Chapter 36: The Story of the Editorial Department

In the following days, the top-ranking song of this season, "Flammable and Explosive," saw its first-place position on the new music chart become even more stable, pulling ahead of the second-place by a considerable distance.

Meanwhile, across various music streaming platforms, the comment section for "Flammable and Explosive" was ablaze with activity.

High levels of discussion about the song ensued.

[]: "I think this song should be titled 'How Do You Want Me to Be, Damn It.'"

[]: "I think this song could also be named 'Straight Male Cancer Die,' 'Contradictory Straight Male Cancer,' 'Who do you think I am?'..."

[]: "Folk? Rock? The singing style is quite unique!"

[]: "This song hits differently! Downloading and saving for later!"

[]: "Everyone passing by, take a look. This is the external expectation placed on women. Under the scorching sun, I'm truly indignant. When will our female compatriots stand up?"

[]: "No, seriously, can you throw punches while listening to a song these days?"

[]: "The feeling I get from this song is that men, on one hand, love women, and on the other hand, constantly hurt them emotionally. Clearly looking down on this woman but still needing her around, wanting the horse to run but not eat grass. In summary, a scumbag!"

[]: "I actually think this song expresses the inner thoughts of us men. Every man's highest ideal is to have a woman who is pure and alluring, capable of being in the hall and the kitchen, skilled in being cute and playful, and courageous enough to fight against the third party."

[]: "Catching a straight male cancer upstairs, daydreaming about everything."

[]: "Today, at the KTV, I passed by several rooms where this song was playing."

[]: "..."

While the industry praises the composition, the audience mostly discusses the lyrics. Many feel that the song portrays a certain phenomenon in real life.

However, these two aspects don't necessarily conflict.

Xianyu handles both lyrics and composition, leaving no room for public debates on the song's merits.

Additionally, some individuals have edited together scenes from various films and TV shows, using "Flammable and Explosive" as the background music, and surprisingly, they've achieved quite an impact.

Many content creators (referring to individuals who upload video and audio files on video platforms, forums, and various sites) followed suit.

One video, in particular, seamlessly blended classic goddess images from various films and TV shows. As each iconic scene of the goddesses appeared, accompanied by this music, it immediately sparked a significant response.

[]: "Fire edit!"

[]: "I see a colorful world!"

[]: "This song as background music feels absolutely natural."

[]: "Ah ah ah, please tell me the name of the song!"

[]: "Upstairs, please enlighten me about 'Flammable and Explosive.'"

[]: "I was indifferent to 'Flammable and Explosive' at first, but after watching the edited video, I suddenly got the essence of this song and quietly downloaded and saved it."

[]: "The song is so tastefully paired!"

[]: "Indeed, this is the correct way to open a song, everyone knows that when 'Flammable and Explosive' plays, goddesses make their entrance."

...

The spread of these videos has brought even greater publicity to the song "Flammable and Explosive."

Many times, a song as background music can breathe new life into an otherwise ordinary video edit.

"When the background music of certain movies or TV shows plays, the audience knows that the climax is about to arrive, similar to a certain logic.

The popularity of a song is related to the quality of the work but does not entirely depend on it.

Lin Yuan's previous two songs may not necessarily be weaker in quality than 'Flammable and Explosive.'

However, evidently, in terms of song downloads, 'Flammable and Explosive' is the most intense.

...

And at the rapid spread of 'Flammable and Explosive.'

In the Silver Blue Library of the Qin Prefecture Publishing Company, editors are too busy to enjoy the pleasure of listening to songs and watching videos.

They are engrossed in reviewing the novel submissions for this year's Super Rookie Awards.

Perhaps due to the increasing popularity of the profession of being a novelist, the submissions received for the Super Rookie Awards this year are even more than previous years.

So, starting several days ago, editors have been continuously reviewing.

To finish the review before the deadline, each editor's desk is filled with various invigorating drinks and continuously replenished coffee.

Yang Feng is one of the review editors at the Silver Blue Library.

In these days of reviewing, Yang Feng has read numerous novels and is now feeling dizzy.

Coffee and a certain energy drink are losing their effectiveness.

To maintain concentration, he has to go to the restroom for a smoke.

Several other editors in a similar situation join him, and amid the mist of smoke, they discuss the contents of the review in the restroom.

"Have you found any recommended submissions?"

"I haven't yet, but there are a few that are not bad. I'll go through all the manuscripts in hand first, observe them carefully, so that when cross-reviewing happens, the ones I favor won't get screened out."

"Every year, the Super Rookie Awards are like placing a bet."

Editors, after reviewing their manuscripts, have a few recommended slots. If the work recommended by an editor is ultimately adopted by the chief editor, it becomes part of their achievements. So, editors are cautious about their recommended slots.

At this moment,

One editor says, "This year's submissions are still mostly of the genre of otherworldly adventure. Because there are too many people writing in this genre, it's not an easy task to pick out the best one from them."

This statement resonates with everyone.

There are too many people writing otherworldly adventures, so when most people are writing the same genre, it's not an easy task to pick out the best one.

"After all, it's a popular genre."

"Unfortunately, most people are just following the popular styles in the market. There are not many who can write with their own distinctive features."

"But this genre is prone to producing bestsellers."

"Yes, writing in a genre with high market demand is a normal thing. Take me, for example, after reading so many otherworldly adventures, I still enjoy this type of story."

"..."

Yang Feng does not participate in the discussion.

After smoking, he returns to his seat and resumes working.

In the editorial department, most editors favored the popular theme of adventures in other realms, and the selection criteria for books leaned heavily towards this genre. However, Yang Feng held a different perspective.

He certainly enjoyed the theme of otherworldly adventures.

However, the abundance of novels in this genre had led to a severe homogenization, making Yang Feng nauseated by the stories in this theme during his days of manuscript reviewing.

Now, he was eager to find something different.

Unfortunately, this wasn't an easy task. Some themes became popular because readers loved them.

It was the market's choice!

Even editors, considering their own performance and the publishing house's sales, were inclined to promote these popular themes.

Moreover, the newcomers submitting their work weren't naïve.

They wrote what was likely to get accepted. It's simple logic—write what easily gets approved. Those who adhere to their own style and don't conform to market trends are a minority.

So, after several days of reviewing countless manuscripts, Yang Feng hadn't found a satisfying story.

It's not that no one wrote about novel themes; amidst the massive submissions, there were some relatively novel themes. The problem was that these themes lacked the essential storytelling and interest that a novel should have.

And that, Yang Feng couldn't accept.

He wouldn't deliberately pursue new themes at the expense of lowering his reviewing standards. Nor would he intentionally exclude some popular themes from the selection range.

Ultimately, the brilliance of the story was the most important.

After spending fifteen minutes.

He finished reading another manuscript.

Yang Feng rubbed his tired temples, then gritted his teeth and applied some aromatic oil to himself.

This was one of the killer moves to cope with fatigue for office workers.

In fact, there was an ultimate move afterward, also related to aromatic oil, but most people dared not try it because those who did faced social death.

In any case, with a dab of aromatic oil on his head, Yang Feng felt much more alert.

Taking advantage of this adrenaline rush.

Yang Feng opened a new manuscript.

However, this time, the title made Yang Feng raise an eyebrow slightly. The novel was called "The Prince of Tennis."

For easier understanding.

The submitter also added a pseudonym at the end, called "Tennis Prince."