In his past life, 'A Chinese Ghost Story' had always been a major hit in film and television. Back in the 60s, Shaw Brothers released the first version, but it was the 1987 remake starring Leslie Cheung and Joey Wong that truly launched the story into fame. That role catapulted Joey Wong to stardom and became an untouchable classic. Later came versions starring Tony Leung and even Liu Yifei. Although none quite matched the iconic 1987 film, they each carried a lasting legacy.
On television, the 2003 series adaptation starring Barbie Hsu and Nie Yuan also accompanied countless viewers through their youth. In his past life, there were even rumors of another remake in 2016, starring Liu Shishi, though unfortunately, that series never aired before Huang Yifan's reincarnation.
Regardless of the format, 'A Chinese Ghost Story' has become a true classic in the hearts of audiences.
Huang Yifan chose this title precisely for its popularity. But instead of a film or TV adaptation, he would be writing a novel, specifically, a long-form novel.
Naturally, a long novel couldn't be based on a single movie, so he chose to adapt the 2003 TV drama instead.
Recalling the Barbie Hsu version, countless scenes came to mind: Xuanxin Mystic Arts, the Life-and-Death Pact, Ganjiang and Moye, Lord of the Seven Nights, Yan Chixia, Sima Sanniang, the City of No Tears, the tragic lovers across seven lifetimes… and of course, the tangled web of romantic drama, love triangles and even love quadrangles that tugged fiercely at the heart.
Any one of those storylines was unforgettable.
Decision made, Huang Yifan dove into writing.
Thanks to the show's detailed plotlines, writing went quickly, and he managed to crank out 20.000 words in just one day.
After pausing for a break, he began considering publishers.
Since stepping into the writing world, Huang Yifan had gradually come to understand how the industry worked.
Often, it wasn't that a manuscript lacked quality; it was that the author didn't understand the rules.
Take publishing, for example. Writing 1 million words in one go and then submitting the entire manuscript was unwise. It could take 3 to 4 months for a fast writer, or even longer for a slower one. If the publisher rejected the manuscript, then what? Would you blame them for lacking vision, or blame yourself for writing poorly?
Either way, you'd be stuck. A full rewrite of 1 million words was simply unfeasible.
That's why speed matters. In the web novel world, if a story isn't signed after 30.000 words, authors often drop it. The traditional publishing world, with its much longer history, is even harsher.
So after hitting 20.000 words, Huang Yifan stopped. He was ready to submit and test the waters.
He wouldn't work with Midnight Talk, that bridge was burned.
Nor did he want to deal with Suspense World, which he saw as just as shady.
Other niche horror publishers were too small and lacked influence.
Eventually, he set his sights on a bigger name: New Moon Publishing.
Researching major publishers online, Huang Yifan found New Moon, one of the top ten publishing houses in the country. They handled a wide variety of literary genres.
More importantly, New Moon had a solid reputation. Online reviews praised their reliability and lack of royalty disputes. Many other publishers had been caught up in contract controversies due to profit-related conflicts, but not New Moon.
After what happened with Midnight Talk, Huang Yifan was determined to be cautious moving forward.
New Moon it was.
There was only one regret: he still had to submit as a new author.
There was no getting around it. Though "Fanchen" had gained some fame recently in the horror circle, horror was still a niche genre. Even Zhang Yun, a major name in the field, wasn't widely recognized. It was like Zhang Zhen from his past life, famous in his circle, but unknown to the general public.
Still, Huang Yifan had no ego about it.
The path of literature was long and winding. Otherwise, how could anyone expect to climb the ranks to a ten-star author?
With no airs and no claims about being a big name in horror, he simply submitted his 20.000-word manuscript and a 1.000-word outline to an editor named "Hongdou," who specialized in horror fiction at New Moon.
…
"Mr. Fanchen, your last piece, 'Three Realms of Listening to Poetry' was truly enlightening. I wonder if you'd be interested in contributing a few pieces to our Youth Daily?"
Shortly after submitting his manuscript, Huang Yifan received a message from "Sun Zaian", a supposed literary enthusiast, now inviting him to write for Youth Daily.
"Strange… do all you editors pretend to be fans of literature just to probe authors?"
He didn't accept the offer immediately but replied with mild amusement.
"Apologies, Mr. Fanchen, it's just part of the job. We don't have much choice."
"I get it. But I've never written for a newspaper. I'm probably not what you're looking for."
"Not true at all. With your literary skills, you're exactly what we're looking for. And don't worry, our paper imposes no restrictions. Write as much or as little as you like. We only require serial rights for the paper. All other rights remain yours."
"I'll consider it when I have time."
After giving it some thought, Huang Yifan agreed.
It wasn't just because of the flexible terms. Youth Daily had a strong reputation for professionalism and integrity.
Lately, Huang Yifan had seen both the light and dark sides of the literary world.
To survive in this space, talent alone wasn't enough; you needed strategy.
And so, he decided to create a few alternate identities.
That way, if things ever got confrontational, he'd have backup, just like Mr. Lu Xun in his past life, who famously created hundreds of pseudonyms. If he couldn't speak as himself, one of his aliases would do the job.
Their firepower was no joke.
But for these alternate accounts to be useful, they needed to gain influence.
And Youth Daily would be the perfect place to grow and level up his new literary identities.
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