The Shocking Eunuch, Reborn as a Literary Girl

Chapter 11: Payment Received! 5 Yen!
because
Some people do actually read novels.

Up to now, her writing style has remained very clear.
If I had to describe it in two words, it would be clean and efficient.

In the two chapters she updated today, a brand new female character appeared: Iria, a noble girl from the royal city.

From the moment this character appeared, Chiya Umehara created a stereotypical image of a beautiful, willful, and noble young lady through very simple words.

The crude and simplistic method of character creation by labeling is low-level, but effective.

Then, through two more chapters, the story briefly describes the girl's current situation, building up the suspense surrounding the character and hinting to the reader that she is the person connected to the protagonist's prophecy.

The protagonist's motives and goals have been laid out, and the current difficulties have been clearly explained to the reader.

At this point, a new piece of information is released, implying that this is the direction to break the deadlock and the direction in which the plot will develop.

Then readers will naturally look forward to the next development of the story and want to see what happens next.

This is what's called anticipation.
The layman looks at the excitement and the insider looks at the doorway.

For most general readers, the general consensus is simply that "this novel is surprisingly good."

The subject matter is conventional, the development is conventional, it raises expectations in a conventional way, and it makes people want to keep watching in a conventional way.

It's like a book that's above average in every aspect.

That's it.

But only those in the industry, those who actually write novels, can realize the unusual aspects of this book.

Among them is Isshin Iruma, a well-known novelist in the Japanese light novel industry.

Isshin Iruma first noticed this incident because her industry friend "Sia Koko" suddenly messaged her on Line yesterday saying, "Oh no, I think I said something wrong and got scolded. What should I do? Should I play dead now?"

This made her happy right then and there.

Despite having a good personal relationship with Shia, Iruma Isshin has never really liked her flamboyant style.

In our private conversations, I often tell her things like, "Instead of showing off your status as a young, talented, and beautiful novelist online every day, you should spend more time thinking about how to write your stories better."

But the other party never took it to heart, and even said with pride, "Interacting with people online doesn't affect my novel writing. I'm working hard to create every day."

Unable to persuade the other party, she eventually gave up trying.

But she knew that sooner or later this guy would suffer because of his flamboyant personality.

I just didn't expect this day to come so soon.

After hearing that his friend had been humiliated, Iruma Isshin quickly went online to find out what had happened.

Then, naturally, she started paying a little more attention to "Arisa Yuuki" because of this.

Then I was shocked when I looked into it.

As a professional novelist, Iruma Isshin was fully aware of just how extraordinary Umehara Chiya's seemingly ordinary article was.

Don't misunderstand.

This doesn't mean she really liked the novel.

Rather, the evaluation is the opposite.

"Absolutely no unnecessary information"

"Every stroke of the pen was purposeful."

"Purely utilitarian, solely aimed at manipulating the reader's thinking."

"Trash novel."

That's right.

Despite acknowledging Chiya Umehara's mature writing skills, Isshin Iruma didn't particularly like the novel.

Because in her view, it seemed to be a work that had absolutely no desire to express anything.

This is a purely commercial work aimed at making money.

In her opinion, this was a very unlikable quality.

As a light novel author, she certainly knows that to write a best-selling work, one needs to actively cater to the market and compromise for it.

But on this basis, the author's own desire for expression is also quite important in her view.

What do I want to share with readers through this story?
I want to communicate something with the readers through the plot.

A good work should be a dialogue between the reader and the author.

Instead of this
Works that simply try to entice readers to keep reading, that simply want to use writing techniques to guide readers' attention, and that simply want to occupy readers' time.

However, that's all
"Lacking the desire to express oneself, yet possessing writing skills? This is truly a rare trait for a novice novelist."

Iruma Isshin lay on the sofa, reading Chiya Umehara's latest novel on his iPad, and sighed.

She was well aware that novelists, whether novice or veteran, often faced different challenges.

When a writer first debuts, they often have the strongest desire to express themselves in their life.

At this time, they possess the greatest creative passion and the most surging desire to share the stories in their hearts with others.

However, at this point, their creative techniques were far from sufficient to present the stories in their hearts in a good way.

He could only produce some terrible works out of his limited abilities, which were eventually sealed away as a dark chapter in his history.

However, as their writing skills improve, novelists who make a living by writing often gradually lose their passion for creation as they rush to meet deadlines day after day.

They clearly possess the skill to create a good story, but they've lost sight of what they want to express, and can only write mediocre, passable things day after day to fool the readers.

And so, like a skilled cook unable to cook without rice, they fell into a trough.
To be honest, Isshin Iruma himself was also struggling with this.

She could sense that her recent writing was becoming increasingly formulaic and clichéd.

Although he has written many new works, in terms of content, they seem to be just endless re-enactments of a successful work from the past.

Sometimes I want to write something truly different, but I'm also afraid of commercial failure.

I want to express something, but I feel that my desire to express myself has been completely exhausted in the long process of making a living from this.

Feeling lost, confused, and helpless.

This is Isshin Iruma's recent feeling.

Therefore, she can understand.

Although she dislikes works that lack expressiveness, she doesn't dislike the authors themselves because she actually creates similar things.

On the contrary, they will empathize with them.

But
"Isn't she a newcomer? Is it reasonable for her to create such veteran-like works that have lost all desire to express herself?"

Iruma Isshin was skeptical of this.

Furthermore, she quickly came to a preliminary conclusion in her mind.

"It's a lie, isn't it?"

Yes, in her opinion, this novel could not possibly have been written by Chiya Umehara herself.

It's impossible for someone without extensive relevant work experience to write such an uninspired, formulaic toilet paper.

Chiya Umehara is a very young Vtuber with no relevant professional experience. Logically speaking, what she writes should be a self-indulgent product driven by a strong desire for expression.

