When I first estimated the word count for Part One based on the outline, I thought it would come to around five hundred thousand characters—and the final total wasn't far off. But compared to the original outline, there were quite significant changes in how the content was arranged.
That's because an outline is just an outline. Only when you actually start writing do you get a real feel for whether the pacing and plot arrangement are dragging or rushing ahead. So while writing, I kept the main storyline, foreshadowing, and character development unchanged, but made a great many adjustments in the details. Some plotlines were moved earlier, some pushed back, and some cut entirely—all to maintain sufficient tension without making things feel haphazard.
That, in turn, has created quite a few problems now that I'm preparing the content for Part Two. When you adjust the earlier plot, what follows inevitably has to change too. Some material no longer needs to appear at all. So I'm taking a half-day off to reorganize the Part Two outline and replan the story structure, ensuring the narrative stays exciting and fluid without straying from the main thread.
The missed evening update from today's time off will be made up over the weekend—so it doesn't really count as a proper day off, ha.
Now, having taken my leave, let me summarize Part One's story. In terms of both character development and establishing the broader setting, I feel I've achieved a level I'm satisfied with. Everything unfolds bit by bit, gradually deepening, and I did my best to craft a relatively rich and vivid Western fantasy world—one where readers could accept the concept of "Arcana" without too much resistance.
The story of the City of Sacred Hymns has come to an end, but only for the time being. As the most important city on the western continent, there will certainly be more related plotlines in the future. Aside from Natasha, Rhein, and the other characters who thread through the entire story, the rest of the cast won't be leaving the stage either.
Also, I should report with a rueful smile: while I was writing the music chapters, there was pushback everywhere—voices telling me to rush through it. I ignored them all and stuck to the original plan. And now, as it turns out, the music chapters have the highest twenty-four-hour subscription numbers of any content so far, nearly four thousand. But once the music content wrapped up, subscriptions dropped by seven hundred within just three days. It was quite a shock.
That said, just as I was able to ignore the opposition and write the music sections to completion before, I won't waver on the story's arrangement now. I'll keep patiently telling my story the way it needs to be told. There will be more music-related scenes in the future, but only as embellishment—I can maintain the balance between primary and secondary elements.
Fortunately, with the recent plot picking up steam, the twenty-four-hour numbers have climbed back up by several hundred, and average subscriptions are approaching five thousand, which makes me quite happy. Please, everyone, toss me a monthly ticket for encouragement~rs