main character, naming him, telling you his occupation, and then gives the gut-punch by telling the reader he's actually stripping the scales he farms off of other sentient creatures.

That last bit has the power to make the reader to a double-take, and it will leave them with a lot of unresolved feelings and questions that will get them wanting to know more. It will also prime them to become more interested in hearing about this war going on. From there, you can also try to make the info on the war a little more interesting, but putting this part first is absolutely essential.

EDIT: Also, I rounded these 15 words off as a complete sentence for example's sake. It does not actually HAVE TO be a complete sentence so long as you have successfully hooked a person within those 15 words. The example I gave there actually could be extended out a few words further if you want.

Thank you for the suggestions in both of your comments.

The synopsis is something I've really been struggling to figure out, and I think I might try naming chapters like you mentioned. You mentioned in your first comment that my cover was one of the problem things - I know its not perfect, but its definitely better than what I had before - just a picture of some waves.

 

[Deleted member 29316]

You mentioned in your first comment that my cover was one of the problem things - I know its not perfect, but its definitely better than what I had before - just a picture of some waves.

I could help you with covers...though I don't know if you'd like my art style, see?

 

[Deleted member 45782]

I think @WasatchWind personally, your synopsis and book cover stands out because it sounds the start of something like an interesting physical book I would pick up to read. The start though, since there's still a lot of improvements to go before it sounds like a really good published book. However, since this is an online writing platform, it may be a bit different from what others like and are used to reading online. I know a lot are recommending some good tips to grow on SH, but just in case, save your current synopsis and book cover - at least something to look back into if need be. ;)

 

[Jemini]

Thank you for the suggestions in both of your comments.

The synopsis is something I've really been struggling to figure out, and I think I might try naming chapters like you mentioned. You mentioned in your first comment that my cover was one of the problem things - I know its not perfect, but its definitely better than what I had before - just a picture of some waves.

Yeah, when it comes to designing the entire wholistic image about your story, it's all about generating points of interest. That goes for your cover as well. If you can get a good enough artist, you should be able to get something that not only looks interesting, but also tells something of a mini-story that fits the setting of your story as well. Have as many aspects of it as you can that represent your characters, premise, and plot.

It takes a skilled artist to be able to get something like this though. The only reason I have such good cover arts on my works is because my 1st project, "Second Life as the Sister of a Goddess" (Now abandoned and rebooted) managed to get a little bit of meager monetary support. It was too little to pocket to any meaningful effect, so instead I decided to put it back into my writing. By pooling a few month's earnings, I was able to use that support money to commission the covers of my next 2 works. That's why they are as good as they are. They were not cheap.

 

[Agentt]

Well, the first very obstacle you are suffering from is to go against the common trope. When readers realized that my mc is not going to be op, they too simply left. Merfolk has only been used on this site for BL and all. You can't expect together that much recognition when people just leave after reading the word Merfolk.
I am not telling you to change the idea. Every idea is a beauty in itself. All you need to do is to
1. Create enough chapters that even though people aren't interested, they are simply intrigued how you managed to fill so many pages.
2. Try your hand at different things. Write a few one shots. Write any practice series. Gain loyal readers. Overthrow the galactic empire. All that.
Oh, and well, stop comparing Wattpad to this site. The readers are different, it's as if there is a cultural clash. You don't know if those readers are actual readers or simply people who have you on their reading list.
As for the Isekai, I do understand your pain. I came on this site expecting to write a josie, but, well...
Isekai can be hurtful, knowing what you are doing is not original, and whatever you are writing has been already written. Also, there is a feeling that all your viewers are just dogs in heat.
But Isekai is not at all bad. The reason isekai is famous is because writers don't have to be troubled by school or jobs or such problems. You can go a step further. Why not? Its entirely your world, your rules. You can create any scenario. Who said that it has to be a wish fulfilment, hit your MC with as much reality you want. Have him go to school in isekai, if you want. Why go for demon lord? Go for Poseidon if you wanna.

 

[Ai-chan]

Why is it so hard to get people to look at my original fantasy novel? Yeah, they'll look at my fanfiction, but my actually good fantasy novel they will not. At this point, maybe it's just time to sell my soul and write an isekai because my story clearly isn't interesting enough as is.

Pretty sure you yourself said something about not wanting to go the mainstream route. There is a reason why mainstream is mainstream, it has the most audience. When you knock yourself off this mainstream, were you really expecting people to go out of their way to visit your neck of the woods?

Were you expecting that just because you put it here, you would single-handedly change reader preferences? Besides, you've only written 5 chapters, why are you expecting more from people? Write 50 chapters then you have ammunition to rant about people not reading your stories.

You need to get rid of the mentality of:
1) I'm awesome, recognize my greatness!
2) Your tastes suck. Here's my dick, suck it!
3) If you're not reading my work, you're terrible people.
4) I'm definitely right, screw you.
5) My shit is amazing, if you're not amazed, that's because you're scum.

Ai-chan is not saying you have any of these mentalities. Ai-chan doesn't know you enough to make a judgement on your character. If you do have any of these mentalities, you yourself should reflect on it and try to get rid of it. You are not at the top 10% of traditionally published authors. You don't get to decide what genre is good and what genre is not. Become Stephen King, then you can decide the standards of horror.

Well, Ai-chan suppose it's fine if you do have these mentalities. After all, @CupcakeNinja is the prime example . The key point is you're aware that you think like this, and that's because it's your personality. Cupcake Ninja doesn't rant or blame readers for not reading his stories.