/sffg/ - Science fiction and Fantasy general

[Anonymous No.18369663]

City Exploration Edition
Previous Thread>>18363025

>Recommended reading charts (Look here before asking for vague recs)
https://mega.nz/folder/kj5hWI6J#0cyw0-ZdvZKOJW3fPI6RfQ

>Archive
>>/lit/?task=search2&search_subject=sffg

>Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1029811-sffg

>A link to the ultimate colossal science fiction and fantasy collection torrent.
>>>/t/1023504

>Discord
Never going to be created

[Anonymous No.18369739]

sex books

[Anonymous No.18369746]

visual novels

[Anonymous No.18369757]

Are there any good self pub books?

[Anonymous No.18369828]

>>18369663
this barely looks like anime at all. you're on thin ice

[Anonymous No.18369967]

>>18369663
Is Lem essential?

[Anonymous No.18370041]

>>18369967
Technically no

[Anonymous No.18370121]

>>18369663
Anyone here read Sirens of Titan? Is it any good?

[Anonymous No.18370167]

>>18369663
Best fantasy light novels with a good translation and easily pirateable?

[Anonymous No.18370234]

>>18370167
>>>/a/

[Anonymous No.18370466]

>>18370234
4channel is an anime site

[Anonymous No.18370614]

>>18370167
The problem is not pirateablity or, rarer, good translation. It's whether the translator will finish the job that can take years.

[Anonymous No.18370622]

Fuck E William Brown
Fuck pay walls
Fuck pay pigs
Fuck excuses
Fuck incommunicado
Fuck push backs
Fuck you

[Anonymous No.18370645]

FUCK PATRICK ROTHFUSS

[Anonymous No.18370651]

Okay, I think it's finally time to conquer my demons and read Wheel of Time.
I've tried three times over the past 6 years but I always put it down by Book 4. But I think about it all the time - wondering if it it's incredibly good by the end, if I'll ever finish it, etc. I know now it will haunt me like a shadow for the rest of my life if I don't just finish it. So I'll try again, and this time I hope to stick with it. Prove to myself I can.

[Anonymous No.18370779]

>>18370651
you could read half a royalroad series in the time it takes to finish wheel of time

[Anonymous No.18370782]

>>18370651
If books 3 or 4 didn't make you like it you never will

[Anonymous No.18370787]

>>18370779
The only RR series longer than WoT is The Wandering Inn, which seems somewhat poorly written and uncompelling to me.

[Anonymous No.18370800]

>>18370782
Actually, I did like it a reasonable amount, I just always get distracted by other things. I think the prose is pretty nice, I like Mat/Rand, Elayne seems like a compelling wife, etc.

[Anonymous No.18370808]

>>18370787
is wot longer than savage divinity?

[Anonymous No.18370817]

>>18370651
I read it last year, before my son was born.
You should do it. It will be worth it in the end.

[Anonymous No.18370828]

>>18370808
WoT is 4.5~ million words, whereas Savage Divinity is 3~ million words (you can go to the "statistics" part of a RR page to check). If you organize RR series by length and check the top few, only TWI is longer than WoT.

[Anonymous No.18370843]

>>18370622
You forgot
>Fuck Bakker

[Anonymous No.18370874]

>>18370828
maybe some are longer including their patreon chapters

[Anonymous No.18370882]

>>18370828
How did the Lord of the Rings BTFO almost every other fantasy series with 1/3rd as many words as most of them?

[Anonymous No.18370888]

>>18370882
It's not written by a hack.

[Anonymous No.18370920]

A brilliant stateman once said: "If you kill your enemies, they win." Luckily for us, Fang Yuan disagrees.

[Anonymous No.18370928]

>>18370920
>Luckily for us
it might be lucky for fang yuan, but us, the readers, will find it much less interesting

[Anonymous No.18370935]

>>18370874
Maybe, but I doubt it. I don't think any of them would have 1 million plus words behind a patreon gate.

[Anonymous No.18370968]

>>18370828
>Dresden has almost two million words yet the character hasn't evolved from who he was since the 1st book
Butcher honestly peaked with Codex Alera

[Anonymous No.18370979]

So I was in some creative fantasy writing professor's office wanting to discuss NK Jemisin and Casandra Claire with the guy. I ended up getting kicked out but I managed to snatch this list of reading recommendations for creative writing. Thoughts?

[Anonymous No.18370980]

>>18370828
>kingkiller longer than twilight
How?

[Anonymous No.18370990]

>>18370882
Lack of planning and vision. A lot of these authors just winged it/didn't know where to go, and/or milked newfound success.

[Anonymous No.18371050]

>>18370980
Both books are like 1000 pages innit

[Anonymous No.18371051]

>>18370980
Rothfuss really likes huffing his own farts

[Anonymous No.18371189]

>>18370828
this is like 3 years out of date by now

[Anonymous No.18371190]

Same book. Western cover vs Japanese cover.
Why don't we even try, westbros?

[Anonymous No.18371240]

>>18370979
george rr in the MUST is ridiculous.
also this is a great baseline for like.. an expert in fantasy, or a critic, or a historian. but as a writer? most of these are dated, incorporating them won't necessarily mean success

[Anonymous No.18371243]

>>18370979
why did you get kicked out btw.

[Anonymous No.18371249]

>>18371243
kept asking about how best to incorporate cuckoldry into the plot and worldbuilding

[Anonymous No.18371312]

>>18367327
I wish this series was more dark.
Like upping weeds by the root, and fucking his fairy aunt. This shit is so PG, even though it has cussing.

[Anonymous No.18371362]

>>18370828
What in the goddamn is Wandering Inn?

[Anonymous No.18371418]

>>18371189
It's more like one year.
>>18371362
Some English web fic. At the moment, I think it's the longest singular piece of English fiction ever written.

[Anonymous No.18371420]

>>18371418
>At the moment, I think it's the longest singular piece of English fiction ever written.
What about that Space Commissar thing?

[Anonymous No.18371434]

>>18371420
You mean the Subspace Emissary fanfiction? TWI passed it recently.

