Quote by sprite personally, I hate it - when I read a story, I usually leave a comment before voting and then, suddenly, I find I'm forced to leave another comment - at that point, i move on and don't bother voting.
Not to mention that the tiny box that appears is a lot less convenient to write your comment (especially if you're an exhaustive fucktard like me).
And if the person didn't want to leave a comment in the first place, the author is just going to end up with plenty of 'meaningless' comments anyway: "Nice story!"
It also happened that I wanted to vote on a story/poem, but didn't have much to say about it. And that just prevented me from voting on it altogether.
It's a little disheartening to see that someone who's been here over 3 years, commented on over 50 stories and voted on more than 100 should feel in any way as a "low level Lush member". Can you imagine what sort of message you'd have received if you had left a message saying "Average at best".
I hope this lack of self-awareness is just a small minority of authors - though I can imagine they would be a very vocal minority. Scores and comments should be as individual as the people who give them
OK, I understand that I comment more than some but I was comparing myself to the more dedicated Lush members. I would also hope to come up with something better that "Average at best" but again, I accept your point.
I would be interested in the answer to one question in my role as a reader and that is does a writer value a comment with no score above or below a score with no comment? I suppose they could also be seen as equal as well.
In my limited communication with writers I get the feeling that a comment means more to most but I may be wrong.
Quote by Meggsy Perhaps the score could be included with the comment. In this way the comment would explain the score given.
Being given a low score without a comment leaves one wondering if there is an ulterior motive for the low score.
Oh hell, in the past on here i've had people ask me to low score some stories because, some authors were running around low scoring other authors stories, because someone else low scored thier story because, before that someone else low scored thier story.
Not to mention that the tiny box that appears is a lot less convenient to write your comment (especially if you're an exhaustive fucktard like me).
And if the person didn't want to leave a comment in the first place, the author is just going to end up with plenty of 'meaningless' comments anyway: "Nice story!"
It also happened that I wanted to vote on a story/poem, but didn't have much to say about it. And that just prevented me from voting on it altogether.
Why is that a meaning less comment? Maybe they're just expressing thier thought(s). Not everyone wants to break down, analyze, and critique every all aspects of your story.
It might be frustrating if thats all you get on your stories , But still you're getting something which, i think is still better than nothing.
A friend of mine recently wrote a story here that in my opinion was dull, overly-drawn out and basically average. It's a Recommended Read has dozens of 5 votes and just as many effusively praising comments. Should I criticise it? Even privately? What would it achieve? I know she's tough enough to take what I say at face value and I'm pretty sure she wouldn't drop me because of it but why put myself through that. Being in the minority though doesn't make you wrong.
To answer your question the RR system is there to do just that. The mods are meant to be of a decent level and therefore capable of knowing of what's good or bad. The only danger is that it encourages a writing bubble where certain writing styles will take over at the expense of things that are perhaps less "Lush".
I personally think poems need to be removed from the RRs - or maybe better separated (RPs?) - they make up more the half of the recommendations here but we all know the vast majority of people do not come here to read poems. Why are poems being promoted when so few want to read them?
WOW babes for a mo there i thought u meant me..then u mentioned RR's and I dont have one so I wont drop you as a friend just yet pmsl
The Duchess of Tart
Please check out my new story, co-written with the amazing Wilful.
I personally think poems need to be removed from the RRs - or maybe better separated (RPs?) - they make up more the half of the recommendations here but we all know the vast majority of people do not come here to read poems. Why are poems being promoted when so few want to read them?
Thats quite a profound statement. On what basis do you make that statement?
Personally I read poems since I just dont have the concentration/attention span to read stories (unless they are quite short) and enjoy reading good poetry.
Thats quite a profound statement. On what basis do you make that statement?
Personally I read poems since I just dont have the concentration/attention span to read stories (unless they are quite short) and enjoy reading good poetry.
View counts.
Even poems that draw strong vote/comment response have a fraction of the views that a story in a low view category like fantasy & Sci-fi will get.
