Chapter 100

【PS: I'm very sorry, there was an issue with the upload, and a few sections were missing, so I deleted it and re-uploaded. Everyone can check the missing parts at the end~】

The Taiwanese market for traditional Chinese books has always been an important source of income for mainland online writers. Due to the uneven quality of web novels and the high standards of mainland publications, very few novels get the chance to be published in simplified Chinese. In comparison, there are more opportunities for traditional Chinese publications in Taiwan. Many online writers who have gained a small reputation have had the experience of earning Taiwanese dollars.

For Taiwanese publishers, it is absolutely their first choice for selecting works. After several years of development, this website has become a holy land for original content from the mainland. The continuous emergence of excellent works has made Taiwanese readers unable to put them down.

Works by famous writers like Tang Jia San Shao and Xue Hong were snatched up by major publishers long ago. Other publishers can only focus on newly rising writers and their new books. In recent months, the most popular and hotly discussed new book on Qidian is Jing Guan's "Beast Blood Boiling." Since its release, the book has consistently ranked high on Qidian's click and recommendation charts, even topping them at times. On Qidian's VIP monthly evaluation list, it ranked second in its first month and then strongly claimed the top spot in the second month, a position it still holds.

Although there have been cases like "Profanity" where a Qidian hit had average sales in traditional Chinese, Taiwanese publishers are very optimistic about the market prospects of "Beast Blood Boiling" after understanding its content. Therefore, multiple publishers have joined the competition for the traditional Chinese publication rights of the book.

Generally, the manuscript fee for new writers' traditional Chinese publications ranges from 30 to 80 yuan per thousand characters. If Qidian helps to contact the publisher, Qidian takes a cut. However, the current asking price for "Beast Blood Boiling" has long exceeded 100 yuan per thousand characters, and the other benefits are also very generous, comparable to those of established writers.

Due to the high asking prices from competitors, Xinchang Publishing, with limited resources, withdrew from the competition early. However, they quickly turned their attention to the second most popular new book of January, "Raging Thunder."

Although "Raging Thunder" was overshadowed by "Desire Emperor" among January's new books, in the eyes of most publishers, the publication value of "Raging Thunder" far exceeds that of "Desire Emperor."

There are several genres that Taiwanese publishers are reluctant to touch. One is martial arts, which, except for early famous authors like Jin Yong, Gu Long, and Huang Yi, has no market for others. Another is online games, not because they are poorly written—books like "Mighty Dragon Crossing the River" and "Heaven and Earth Online" have been very popular on Qidian and have a high reputation in the web literature world—but the Taiwanese market simply does not like them. The only online game novel that has gained traction in Taiwan is "Prince Half" by Yu Wo.

There is also the science fiction genre, with some publishers outright refusing to accept science fiction works, while others accept space-themed novels but require them to be soft science fiction, preferably in the style of space cultivation. In terms of genre, "Raging Thunder" has an advantage over "Desire Emperor," and historical novels like "Unscrupulous Emperor" and "Ling Yun Zhi Yi" from last month's new books cannot compare to fantasy novels.

Lin Qingyi is the editor at Xinchang Publishing responsible for acquiring manuscripts from Qidian. After realizing he couldn't secure "Beast Blood Boiling," he promptly approached Tong Yan Wu Ji.

Zhang Xiao, upon seeing Lin Qingyi's book review comment, immediately contacted Tong Yan via QQ, but he was not online. He then called the Five Flavors Bookstore, but the line was busy, so he quickly rode his bicycle to the bookstore. Due to his speed, he almost collided with a pretty girl. For Tong Yan's sake, Zhang Xiao didn't even have time to ask for her phone number or QQ number, and he later regretted it deeply.

At the Five Flavors Bookstore, after confirming that his sister had left, Tong Yan immediately took out his laptop. He didn't expect that Shanshan would suddenly come to the bookstore to borrow a phone, but fortunately, Liu Ming saw her from a distance, otherwise, Tong Yan would have been exposed.

Tong Yan continued writing, as school was starting in two days, and he wouldn't be able to maintain his current update schedule after that. Storing more drafts would help him deal with emergencies.

"Tong Yan, Tong Yan, get online quickly!" Zhang Xiao was slightly out of breath.

"What's wrong? Speak slowly."

"I saw a book review from someone claiming to be an editor from a Taiwanese publisher, wanting to publish your 'Raging Thunder.' You weren't on QQ, and the bookstore phone was busy, so I came over directly!"

Tong Yan's eyes lit up; finally, a willing taker!

Tong Yan logged into QQ and opened the novel page, where he saw the QQ number left by Lin Qingyi in the book review section. He added him and started chatting with Watermelon.

Tong Yan: Sister Watermelon, are you there? A Taiwanese publisher wants to publish my book.

