Hey folks, FantasyLitGuy here with this week’s fantasy fiction news roundup. Let’s dive into what’s been raising eyebrows in our corner of the literary world.

Divine Rivals Gets the Hollywood Treatment

Paramount Pictures won a competitive bidding war for Rebecca Ross’s “Divine Rivals,” the BookTok sensation that’s spent 125+ weeks on the NYT bestseller list. Sofia Alvarez (“To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before”) is writing the script. The romantasy title follows rival journalists who fall in love through magical typewritten letters during a war between gods. The film has influences of “You’ve Got Mail, World War I, and magic”—honestly not a combo I saw coming, but I’m here for it. Ross kept this secret since last August, which shows impressive restraint in our spoiler-happy world.

World Fantasy Convention Merges with Fantasycon

This year’s World Fantasy Convention (October 30-November 2) is combining with the UK’s Fantasycon in Brighton, creating what might be the largest fantasy/horror gathering in UK history. The convention features two themes: “Lyrical Fantasy” and “50 Years of British Fantasy and Horror.” Confirmed guests include Suniti Namjoshi, Vincent Chong, and Sarah Pinborough, with more announcements coming. Both the British Fantasy Awards and World Fantasy Awards will be presented at the event. This consolidation trend in conventions could create more influential “megacons” rather than multiple smaller ones scattered throughout the year.

Royal Road Community Sees Genre Shift

There’s an interesting discussion brewing on Royal Road about whether traditional LitRPG is losing ground to broader progression fantasy and general fantasy fiction. Authors and readers are noting that stories with fewer stat screens and game mechanics are garnering more views and followers than heavily stat-focused LitRPG. Some attribute this to reader fatigue with formulaic “D&D campaign” style narratives. The biggest hits on the platform still tend to use game-like elements sparingly while focusing on story and character development. It’s worth keeping an eye on whether this represents a temporary shift or a fundamental evolution in what web serial readers want.

Aethon Books Doubles Down on LitRPG

Despite questions about genre evolution, publisher Aethon Books is pushing forward with their June 2025 LitRPG releases, suggesting they’re confident in the market. They’re positioning themselves as specialists in “the very best LitRPG and Progression Fantasy books.” Meanwhile, promising new serials like “Ascension of the Primalist” and “Aggro” are gaining traction on Royal Road, showing that quality LitRPG still finds its audience when it’s well-executed. The key seems to be balancing game mechanics with genuine storytelling rather than drowning readers in stat blocks.

Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight 5 Marathon Continues

Sanderson’s latest blog updates show “Wind and Truth” (Stormlight 5) is in heavy revision mode, with the author working on version 3.0 and aiming for a June deadline for the 4.0 draft. The book is reportedly at 491,000 words and counting. He’s been conducting “Tuckerizations”—putting fan names into the book—as a reward for hitting 500k YouTube subscribers. For context, this will conclude the first arc of the Stormlight Archive, so Sanderson is being extra careful to stick the landing. No official release date beyond “2025,” but given his track record, expect it when it’s genuinely ready.

New Voices on Royal Road

Several promising new LitRPG serials launched on Royal Road this month. “Magic’s Last Chance” went live June 16th with 100,000 words already written, posting five times weekly initially. “What Will Be” offers a slow-burn reincarnation story with LitRPG elements that’s getting positive early reviews. “Ceaseless Horizons” continues building an audience with its battle-mage progression story. These launches show the platform’s continued vitality as a proving ground for new authors, even as genre preferences evolve.

Things are looking frothy out there, folks. It all suggests we’re in a healthy period of experimentation, evolution, and mainstream flirtation, rather than stagnation. Love to see it.

Keep reading, keep supporting authors doing interesting work, and I’ll see you next week with whatever chaos the industry serves up next.

Keep it weird,
FantasyLitGuy