What are you reading in 2024?

I mean, just consider the fact that the top two finished stories on Royal Road (Mother of Learning and Perfect Run) are both explicitly about time loops. :)
Oh yeah, I can't believe I didn't mention time loops. Another genre staple, that even more explicitly serves that purpose.
 

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<Shrug> I never said it did. It's not an issue I concern myself with. My only observation is that the books are divided up by dungeon floor, and each floor is different enough that it feels (to me) like an obvious place to break.
Yes, it's an obvious place to break the books up. But that wasn't my point. My point was that there wasn't a complete story there. It's an issue I concern myself with because that's why I read.
 

Yes, it's an obvious place to break the books up. But that wasn't my point. My point was that there wasn't a complete story there. It's an issue I concern myself with because that's why I read.
And that's fine. I don't think we're contradicting each other (or trying to); I think we're pretty much making orthogonal points.
 


So what's the draw of reading fiction if you don't care about the story?
I'm generally much more concerned with scenes, character moments, and dialogue than I am with the overall structure and payoff.

For example, lots and lots (and lots) of people are generally bothered by the fact that Pat Rothfuss is never going to finish Kingkiller Chronicles. It doesn't bother me in the slightest. I'm curious how it would have ended, but that doesn't make me feel like the first two books weren't worth reading.
 

I'm generally much more concerned with scenes, character moments, and dialogue than I am with the overall structure and payoff.

For example, lots and lots (and lots) of people are generally bothered by the fact that Pat Rothfuss is never going to finish Kingkiller Chronicles. It doesn't bother me in the slightest. I'm curious how it would have ended, but that doesn't make me feel like the first two books weren't worth reading.
Gotcha. It’s not the structure I care about, but the payoff. Set up and resolution. I’m more interested in plot than character. Good scenes and dialogue, absolutely. Gimme an action-adventure story where there’s a good set up and payoff and I’m happy. But then, I also love New Wave sci-fi and Philip K Dick mindscrew sci-fi. For me, there story has to go somewhere…and not just down to the next floor.
 

Gotcha. It’s not the structure I care about, but the payoff. Set up and resolution. I’m more interested in plot than character. Good scenes and dialogue, absolutely. Gimme an action-adventure story where there’s a good set up and payoff and I’m happy. But then, I also love New Wave sci-fi and Philip K Dick mindscrew sci-fi. For me, there story has to go somewhere…and not just down to the next floor.
Fair. Web serial fiction is much more like a seasons-long procedural TV series, like a Grey's Anatomy or a NCIS. The individual arcs are fine, but you're more there for the vibe and hanging out with the characters. The pinnacle of this form being, of course, The Wandering Inn.
 

Fair. Web serial fiction is much more like a seasons-long procedural TV series, like a Grey's Anatomy or a NCIS. The individual arcs are fine, but you're more there for the vibe and hanging out with the characters. The pinnacle of this form being, of course, The Wandering Inn.
I just finished Mushoku Tensei. It was originally web-serialized fiction. It seemed to have coherent novel arcs. Maybe it’s more the progression/littpg thing you were saying upthread.
 

I just finished Mushoku Tensei. It was originally web-serialized fiction. It seemed to have coherent novel arcs. Maybe it’s more the progression/littpg thing you were saying upthread.
Yea, that could definitely be true; most of the web serials I've read have been in the progression fantasy genre (Wildbow's stuff like Worm and Pact would be the exceptions.)

I'm trying to think of progression fantasy that has distinct, discrete sub-arcs, or is just shorter and tells one big story. None of the big stuff qualifies (like Cradle, Defiance of the Fall, Primal Hunter, HWFWM). Maybe Immortal Great Souls? 3 books so far, each one has a fairly definitive endpoint.
 

I finished the Game Master's Book of Proactive Roleplaying yesterday. There was a lot to like about it and a lot of redundancy to some things I was already doing as a mostly open-world sandbox referee. I'd say it's a great all-around resource for referees no matter their style of play. At some point players and/or their PCs will develop goals. Keeping things interesting and building on that can be tricky. This book would definitely help with that if it's not something you're used to. It's doing well on Amazon and is only $10 right now. Definitely worth the cover price.
 

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