There's a strong core of poetry readers here, and they're far more engaged ( voting and commenting ) than they are most anywhere else, but they're still a tiny fraction of the overall readership.
Thats quite a profound statement. On what basis do you make that statement?
Personally I read poems since I just dont have the concentration/attention span to read stories (unless they are quite short) and enjoy reading good poetry.
Pretty much what RejectReality said.
Poems have a tiny views to votes ratio compared to stories which tells you that they are of greater interest to signed-in, interactive users. These people make up less than 3% of site visitors.
Even poems that become EPs struggle to register a few thousand views - casual visitors don't want to read them. That's what I mean when I say the majority don't come here to read poems.
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.
Poems have a tiny views to votes ratio compared to stories which tells you that they are of greater interest to signed-in, interactive users. These people make up less than 3% of site visitors.
Even poems that become EPs struggle to register a few thousand views - casual visitors don't want to read them. That's what I mean when I say the majority don't come here to read poems.
I have a poem at 15,000+ views
My erotic poems have anywhere from 2000,10,000 views. Not bad for a poem writer.....hahahha
My erotic poems have anywhere from 2000,10,000 views. Not bad for a poem writer.....hahahha
If they were stories they'd have 5x as many views but probably less comments and votes. It's simply the nature of things.
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.
I don't know. I don't give a vote unless it's a 5, but that's not because of Lush "culture", that's just me. And I know that I've said this before elsewhere, but I don't generally comment unless forced to--even then, it's usually a milquetoast "excellent story, thank you" comment. Again, that's not because of Lush "culture", that's just me. A story either intrigues me and keeps me reading (earning a 5) or it doesn't (earning nothing).
Want to spend some time wallowing in a Recommended Read? Pick one! Or two! Or seven!
I am new Member joining to be able to comment on the stories I have been reading for nearly 18 months. I am hooked on poetry and found Lush Stories after hearing one of your poets at a recital.
I understand the scoring system. It is obvious isn't it? But I don't understand it's application because it, obviously, is not being used as it was intended to be?
Frankly, as a new Member, what I read in this Forum Subject is really disappointing. It's even disturbing.
Can someone please explain to me the prime objective, the aim, of Lush Stories?. (I mean the Story and Poetry side, not the Chat side. We all know what that's for!)
Is it to publish the very best in adult literature (story and poetry)? Or is it to do that (because there are some really good writers here) and include and encourage others, who have never thought of writing before, to try? And thereafter to continue and grow in the art?
It seems to me to be the latter, based on the quality of the content from my point of view.
If that is the case, then there are works that will be published here that are 'efforts' rather than 'masterpieces' and a lot in between. 'Efforts' may well be worthy of a 5 for effort but not for quality, whilst the upper echelon of writers would always command a 5 for quality. So how should I score?
If you are my friend and I know how hard it was for you to make the effort to write, and it's not very good, do I give you 1 or 2 because you don't rate against the 'Lush Giants'. That is not friendly and certainly not encouraging you to keep writing.
"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" and " All Art is subjective". What one reader likes another dislikes. What one critic applauds another lambasts. And the scoring system is a form of criticism isn't it?
I might ignore scoring, stick to reading only. I could add an occasional comment.
I'm not participating in chat rooms or private conversations or seeking friends or anything like that. I just want to write and share my thoughts and ideas. And hopefully, entertain.
I saw this comment of yours and wanted to let you know how bang-on you are.
I find I'm being seduced by, and have become addicted to, the pursuit of scoring and comments. Sure, we can see viewing numbers, but when someone shares an insightful comment, I'm absolutely thrilled. To me, it means my effort has reached someone enough for them to share their thoughts with me and others.
Maybe many have taken the position of not saying anything if they don't have anything nice to say. I don't know.
Some of my stuff I feel is better than the voting reflects. And some I'm sure just misses the boat for some. I don't have a lot of followers or friends, so I'm sure the feedback on my stories suffers from that. I'm going to test a theory later this week about target audiences. If you write to it, they will...well...you know. Just a silly Field of Dreams play on words.
