The newly revamped 'Strange Tales', though it seemed cliché and unremarkable on the surface, was still a classic passed down through centuries. Even in today's supernatural magazine scene, it shone brightly. Many had lost faith in 'Midnight Talk', but with the appearance of 'Strange Tales: Biting a Ghost', a flicker of anticipation began to stir.
But none of this was known to the editors at 'Midnight Talk'.
At this moment, they were busy compiling national sales data for the 300th issue of the magazine.
"Editor-in-chief, East China region: 21.000 copies sold."
"South China: 10.000 copies."
"North China: 13.000 total."
"Central China: 9.000 copies."
"Southwest region: 3.000 copies."
"Total sales: 56.000 copies, an increase of 6.000 from last month."
Once the final numbers came in, before the editor-in-chief could speak, Lin Hao, the editor who had recommended Sanyue, couldn't contain his excitement.
"This is great, Editor-in-Chief! Looks like Sanyue really hasn't lost his edge. Just one comeback, and our magazine's sales have shot up. Shouldn't we consider raising Sanyue's manuscript fee?"
"Lin Hao, let's discuss that later."
Though he downplayed it, Editor-in-Chief Zhou Qing was clearly thrilled inside. It had been years since 'Midnight Talk' had seen such a spike in sales. Ever since its dispute with 'Suspense World', though they'd technically won, sales had plateaued and never recovered. In fact, due to a lack of support from the parent company, 'Midnight Talk' had steadily declined. Once a rival to 'Suspense World', they were no longer even in the same league.
Still, as excited as he was, Zhou Qing wouldn't show it just because of one issue's success. He looked around the office and asked calmly, "So, everyone, what do you think about this spike in sales for issue 300?"
"Editor-in-chief, it's pretty clear," Lin Hao jumped in. "Our magazine's sales had been dropping, and this is the first time we've seen a rise. That just happens to coincide with Sanyue's return. I think it's fair to say the increase is largely thanks to Sanyue."
Lin Hao was obviously eager. Sanyue was his recommendation, and the quality of Sanyue's work reflected directly on him. At a time like this, securing the best outcome for Sanyue would benefit him greatly.
Not to mention, he and Sanyue had made a private deal, something he'd never share with anyone.
"Yang Feng, what do you think?"
Zhou Qing didn't know about Lin Hao's relationship with Sanyue, but he also didn't fully trust Lin Hao's analysis.
"Editor-in-Chief, I suggest we conduct a reader survey. The results should tell us the real reason behind the sales spike."
Yang Feng had been shocked when the sales figures came in too. But he knew Lin Hao wasn't exactly the most upright person, always relying on his connections with writers, sometimes ghostwriting, sometimes colluding with authors to scam manuscript fees. He had no hard evidence, though, so Yang Feng couldn't report him.
Even so, he refused to believe Sanyue alone was responsible for the sales boom.
Sanyue might have been a master of the supernatural genre, but Yang Feng had read the latest story, and honestly, it wasn't that great.
But literature is subjective. Saying the story was bad would only start an argument with Lin Hao. So he stayed vague and left it to the reader survey.
But Zhou Qing didn't immediately respond to Yang Feng's suggestion.
As editor-in-chief, he knew reader surveys were possible, but they worked better for mass-market products. For niche ones like theirs, with a smaller sample size, any survey would lack true representativeness. Worse, it would be easy to manipulate. With only 56K total sales, faking even a thousand entries would be no challenge.
"Zhang Xin, what about you? Do you think the sales spike has anything to do with Sanyue? And if so, to what extent?"
"I've been studying that too, Editor-in-Chief," Zhang Xin replied, shaking his head. "Honestly, I'm not entirely sure."
Truth be told, Zhang Xin agreed with Yang Feng. He was just as puzzled by the sudden sales increase, but he didn't believe Sanyue was the reason. He'd dealt with Sanyue before and knew he was decent, but nowhere near the level of Zhang Yun, the top supernatural novelist. Back then, Sanyue's popularity had only matched Zhang Yun's because the magazine had heavily hyped him. Plus, Sanyue hadn't written supernatural fiction in years. And in this field, even a year away dulls your edge.
Just like now, this latest story wasn't impressive at all.
