Writing Web Novels In America-Chapter 69 Major Changes

After the website staff had collected a lot of Ancient Greek Mythology material.

Wang Jian read through it while comparing it to various settings in "Extreme Heavenly Demon."

The gods in Greek Mythology were similar to the families with special abilities in the original work.

Just as debauched, just as dismissive of ordinary people.

But...

Why did it feel somewhat off-taste?

Wang Jian flipped through the material, starting to think hard.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up.

Aside from the protagonist of "Extreme Heavenly Demon," who, as a human, used a "Golden Finger" to forcibly break through the unbreakable limits,

it was the depiction of ghosts and monsters in the book that first made people feel strange and scared.

Then, the protagonist would break cunning with strength in an unexpected way, directly "Physically Exorcising" them.

This made the readers feel both surprised and thoroughly thrilled.

Wang Jian then focused his attention back into his mind and carefully read through the horror segments in "Extreme Heavenly Demon."

After a while, he shook his head.

These horror descriptions were too stream-of-consciousness, too Eastern...

Look at Hollywood’s horror movies’ terrifying scenes: psychotic killers, blood everywhere, schizophrenia, etc.

Then, you would know where Westerners’ horror G-spot was.

But...

Fighting off a psychotic killer, that had become cliché.

Wang Jian thought for a while, then he called the staff member in charge of miscellaneous items.

He then instructed, "Bring me all the classic horror films and famous horror legends."

Just as the staff member was about to leave, he added, "Separate them into two categories: those with public copyright and those without."

The staffer gave Wang Jian another look to make sure there were no additions, then turned and left.

Meanwhile, Wang Jian picked up Stephen King’s horror story series from the desk and started studying how to create a terrifying atmosphere with words.

After eating a simple fast-food meal,

Wang Jian’s desk was piled high with two thick stacks of material.

Among them were classic Hollywood horror characters like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, psychopathic killers Jason, Michael, and others.

As well as famous horror legends, Bloody Mary, Vampire Dracula, werewolves, witches, and so on.

Wang Jian finished reading through these background materials carefully.

He felt that among the Hollywood horror characters, only Freddy, who killed in dreams, was somewhat interesting.

Killing in dreams... this setting was quite intriguing.

Wang Jian visualized a revised novel segment in his mind.

When a demon that kills in dreams, after much effort, lured the protagonist into a dream, ready to torture and kill,

the protagonist suddenly tore off his shirt, revealing eight-pack abs and fists as large as basketballs, laughing "heh heh" as he approached the other.

He nodded, thinking this could be used as a sub-plot.

Just be careful not to have too many similarities with Freddy.

What about the other horror characters?

Wang Jian turned his gaze to the famous horror legends.

The evil witch ties up the protagonist to experiment on him.

Then, the protagonist flexes his muscles, breaks free from the ropes, and looks at the witch with a smile, like looking at a harmless little lamb.

...

A vampire shows its fangs, stepping with an upper-class gait, ready to suck the protagonist’s blood.

Then, the protagonist shows his uneven, pearly white teeth and stuffs his arm into the vampire’s mouth, shouting, "Go on, suck, if you can bite."

...

A werewolf transforms into a three-meter-tall figure, grinning as he approaches the protagonist.

The protagonist laughs "heh heh," turns into a five-meter-tall giant, and shouts, "Don’t run, I’m just an ordinary person!"

Hmm,

All of that could be used in the early stages of the story.

As for the later parts, it was about the protagonist ascending to the Divine Realm and bringing down various gods.

Finally, under the lightning of Zeus, he would cry out "level up" and then punch the opponent to smithereens.

And then...

Well, the power system in the original story got quite messy toward the end, with the protagonist changing maps all the time.

So, God Odin from Norse Mythology and Amun, the main god from Egyptian Mythology, were both fair game to get beaten up.

After that, it would all depend on the pay rate.

As long as the pay rate was high, then the protagonist could even battle through an armor-clad world with his bare hands and tear apart a Gundam.

Or get physically involved in a world invaded by Zerg and physically annihilate the queen. That was all fair game for the story.

But when Wang Jian came back to his senses and looked at the outline he had made,

And compared it with his mental image of "Extreme Heavenly Demon,"

Damn it,

Even the original author might not recognize it after these changes.

Never mind, never mind.

Wang Jian shook his head.

The creative environment was different, and he faced a different readership after all.

It was fine to make a few appropriate changes.

As long as the core of the story stayed the same.

The readers would know the protagonist was strong, and the protagonist would know his own strength, but the villain would be oblivious.

When the villain was built up to be extremely powerful, amidst the readers’ high anticipation, the protagonist would knock them out with one punch.

That feeling was just epic.

Moreover, the best part of "Extreme Heavenly Demon" actually lay in its pacing, not the content of the story.

As long as the pacing was handled well.

Maybe,

It could become a hit, right?

Wang Jian hesitated for a moment but still opened the writing software on his computer and typed in the four big words "Extreme Heavenly Demon."

Then, he started to type, referencing the content of the book and his outline.

This book could well be pioneering a new genre in the United States.

Whether the readers would accept it, only the future pay rates would tell.

While Wang Jian was focused on typing,

Stephen King, the famous horror maestro, was discussing him with another renowned novelist named Neil Gaiman.

"This Wang from ’Arcane Throne’; his imagination is as unpredictable as yours," Stephen King remarked.

Neil Gaiman, who won the World Fantasy Award for "A Midsummer Night’s Dream," was in his prime.

He was very fond of "Arcane Throne."

But he felt slightly uncomfortable with Stephen King comparing the overly successful young and edgy best-selling author to himself.

He swiftly changed the subject, saying, "My next work will bring together the pantheons from various nations into the United States for an epic battle."

"I wonder if you could give me some advice?"

Stephen King pondered for a bit then said, "That takes a vast reserve of knowledge and an exaggerated imagination."

"Are you sure you want to tackle this theme?"

"Yes," Neil Gaiman replied with conviction: "I want to take on this seemingly impossible task at the pinnacle of my creative years."

"I’ve even thought of the title; it will be ’American Gods.’"

"In that case, my nearly senile old brain won’t be much help to you," Stephen King responded. "However, a website called wangwen.com features various works brimming with imagination."

"Although most of the writing on there is rough and the stories are absurd, I think they might still be useful as a source of inspiration for you."

"Oh, is that the site where ’Arcane Throne’ is serialized?" Neil Gaiman asked.

Stephen King nodded and said with a smile, "Go take a look, kid."

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