What do you guys prefer while writing an isekai.

Types of setting

  • An already setup setting

    Votes: 6 16.7%
  • Or making from scrath like most of isekai novels

    Votes: 30 83.3%

  • Total voters
    36

Darkcrow.

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I just wanted to ask authors about their preference while starting a story.
  • An already setup setting (Like where MC has already lived in another world for a significant amount of time)
Or
  • Do you guys prefer to start the story from scratch, like MC growing up form the first day he/she was born in another world or something like that.
 

CadmarLegend

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I just wanted to ask authors about their preference while starting a story.
  • An already setup setting (Like where MC has already lived in another world for a significant amount of time)
Or
  • Do you guys prefer to start the story from scratch, like MC growing up form the first day he was born in another world or something like that.
what about the females on here?!
 

Darkcrow.

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it says...'GUYS' prefer to start the story from scratch, like MC....
I think 'Guys' can be referred to both male as well as female, and even if it doesn't, Who cares.
I want my question understood that's all, No girl would say 'You didn't add 'gal' in your question, So I am not going to answer it.' So chill.
 
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Deleted member 45782

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Sometimes guys just mean as "why do you all" kind of thing. I don't find it really offensive too and I think he was trying to referring to anyone who writes isekai.

Personally, I'm not a isekai writer. However, I can take a guess at why people want and like two write isekai. Maybe its easier to write an isekai since the person already has some characterization of how they were in the previous life so instead of just building the mc from scratch, they can build on already existing ideas of what the mc was like in previous life and get a more faster start to worldbuilding and implementing things from the mc's previous life so it sorta relates a bit to readers. Or, people who want wish fulfillment with the current skills and way they are and get to be able do something they normally wouldn't in a more realistic society so they want to combine what they already are and what they can get in a wish-fulfillment story. So like say an accountant kinda wishes to be more than just an accountant and go do heroic deeds or whatnot and build a harem or do whatever stuff that some may frown upon in society - well now that they are isekaied into another world, they are more able to do things they want freely and become an image of what they want to see themselves as such as being heroes of their world and their story and gets to be the boss when they didn't really got to in their regular life. This is just what I think of it though, so I could be wrong and there may be tons of other reasons.

It really depends how broad isekai can be stretched though. Could just transplanting someone into another world. So some people mentioned something like Narina can count as an isekai too.

Do we count an immortal reincarnated into the mortal world as different? Or no, because it just one plane above the other but still within the same universe? Wait nvm, I think I answered that question and its a no, since it is technically same world/universe. Just different level of planes.

I guess it just means portal to another world? Would that count? Like people whisking away to other worlds through portals a lot in their story, but not necessarily staying within that same world? Like marvel worlds or monster hunters nightmare academy? idk.

On an interesting twist to the general isekai and mc becomes heroic awed, thought of something...
We should have a granny or mom isekaied into a story about or the other side of those who have been reporting their loved ones missing when they are isekaied. the regular world feels like losing people espeically the grannies/moms and they want their loved ones back. One granny/mom goes isekai to find their son and pulls them out of it. Granny/mom shows up to isekai hero's door and exclaims here to take you back. But in the mdist of it all, she actually like grabbing a sword and sheild to fight and likes feeling invincible again (because in the isekai world, even though they are still in their same old body, they don't feel the effects of aging process due to isekai and yes, they got plot armor). Though, they eventually still drags their kid/grandkid back into the regular world, they misses and realizes why their loved ones wish to stay in the isekai so sometimes they now join in the fun (kid and grandprt/prt) just go together and go back and forth to other world for bits of fun, but this time together.
 

DubstheDuke

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I think it really depends, all stories can be executed good and bad- and that's more important than anything. I think on average, it's better to explore the world with the main character, seeing the different aspects and components of the new world, however there are series where the opposite can be good as well. Take overlord for example. Ainz already understands the workings of the game, and uses this knowledge to understand the world around him. We as viewers however, learn all this for the first time.
 

Moonpearl

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I prefer having my characters at least semi-settled, so I don't have to waste time with the somewhat more generic shock and horror.

Also, I find it gives me more room to play around with characters who may be competent but still helpfully out of their depth and influenced by their experiences on Earth.

I had to cover the time between a rebirth and main events just once and sheesh... Felt like there was no good way to do it for my story.
 
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Deleted member 53101

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I choose option B.