Watermelon: Really? That's great! I was thinking that if no Taiwanese publisher approached you in a few months, I would use Qidian's connections to help you, but Qidian would take a cut. Although it's hassle-free and you don't have to worry about delays, you would ultimately earn less than if you contacted the publisher yourself.

Watermelon: By the way, which publisher is it?

Tong Yan: It's Xinchang Publishing. The person who contacted me is Lin Qingyi, but I don't know if they are male or female.

Watermelon: Oh, him. I know. He can be either male or female; gender doesn't matter. However, Xinchang is still a good publisher. Their characteristic is that they pay quickly and have few restrictions. Fantasy is also one of their main genres.

Tong Yan: That's a plus, but they must have some drawbacks, right?

Watermelon: The drawback is that the publisher's reputation is not great, and their sales in the Taiwanese market are limited, not as high as those of major publishers. However, if it's a buyout price, the sales volume doesn't matter much to the author. Another issue is that the quality of the books published by this publisher is not very refined, even somewhat rough, which is why their sales are not high. People who are willing to spend money on books definitely want to buy high-quality ones. However, in the rental book market, this can be an advantage.

"Beep beep beep." Lin Qingyi had accepted Tong Yan's friend request.

Tong Yan continued to ask Watermelon: What's the usual price?

Lin Qingyi: Hello, Tong Yan Wu Ji. I am Lin Qingyi from Xinchang Publishing. Nice to meet you.

Tong Yan: Nice to meet you too.

Lin Qingyi: I didn't expect to contact you so quickly, haha. You should already know why I'm here, so I'll be straightforward. Has your "Raging Thunder" signed any traditional Chinese publication agreements with other publishers?

Tong Yan: No.

Lin Qingyi: That's great. I wonder if Mr. Wu Ji is interested in collaborating with our publishing house. We have worked with many mainland online authors and have a good reputation in the industry. We are a very trustworthy publishing company.

Tong Yan: If the price is right, I won't refuse.

Tong Yan started a dual conversation, with Liu Ming and Zhang Xiao standing behind him, nervously watching as he negotiated with Lin Qingyi and learned about the market from Sister Watermelon.

Watermelon: You need to know that for publishing fantasy novels in Taiwan, the buyout method is currently more popular. Of course, there are also major publishers like Fresh Network and Shu Pin that use a sales-based settlement method, but the payment of royalties is slower, and the sales requirements are higher. Xinchang, which approached you, uses the buyout method. For new writers, the price is generally lower, with a minimum of 20 to 30 yuan per thousand characters. Normally, it's around 50 to 60 yuan, and the highest can be 70 to 80 yuan, but this requires a certain level of popularity online. Your "Raging Thunder" meets this requirement. For books like "Beast Blood Boiling," which have explosive popularity, the price can exceed 100 yuan per thousand characters, and many publishers will approach you.

Tong Yan had a better understanding.

Lin Qingyi: So, what is your ideal price?

Tong Yan: This is my first time writing a book; I don't know what price to ask for. Why don't you give me a price?

Lin Qingyi (after some consideration): Personally, I really appreciate "Raging Thunder." It's both passionate and humorous, and very well-written. However, as a new writer, you don't have a market or popularity base in Taiwan, so we need to start from scratch with promotion and packaging. Therefore, the price cannot be compared to that of established authors. Our publishing house can offer 60 yuan per thousand characters, which is already quite generous for a new writer. Why don't you consider it?

Tong Yan: Sister Watermelon, he's offering 60 yuan per thousand characters. Is that okay?

Watermelon: Traditional Chinese publications are generally 60,000 to 80,000 characters per book. At 60,000 characters, the manuscript fee for one book is 3,600 yuan. Since you are not from Taiwan, you have to pay 20% tax (10% for local authors), so each book would be around 2,800 yuan. Given your current popularity and that of "Raging Thunder," it's a bit low.

Liu Ming, standing nearby, said, "Earning 3,600 yuan for 60,000 characters isn't bad. Tong Yan, you can easily write 200,000 characters a month."

Zhang Xiao countered, "Old Liu, you don't understand. Traditional Chinese publications generally release one book per month, not based on how much you write. You need to consider the market's capacity. Of course, if sales are good and reader feedback is positive, they might release two or even more books per month."

Zhang Xiao, who had been in the web literature circle for a long time, was more knowledgeable than Liu Ming, the bookstore owner. Liu Ming chuckled, "Indeed, it's different from our pirated book world."

Tong Yan: Editor Lin, please let me consider it.

Tong Yan: Sister Watermelon, should I agree to it?

As a new and inexperienced writer, Tong Yan could only seek help from Sister Watermelon.

Watermelon: Don't rush to agree. You can tell him this...