Chapter 131: Live-Streaming the Writing Process

Zhang Chu had never written a screenplay before, but that didn't matter, just as it hadn't mattered that he had never written a novel before he started. Now, in order to fetch a good price for "Sherlock," he prepared to write both the English novel and the English screenplay himself.

When he had initially participated in the Sherlock Holmes fan-fiction contest, he had largely relied on translations from subtitle groups, weaving them together with his own detailed descriptions to form the novel. Strictly speaking, this was already a semi-original work; while the core plot belonged to the television series, the characters, settings, psychological states, and other narrative elements, as well as the transitions between scenes, all required deep thought. These things could not be conjured from thin air; they required Zhang Chu to think and write, which explained his slow pace.

However, since he had already written the Chinese version, and with the "Elementary English Mastery" gained from the system's lottery, translating it back into English was not difficult. Every great structure starts from the ground up, and since English is the lingua franca of the television industry, creating an English version of the novel was imperative. Given his terrible luck with gaming, he decided to give up on it. He planned to finish the English version of "Sherlock" and conclude "Diary of the Journey to the West" as quickly as possible, so that once he started university, he would have time to slowly brainstorm his next book.

Writing two books simultaneously felt quite strange, especially since one was in English and the other in Chinese—this was far more challenging than the typical authorial "double-update." Since he had some idle time, why not share such an arduous and pretentious activity with others? He shouldn't just focus on the big picture; every little bit counts. A thought began to stir in his mind: why not try streaming his writing process?

Although Zhang Chu had never seriously watched a live stream, he knew how popular they had become; gaming streamers or female influencers often attracted hundreds of thousands of viewers. He didn't expect a newcomer like himself, streaming something as dull as typing, to attract many people. But he had to write his books anyway, so why not stream the process and earn some Prestige Points in the process? It was a more direct form of exposure than interviews or magazine features. Sometimes, the reason authors seem so distant and aloof is that they lack a way to communicate with their readers. This was a simple attempt to bridge that gap.

Action followed thought. As a novice in the streaming world, he logged directly into the legendary platform Douyu using his Weibo account. This way, he could share his stream to Weibo and hopefully lure some fans over as viewers. The application process for a channel wasn't complicated and was finished in minutes. He needed a bold, eye-catching name for his room.

Before long, a stream titled "Shocking! A Bull Conspires with an Exotic Woman to Commit Such Outrageous Acts!" quietly appeared on Douyu. Zhang Chu fumbled with the computer, still not quite familiar with the streaming interface. The title was derived from the poignant love story between the Bull Demon King and Princess Iron Fan in "Diary of the Journey to the West," but phrased this way, it sounded like some illicit affair. Naturally, it was highly click-baity, and despite the room having no content yet, several people were immediately drawn in.

Once the room was set up, Zhang Chu shared the link on Weibo. At this point, he already had over 800,000 followers, and they were quite active. Many users had Douyu accounts—after all, streaming was huge these days. His fans were astonished that such a bizarre title hadn't been censored by Douyu, and they curiously clicked in to see what on earth he was doing.

"Writers are getting into streaming these days? I have to go watch."
"Zhang Chu is way ahead of the curve."
"Hahaha, another recruit for the UC Shocking News Department!"
"That title is peak clickbait. What is Zhang Chu actually going to stream?"
"Everyone, go check it out and give Zhang Chu some traffic!"
"Reports from the front: he’s streaming the writing of 'Diary of the Journey to the West.' It seems to be way ahead of the published chapters—this guy actually has a stockpile!"

If he had been streaming an interview, few would have cared, but the fact that Zhang Chu was live-streaming his actual writing process on Douyu was a breath of fresh air in the streaming world. Clicking the link led directly to his room. Thanks to the traffic from Weibo, his viewer count climbed from zero to over two hundred and was still rising.

Streaming the act of writing might not be a gimmick, but Zhang Chu—ever the show-off—had opened two document windows side-by-side: one for the English version of "Sherlock" and the other for "Diary of the Journey to the West." He switched between documents every few minutes, leaving the audience stunned.

*Damn, so that’s how you can write a novel?*

One in Chinese, one in English. Although most people couldn't understand the English, it had an air of "I don't know what it is, but it seems impressive." Compared to the English novel, they focused more on "Diary of the Journey to the West."

"The streamer is too legit!"
"Who is this guy flexing? It’s blinding! He’s writing two novels at once; isn't he worried about getting his wires crossed?"
"Damn, that’s insane!"
"Zhang Chu actually started a stream? I’m here to support him."
"An illicit affair between a bull and an exotic woman? So it was the Bull Demon King and Princess Iron Fan all along."
"The English is so pretentious. I’ve never seen such an arrogant writer."
"Stay low-key, man!"
"He's writing the English version of 'Sherlock'? I think I just discovered a secret."
"What’s this author’s name? The novel looks interesting; I want to see the earlier parts."
"Brother, I respect you today. Take my fish balls!"

More and more netizens poured in from Weibo. Even though Zhang Chu was a newbie on Douyu, he had a massive base of readers, especially given the humorous and poignant nature of "Diary of the Journey to the West." Once people heard they could watch Zhang Chu write it live, more and more joined in. They tossed free virtual fish balls, and some even sent "planes" and other gifts.

At his computer, Zhang Chu’s fingers flew across the keyboard. His Prestige Points, which had been growing slowly after the initial wave of news reports, began to rise steadily again! For the sake of Prestige Points, and for the planes and rockets, Zhang Chu was, in a sense, giving it his all.

He was currently writing the story of the Golden and Silver Horned Kings. His hands clattered away, and many viewers stared at the newly appearing text, laughing until they were doubled over.

"Five hundred years ago, in the Tushita Palace, the Golden and Silver Boys, tasked with tending the alchemy furnace, dared not disturb the Supreme Old Lord. They could only communicate in another way: by blinking. Left eye blink for 0, right eye blink for 1. 011010101010101—using binary, they could express any information in the world, it was just a bit hard on the eyes."

"I’m dying of laughter! So programmers existed since ancient times!"
"The ancestors of programmers are actually the Golden and Silver Boys. You’ve provided my laugh of the year, streamer!"
"Awesome, so that’s how binary was invented."
"The streamer is so talented! What is the name of this book? Finish it quickly!"
"So 'Journey to the West' can be interpreted this way? Your imagination needs Nüwa to patch the sky."
"Suddenly curious about how the rest of the plot has changed. I’ll have to catch up on the series after the stream ends!"