Worm: Have you read it?

[Jemini]

Worm, the web fiction to reach #1 in the English original category back in the golden era of the early 2010s where the ridiculous majority of the best web-fictions out there were written. Also famous for being the story that makes it's MC suffer so severely that it can actually traumatize the reader, especially the 7th-18th story arcs.

Don't worry though, the stuff after the end of the 19th arc will start healing your mental scars, and you'll love the series for it. Even though the world's still going to shit, at least it starts giving you the satisfaction of the MC finally getting the chance to start biting back and drawing blood against the people who really matter. (I cannot even begin to describe how happy arc 20 made me feel.)

 

[RepresentingWrath]

No.

 

[TheMonotonePuppet]

Worm, the web fiction to reach #1 in the English original category back in the golden era of the early 2010s where the ridiculous majority of the best web-fictions out there were written. Also famous for being the story that makes it's MC suffer so severely that it can actually traumatize the reader, especially the 7th-18th story arcs.

Don't worry though, the stuff after the end of the 19th arc will start healing your mental scars, and you'll love the series for it. Even though the world's still going to shit, at least it starts giving you the satisfaction of the MC finally getting the chance to start biting back and drawing blood against the people who really matter. (I cannot even begin to describe how happy arc 20 made me feel.)

Yes.

 

[RepresentingSilence]

No

 

[Daitengu]

Nah, I was reading JP novels at the time. Shield Hero, Mushoku tensei, konosuba, sword art, etc. Then slowly picked up stories from Royal Road when it changed from being a translation site. That's right, I'm old.

It was also around the time I got destroyed by Higurashi and decided, "Know what? Real life is depressing enough, I'm skip out on the tragedy and torture tags from now on."

 

[LilRora]

I tried to read it because I really like the idea and the worldbuilding, but I got turned off by the dang misunderstanding at the very beginning. I really don't like misunderstandings in stories. Maybe I'll read more of it sometime, but that's for future me to worry about.

 

[Jemini]

I tried to read it because I really like the idea and the worldbuilding, but I got turned off by the dang misunderstanding at the very beginning. I really don't like misunderstandings in stories. Maybe I'll read more of it sometime, but that's for future me to worry about.

Which misunderstanding? The one about the target? Or the one about the allegiance? (worded carefully to tell enough information to people who know, but not spoil for people who don't.)

At any rate, whichever it is, you really shouldn't let that scare you off. Yes, it's what kicks things off, but it's not ultimately what controls the direction of the story from that point forward. To some level or another, the MC really does have a lot of agency and a lot of what happens IS a result of her own decisions. Her decisions are just... err... not always made with the full awareness of the secret games being played behind the scenes, and the secrets behind the scenes and other people just being ass-holes tends to often make things not work out the way she'd hoped. What she thinks should be just a really simple thing often winds up being a lot more sticky than she'd ever imagined.

But, yeah. She DOES have an out. Several. So, the misunderstanding you're referring to is not a trap, it's an open door that the MC has several opportunities to enter or leave, and it's repeatedly her own decision to stay, and she always has a good reason too...

BTW: For people who have read the series and know, I also really enjoyed the 2nd half of the 4th chapter of arc 23, and it's because of the really apt analogy it makes between criminal activity and drug addictions.

 

[TheMonotonePuppet]

Nah, I was reading JP novels at the time. Shield Hero, Mushoku tensei, konosuba, sword art, etc. Then slowly picked up stories from Royal Road when it changed from being a translation site. That's right, I'm old.

It was also around the time I got destroyed by Higurashi and decided, "Know what? Real life is depressing enough, I'm skip out on the tragedy and torture tags from now on."

I’m going to see if I can find Higurashi now. Seems like a fun manga/anime.

 

[LunaSoltaer]

Yes.

I have read so many worm fanfics, and a little bit of the serial proper and I actually think of it pretty often.

It may have slightly influenced how much visceral agony im willing to put on the page in my writings.

 

[LilRora]

Which misunderstanding? The one about the target? Or the one about the allegiance? (worded carefully to tell enough information to people who know, but not spoil for people who don't.)