I don't want to write just for sake of submitting an 'effort' as you defined some. I truly do want my works to be enjoyable, and hopefully, memorable.
I'm not a real writer, just someone trying to creatively express himself.
If you haven't read any of my stuff, please give it a chance. There will be much more to follow representing a variety of topics.
And I would love for you to comment. Remember, I'm a junkie now and need my next fix.
Receiving a less than positive comment or a score lower than 5 seems to be the feedback system flaw. But that's OK. You've found a way around it as I suspect many others have too.
I still don't know how I want to handle my feedback on others stories and poems.
If you prefer, you can private message me with your thoughts.
If you prefer not to respond at all, I'll respect that too.
I think any rating system will have its flaws. Personally I rarely rate less than a 5 but I often don't rate or comment if I read a story I don't enjoy. If the grammar or spelling is poor I just stop reading. I do try to support other writers and mainly want to be positive. Yeah, its a cop out but who needs more drama.
As for my own writing I always appreciate anyone who takes the time to view, score, vote and/or comment. I think its important to view feedback as a whole. If my story is crap I'd rather see a 1 with a constructive suggestion than a friendly 5. I make a point of reading stories in genres that are not to my personal taste but still reflect strong writing. Overall I find the Lush environment is very supportive and filled with excellent writing resources whether by links or the various posts of other writers. There are many excellent writers here who are extraordinarily generous with there support and advice!
Revenge scoring? WTF?
I can't imagine any writer submitting anything that would truly deserve a 1 or 2 rating, or the moderators even allowing it to be posted. I have heard how they try to maintain a high standard. When I post my first story, which will be soon, I will be happy for any feedback.
Quote by MrMark When you click to rate stories/poems you have a choice of 5 options. Each of the 5 options has a description next to it.
5 - excellent
4 - good
3 - average
2 - fair
1 - poor
Yesterday I voted one poem as fair. Since then I've received several messages suggesting that if I don't like something that I shouldn't read it, or that a score of 2 is mean. Obviously one cannot tell if one likes something without reading it, so that doesn't work, but the implication of what has been said is that if I don't like the quality of writing that I shouldn't vote.
My question...is there any point in having the scoring system including poor and fair, if the expectation is that they're not used.
Second question...if you read something that is below par, do you score and/or comment or do you just ignore it?
Hi - Admin,
a) warum werde ich so oft aufgefordert meine Bewertung zu begründen,wenn Sie eine Scala eingeführt haben?
b) wer bestimmt hier eigentlich wie schnell oder langsam ich lesen muss???? Immer wieder erscheint der Button "Sie können nicht in dieser Zeit die Story
gelesen haben!" - Ich halte diese Bemerkung für eine überhebliche Beurteilung!
Ich bin sehr gespannt auf Ihre Antwort - viele Grüße - catcher044
Quote by catcher044 Hi - Admin,
a) warum werde ich so oft aufgefordert meine Bewertung zu begründen,wenn Sie eine Scala eingeführt haben?
b) wer bestimmt hier eigentlich wie schnell oder langsam ich lesen muss???? Immer wieder erscheint der Button "Sie können nicht in dieser Zeit die Story
gelesen haben!" - Ich halte diese Bemerkung für eine überhebliche Beurteilung!
Ich bin sehr gespannt auf Ihre Antwort - viele Grüße - catcher044
Please note that English is the common language of the site.
In answer to your questions, so long as you are not deliberately trolling stories and leaving low marks for the sake of it, you are free to score what you think a story is worth. Don't be surprised if some authors ask for feedback on this if the score is lower than what they might have expected. You don't have to reply, but it might be polite to give feedback. Some authors have their scoring set up so it forces a comment. I'd like to claim most are open to constructive criticism, but who knows, lol.
You can't vote right away again to discourage the trolling that I mentioned above. There is a built in time-delay on this.