She absolutely did not believe that any new author could write such calm and pragmatic prose.

Therefore, this novel was most likely ghostwritten.

It's highly likely that it's a veteran author who has been in the industry for a long time and is currently going through a downturn, so he sought out Chiya Umehara, who is also going through a downturn, to collaborate with.

Then they said, "Come on, let's do a joint hype."

On the surface, it seems that Chiya Umehara couldn't make it in the VTuber industry and wanted to switch careers.

In reality, it was another author working anonymously who was contributing to Chiya Umehara's work.

These two people used this method to create the gimmick of "genius beautiful girl VTuber debuting in the light novel industry" and used it for hype.

Yes, absolutely! And
There was another matter that made Iruma Isshin very suspicious.

That's Chiya Umehara's typing speed.

I work during the day and write at night.

In just two days of live streaming, he completed an update of about 5 words.

Furthermore, he claimed that "if you tip 5000 yen, I will immediately update more content, and I can update it no matter how much."

This is too suspicious.

"Can this level of quality be maintained at this update speed?"

Common sense led Isshin Iruma to choose not to believe it.

She is more inclined to believe that the mysterious author who collaborated with Chiya Umehara had prepared many manuscripts in advance and is now relaxing in stages.

The daily live-streamed writing sessions are just a way to fool people.

It's just randomly banging.
"Is that right?"

That's what they say, but the way Chiya Umehara typed during her live stream really didn't seem like she was lying.

It is indeed very professional.

Moreover, the increase in the number of characters in the upper right corner matches the rhythm of typing.

Sometimes I'll pause when interacting with the audience.

It was not pre-recorded.

That.
"There are many things that don't make sense."

The more Iruma Isshin looked, the stranger it seemed.

However, after thinking about it, she decided to find the answer herself.

"Whether it's a ghostwritten piece or not, I'll know after observing it for a while."

"If it really isn't the real person, it will be exposed sooner or later."

"And you're offering unlimited extra chapters based on donations? Hmph, well then, let's see just how many extra chapters you can actually add."

5000 yen.

It's not a lot, really.

But it's not exactly a small number either.

Whether it's a lot or a little depends on who has the money.

For example, Chiya Umehara's monthly income is only around 100,000 yen, and she has to support herself and her younger sister, so her expenses are still high.
Asking her to spend 5000 yen to get the author to write more chapters is a terrifying event on par with taking her life.

These are all considered luxury expenses.

But for some people who are not short of money, spending 5000 yuan to have some fun is perfectly fine.

For example, Iruma Isshin.

"Come on, let me see just how much more capable you really are."

With that in mind, Iruma Isshin immediately gave Umehara Chiya a 5 yen reward on the "Let's Become a Novelist" platform.

There's a reason why this number was chosen.

Based on the live stream recordings from the past two days, Chiya Umehara has written a total of 46,000 words so far.

She has already posted more than 17000 words.

The remaining draft is then around 29000 words.

Based on a 3000-word draft per chapter, if she updates ten more chapters, we can get all of her updates.

This is the reason for the 5 yen tip.

The first thing Iruma Isshin needs to confirm now is...
Does this guy actually have that many drafts saved up?

She needs to confirm this before proceeding with further testing.

After paying the money, Iruma Isshin temporarily stopped dealing with the matter.

"Well then, Miss Arisa, don't disappoint me~ I'm a customer, you know."
-
Chiya Umehara herself did not know about the tipping immediately.

Today was her first time working at a nearby flower shop.

Because I wasn't very skilled and was clumsy, I got scolded by the store manager.

Their dignity was diminished.

They were told they were completely worthless.

so tired
She was so nervous that she didn't have time to check her phone and didn't even know she had received a tip.

It wasn't until I got home at 10 pm that I heard my younger sister suddenly say, "Sister! Our family is rich now!"

These words sent a shiver down her spine, which was already feeling quite down.

This sentence structure reminded her of some content she had seen on the internet in her past life, and she suddenly felt very uneasy.

So he quickly asked, "What? You're rich? What are you talking about?"

Seeing her older sister's somewhat agitated and nervous demeanor, Umehara Amane was momentarily startled.

She didn't know if she had said something wrong.

After hesitating for a moment, she cautiously replied, "Your novel."

"I saw today that someone tipped you 50,000 yen. The person who tipped you seems to be a very famous novelist, something like Iruma Isshin."

"Everyone online is urging you to update more chapters soon."

Hearing her sister say that, Chiya Umehara breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, I see. That's good then."

Then, she became excited too.

"5 yen! Not bad, a great start!"

"If this continues, we'll be able to solve the most pressing problem soon!"

The thought that her rent and living expenses would be covered made Chiya Umehara feel much better.

I feel like most of the frustration I felt working at the flower shop today has dissipated.

The uncontrollable fatigue was somewhat relieved by the arrival of the money.

Although she was happy, Chiya Umehara did not relax.

As a veteran online novelist, she is very clear about one thing.

The most important thing about offering bonus chapters is credibility.

You must convince your readers that your bounty is genuinely useful.

You have to update as much as the amount of money you tip.

The more you update, the more satisfied your readers are, and the more they will be willing to pay for your content.

What she needs to do now is tell her readers: I really have an endless supply of updates.

If you want to see more, just send me money!
With that in mind, she didn't waste any more time with her sister. Instead, she hurriedly returned to her room and immediately started her live stream.

As soon as she started the live stream, she immediately said, "Um... I was at work during the day, so I didn't know I had received any tips."

"I am very grateful to 'Iruma Isshin' for his sponsorship. I will work hard!"

"I will make up for the missed bonus chapters as soon as possible!"

(End of this chapter)