Chapter 4 Shall We Write?

Wang Jian walked up to the comic book stand and saw many people who seemed out of place in a Bronx District bookstore.

There were refined-looking scholars with well-groomed appearances, businessmen in smart suits, and even a few middle-aged types.

And these people were actually discussing the plot of Spiderman?

Was Spiderman really that popular?

Wang Jian also lined up behind the queue, wanting to buy a copy of Spiderman to see what it was all about.

What was it that made so many people go crazy for it?

After an hour and a half of waiting, his turn finally came.

After paying 4 US dollars, he got his hands on a thin volume of the comic.

This was apparently called a standalone volume, right?

Seeing many customers squatting right outside the bookstore, engrossed in reading their comics, Wang Jian followed suit and squatted down too.

Ten minutes later, Wang Jian lifted his head.

This book...

It was awesome!

On the surface, the protagonist was an inconspicuous nobody, secretly in love with a goddess, too scared to confess.

But in reality, he was a superhero with special abilities.

Not only did he perform acts of chivalry, but he also secretly helped the goddess with many problems and started dating her using his new identity.

This kind of thrilling sensation where the whole world looks down on me, and only I know that I'm actually amazing, it hits right in the feels for most people struggling in life, making it incredibly addictive.

The only downside was, it was too short.

Wang Jian stood up, touched his pocket, and after a moment's hesitation, bought another Spiderman volume, this one from an earlier issue.

He continued to squat in the corner, reading.

Another ten minutes passed, and he looked unfocused at the constant coming and going in the front of the bookstore while his mind mulled over the comic's plot.

The same old trick of playing weak but being strong, the same old saving the world.

But, wasn't it a bit monotonous?

Where was the heartthrob romance?

Where was the face-slapping of those who looked down on him?

Wang Jian pondered for a moment and felt that these two Spiderman comics didn't have the diverse and exhilarating twists and turns like that novel in his mind, "I'm a Great Mage".

As for realism.

Was a spider bite mutating someone very different from magical powers granted by eating sweet potatoes?

Apart from comics having some images, making them seem a bit more plausible, the rest was much of a muchness right?

And besides, pure text novels had their pros and cons.

Without pictures, they could contain much more content, keeping the excitement going without the disjointed feeling of individual comic volumes.

Maybe,

should he give it a try?

Wang Jian hesitated for a moment, then stood up.

To transform the web novel in his head into an English novel, he would need a decent level of English.

Although his English had improved a lot after coming to this life than in his previous one,

writing a novel probably still wasn't good enough, was it?

He stored his comic at the drop-off point and then headed to the back of the bookstore to look for English reference books.

After some comparing and browsing, he felt that the Oxford English Dictionary was the most suitable.

He checked the price.

150 dollars?

Was this daylight robbery?

At that moment, a bookstore clerk came over, looking at the obviously hesitant Wang Jian, and patted him on the shoulder.

"Sir, there's a second-hand 'Oxford English Dictionary' over there. It's only a third of the price of the new one, and the content should be about the same."

After he finished speaking, he pointed towards a cardboard box in the corner of the bookstore.

Wang Jian, upon hearing this, quickly set down the thick dictionary in his hand and walked over.

After searching through several boxes, he finally found a large dictionary published five years ago.

The book was well preserved; aside from some scribbles on a few pages, there were no missing or torn pages.

Most importantly, it was priced at only 50 dollars, more than half off the original price.

Wang Jian carried the hefty reference book to the counter and paid for it.

By then, it was already one o'clock in the afternoon.

Remembering that he had community service to attend in the afternoon, he asked for a fairly sturdy plastic bag, into which he packed the dictionary and two comic books.

Then, he bought two hamburgers and headed towards the bus station.

Outside the bookstore, people occasionally stopped by to buy the latest edition of "Spiderman."

After transferring between two buses, Wang Jian arrived at the location where he had done community service the day before.

The old man named John was already sitting in the sun, squinting as he basked in its warmth.

Wang Jian looked around and didn't see any familiar faces.

Even the few Asians looked more like they were of Korean or Japanese descent.

So, he sat down next to the old man.

The old man turned his head to glance at Wang Jian and suddenly fixed his gaze on the bookstore's bag.

"Did you go buy books?" he asked.

"Uh, sort of," Wang Jian said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

A man who hadn't even finished high school, suddenly getting the notion to write a book?

He always felt a little embarrassed about it.

"Young man, there's no shame in hitting the books hard," the old man said. "Don't be like them, only knowing how to mess around."

He said this while pointing at some people who were gathered together, smoking and discussing which bar to hit up that night.

The old man really did poke his nose into everything.

Wang Jian casually nodded and took out the dictionary to start browsing through it.

Although he could now translate "I'm a Great Mage" well enough for people to understand,

writing a novel meant that the language had to be as beautiful as possible, right?

For instance, describing the heroine of the book as a "goddess" seemed much better than "flashy-looking, with ample bosom and full buttocks."

But unexpectedly, the old man named John was relentless: "What's the use of looking at a dictionary? You should be reading some skill books, like civil engineering."

Wang Jian, slightly annoyed, responded offhandedly: "I'm thinking of writing a book, so of course I'm looking at a dictionary. What's the use of civil engineering when there's no shortage of unemployed engineers?"

Just as the old man was about to speak, the community worker named Lily had arrived.

Everyone started to gather, to check in and get their assignments.

By the time everyone had picked up their tools and was ready to get to work, the woman named Lily pulled Wang Jian aside.

She said to him, "John is a well-known civil engineer, but he's recently suffered a family tragedy, losing his wife and daughter, and he himself has been diagnosed with cancer. Keep an eye out and help out as much as you can."

After hearing this, Wang Jian couldn't help but glance back at the old man.

His already frail body seemed even more stooped.

So, Wang Jian nodded and agreed to it.

Throughout the work, the old man kept going on and on, urging Wang Jian to learn more technical skills.

Damn technical skills, do they think they're free?

Not to mention the exorbitant university tuition, the technical books alone were more than he could afford.

To change the subject, Wang Jian could only say, "I'm thinking about writing a novel. How about I write something and you give me your opinion?"

After thinking for a moment, the old man said, "That's fine, but I've only published books on civil engineering, so I can't guarantee your novel will suit popular tastes."

Published books?

In the United States, can everyone get published?

Wang Jian looked at the old man in surprise and said, "All right, any advice you can give will be appreciated."