In the "Idle Gossip" section of the "Book-Scarce Forum."
"Speaking of which, does anyone know about Zhutian Literature Network? Many of the novels there are really interesting. While they might not be considered masterpieces, they're quite good for passing the time, and the sheer volume is satisfying.
The novel I'm currently following updates ten thousand characters daily and is free.
Isn't that better than those magazines that come out twice a month, with each issue having only ten thousand characters, or at most a little over thirty thousand? Sometimes, if the previous issue wasn't particularly exciting, I've almost forgotten what happened by the time the next one comes out, and I have to flip back and reread it.
It's just that this author's cliffhangers are too much.
Every time they end at the most crucial moment, leaving readers in suspense, itching to read the next chapter."
"I know this novel website. However, I strongly recommend only reading novels posted by users with the 'Signed Author' tag. Those without it are a real pitfall. One person posted two chapters and then disappeared. Another promised daily updates, but now they update once a week with two thousand characters. Is that supposed to be enough for a beggar?"
"I've noticed that too.
Many people might just have a sudden whim, get excited, register as an author, and then after a few chapters, their inspiration dries up, or they find it boring, or there are no readers, so they just abandon the work and stop writing."
"So that's why. I was wondering why some novels I added to my bookshelf hadn't been updated for days. Currently, only the dozen or so authors who started publishing when Zhutian Literature Network launched have stable updates. It's just a shame that half of them are in the female category, which I'm not interested in."
"Um, are you guys really so desperate for books that you'll read anything? I've read some novels on Zhutian Literature Network. The novellas are okay; they feel at least presentable. But some of the long serials, with hundreds of thousands of characters, have such melodramatic plots.
The female protagonist is dragged for dozens of meters by the male protagonist at the start and then directly thrown into the army camp to serve as a military prostitute. And yet, the work is tagged 'abusive love runs deep.' Does the author have to be this insane?
What's even more absurd is what happens in the middle to late stages.
The female protagonist forgives the male protagonist.
That's right, she forgives him!
This worldview is utterly explosive.
There's another one where it starts with an unrequited crush on an uncle, and while it's revealed later that he's not a biological uncle, the female protagonist didn't know that in the early stages.
The male section isn't much better.
It starts with a breakup, and they say the woman dumped him because he was poor. She put up with years of hardship with him, and she's not allowed to have her head clear after a few years and find success? Then, with a golden finger, she starts to fight back, wanting three wives and four concubines, with a harem.
This kind of scum is definitely someone who can only share poverty, not wealth. Even without a golden finger, if he made money through his own efforts, he'd likely be the type to cheat and abandon his wife. It's infuriating.
Reading these novels can shave years off your life."
"I'm quite impressed with the person above. Knowing that it conflicts with your values, you still read it from beginning to end without skipping a beat, reading so carefully and diligently.
You're almost writing a ten-thousand-character review.
To be frank, I know those novels. After reading the synopsis, I didn't continue. Since you were able to finish them, it can only mean either you have masochistic tendencies.
Or, subconsciously, you enjoy this type of plot, but you're unwilling to admit it because you consider it cliché and lowbrow."
"This is probably what they call a love-hate relationship!"
"Love runs deep, so criticism is sharp?"
"Um, aren't you guys concerned about Zhutian Literature Network's profitability? It's currently completely free, and it needs to cover website operating costs as well as basic author guarantees.
I'm really worried the behind-the-scenes owner might not be able to sustain it one day. Should we suggest that the owner of Zhutian Literature Network implement some ads? Although ads are annoying, I really don't want to see the website shut down!"
"Oh, why worry about such things? If the owner really can't sustain it, they'll definitely find ways to generate revenue. We'll just support them then. Why worry about something that hasn't happened yet?"
"The owner probably already has a direction for revenue. I saw on the registered author page, under 'Author Benefits,' it mentions that paid subscriptions might be introduced later. Readers' paid subscription income will be split with the authors.
In other words, we need to cherish this current free period. In a while, when we read novels, we'll have to pay like buying a magazine. But that's probably for the best.
I actually feel a bit guilty about it being free all the time!
I just wonder if the price will be expensive."
"If it's paid, how will it work? Will the entire novel be paid to view? Will it be as expensive as published books? If it's as expensive as published books, it feels like a bad deal, because published books also have physical copies, while online is just data.
If it's per-chapter payment, that would be too troublesome!"
"That sounds very troublesome."
"It's good that it's paid. At least we can use whether we pay or not to express our like or dislike for certain novels and plots, so that authors won't go off on tangents."
"If it's paid, I won't read it. There are books in the rental shops anyway. Renting a book only costs a few cents."
"Please, what kind of books are in rental shops? They're all ancient relics! What's interesting about those books!"
"Just for passing the time."
"Hey, wait. If the serialized novels on this website also become paid, won't that lower the barrier to becoming an author? Previously, when submitting manuscripts, it was up to the publisher's editors to decide if readers could see them.
Now, readers get to see them first, and then if they're satisfied, they can become signed authors.
This way, not only is the barrier to becoming an author lowered, but the barrier to becoming a reader is also lowered.
Readers don't have to buy magazines or books to read.
They don't even have to buy them to find out if they like a novel or if it suits their taste after reading a part of it, because online reading with payment definitely won't charge from the first chapter.
There will be at least a few free chapters.
I think this has great potential. Should some of the original writers in our forum give it a try? After all, that's a professional literary website, while ours is mainly for discussing, recommending, and writing book reviews."
"That makes sense. From what I've observed, Zhutian Literature Network's daily traffic has exceeded one million. Our forum's peak was less than a hundred thousand.
If you post original novels there,
the increased base will definitely increase readership.
Most importantly, this literary network has only been established for a short time, and they're likely in need of people right now. If your skills are good, you might just become popular."
"That makes sense. I'm in..."
...