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PaperclipPerfector  10d ago (text post)   2428 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for April 6, 2025

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

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It may be in the form of immediately going out to fight slavery / chauvinism / racism in a medieval society, even if such a course of action would've realistically carried great risks for the gang and little practical changes.

And I in turn would love to see some story with anti-slavery campaign - feel free to recommend me some.

Just it should be serious conflict, not "everyone claps and praises to moral superiority of main character, slavery instantly disappears". It is a pity that I do not remember any stories doing it well. Narnia is closest of all things that I remember right now.

almost never deciding to procure slaves of their own (unless there's some convenient excuse to "force" such a scenario puon the MC)

mostly the same, it sounds like interesting topic to explore but either everything goes unrealistically well or entire story does not deserve to be read at all

I have no problem with Goody Two-Shoes protagonists, I have problems with story having no conflict or having utterly useless world-building.

I in turn would love to see some story with anti-slavery campaign - feel free to recommend me some.

Just it should be serious conflict, not "everyone claps and praises to moral superiority of main character, slavery instantly disappears"

I think the Honor Harrington series and short stories get there eventually.

I think the Honor Harrington series and short stories get there eventually.

I tried reading something by this author and quality was atrociously terrible, in my opinion.

Once again I'll trot out Pale by Wildbow. I think it captures both "anti-slavery campaign" and "slavery does not instantly disappear".

How much of dystopian grimderp world it is?

As much as Worm? 10% of worm? 5%?

I dropped Worm on account of being distilled grimderpness.

I wouldn't call Worm too grimderp, but Pale is definitely much brighter. Maybe 25%? The most grim elements of the setting that were on full display in Pact, the other work in the Otherverse, are pretty much out of the way.

That being said, if you dislike a few horrific displays of torture and violence sprinkled here and there, those do exist in Pale. As I said, there is slavery and the associated mechanisms of suppression.

Thanks for info! I have less problem with "a few horrific displays of torture and violence sprinkled here and there" and more with general hopelessness/pointlessness. Or world where everyone depicted would benefit from being nonexistent or deserves to be nonexistent (see also WH40K).

In that case, I can assure you there is definitely less pointlessness in Pale.

Citizen of the Galaxy (1957) is pretty good, although short-ish.

The Ends of Magic Series (2023) has a lot of relevant stuff also. It has pretty good magical system and fight scene simulation, ok-ish worldbuilding, but underwhelming global plot arc and characters (in my opinion).

Citizen of the Galaxy (1957) is pretty good, although short-ish.

I really liked it despite not being 12 year old. Thanks for recommending. And recommending it also for others!

I did damn it with faint praise by bringing up the market segment like that, didn't I? That wasn't intentional; it's one of my favorite books, without qualifiers, and I just wanted to explain the length. It is aimed at 12 year olds, but it's better than Heinlein's other juveniles, which in turn are better on average than most books targeted at adults.

Citizen of the Galaxy (1957) is pretty good, although short-ish.

It's a juvenile (what publishers now call "middle grade"), and about the right length for its target audience. It's much better than you'd expect for a book targeted at 12 year olds, though. It also fits

serious conflict, not "everyone claps and praises to moral superiority of main character, slavery instantly disappears".

perfectly.

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