[Anonymous No.18371448]

>>18371434
I see. That's impressive.

[Anonymous No.18371475]

>>18371418
>Some English web fic. At the moment, I think it's the longest singular piece of English fiction ever written.
What kind of person actually reads this kind of shit? Sounds like slice of life fanfic with chapters sharted out on a daily basis.

[Anonymous No.18371485]

>>18371475
Fun things are fun?

[Anonymous No.18371489]

>>18371485
Some people like crushing bugs with rocks.

[Anonymous No.18371503]

>>18371475
the bite-sized release schedule has become popular primarily thanks to manga and webcomics and such so that should give you an idea of the kind of "person" reading it

[Anonymous No.18371509]

>>18371503
Ma'am.

[Anonymous No.18371510]

>>18371475
Never read it, but to my understand it's quite a vast fantasy world with a lot of shit going on at any given moment. Less SOL and more constant action/worldbuilding, I think. Having like 100+ different POVs helps.

[Anonymous No.18371550]

>>18371510
>>18371475
It is Slice of Life shit. The one girl gets people killed for "no kill gobos", and the other girl turns into a feminist.

[Anonymous No.18371553]

>>18371362
Probably the best webnovel that exists. The image is also dated, TWI at this moment has 7.8 milions words, making it almost double the length of WoT.

To anyone that intend to read it, it gets better the longer it goes, the first volume is average, the later ones become better the more the world expands, and then the real TWI starts at V5.

It's a LitRPG, but without numbers, only Classes with Levels. As far as LitRPGs go this one is the most palpatable if you don't want bullshit number fuckery. The author seems to be inspired by DnD esthethics. Anyway, the point is that the system complements the story and doesn't make you hate the story if you don't like LitRPGs.

Its strengths are characters, story and world-building, in that order. It's also original because the MC is not some warrior, mage or any other person with power. Instead the MC becomes an Inkeeper (though you can get that from the title). Don't worry if you the MC, I hadn't either for the first few volumes, but there are enough other characters to not care.

Anyway, it has its flaws, it's a product of some sort of autism or obsession (who would write 200k+ words every month otherwise?).

But it's the most successful webnovel out there for a reason, it's not some mind-numbing xianxia or trash litrpg that can be consumed like junk, but a proper story that gets you addicted.

To me, it's one of the best things I've ever read, adn that's including normal books. Even if you hate webnovels, or read it and decide it's shit, then you must at least admire the level of commitment and work put into it. Eight million words written in just 4+ years, making it the longest story ever written in English.

[Anonymous No.18371562]

>>18371553
I'll take it!

[Anonymous No.18371615]

>>18371553
from this description i get the feeling the author is one of those /tg/ people with a relatively overactive imagination that keeps making up new characters and sheets for them but has no avenue to play them in a board game so they just end up writing a book to put them into and rotating the cast
how wrong am i

[Anonymous No.18371616]

>>18371249
As a Bakker scholar I would feel insulted as well, that's like asking someone how to write a vivid and tactile gay rape scene or how to put yourself into the mindset of a cuckold while holding a copy of any of the Second Apocalypse book series.

[Anonymous No.18371619]

>>18370645
>expecting a fatshit to follow through on literally anything

[Anonymous No.18371638]

>>18371615
It doesn't seem to be anything like that to me, there are many characters, too many probably, but only because the atuhor tries to cover every continent, and still most of the story is about 2-3 characters, and povs are around the same places. There's actually next to none rotation, if character's been there for a while, then it's there to stay. Probably.

[Anonymous No.18371678]

>>18371553
>it gets better the longer it goes
You mean you get more and more deluded the more time you waste on this shit and need to convince yourself it hasn't been a complete waste of time and energy.

[Anonymous No.18371688]

>>18371678
This is an interesting cope.

[Anonymous No.18371696]

>>18371688
it's called the sunk cost fallacy anon

[Anonymous No.18371706]

>>18371696
Yes, but I just don't see how a person can justify saying someone is suffering from it based off of no information.

[Anonymous No.18371773]

>>18371706
Spilling your spaghetti over a "7.8 million word" web novel speaks for itself.

[Anonymous No.18371907]

>filter the chinaman ritualpost image
>all but 2 posts since it was posted have been collapsed
wew lad

[Anonymous No.18371912]

>>18371418
>longest piece of english fiction ever written
Not even close.

[Anonymous No.18371928]

Metaposters are back so thread will be dead for a couple hours.

[Anonymous No.18371993]

>>18371912
I looked it up, calling it a story or anything of value seems to be a stretch. It honestly looks to be a joke. It's just character names with dialogs. So no, I wouldn't count that.

[Anonymous No.18372013]

If you liked this book...

...then you'll LOVE this!

https://www.deviantart.com/uthp/journal/The-Legend-of-Twilight-Zelda-Princess-part-I-348420007

[Anonymous No.18372064]

>>18371503
You mean thanks to Dumas, Dickens, and the like?

[Anonymous No.18372094]

why, for lack of a better word, is the fantasy genre so gay?

[Anonymous No.18372096]

>>18372094
define what 'gay' means in this context

[Anonymous No.18372105]

>>18372096
Head and shaft of male humanoid genitalia entering another male's oral and/or anal cavities. Presence of another male in the corner of the room is implied.

[Anonymous No.18372107]

>>18372096
Reddit is a synonym if that helps.

[Anonymous No.18372116]

>>18372107
Because that's the demographic that has money and is paying for shit, and that demographic is the most vocal on social media/the internet in general. Redditors are writing fantasy and buying fantasy books, they have a monopoly on the market so naturally a majority of the new stuff being released will cater to them and their tastes.

[Anonymous No.18372128]

>>18372105
>Presence of another male in the corner of the room is implied.
Encouraged in some works of fiction held in high regard here.

[Anonymous No.18372129]

>>18372116
what is the least R*ddit fantasy series?

