General Discussion

I've always loved dragons, but have felt disappointing that there's so little media with dragons as the main protagonist (90% of the time, they're delegated to pets/mounts/side characters)

So a couple of years ago I decided to start writing a story that's been in my head and two years, 225 pages and 120k words later, I've finished it!

If this is something you'd be interested in, I'm looking for beta readers to read it and give general feedback on things like characters and plot before I think about publishing. It'll be on google docs so you can be completely anonymous while you're reading! I have my beta readers! Thank you to everyone who volunteered!

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March 15th Update:

Hello hello! In January I sent you all a link to my novel: Lost Crescents and I just wanted to update you on the progress!

Since releasing the novel to beta readers, I have extensively changed some plot elements, cleaned up a tonne of grammar, and cut down 5,000 words! Thank you to everyone who helped in some small part.

I have now hired a final beta reader who has two weeks from today to give some feedback. Once I get that feedback, it's full steam ahead to get this thing published!

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The synopsis is written along with the blurb and query letter. I have a long list of UK publishing agents and once the final feedback has been taken onboard and implemented, I'll start mailing!

If you guys have any feedback on any of the novel, please let me know so I can do the last bits of polishing. Other than that, if you want to be kept updated on the next few major milestones, please let me know!

Blurb:



The following link is for the blurb and first couple of pages: <<THERE ARE A LOT OF ERRORS IN THIS EXTRACT>> See my latest post for recent updates on my progress :)
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ycv5Q3B0vLFWboNFxEXPlOwkjb4S1StjnaYwgYtcEgc/edit?usp=sharing



Trigger warnings: Moderate gore (undead zombies, blood magic), violence, fluff

@Aureatus

Good writing from what I read so for. Nice style.

How heavy is the xenofiction aspect? To me, the more, the better. I might be interested if it's fairly high.

@Xionahri

Thanks you for taking a look :)

The dragon MCs in the book are born dragons that are roughly the size of a large horse not including the wings which make them appear much larger. They have the intelligence of humans and are fairly dexterous with their thumbs. They are able to speak and have their own language, but do have more animalistic tendencies on occasion such as biting and growling/roaring.

They have the ability to turn into humans though it is very limited (e.g. you need a consumable item, you have to conform to certain rules etc etc) so most choose to stay as dragons for the majority of the book unless they have a good reason not to.

I hope that answers your question! Feel free to ask more if you have any

@Aureatus

That's interesting. How about their society/culture?

@Xionahri

Their culture is pretty much fractured. They used to occupy the main city ruled by their god but were overthrown by humans who were once slaves.

Because their god is dead *cough cough* each territory pretty much acts on its own. Some have councils, some kings. Most are open to trade with others, but there are some more conservative to the point of borderline xenophobia.

They're mainly split into seven territories the size of small countries which correspond to an element and are each based on a particular blend of cultures: (earth, water, wind, fire, lightning, ice, arcane). At each territory centre you will find a shard of immense elemental power that is a final gift from their dead god. The shards mutate the land, plants and creatures within to create new animals and races. The closer you are to the shards, the more powerful and higher up the pecking order you become (with some exceptions). Though dragons mainly work together since they are endangered, they are not above stabbing another in the back if there is power to be had. Outright war is very rare simply because of low numbers of dragons. If anything, they would rather fight with humans.

Because I don't like things being black and white, there are some humanoid creatures that were once dragon sympathizers now living in these territories and acting as peasants. Because of the elemental powers, they have been mutated past the point of recognizable humans to become fantastical humanoid creatures (e.g. elves, dwarves, giants)

There are also small keeps that survived the human uprising that act as meeting points to trade knowledge, skills, and act as a vantage point to keep territories safe. This is where the majority of the first book will take place to not over complicate things. However some chapters are based in two of the seven territories, with more on the way hopefully later! The earth territory is based on North Africa and Egypt, and the main city is built into a canyon created by the earth shard as it fell into the ground.

Arcane is very typically western Europe inspired with an emphasis on magic and mages (Think Dalaran from world of warcraft).

I plan on mentioning fire a lot later on in the series which is based on the Ottoman empire and has a ruling corrupt monarch mentioned in the first book. I also hope to include wind which is east Asian inspired (their humanoid creature is a Tengu)

Of course because this book is still in beta, I am very open to ideas and changes to help improve what I have :)

@Aureatus

Okay, you got me. Now I'm very interested.

Heads up though: If you choose me to be a beta reader, be aware that I'm notoriously lazy and may take a long, long time to read it. I'm also not that experienced in writing reviews, but I can try.

@Xionahri

Yes! Welcome aboard!

I am a very slow writer and am currently in a manuscript swap so there is really no rush. Be as harsh with criticism as you like. Even the simplest comments like if you don't enjoy a certain character or you don't understand how a room looks are a massive help. I'll DM you the link!

@FirestormInferno

Thank you!!!!

I think I've added the indents right? How do format?

I've also sent you a DM with the full manuscript! I'm currently looking over the rest of the prologue!