I love reading and sometimes write a portal fantasy genre like the Isekai. Especially when they first brought up into another world. When their common sense and 'peaceful' mindset blown up by the cruelty and savagery of another world ..., that's one of the greatest aspects of isekai genre.

One of my favorites is How to Avoid Dead on A Daily Basis and Hai to Gensou no Grimgar. Both have similarities with their summoning/transmigration, that is a group of people suddenly brought into another world and get fcked up. In the first stories I mentioned, the characters still keep their memories of Earth life, while in Grimgar, they have some of their memories altered.

Although, there's also some awakening/summoning/(or whatever the method which can bring earthling to the isekai) that poorly executed so it kinda looks like a template copied somewhere. Like most of the long-titled Japanese lightnovel which I read these days.

I still think it is more interesting to see someone who strives to adapt in another world, rather than somebody who claimed that he was from earth and transmigrated/transported/reincarnated into the isekai sometime ago. It's like having Xiao Yan (BTTH) or Lin Feng (TSS) which mentioned that they were from the earth ..., but I can't find the redeeming quality of an earthling on them anymore. They have already adapted to the alternative world and were not an earthling anymore.
 

Jemini

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Portal fantasy sounds like something I actually might like. But yeah. Someday. :D

Yeah, technically speaking Isekai is just a fairly poorly defined sub-genre of Portal Fantasy. It specifically refers to a portal fantasy that conforms to a certain set of tropes that were more or less laid out in 2012 by the 5 most successful portal-fantasy webnovels of that year (all 5 of which were among the first to be called Isekai.) But, that definition of tropes is rather nebulous.

Suffice it to say, one of the biggest is dying in order to be taken to the other world. That one gives the most leeway to fudge on the other tropes for it to still be called an Isekai. (If you step through a wardrobe or fall down a rabbit hole to get to the other world, it's probably a portal fantasy.)

EDIT: BTW, fun-facts trivia time. The first portal fantasy, before it solidified into Isekai, to use the concept of hero summoning in order to get to the other world was actually a video game. I am not sure if one of the dragon quest games or something did it first, but the earliest exposure to it that I saw was "Brave Fencer Musashi" (in which the princess and her retainers summon an alternate world chibi version of the historic figure of Musashi.)
 
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Deleted member 45782

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Ah that is interesting. And great to separate portal fantasy from isekai since they may have their own unique tropes that are different from common isekai tropes.
 

Kitsura

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Personally, I felt it was much easier to start with the MC just growing up in their world. It easier to write exposition and you can make sure the MC has a good understanding of the world. Full on "vrdive" style isekai will force you to do a huge amount of exposition as the character catches up with what is "common knowledge' Whereas you slowly trickle it in with a start from age 1 MC.
 

ForestDweller

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I just wanted to ask authors about their preference while starting a story.
  • An already setup setting (Like where MC has already lived in another world for a significant amount of time)
Or
  • Do you guys prefer to start the story from scratch, like MC growing up form the first day he/she was born in another world or something like that.

Well, my current story is the latter. It just depends on what kind of story you want to tell.
 

Agentt

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What I am going with right now, is to make an isekai from scratch, but the mc thinks it is an already setup one. Like, MC will think that all the girls will be attracted to him, but turns out women actually do have a free will and don't just fall for him.
 

nosinkarma

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I prefer from scratch too. The problem with having a already setup story or some supposed other real life thing going on compared to the isekai just breaks the immersion.

Also in former there is always a chance to leave a potential plot hole, you make a back story or some pre setup before your main isekai arc, but then you get tangled in just pushing out more and more endless isekai progressive stuff (most of the litrpgs have this in common; levels, dungeons, city building ,etc) and just completely forget about the pre story you made.

People end up thinking what was even the point plus they end up just caring about the isekai element.

For example in webnovel Zhan long, a vrmmorpg, the whole real life back story that is going on just feels so worthless, like nobody even cares what bullshit they do in their life, it's all about the game they play, I left that novel for good exactly for this reason. :blob_sir:

Maybe I didn't get the point. :sweating_profusely:
 
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Agentt

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So.... arrogant mc...
Won't call him arrogant. You know your translation about the brick one? Like that, but MC realises that people who have actually gone to school can do better than him, and then he gets an existential crises since he was supposed to be chosen by god, but can't even compete with a school student.
So, as arrogant as a normal MC. Only difference being that arrogance is apparent
 
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