[Anonymous No.18372148]

>>18372129
Off the top of my head:
>Memory, Sorrow and Thorn
>the Lyonesse trilogy
>almost anything by Gene Wolfe (he filters redditors hard it seems)

[Anonymous No.18372151]

>>18372129
https://www.goodreads.com/series/187630-manifest-delusions

[Anonymous No.18372187]

>>18370121
Just read it. It's good.

[Anonymous No.18372512]

Sanderson.
Mistborn or Stormlight?

[Anonymous No.18372560]

>>18372512
start with warbreaker and if you like it read stormlight

[Anonymous No.18372596]

>>18372560
>Indian
no thank you

[Anonymous No.18372618]

>>18372596
?

[Anonymous No.18372636]

Why didn't Bilbo get laid?

[Anonymous No.18372788]

>>18372618
do not r edeem

[Anonymous No.18372791]

Just finished The Blade Itself, it was pretty good. I was expecting more rape and murder, I was told this was one of the more graphic fantasy series. Maybe book 2 will up the ante a little.

[Anonymous No.18372819]

>>18372788
oh sweet a schizo

[Anonymous No.18372825]

>>18372791
It’s not that kind of grimdark
It’s more everyone is a shitty person kind of grimdark

[Anonymous No.18372827]

would you jerk off with the left hand of darkness?

[Anonymous No.18372841]

>>18372827
Not into black women, sorry.

[Anonymous No.18372848]

>>18372825
What is the go-to Grimdark rec around here then?

[Anonymous No.18372851]

>>18372827
only if my wife gets taken by The Darkness That Comes Before

[Anonymous No.18372854]

>>18372851
The Darkness That Comes Before refers to the black man who ejaculates inside of your wife before you're allowed to.

[Anonymous No.18372965]

why are authors like this...

[Anonymous No.18373077]

>>18371553
>Probably the best webnovel that exists
Extremely cringe take, even for a webnovel faggot. its unreadable.

[Brandon Sanderson No.18373096]

Brandon Sanderson

[Anonymous No.18373131]

>>18373096
There's twelve different ways to spell Based with Brandon Sanderson

[Anonymous No.18373167]

>>18373096
mistborn game at e3

[Anonymous No.18373187]

>>18373096
>>18373131
>>18373167

[Anonymous No.18373232]

Just finished reading the witcher books since I really liked the games, and if nothing else I liked the first two short story books.

Having said that going into the main story of the series I'm not sure what I expected, but I definitely didn't expect a (for the most part) badly written blend of some kind of degenerate coming of age story and Geralt being an absolute bitch on his adventure.
Also with the exception of a handful of characters like Dijkstra and Regis I genuinely was amazed how unlikeable most of them were to me, no matter if I knew them from the games or if they were new to me.
Ciri is a good example, she was a mostly unoffensive but bland mary sue in Witcher 3, but when it comes to her book version I was genuinely unsure if the author wanted me to sympathize with her or not after everything she did after she teleported to the desert.

All in all I can say I regret wasting my time reading it, and knowing the full story of all characters now retroactively made me like the games less. But I guess that's what I get for reading this shit.

[Anonymous No.18373324]

>>18370828
>no Bakker
Don't make me say the r-word.

[Anonymous No.18373335]

>>18373096
*Sharts in Mormon*
Mmm yeah, hard magic systems.
*craps in jeans*
Grimdark is okay but I like—
*starts drinking koolaid from tumbler*
My “weak” prose is more of a style choice.
*cashes royalty check*

[Anonymous No.18373341]

>>18373232
Yeah, I've told countless anons that they should just drop it after the short story collections. Sapkowski is a hack.

[Anonymous No.18373399]

>>18372094
Demographic shift towards women as an audience. Stuff written to appeal to women is just gay shit for men.

[Anonymous No.18373411]

>>18372848
The Prince of Nothing/The Second Apocalypse
>Refugees packing the rooftops, watching the slow advance of doom. Fathers casting their own babes to the hard cobble of the streets. Mothers cutting their children’s throats—anything to save them from the fury of the Sranc. Slaves and chieftains howling, crying out to heavens shut against them. The broken staring into the dread west, numb to everything save the whirlwind’s roping approach …
>Their High-King was dead. The wombs of their wives and their daughters had become graves. The greatest of their thanes and chieftain-knights, the flower of their armed might, had been struck down. Pillars of smoke scored the distance across the earth’s very curve.
>The world was ending.
It has this kind of vibe.

[Anonymous No.18373432]

>>18373341
After reading the books I genuinely don't understand how the fuck witcher got as popular as it is.
Like it had a solid premise but it just went nowhere with it and by the end I was just confused.

[Anonymous No.18373461]

>>18373432
>vibeo gaymes
Wild Hunt was fucking huge when it came out.

[Anonymous No.18373472]

>>18373432
CDPR surpassed the source material
kinda like what happened with the RP1 movie

[Anonymous No.18373527]

your thoughts on these series? new to fantasy and want to read all of them eventually:

>first law triology
>black company
>acts of caine
>book of the new sun

[Anonymous No.18373540]

>>18372827
only if she is somehow wicked, and makes me come in a certain way

[Anonymous No.18373549]

>>18373432
The games made the Witcher popular. The books weren't even localized until games took off. Sapkowski didn't think a video game adaptation would be successful and settled for a flat licensing fee instead of royalties, which he later sperged hard about. The games are a lot better than the source material because they primarily only use the world and loose interpretations of its main characters, shying away from Sapkowski shit writing and retarded decisions. Even Witcher 3 only touches on the source material on a surface level, which is what adds to the surprise of readers whose only experience with the franchise is the games.

[Anonymous No.18373554]

>>18373527
Black Company is really good. Drops off after the first book, then drops off further after the third, though.

[Anonymous No.18373596]

>>18373411
Yeah that's what I'm looking for I'll check it out

[Anonymous No.18373645]

>>18369757
No
>>18370167
Vampire Hunter D. Translation will always be an issue with Jap to English though, but that has more to do with Japanese prose style. Writers like Mishima who can almost seamlessly bridge that gap are exceedingly rare.
>>18370234
>novels
>chinese cartoons
Half of the posts in these threads are that Will guy shilling his shitty litrpgs and this is the post you choose to direct to /a/?

