For the past 10 years, the Internet has provided the foundation for the popularization of network literature in China. In particular, the rise of network literature web sites has assisted in the rapid growth of the network novel market. However, the fast commercialization of the network novel has resulted in writers looking for quick success, rather than engaging in the creative process of writing. In this study, we explored the case of Qidian, the largest network literature web site in China, to prove this theory. The company expects writers to adhere to several strategies. The pay-per-word strategy causes writers to prioritize the length of the story over quality. The formatting strategy of the network novel results in the excessive dependence of the writer on a predefined narrative formula. The ranking strategy limits the writer to a selection of story plots that the readers are most interested in.