At any rate, whichever it is, you really shouldn't let that scare you off. Yes, it's what kicks things off, but it's not ultimately what controls the direction of the story from that point forward. To some level or another, the MC really does have a lot of agency and a lot of what happens IS a result of her own decisions. Her decisions are just... err... not always made with the full awareness of the secret games being played behind the scenes, and the secrets behind the scenes and other people just being ass-holes tends to often make things not work out the way she'd hoped. What she thinks should be just a really simple thing often winds up being a lot more sticky than she'd ever imagined.

Both actually, since they're pretty intimately connected. But I don't mind the second much, the first is really what grinds my gears since it really reminds me of the stupid superhero cliche of the mc doing what they think is right only to be corrected on six different things later on, all of which could have been avoided if they waited for a damn minute and thought for a while.

I've really heard a lot of good things about Worm, and I'll probably read it sometime. Just not in the mood now, I guess.

 

[Jemini]

Nah, I was reading JP novels at the time. Shield Hero, Mushoku tensei, konosuba, sword art, etc. Then slowly picked up stories from Royal Road when it changed from being a translation site. That's right, I'm old.

It was also around the time I got destroyed by Higurashi and decided, "Know what? Real life is depressing enough, I'm skip out on the tragedy and torture tags from now on."

Well, the suffering in Worm is a bit more along the lines of Mushoku Tensei than anything. It's just... a whole hell of a lot worse. And the reason why it's worse is because it's just so believable. Every single last thing that goes wrong in Worm is because of something that you could see actually happening IRL (Minus the super-powers.) Every single thing is informed by the way real people actually think and behave, the real failures in the system, and the real ways things like criminal gangs actually operate.

 

[TheMonotonePuppet]

I have read so many worm fanfics, and a little bit of the serial proper and I actually think of it pretty often.

It may have slightly influenced how much visceral agony im willing to put on the page in my writings.

It didn’t really influence my writing. The one that influenced me will always be Sweet Dreams Are Made of Teeth.

 

[LunaSoltaer]

It didn’t really influence my writing. The one that influenced me will always be Sweet Dreams Are Made of Teeth.

hence your cover image

 

[Jemini]

I’m going to see if I can find Higurashi now. Seems like a fun manga/anime.

Lol, Higurashi is an interesting one for sure. It's a V-novel actually, but it's also been adapted to anime.

It's a very strange time-loop series. The reason why it's strange is that it's NOT told from the POV of the person who remembers each time-loop, and you don't even get to find out which of the people involved here are remembering the loops until the 4th loop when the one who retains her memories suddenly decides to kill herself because the loop is f*cked.

 

[Kayden]

Worm, the web fiction to reach #1 in the English original category back in the golden era of the early 2010s where the ridiculous majority of the best web-fictions out there were written. Also famous for being the story that makes it's MC suffer so severely that it can actually traumatize the reader, especially the 7th-18th story arcs.

Don't worry though, the stuff after the end of the 19th arc will start healing your mental scars, and you'll love the series for it. Even though the world's still going to shit, at least it starts giving you the satisfaction of the MC finally getting the chance to start biting back and drawing blood against the people who really matter. (I cannot even begin to describe how happy arc 20 made me feel.)

No, at the time I wasn't even on the Internet, but I'm adicted to fanfics based on this universe now

 

[Lodur]

Worm, the web fiction to reach #1 in the English original category back in the golden era of the early 2010s where the ridiculous majority of the best web-fictions out there were written

Whas it even something like

Top Web Fiction

topwebfiction.com

back then? I thought, that first place from that time is "Mother of Learning" (it was written back in 2011).

I tried to read the "Worm" a couple of times, but revered autor's style is not to my liking. Never went past first 10-15 chapters.

 

[Representing_Tromba]

No, but I have read the very hungry caterpillar.

 

[georgelee5786]

No

 

[Paul__Michaels]

No, but I have read the very hungry caterpillar.

Dude, that book scared me for life.

 

[Unknowable]

I read it. Very overrated.

I suspect almost no one likes it for what it is, and most are just swept up by its reputation. Like, someone completely new to it will likely give up by the time anything worthwhile happens.

The fanfics it generated are great though.