[Anonymous No.18373686]

>>18373527
>black company
Conceptionally interesting but I couldn't get past the prose; it was very amateurish.

[Anonymous No.18373689]

>>18370828
Broken Empire and Memory Sorrow and Thorn are now twice as long as listed and First Law is 3x

[Anonymous No.18373698]

>>18370828
>including webnovel shit
cringe

[Anonymous No.18373718]

Is there such thing as space-fantasy, without any sci-fi? Something where interstellar travel is done 100% with magic. The last Rhialto the Marvellous story it's kinda like that.

[Anonymous No.18373745]

>>18373232
>>18373341
>>18373432
The books are great and you guys are virgins.

[Anonymous No.18373750]

>>18373745
Only faglords enjoy saga.

[Anonymous No.18373758]

>>18373698
Get with the times old man.

[Anonymous No.18373836]

>>18373758
Soon we'll be reading meme arrow novels.

[Anonymous No.18373851]

Everybody Loves Large Chests ended up being more sexual than I thought. The futa muscle fiend (pic) is fucking the succubus demon pretty much constantly now. The succubus developing masochism from the mimic MC devouring hero over and over felt like it wasn't going to go anywhere since the MC doesn't care about sex, but now she's addicted to the fiend raping the shit out of her so hard her bones break. It's actually pretty extreme stuff, and also so constant that whenever the mimic looks away the succubus starts deepthroating the futacock to the point she chokes to death. The first arc of the story was pretty tame, and the MC doesn't even have have sexual urges since he's a treasure chest, so the lewdness and extremeness is catching me off guard. That's web fiction for you I guess.

[Anonymous No.18373876]

>>18373836
As it should be.

[Anonymous No.18373930]

>>18373836
>he hasn't read the /lit/ books

[Anonymous No.18374005]

>>18373718
look up the planetary romance genre of novels; specifically, check out the Sea Kings of Mars series by Brackett, and the Barsoom series by Edgar Rice Burroughs

[Anonymous No.18374014]

whatever was called that older sff general like /SPatg/, /Spafg/?

[Anonymous No.18374139]

I just finished the cradle series by will wight, what did I think of it?

[Anonymous No.18374231]

>>18374139
You thought it needed more rape.
You thought Lindon should have fucked more women.
You wanted little blue to become a cock sleeve.

[Anonymous No.18374281]

>The Woodmen said that there was some new terror abroad, a ghost that drank blood. It climbed trees to find nests; it crept into holes to find the young; it slipped through windows to find cradles.
Based Gollum eating babies. Kinda amusing how Gandalf and Aragorn didn't kill him on the spot when they fucking knew this when they caught him.

[Anonymous No.18374310]

>>18373930
>reading
I parse all my books through Microsoft Sam, thanks.

[Anonymous No.18374428]

>>18370979
You should drop that class to spend more time in IS and IT classes, at least until your shooping skills improve.

[Anonymous No.18374459]

>>18372791
Expect more gum sucking and occasional Hulking out....and little else

[Anonymous No.18374469]

>>18373472
>kinda like what happened with the RP1 movie
Are you fucking high? That movie was a shitfest compared to the book.

[Anonymous No.18374474]

>>18374459

[Anonymous No.18374480]

>>18374474
If only Abercrombie had ever learned to pick up his pacing like that.

[Anonymous No.18374487]

>>18371240
>>18371243
Psst....it's not real.

[Anonymous No.18374501]

>>18374139
I want to read this, but I haven't read any Xinxao-whatever so I wouldn't get the memes.

[Anonymous No.18374516]

>>18374469
At least it didn't spend the equivalent of 2 pages describing a full body masturbation suit.

[Anonymous No.18374531]

>>18374459
not encouraging, but I did hear that the 2nd book was better than the first. maybe ill just skip to Bakker

[Anonymous No.18374535]

>>18373718
Darkwar is 50/50. Cook not Feist.

[Anonymous No.18374545]

>>18374501
It’s very entry level. A good starting point for Ching Chong ping pong fantasy

[Anonymous No.18374591]

>>18374545
Thank you anon. Does MC plug any babes?

[Anonymous No.18374595]

Tell me why you don't like Tolkien

[Anonymous No.18374596]

>>18374591
Only in the literal sense. He fucks babies.

[Anonymous No.18374602]

>>18374596
That seems plausible since that might be a genre convention in Chinese WNs.

[Anonymous No.18374606]

>>18374595
Anyone who dislikes Tolkien hasn't read Tolkien.

[Anonymous No.18374623]

>>18371615
That sounds like the book of the fallen right there

[Anonymous No.18374626]

>>18374602
https://youtu.be/hTwG6xdLGBY?t=14

[Anonymous No.18374648]

>>18370979
Incredibly fake image—you could've at least printed it and have an actual picture used.

[Anonymous No.18374652]

>>18371240
>>18371243
>>18374428
>>18374648
all these fucking newfags

that post is a reference to this post, retards
>https://archived.moe/lit/thread/17637016/#17637016

[Anonymous No.18374653]

What are some books that do the academy trope well
or sci fi or fantasy, doesn't even need to be academy, I just want to read something that involve the MC joining some sort of organization, be it academy, merchant guild, or a mercenary company, any sort of organization.

[Anonymous No.18374666]

>>18371553
Really glad I got into it recently, currently in the process of setting part of a dimension hopping dnd campaign in it and letting the players pick up some [Skills] while they are there
fuck ryoka though, really shitty character that's kind of forced into being one of the main characters.
>knows literally everything
>is insufferable
>typical batshit happa, making me think its a self insert of the author, who is likely trans and has a foot fetish

still worth reading despite the cringe though

[Anonymous No.18374671]

>>18374653
Might I suggest The Name of the Wind?

[Anonymous No.18374687]

>>18374653
Harry Potter

[Anonymous No.18374688]

where should I start with malazan

[Anonymous No.18374734]

>>18374688
book 1

[Anonymous No.18374774]

>>18374734
What are tomorrow's lottery numbers?

