InhaeMar 15

I want to get into Wuxia fiction, but reading wuxia novels in Chinese feels daunting, so I thought I’d start with a game, thinking it’d be easier. I tried Where Winds Meet, and this game is incredible!

But it’s really hard to play in Chinese, there’s so many menus and things to do, so I’m making a glossary of terms like region names, martial arts and inner ways, name of quests and collectibles, etc.

Most of the time I don’t know what I’m doing, but the game is stunning     
#WhereWindsMeet #LearningChinese

Show threadjackMar 15

@blue Here is a guide to wuxia novels. https://www.hackingchinese.com/a-language-learners-guide-to-wuxia-novels/

I’ve read a few Gu Long books and they’re quite easy. I enjoyed 流星蝴蝶剑. I stopped reading Legend of the Condor Heroes about half way though but I want to go back to it

A language learner’s guide to wuxia novels

Wuxia can be used as a key to both Chinese language and culture. This article is meant to be a guide to second language learners. If you want to read wuxia in Chinese, where do you start? How do you approach these novels? How do I find one which isn't too hard? You will find the answers here!

Hacking Chinese
Show threadInhaeMar 15
@jiewawa
Thank you so much! I didn’t know where to start, it’s going to be very helpful  
Show threadjack
@blue most of the #wuxia novels I’ve read are definitely products of their time. I’ve heard many compare them with westerns
Mar 15 at 2:05pmWeb
Show threadInhaeMar 15
@jiewawa
And they’re all quite long which is intimidating    I’ll probably start with 流星蝴蝶剑, I looked at the beginning, and it does look easy to read. It’s one of the shortest too (from the list).
Show threadjackMar 16

@blue Wuxia novels, both old and new were often serialised which lead to them being very long. Most of Jin Yong’s 14 novels are over 1 million characters. Gu long has more stories that form larger series that follow characters such as 楚留香. 流星蝴蝶剑 is a standalone and its one of the top 5 Chinese books I’ve read. It’s like a wuxia version of the godfather. I really like his writing style actually.

https://wuxiawanderings.substack.com/ is another good resource but not updated often anymore.

Wuxia Wanderings | Lone Crane | Substack

Wuxia Wanderings is my personal site dedicated to discussing wuxia, xianxia, and other Chinese literature and history. I might talk about classical Chinese poetry, culture, and translation. Click to read Wuxia Wanderings, by Lone Crane, a Substack publication with hundreds of subscribers.

Show threadInhaeMar 16

@jiewawa
I’ll definitely read it then! And I prefer to start with a standalone novel than a long series so it’s perfect.

1 million characters…   And I thought 300,000 was a lot!