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Forced Commenting for Writing Improvement

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How do you feel about forced comment scoring?

I don't like it.
I don't mind it.
It depends on whether my vote is high or not.
Please share some gingerbread cookies with me.
Results
TheDevilsWeakness
Active Ink Slinger
Quote by LittleBambi

11) Thou shalt teach me a phrase to start commandments with other than 'thou shalt not'


Nuh uh... You're on a roll...

nicola? Do you think we can get this on a plaque on the signup page?
Shylass
Gingerbread Lover
Thank you very much for your replies, everybody. I do truly appreciate them.

I always wrote just because I loved to write. But when I joined Lush, and a vast new world opened up to me, I suddenly realised that I had to not only explore a subject I knew very little about, but I had to think about the reader too.

When I write a piece, it hasn't actually been with the intention of giving somebody Happy Time, but to explore experiences and feelings I haven't had a chance to myself. I've used my writing on Lush to try to understand other people and what makes them tick, with a view to trying to see if that's something I feel comfortable with or can identify with. Lush has been a sharp learning curve, some bitter, and some sweet, as I grow to understand more about people and how sex of various kinds affects our lives.

Obviously, there are a few stories that are all me, and quite a few of my poems, but on the whole, my writing is about things alien to my own life and way of thinking. Maybe the impasse I have reached is about trying to think about how my writing affects the individual reader now, and what they want to read, as opposed to just exploring the world from my own little brain cell, and hoping that people like the result of the exploration.

You've all given me a lot to think about, thank you. I won't be insisting on comments, you've all confirmed what I thought, thank you. I figure if somebody cared enough about it, they would tell me, and I love those of you who do.

And Keoloke, mods have to be entered into the queue too, and verified by somebody else. You can get to the top of the queue as a Gold member though, just so you know.

Here are some cookies for those who want them:
Ut incepit fidelis, sic permanet.

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DirtyMartini
Purveyor of Poetry & Porn
Quote by Shylass



You've all given me a lot to think about, thank you. I won't be insisting on comments, you've all confirmed what I thought, thank you. I figure if somebody cared enough about it, they would tell me, and I love those of you who do.





You could probably just bribe people to leave comments...you know, by maybe bringing out more Gingas every time you post a story...just a thought...

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Shylass
Gingerbread Lover
Quote by DirtyMartini



You could probably just bribe people to leave comments...you know, by maybe bringing out more Gingas every time you post a story...just a thought...
Ut incepit fidelis, sic permanet.

 ***
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Jinxy
Princess Blondie
Quote by Guest
Well. I think we ought to come up with the perfect system. Maybe we could have a limit on who gets to vote. If you break one of the 10 commandments you don't get to vote.

The 10 Lush Commandments

1) Thou shalt not post tens of photos of one's cock from varying, and yet scarily similar, angles
2) Thou shalt not start pubic hair topics
3) Thou shalt not contact thy fellow Lushers to ask about their level of horniness
4) Thou shalt not deliberately thread kill (unless it is a pubic hair topic)
5) Thou shalt not feel butt hurt if thee have been rightly shot down
6) Thou shalt not repeatedly pick forum fights with the same person just for the sake of it
7) Thou shalt not steal thy fellow Lushers stories
8) Thou shalt not beg thy fellow Lushers to comment on thy images
9) Thou shalt not take the name of thy Lush God(dess) in vain
10) Thou shalt not leave for being a dickhead and return under a new name

.....and.....11) Thou shalt teach me a phrase to start commandments with other than 'thou shalt not'


Is it at all possible to actually enforce this?
†Jinxy Approved†
Shylass
Gingerbread Lover
The new Timeline feature allows us, depending on privacy settings, to see who scored, and when. That's the part of it that I don't like. Warning, rant ahoy!

I want to PM this message to somebody:

"Have the balls to tell me how to improve it, then, you pillocking wassock! I now have no respect for you, and there was precious little before that previously. Help me be better, or eff off."

Actually, I really want to write, "...or fuck off". And some other naughty things.

But I'm a good girl, so I won't. But I will say, if people don't want us to know we know what they scored and chickened out of leaving a comment (which is very easy to work out on a quiet story!), then adjust your privacy settings. I would rather not know, because if I do, I either get upset if they didn't particularly like it (if I like and/or respect them), or I get angry that they have no metaphorical balls with which to help me be a better writer.

I prefer to let people choose what they want to do, although the forcing comments idea has never been far away from my finger. Usually, I can have a cookie and be fine. Today, I want to get confrontational, so I'm just pointing out, for your safety, that if we know you scored us a "could be better" score, with no way to make it better, it makes us lose any respect we might have had for you.

If you leave no comment with a lower score, you're either a complete wimp with a nasty streak, or you don't care about reading a better story from me. If it's the latter, then fuck off. Don't read my stuff, cheesy knobface bitchknickers.

There's no law on my stuff that says you have to leave a comment, but there's a score that says I need to write better than I do, and I have no idea how to. Weak, is what you are! I'm not that up myself that I don't welcome advice on how to write erotica. I know nothing about it, unlike all the other experts on here. I want to be a better erotica author. I might get upset with myself for being crap if you tell me what didn't work for you, or how you think it would have been better, but I won't unleash the beast upon you for being kind and constructive.

I'd have put this in the Rage Cage, but the rules dictate it can't be to do with the site. So here it is.

I wish you would change your settings if you don't want people to know you're incapable of backing up your score with comments that show WHY it's worth that score. You can PM the author too, you know. Now bog off and stop reading my stuff. It's not the first time you've done it, and your card's got a big fat poo mark on it.