[Anonymous No.18374783]

>>18371553
it's litRPG.

Shut the fuck up dude.

[Anonymous No.18374786]

>>18374783
Who gives a shit. It’s a fun read.

[Anonymous No.18374788]

>>18374774
Divide your post number by zero.

[Anonymous No.18374899]

>>18373686
Glad im not the only one who felt that. Only read a few books in the series but it has some real fun moments. Will probably get back to it one day.

[Anonymous No.18375091]

What is the Dark Side of the Moon equivalent of sci-fi novels?

[Anonymous No.18375095]

>>18371773
You seem upset.

[Anonymous No.18375245]

Books like Phantasy Star 3?
Their a mostly medieval society but with laser swords and a few androids.
They think they're on a planet but it turns out it's a huge ship and have been for generations and ganerations and it's spiraling towards the sun because the AI got fucked.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FmGy6nyduk

[Anonymous No.18375271]

>>18375245
Princess of Mars series for the first or better magitech LNs. Brian Aldiss's NonStop for the second.

[Anonymous No.18375367]

What’s the opinion on Abercrombie around here?

I read his first three books and found them serviceable. On Reddit they treat him like he’s done master craftsman of character, yet to me it felt like his characters basically boiled down to having a slogan each.

I even saw a highly updooted comment stating Abercrombie is amongst the best you’ll get in fantasy.

Am I missing something here? I wonder what else that redditor has read, off the top of my head I can name numerous superior authors

> Erikson
> Cook
> Hobb
> Wolfe
> Gemmel
> Bakker

[Anonymous No.18375383]

>>18375367
He’s an overrated hack. Dude subverting traditional fantasy tropes lol, but dragged into a 3 book series.

[Anonymous No.18375401]

>>18374653
Red Sister by Mark Lawrence is decent ... A school for assassin nuns. Def strong Harry Potter vibes overlayed with babby's first grimdark.

[Anonymous No.18375413]

>>18375367
If I had to guess, he's popular on plebb*t because he is "easy to read" and his chapters usually end on engaging cliff-hangers so it's not a chore for those over-socialized dopamine addicts to continue reading. I like Abercrombie but agree he is not teh best evar.

[Anonymous No.18375477]

>>18375367
I think Abercrombie writes fun, snappy, action-heavy stories that move along quickly and don't have anything offensively bad in them.
I like his books, but I would never say he's the best or anywhere near that.

[Anonymous No.18375613]

I've been on a Le Guinge recently, so in my order of quality:

>The dispossessed
holy shit this book is excellent. her best, by a long shot. can't wait to read again

>City of Illusions
very solid story and world. love the low/controlled-tech Earth setting. The tone does shift a little a the end but I think it remained strong.

>The word for world is forest
Really liked it. good mix of cliche and novelty. a little short.

>Left hand of darkness
It was good but didn't quite live up to the hype. maybe because I'm a white penis-owner. tundra hike bit was great.

>Always coming home
I skipped everything but the main story which was very good, if a little short.

>Rocannon's World
Pretty fun and whacky, if a little rough around the edges. ending was great

>The telling
Extreme 7/10 vibes, had some good moments but felt like the final third lost a lot of momentum

>The lathe of heaven
PKD knockoff, not poorly done though. the fact this is her worst book says a lot about her quality as an author

I can definitely see she's got a bit of a formula (anthropologist porn, gender challenge, big ol' hike), but man what a consistently great author. Excellent prose and world-building, with good characters and narrative to support. Very satisfying how Hain and the space UN tie it all together. Recommend.

[Anonymous No.18375621]

>>18375367
I second what this anon said >>18375477
Furthermore, the three standalone books that follow the first law trilogy are better. He's a pretty good author. He's just lacking something I can't quite put my finger on, that prevents him from being one of the best.

[Anonymous No.18375641]

>>18375383
>>18375413
>>18375477
>>18375621
I agree, but he seems to have such a huge fan base.

Is he the Sanderson of grimdark? I mean people say how dark and grim his novels are but nothing them too...say Captain Kennits story in Hobb.

['Literary' Fantasy? No.18375645]

>>18372148
Wolfe is absolutely phenomenal. Really appreciate that he's much more interested in language and style rather than worldbuilding, and is able to convey a huge scope without resorting to being a million pages long.

Crowley would be another non-R*ddit choice. Little, Big, The Deep, Aegypt, etc.

['Literary' Fantasy? No.18375659]

>>18374899
Yeah, Black Company's got some cool moments, and the cast of characters are fun and bizarre, but agreed. The writing isn't bad, but it's not great either.

[Anonymous No.18375661]

>>18375641
Abercrombie treats dark subjects flippantly, or even gleefully. That's what give his work an edgy feel. Whereas Hobb treats dark subjects with great empathy and care.

That being said, he's still way better than Sanderson. Now Sanderson is a fucking hack.

['Literary' Fantasy? No.18375679]

>>18375661
Sanderson is someone I've yet to get into. I kind of want to give him a shot, to see what all the fuss is about, but I can't say I'm looking forward to it. I imagine his writing is probably very easy to get into, but also very generic.

The fact that he's adored by all the basic white girls on TikTok speaks volumes.

[Anonymous No.18375707]

>>18375091
Any sci fi novel by Kurt Vonnegut, probably Cat’s Cradle, but I’ve been reading SH5 to King Crimson’s Court of the Crimson King. It’s very fitting because it was released at the same time as the book.

[Anonymous No.18375715]

>>18374606
I don’t like his translation of Beowulf, mainly because I compared it to Heaney’s and realised JRR had left out important aspects like kenning and poetic flow.

[Anonymous No.18375720]

>>18375679
I've ranted about this before plenty. But he has pretty good concepts. And even decent plot points. But they're all hampered by his need to hold the reader's hand and slowly explain everything going on, multiple times. It's the literary equivalent of a magician showing you his tricks as he's performing them, going through the motions slowly so you don't lose track. It saps the fun out of everything. You can appreciate it like "oh, I see what you did there. Hmm, yes, very interesting." But it will never hit you like seeing the trick done in real time for the first time.

