The Glass Mage: An Artisanal Progression Fantasy

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

[Participant in the April 2026 Writathon] Magical glassblower Nuri Shahi is pursuing the pinnacle of his craft. The journey to create a masterpiece of glass detours into exploring magic, delving treacherous Rifts, and dragging his friends into crazy schemes, but he won't let life get him down. Impulsive and resourceful, Nuri treads the fine line between madman and visionary, determined to prove that Glassmaker is a viable path to becoming a superior Mage. What to expect: - Crafting: realistic glassblowing and lampwork - Unconventional applications of glass - Delving into lost and dangerous places - Exploration of magic and intent - Slow burn, non-linear progression: no shortcuts on the road to responsibility - Not grimdark, but dark moments - Lots of light-hearted fun, too! - Join my friends over at the litRPG Forge if you want to discuss my story and others. We're building a fun community for multiple authors and readers to interact, and we'd love for you to drop by. Check the roles channel to sign up for the dedicated Glass Mage discussion.https://discord.gg/uG5nX9amAr

Information

Status: Ongoing
Year: 2022
Author: Andrew B. Salmon

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.3/ 5.0
Followers: 1,264
Views: 974,939

Chapters(247 total)

What readers say about The Glass Mage: An Artisanal Progression Fantasy

“I don't know enough about glass to know for sure, but this feels real. Like the author spent a lifetime in a real midevil glass shop, starting from apprentice and working up, then got transported to the modern world to write about it. Details that are small…”
hankRoyal Road5.0 / 5
“I'm about 40,000 words into The Glass Mage by Andrew B. Salmon. I normally only read a few chapters of a RR story that I'm reviewing, but I haven't been able to put this book down. This review comes after reading/listening to the first 10 chapters. I apolog…”
longwindedone1Royal Road5.0 / 5

Reviews

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Community Reviews(10)

hankRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I don't know enough about glass to know for sure, but this feels real. Like the author spent a lifetime in a real midevil glass shop, starting from apprentice and working up, then got transported to the modern world to write about it. Details that are small but appear important keep coming up.
Sure there is an interesting plot and story, but this is a book you read first and foremost to see if the glassworks in other stories stand up. If they do it is because the other stories didn't go into detail .
longwindedone1Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I'm about 40,000 words into The Glass Mage by Andrew B. Salmon. I normally only read a few chapters of a RR story that I'm reviewing, but I haven't been able to put this book down. This review comes after reading/listening to the first 10 chapters. I apologize for the spoilers.
STORY
The Glass Mage is a progression fantasy focused on the art and magic of glass blowing. Where most stories that I read contain swords and spellblades, this story weilds artisan tools. The MC, Nuri isn’t a chosen one with cheat skills, he’s a young glassworker with magical potential. The results are surprisingly gripping. The plot itself grows slowly but intentionally. It focuses on family bonds and glasswork commissions. The story eases you into monster encounters and looming conflict, yet never loses its core theme. Crafting is the story's identity.
STYLE
This story is written in first-person (also in the present tense). The author leans into the rhythm of glassblowing. He talks about the necessary movement, tools, and the heat involved. When things do get dicey, the battles flow well. I teased the author in my comments that Nuri's first encounter left me wanting to do a Puma check (even though it was a shadow jaguar). Humor is light, and romance is not a focal point at this stage, but the emotional landscape (family and mentorship) carries plenty of warmth.
GRAMMAR
From what I could tell, the grammar in the story was strong. Indeed, nothing took away from my enjoyment of the book.
CHARACTERS
Nuri is the MC. He is ambitious and compassionate. He’s one of the rare LitRPG/GameLit protagonists who feels like a person rather than an archetype. Supporting characters shine too. There is Ember, the stern master. Mikko, the adopted brother. The Gaffer, a fantastic mentor figure. Ifran, the eager apprentice.
Many reader reviews consistently praised these characters for feeling “distinct," and that matches my own impression, too.
The Glass Mage is a rare find (certainly for me). It is a progressi
calikid2030Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The Glass Mage is a slow-burn crafting progression fantasy that actually commits to the crafting part. If you’re here for glassmaking, creation, and earned growth, this story delivers hard. The author clearly knows the craft—glassblowing isn’t window dressing here, it’s the backbone of the story, and the detail is good enough that it never feels fake.
The MC, Nuri, starts off rough. He’s insecure, immature, and occasionally frustrating—but that’s intentional. This is a growth story in the real sense: progress comes with setbacks, consequences, and a lot of work. He doesn’t stumble into cheat skills or instant power, and that makes his wins feel earned.
Style-wise, it’s first-person present tense and mostly very smooth. The prose is thoughtful and immersive, though it can ramble a bit during heavy crafting or theory sections. LitRPG elements exist, but they’re woven into the prose—no blue boxes, no number spam—so don’t come in expecting a stat-heavy system.
This won’t be for everyone. It’s slow, deliberate, and patient. But if you like crafting, character growth, and progression that actually takes time, The Glass Mage is absolutely worth reading—and surprisingly easy to sink into once it clicks.
AnodyneRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Style: The Glass Mage is written in a clear and thoughtful first-person present-tense which works to make the main character's inner thoughts feel rich, varied, and believable. I found this story a very smooth read, so even if you're not a huge fan of first-person or present-tense, I'd encourage you to give it a go. The only (very minor) critiques I have are with the narration's ability to ramble at times and a slight lack of variation in diction/tone in character dialogues, which the author has noted as a point to be ironed out.
The LitRPG elements are incorporated into the text, so if you're expecting the traditional blue boxes, note that this work is written in and functions using prose. This serves to cultivate a more natural atmosphere, in my opinion.
Story: We follow the adventures and endeavours of Nuri, a young [Glassworker] who embarks on personal improvement and finds himself entangled in schemes and adventures far beyond his ordinary life. Not only does this story make for some solid, non-linear progression fantasy, it also showcases masterful glassmaking, a lush fantasy setting, and the fringes of a dimensional war along the course of Nuri’s journey. It’s over 360k words at the time of this review, so needless to say, we get to cover a lot of ground.
I found myself deeply immersed in Nuri’s tale and his various encounters, from the terrifying to the charmingly low-stakes. This isn’t a ‘protagonist grows up and curb-stomps the word’-type story, by the way: growth is paired with setbacks, actions with consequences. But a common thread throughout it all is glasswork and the power of creation and artistry. If you’re a fan of protagonists with delightfully niche primary skillsets or appreciate crafting elements in general, this one’s for you! I really liked the implementation of Skills specific to glassmaking, and the physical glassmaking itself is described so beautifully that I was surprised that the author wasn’t a glassmaker in real life.
Also, without sp
jjhuttoRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
And I love it. I'm more of the things exploding kind of guy (which this story also has already). But something about the calm and appreciative way the author outlines and describes glass work speaks to me in a meaningful way.
Fun read, no complaints so far and I can see that what ever the problems used to be with the story, the author has gone back and fleshed them out so now we have a promising and enjoyable start to an interesting story!
TheShribeRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Is very nice, man works with glass. Starts off a little bitchy but gets better after he almost blows himself up. He works hard and gets gucci magic. I need more words to post this review. Words words words words words. Words words words? Words words words words words words
Conrad StokesRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Let me just come out and say, nope, this is not a review swap (even if the author and I chat often on Discord). We may do a shout out swap and he may review my story too (since he’s reading it), but curiosity brought me to read this. Like, “what is a glass mage”.
That’s an important promise made by this story and I think the author delivered.
The characters are great, especially the MC. I guess some people had an issue with him in the past, but I had the good fortune to come to this story late after the rewrite for book one was done and the character is not only complex and three dimensional , but importantly he is likable and relatable. I want to see him succeed and his good nature makes reading his POVs treat.
The grammar, no complaints whatsoever. Andrew had obviously worked hard on that.
The style, my goodness, it is something else. You want to learn about glass making? You’re going to learn and not only that, but you’ll also learn about an incredibly complex mana system that really grounds you in the setting. It can be a bit much, I’ll sometimes flick through the long paragraphs of glass making, hence the 4.5, but the style is still extremely good.
Storywise, this is my comfort story recently. Getting overwhelmed with a new kid, school, work and all that, the story of Glass Mage has been a nice story for me to sink into and decompress. It has characters I’m rooting for, stakes that have me intrigued, and battles that get my inner nerd satisfied. Give it a read, seriously, I’m surprised it is not more popular!
Samantha NelsonRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Nuri's tale's intriguing, crafted in expert hand.
Just like any glasssmith, you'll find throughout the land.
Every moment's glowing; some may give you pause.
Forge fire burns so brightly, removing all the flaws.
Just like in the story, you need to be aware.
Tragedy may strike at once, sending fragments everywhere.
So I'd advise to walk with caution. Enjoy the woven web.
Every shard that meets the forge may shatter in your head.
The grammar is near flawless. Built on solid ground.
This glass is quite transparent and nice to have around.
The style is a fun one; one that I have enjoyed.
Blown out strands of metaphor that yet to be rejoined.
So no issue in the style, seek and you shall find.
Meaning hidden in the mask and woven with the mind.
The story is a journey, just like glass within a forge.
Expect some heat and some sleet before you see the morn.
The makings are around you. Some currents cut quite deep.
Enjoy a tale of crafting and sewing what was reaped.
The characters have layers, just like glass of now.
Listen, watch, and enjoy; though some you'll disavow.
For every tale has villains like they have the good.
Both making their decisions; so they're understood.
So to any wanderer that's stopping on the way.
Go inside and watch the forge. See what they will say.
Splash99Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This is a wonderful story, gripping and raises awe about glassmaking (something I had never considered) and awe at the escapades weaved of a glassmaker in the shoes of an adventurer. I am loving following along as the MC develops himself and overcomes challenges. Well written, good pace, great story.
perfectgeneralRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The Glass Mage is a novel system and a novel story. While there are dungeons, they are not like other dungeons. While there are powers, they are not like other powers. Attention to the political power of mages and the artistic ability of a glass blower bring new aspects to the usual RR fare. I like the characters, the choice of details and a lot more. There is a lot to like. Give it a go.