Still, they were coworkers. Zhang Xin didn't want to offend Lin Hao by speaking too bluntly.
"Xiaoyu, what do you think?"
With Yang Feng and Zhang Xin both dodging the question, Zhou Qing turned to the intern, Dong Xiaoyu.
"I think Sanyue's new story, 'Even Ghosts Despair', was just average. He's still using the same old tropes from years ago. Nothing fresh. And after writing so much wuxia, this supernatural story feels odd, like it's pretending to be horror, but reads more like a martial arts piece. It feels confused."
Dong Xiaoyu was new and didn't understand the office politics. So when Zhou Qing asked, she simply spoke her mind, completely missing the furious look in Lin Hao's eyes.
As soon as she finished, Lin Hao snapped.
"Hmph, Xiaoyu, you're just an intern. Not even a full editor. What makes you think you can judge Sanyue's writing? If it was really 'just average,' then how do you explain this sales spike? Don't forget, 'Suspense World' has been hyping up rumors that Zhang Yun might join them."
"Maybe our magazine just bounced back from rock bottom. Besides, it's not like Sanyue was the only one who wrote something good in this issue."
"Oh? So you think someone else wrote something better than Sanyue?"
"I do."
"Let's hear it."
"'Strange Tales' it's a short story I accepted. Even though it's brief, it's refreshing and memorable. I think it's on par with 'Even Ghosts Despair', maybe even better."
"Ridiculous. You mean that 'Strange Tales' story stuck at the very end of the magazine? I read it. Honestly, it was garbage. Tell me, how much did we pay the author?"
"Fifty per thousand characters."
"Fifty? Ha! Xiaoyu, if you're going to argue with someone, at least open your eyes. Are you comparing a 50-yuan story to a 500-yuan one? That's laughable."
"I don't see it that way. Just because it was 50 per thousand doesn't mean it's worse than something that costs ten times as much."
"If you're so confident, why didn't you pay 500 per thousand for 'Strange Tales'?"
"Well..."
Dong Xiaoyu blushed, clearly embarrassed.
Truth be told, she did think 'Strange Tales' was good. But as just an intern, she never dared offer such a high price to a newcomer. She didn't have the authority or the confidence. But if she admitted that, she'd basically be proving Lin Hao is right; if she truly had faith, she'd have paid more. Since she didn't, it meant she lacked conviction. And if even she was hesitant, how could she compare 'Strange Tales' to 'Even Ghosts Despair'?
"Nothing to say, huh?"
Lin Hao looked smug as Dong Xiaoyu fell silent.
He had plenty of tricks to deal with a rookie editor, especially a young woman.
"Lin Hao, do you really enjoy bullying a girl like that?"
Yang Feng, fed up, stood up to defend Dong Xiaoyu.
"So what if I am?"
"Fine, then say it to my face."
"Yang Feng, I've known for a long time that you've had it out for me. If you've got a problem with me, say it. Stop playing games behind my back."
"I don't play games. I'm not like someone who conspires with authors to scam fees from both them and the magazine."
"Watch your mouth, Yang Feng. That's a serious accusation."
"I didn't name names, Lin Hao. Why so nervous? Feeling guilty?"
The argument escalated fast. What was supposed to be a meeting turned into a full-blown fight.
"Enough!"
At that moment, Zhou Qing slammed his palm on the table.
"Do you think 'Midnight Talk' belongs to you? Who's the editor-in-chief here? Me or you? If you don't want to work here, leave!"
The room finally went quiet.
"This is getting out of hand," Zhou Qing muttered.
"It's clear to me now why our magazine's been struggling for so long. You all share the blame."
"Alright! That's enough for today. As for raising Sanyue's pay, let's wait and see. If our sales keep rising in the next few issues, and this isn't just a rebound, then we can talk about increasing his rate."
"Also, no matter what, Lin Hao did bring in Sanyue, a major supernatural writer. That's a big win. Yang Feng, Zhang Xin, Xiaoyu; you need to step it up, too, and bring in more high-quality submissions."
The 'Midnight Talk' editorial team had long been a disorganized mess, rife with infighting. Zhou Qing didn't feel like saying more.
With a simple "Meeting adjourned," everyone left the room one after another.
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