I can believe that basic tiktok girls love him, because they'll never feel lost in his books.

[Anonymous No.18375722]

>>18375613
>PKD knockoff
She went to high school with him and they were in contact with each other.

['Literary' Fantasy? No.18375774]

>>18375720
Ah, his popularity now makes a lot of sense to me.

But yeah, above that, there's very little variety on TikTok, which is why I try to shed some light on authors like Wolfe, Crowley, Le Guin, Harrison, Vance, Leiber, Moorcock, etc.

Kinda frustrating that most fantasy now veers toward YA or borderline YA, and mostly derivative of the same root sources.

[Anonymous No.18375797]

>>18375661
I mean is he that much better than Sanderson...really?

His plotting is weak.
Characterisation is slogans and “I’m deep for having the characters start and end in the same place”
His world building... can’t remember it mate

[Anonymous No.18375832]

Reading pic related. So far it's okay. The story is keeping my interest but the world doesn't feel quite real, like there isn't enough grounding for it. The simplicity of the writing would also make me want to classify it as YA if the content did not indicate otherwise. I'll keep reading, but I'm curious if it will improve.

[Anonymous No.18375883]

>>18375722
shit that's cool. thanks for the hot info

[Anonymous No.18375949]

still can't get over how shit the books following blood song are when the original book was good

[Anonymous No.18376344]

>>18375832
His prose is trash. Honestly, i dropped it. Same goes for his other series (Lightbringer).

[Anonymous No.18376398]

>>18376344
>Lightbringer
https://youtu.be/bg-F99UVEKs

[Anonymous No.18376499]

I'm reading Speaker for The Dead, and goddamn woman how dumb can you be, just fucking reveal the simulations so that people can learn from them. She reminds me of the woman from TBP. Stupid broad.

[Anonymous No.18376542]

I can't be the only one who struggled to finish Frankenstein since it was too sad with the brother and wedding...

[Anonymous No.18376554]

>>18376542
i jacked off to frankenstein

[Anonymous No.18376561]

>>18376554
but why?

[Anonymous No.18376637]

So this is straight up a kids book, huh? I'm a little over a quarter into it, and it's so very basic. Not stimulating at all. They even made the powers seem mundane somehow.

[Anonymous No.18376643]

Purple Days just finished. What does /sffg/ think of the ending? Was it worth the 4.5 year wait?

https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/purple-days-asoiaf-joffrey-timeloop-au.450894/

[Anonymous No.18376695]

My mother in law gifted me the whole Liveship Traders' series.
Are they worth the time?

[Anonymous No.18376711]

>>18370651
i get the urge but it's going to hurt anon.

[Anonymous No.18376738]

>>18375091
Clarke. Maybe 2001 but perhaps Rama. Anything by clarke really.

[Anonymous No.18376784]

>>18376695
It's not for everybody, but definitely worth a shot. You can probably see for yourself that they're fairly large books. So you have to understand that it won't be a quick adventure. Some of it feels like bloat. Plot lines get dragged out longer than they should. But the characters are likable, and the story is intriguing.

I can't really say more than that, because I don't know what your tastes are. But speaking generally, it's worth a read. See how you like it. Feel it out.

[Anonymous No.18376825]

fuck you /sffg/ seriously

[Anonymous No.18376833]

>>18376825
sex

[Anonymous No.18376846]

>>18369739
>>18376833
fuck you

[Anonymous No.18376866]

What are some aliens that changed your anthropocentric perspective? For me, it was the Tralfamadorians...

[Anonymous No.18376881]

>>18376866
Humanism is just. Fuck off traitor.

[Anonymous No.18376953]

>>18375641
>but he seems to have such a huge fan base.
From my experience, modern authors having a huge fan base turns out to be a big red flag about their series.

[Anonymous No.18376959]

>>18376846
sex, dude

[Anonymous No.18376979]

>>18376959
what are you mean, fuck off

[Anonymous No.18376986]

how is sanderson gonna pull off turning two high fantasy series into scifi?

[Anonymous No.18376990]

>>18376979
man... sex

[Anonymous No.18376997]

Guys I just refuted Nietzsche in my fantasy book. About to publish it today! Just got to drive to the hospital first to make sure my heart is in order. Wait.. something is wrong. I can feel.. my.. I can't breathe...

[Anonymous No.18377001]

>>18376990
I am sex man

[Anonymous No.18377004]

>>18377001
I envy this man of sex

[Anonymous No.18377005]

>>18376990
fuck you

[Anonymous No.18377156]

>>18370800
>Elayne
the worst chapters of the books by a large margin

[Anonymous No.18377172]

>>18377156
No comment on that, I believe it; I just figure a blonde-haired princess babe is a great wife for a figure such as the Dragon Reborn.

[Anonymous No.18377177]

If you had to pick, which of these would you rather in a sci fi book:

(1): imaginative and creative world building;
(2) realistic and thought-out technology and scenarios. i.e., sound scientific basis for goings-on;
(3): overarching themes or textures of different thematic exploration; or,
(4) great characterisation and development

[Anonymous No.18377183]

>>18377177
What I want from any book is 4

[Anonymous No.18377197]

>>18377177
I think in many sci-fi books I would go in expecting 1, but as always it's 4 that wins the cake in terms of being a lasting and truly enjoyable experience. There are many excellent sci-fi books focused on 2 however (Asimov obviously).

[Anonymous No.18377203]

>>18376825
this

over the last month this general has just been flushed down the toilet and now it rots in a deep sewer underground festering with every kind of commingled offal, sludge, and feces imaginable

[Anonymous No.18377208]

>>18370167
Not a light novel but dies irae, japanese people refer to it as the japanese illiad, it's basically part of their canon (it's a visual novel).

[Anonymous No.18377216]

>>18370968
Codex alera is shit though.

[Anonymous No.18377228]

>>18371553
The only good western web novel i ever read was mother of learning (god tier fantasy) so i eventually stopped rading wn, how does it compare to mol?

[Anonymous No.18377231]

>>18377208
Isn't it free on Steam?