Rant over (for now).
Ut incepit fidelis, sic permanet.

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Liz
Scarlet Seductress
This feature doesn't bother me as I like to leave feedback on every story I score anyway.
That being said, I can understand how people wanting to leave a low score might be deterred from doing so if forced to state why.
I suppose in many instances this would just lead to neither a score or comment being left at all.
It's a compromise really but one that I don't enforce on my own stories.
Those low scores without explanation do grate the nerves though don't they?

Shylass
Gingerbread Lover
There's nothing wrong with a lower score. But the writer cannot improve if they don't know what they're supposed to improve on. And certain people have a habit of regularly scoring certain people lower just for the hell of it. Normally, I'm all "Whatever" about it, but today, they can feck off.

Even five votes don't tell you what worked and what the reader liked, only that they can't see anything they would change

Ta for the cookie. Nom nom nom.

Edit: Note to self - proofread your own posts.
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RumpleForeskin
The Right Rev of Lush
Hope you're feeling better now, Shy-one. ;)

When it comes to comments, many writers seem to feel it is much, much better to receive than to give. That's a shame because learning how to 'read like a writer' and figure out what about a story you like or dislike, is one of the most important steps towards becoming an author...imho.
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Jayne33
Velvet-Voiced Titillator
If I read a story to the end, I tend to score and comment anyway, so it's not an issue for me. I tend to keep my comments basic, and nice. If I have any further comments to make I usually contact the author by pm.

I love getting comments on my stories, (good or bad - I'm trying to improve my skills as well) I haven't felt the need to set it so that the reader has to comment. I know some people don't want to comment, and I would hate to lose readers for that reason.

When I get some more time to read, I will be sure to give your work a look, and would be happy to send private feedback on what I thought.

Hugs
Jayne x
Shylass
Gingerbread Lover
Quote by RumpleForeskin
Hope you're feeling better now, Shy-one. ;)

When it comes to comments, many writers seem to feel it is much, much better to receive than to give. That's a shame because learning how to 'read like a writer' and figure out what about a story you like or dislike, is one of the most important steps towards becoming an author...imho.



A rant always helps.

I actually don't read that much, certainly compared to others here. But I learn a huge amount from observations and comments via the blogs and story comments.

I tend to learn more from the forums and from certain authors I generally watch or talk to. When I was modding, it was a clinical exercise, and unless it was something I felt was exceptional, then I would verify and leave. Modding was a job, and I did learn a lot that way, but I don't read erotica for pleasure, bizarrely.

The few times I haven't commented, as far as I'm aware, were because I gave a five score and the comments already given reflected what I felt. If I think something could be better, or something is outstandingly brilliant, then I both score, and give my reasons for that score. Some people like it, some don't, but I always try to do it kindly.

My opinion is only my opinion. Authors should always weigh up what critics say. If they have a valid point, then they can choose to take it on board. If it is purely a matter of preference or some other reason that isn't agreed with by other readers, the author can still learn about certain readers, and write accordingly (or not) in future.

The problem with only scoring is that there is no way to know why[/] a story needs improving or can't be. Therefore, the scoring is sort of redundant, other than as a basic guide for readers, based on some readers who may or may not read and think the same way as them.

I have turned my scoring off before, as it shouldn't bother me. It does sometimes, like today, and usually, it doesn't.


Jayne33, thank you. Don't feel obliged to read, but I would welcome your feelings on it if you do.
Ut incepit fidelis, sic permanet.

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LOVES4PLAY
Active Ink Slinger
My first encounter with a required comment, accomplished nothing but a slightly PO-ed attitude..My reaction was to post; "I DO NOT LIKE BEING FORCED TO COMMENT."
I then sent a non-hostile PM. To the author.. He responded with a friendly reply.
My attitude instantly improved. Yes he enlightened me to the fact ,that I could always. Enter;( I'd rather not) or it was ('I'd rather not comment)

Lowest I'll score is a 3, Any thing below that , I have not finished reading.also will refrain from commenting at all.
clum
Clumeleon
I don't actually think forced commenting would result in a significant rise in the number of useful comments. If people don't want to comment, they'll usually either not vote or leave some pretty meaningless comment.

Most of my comments are pretty pointless, to be honest (I recently commented "Yes." on a story I particularly enjoyed). At most, I try to highlight the best things about the story, rather than point out the "not-so-good" parts.

I think someone you know and trust saying, "Good job," is a hundred times more valuable than a perfect stranger giving a half-hearted critique. That's why I love when my friends and writers I respect on Lush read and comment on my work (not that I don't like strangers doing so, too).
overmykneenow
Active Ink Slinger
I did a quick rummage to see if I could see any patterns in tendency to comment.

Women comment slightly more than men do, but the key factor appears to be age: woman aged 27 or over are THREE TIMES more likely to have the "Commentator" badge than those under 27. For men the disparity is even more pronounced with over 27s FIVE TIMES more likely to have the badge.
Warning: The opinions above are those of an anonymous individual on the internet. They are opinions, unless they're facts. They may be ill-informed, out of touch with reality or just plain stupid. They may contain traces of irony. If reading these opinions causes you to be become outraged or you start displaying the symptoms of outrage, stop reading them immediately. If symptoms persist, consult a psychiatrist.

Why not read some stories instead

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Mysteria27
Prolific Writer
I really find Forced commenting annoying. There are some stories that I really like but I am forced to leave a comment. I usually will just skip over them.