[Anonymous No.18377234]

>>18377183
>>18377197
My creative writing professors hate characterisation and character development, and even don’t want to write fiction with characters now. I guess they hate what people like to read. Thanks for answering, anons, it gives me hope because I suck at science and worldbuilding more than writing characters. Maybe it’s something that is intrinsic to storytelling.

[Anonymous No.18377235]

>>18377177
>infodumps about tools for 4
>infodumps about technobabble
>damage to 4 if not done well
4 it is.

[Anonymous No.18377237]

>>18375477
>fun, snappy, action-heavy stories that move along quickly
>snappy
> that move along quickly
You haven't read Abercrombie, have you....

[Anonymous No.18377240]

>>18377234
Why do you want to write "science fiction" in the first place if you suck at science and worldbuilding?

[Anonymous No.18377243]

>>18377237
I've read 4 of his books and I'd say they're pretty snappy.

[Anonymous No.18377249]

>>18377240
I’ve been published by an organisation that honours the memory of a sci fi writer. I don’t write sci fi but I used to love it as a kid. I’d like to get back into it as (1) respect to said author and (2) exploring the same feelings of awe as a kid, hopefully culminating in something fun for anons to read.

[Anonymous No.18377250]

>>18377231
Only the first two routes are free on steam, but you can find it on nyaa i think.

[Anonymous No.18377253]

>>18377240
Because writing fiction about science requires a PhD, or several. Writing a fantastic future fiction only requires ideas for that future and showing how people would live with them.

[Anonymous No.18377267]

>>18377177
>great characterisation and development
This
cause what'd be the point without this
everything revolves around the observer, it's what gives meaning to this meaningless world

[Anonymous No.18377270]

>>18377253
But why do you want to do something you're going to half-ass?

[Anonymous No.18377276]

>>18377270
Why would I half ass it? I'll do my best.

[Anonymous No.18377281]

>>18377270
Weren’t there plenty of SF writers like John Varley who just wrote because they were poor and needed money? He didn’t even really give a shit about writing well.

[Anonymous No.18377284]

>>18377276
>Why would I half ass it?
I don't know, but you seem to intend to do so.
>Writing a fantastic future fiction only requires ideas for that future
This sounds like just making shit up with little thought. So why sci-fi specifically? Just write like a space opera or something.

[Anonymous No.18377290]

>>18369757
his 'first step' wasn't terrible
your pic related on the other hand was unreadable

[Anonymous No.18377291]

>>18377284
Nearly all of 40k is ripped off from another sci fi universe. Dorks still like it. It seems sci fi doesn’t have the highest standards, like you seem to infer.

[Anonymous No.18377309]

>>18377228
It has better characterization and dare I say much better prose, as MoL's was pretty dry. I'd say it's abtter than MoL, because while it had some good power progression and worldbuilding, it was rather bland in other areas. TWI is also a lot funnier.

Honestly, give it a shot. If you still don't like it after Volume 3 Esthelm arc, then it's probably not for you.

[Anonymous No.18377312]

>>18377216
It's enjoyable enough, but some people peak with something subpar.

[Anonymous No.18377314]

>>18377291
Warhammer 40k is not sci-fi, everything in it works on literal magic

[Anonymous No.18377319]

>>18370979
Why is the fat fuck there twice?

[Anonymous No.18377325]

>>18371362
A very bad YA for girls.

[Anonymous No.18377334]

>>18377177
mix of 2 and 3

[Anonymous No.18377340]

>>18372064
*saw a resurgence
You know what he meant, why be anal about it.

[Anonymous No.18377345]

>>18371993
Brainlet take desu, but I don't doubt that it's still shit.

[Anonymous No.18377346]

>>18377314
Warp isn’t magic. I can’t imagine what else you could see as magical.

[Anonymous No.18377352]

>>18377177
4, but closely intertwined with 1 or you only have characters with an empty backdrop. 2 is good if you offer technology that would seem useful in the future, like someone thinking about mobile phones before they were invented. 3 is useless without the first two, might as well just write a thesis instead of fiction.

[Anonymous No.18377363]

>>18377346
The warp is 100% magic, the daemons are 100%, all psykers are 100% magic. There's nothing sci-fi about any of that, it's all pure mystical nonsense.

[Anonymous No.18377366]

It's pointless to try and separate science and magic
because they're literally the same fucking thing
the only difference is the naming convention

[Anonymous No.18377378]

>>18377363
It’s basically just energy, anon.
>Superficially, the Immaterium is Mankind's solution to the problem of faster-than-light travel. The Warp functions as the medium for FTL interstellar travel, with voidcraft entering it through the use of a Warp-Drive. They then use their own mundane reaction drive systems and the aid of a psychic Navigator to navigate between its flowing currents of psychic energy, as if they were moving through an ocean.

[Anonymous No.18377381]

>>18377378
Yeah just like i said, magical mystic energy.

[Anonymous No.18377383]

>>18373527
First Law and Black Company were kinda boring, I really like Acts of Caine (kinda corny, especially the last book, if that grinds your gears then steer clear).

[Anonymous No.18377389]

any good pirate themed shit?

[Anonymous No.18377393]

>>18373851
Thanks for helping me decide not to pick it up.

[Anonymous No.18377396]

>>18377378
It's magic. Energy doesn't work like that.

[Anonymous No.18377397]

>>18377393
ok

[Anonymous No.18377399]

>>18374596
I fucking wish.

[Anonymous No.18377404]

why does /sffg/ fear sex
is this general infested with americ*ns?

[Anonymous No.18377431]

>>18376643
if you wanted to turn people off, the deviantart tier pic was a great choice

[Anonymous No.18377441]

>>18377404
anglos fear sex

[Anonymous No.18377447]

>>18377314
aren't at least some things tech? guns, chainsaw swords, flying ships, etc?

[Anonymous No.18377452]

>>18377404
30% of gen z don't have sex on a yearly basis.

[Anonymous No.18377455]

>>18377447
yeah, but that'd be like categorizing Harry Potter as SF because they drived cars in it or something

[Anonymous No.18377463]

>>18377396
>Unexplainable phenomena occurs
>Scientists call it dark energy and dark matter
>“It’s like the opposite of what we already know!”
How is that not magical thinking too?

[Anonymous No.18377492]

>>18377463
>thing we don't understand yet vs thing that is literal magic
The difference is that the other is literal magic.

[Anonymous No.18377494]

>>18377463
say what you will I'm with him, demons, gods, psykers, etc. will always be magic to me

[Anonymous No.18377538]

Any recs for the kind of scifi where people in advanced spaceships encounter crazy alien races? Like a star trek novel but not shit?

[Anonymous No.18377545]

>>18377494
bet you've read some sci-fi with demon looking aliens or powerful pre-cursor races, or aliens with extra-terrestrial powers explained away with some bullshit organ.

[Anonymous No.18377557]

>>18377284
Because I look forward to the future and I like tech and space? Also, what matters is the methodical approach that makes sense. Not making the story 20 min into the future with all of the familiar tech and jargon, but with a crazy gimmick, like FTL or true AI or whatever.

[Anonymous No.18377559]

>>18377545
Daemons don't just look like demons, they are supernatural entities.

[Anonymous No.18377561]

>>18377559
Why?
because they came from another dimension?

[Anonymous No.18377565]

>>18377561
Are you really this fucking retarded?

[Anonymous No.18377567]

>>18377538
Yes. Ringworld is one of the examples for English, People as Gods for Russian.

[Anonymous No.18377568]

I don't feel so good bros...
is scifi literall fantasy and fantasy literally just scifi?

[Anonymous No.18377575]

>>18377559
>a future setting gives scientific explanation for historical mythological figures
>”still magic and supernatural!”
You mustn’t think the Gaea novels are sci fi then.

[Anonymous No.18377576]

>>18377565
You sure are

[Anonymous No.18377579]

>>18377561
You're clearly either completely ignorant of the setting or just trolling.

[Anonymous No.18377583]

>>18377579
all about perspective

[Anonymous No.18377589]

I hate you guys

[Anonymous No.18377593]

>>18377568
They are both fantastical fiction. The split of low/high fantasy and hard/soft science fiction is marketing to differentiate between DnD/Tolkien and Star Wars/Star Trek.

[Anonymous No.18377595]

>>18377589
I love you anon. Peace.

[Anonymous No.18377598]

>>18377595
my favorite fantasy author

[Anonymous No.18377600]

>>18377593
Or if I take older examples, Herbert Wells and Edgar Burroughs.

[Anonymous No.18377612]

>>18377598
The Foundation = Magic

[Anonymous No.18377618]

>>18377567
Thanks anon! Who's People as Gods from? Google is dumbfounded with the title

[Anonymous No.18377621]

>>18377612
The Mule sure as hell was

[Anonymous No.18377643]

>>18377576
Holy fuck, you really are retarded.

[Anonymous No.18377644]

>>18377621
Honestly even the term “psychohistory” is enough to roll eyes, but Asimov explains it so well you can’t help but go ‘alright that’s cool’

[Anonymous No.18377646]

>>18377643
I accept your concession

[Anonymous No.18377653]

>>18377646
It's all about perspective

[Anonymous No.18377654]

>>18377646
>spamming jirenschizo's catchphrase

[Anonymous No.18377660]

>>18377646
He’s right you know. You are kinda retarded.

[Anonymous No.18377665]

>>18377660
It's all about perspective

[Anonymous No.18377669]

>>18377660
Baited

[Anonymous No.18377671]

>>18377665
Not really. You're a retard if you think demons, aren't supernatural entities

[Anonymous No.18377673]

>>18377671
So you admit you are retarded

[Anonymous No.18377676]

>>18377177
3 and 4

[Anonymous No.18377677]

>>18377673
Anon, that’s you.

[Anonymous No.18377681]

>>18377677
nah, you just lost

[Anonymous No.18377687]

>>18377568
Always has been. People woh think there's some big difference between Fantasy and SF are either inexperienced in both or fucking stupid.

Yes, SF does seem to have more science/'cold logic' type of readerbase (although you could also say that most of the SF writers are fucking psyhopaths), but that's more of cultural view of what the genre is. In the end it's just esthetics of who do you want to give some moral/philosophical bullshit to you, an alien from more advanced civilization or a Dragon.

Don't fall for 'SF is intellectual' meme, most of books in both genres are shit, but if you want to say something important, you can do it in both.

[Anonymous No.18377689]

>>18377681
No he didn't. You're genuinely retarded.

[Anonymous No.18377693]

>>18377689
nope

[Anonymous No.18377697]

>>18377693
Yeah, you are.

[Anonymous No.18377700]

>>18377697
sorry man, you're not losing the retard card
you just lost

[Anonymous No.18377706]

SHUT THE FUCK UP
holy shit, why is NA hours so bad

[Anonymous No.18377708]

You're both retarded. KYS

[Anonymous No.18377715]

>>18377706
Because Americans are retarded.

[Anonymous No.18377717]

>>18377568
They both fall under the umbrella of "speculative fiction."

[Anonymous No.18377722]

New thread
>>18377719

[Anonymous No.18377734]

Struggling to find fantsays witha dominant woman in the protagonists relationship.

[Anonymous No.18377874]

>>18377644
Big data leading to more accurate predictions of large-scale changes is supposedly a real thing, since you can't accurately predict the weather over a couple days but you can predict MAN MADE CLIMATE CHANGE with 100% accuracy for centuries.

[Anonymous No.18377923]

>>18370979
Your thumb is phasing out of our spacetime continuum

[Anonymous No.18378007]

>>18377618
Snegov. Pretty sure he has translations.

[Anonymous No.18378043]

>>18377545
it's not about how they look it how powerful they are, and a psyker race is fantasy
SF might have fantasy elements, nothing wrong with that

[Anonymous No.18378078]

>>18377874
Well the climate is constantly changing, always had been in fact, so now that it's finally 'climate change' not 'global warming' they can't be wrong.