I've read plenty on here that would warrant a 1 or 2 score. I think the lowest I've scored is a 3 and that's with some trepidation about offending the author. If anybody wanted reasoning behind my scores I'd be happy to elaborate
Fascinating thread! Oh sorry, is that a meaningless comment? (joke)
I offer several "newbie" comments...
- I agree with others above that anonymous voting is the way to go. I must say I'm a little surprised at the number of childish people in Lush that whine about critical comments or low scores! Sadly, I admit to being privately disappointed when I don't get a 5, but in truth, my stories probably rate no more than a 2 or 3 at best. I'm loathe to give a 4, certainly never give a lower number, preferring to simply avoid voting. Yes, I know it's wrong and I'm part of the problem, but it looks like a lot of us are in the same boat. Having said that, my votes are an equal combination of the quality of grammar/spelling/construction and the "arousal quotient". I have a fairly accurate arousal meter upon which I rely extensively.
- The majority of my comments are short and sweet. I strongly disagree with the poster above that says that "Nice story!" is a meaningless comment.
Lastly, please translate the following Lushspeak for me: streak-voting? RR?
Hypnosis - You will read this and desperately want to read my first story - There's Something About.......
RR is "recommended read," the designation that mods can give when they approve a story, or sometimes bestow after the fact, when they run into a story that they particularly like.
Streak voting: I'm not sure, though I suspect it refers to a member voting on stories and poems as fast the system allows them to. I further imagine that it would usually refer to something close to automated voting. Perhaps a fake account used to vote a particular author's stories either up or down. [I have had a couple of members vote on a large number of my stories more or less all at once, and it would seem as fast as possible. Watching my timeline was interesting, because it did not seem possible that anyone could be reading some of my stories as fast as the timeline suggested that they were. Maybe they were binge reading with many tabs open, and then voting as quickly as allowed. I thought of them as "netflix" voters, in that they seemed to be binging.]
Rather than bother you, I shall enquire of my favourite mod where it appears, and bank-wire her $500 to make sure she adds it to my next story!
I have this delightful image of someone with 20 tabs open on your stories, madly clicking away at "5", "exit", "5", "exit", "5", "exit", ........you think they were reading your stories rather than just voting haphazardly? perhaps they were desperate to get another badge?
thanks again for the education.
Hypnosis - You will read this and desperately want to read my first story - There's Something About.......
Quote by Simon66 I've read plenty on here that would warrant a 1 or 2 score. I think the lowest I've scored is a 3 and that's with some trepidation about offending the author. If anybody wanted reasoning behind my scores I'd be happy to elaborate
I dont care if someone rates my story 1 or 2. But if they score a four I really want to know what they think!
Unknown User
I see a lot of the same people rate my stuff. I know it is because I write usually four areas,--mature, milf, wife lovers and flash erotica. I have ventured into the other genres but feel most comfortable in certain categories. Some people are very picky what they read, I am.
Quote by oceanrunner1974 RR is "recommended read," the designation that mods can give when they approve a story, or sometimes bestow after the fact, when they run into a story that they particularly like.
Streak voting: I'm not sure, though I suspect it refers to a member voting on stories and poems as fast the system allows them to. I further imagine that it would usually refer to something close to automated voting. Perhaps a fake account used to vote a particular author's stories either up or down. [I have had a couple of members vote on a large number of my stories more or less all at once, and it would seem as fast as possible. Watching my timeline was interesting, because it did not seem possible that anyone could be reading some of my stories as fast as the timeline suggested that they were. Maybe they were binge reading with many tabs open, and then voting as quickly as allowed. I thought of them as "netflix" voters, in that they seemed to be binging.]
It's possible that someone read a number of your stories and didn't want to bother with the voting and/or commenting until they were done reading everything. They could have taken notes and had a list of titles to give various scores.
I sometimes do this myself when I'm in the mood to read a bit and don't want to bother with coming up with original comments after each story. I've even waited a day or two to think about what I've read then scored and commented. At times I've sent some authors private messages with more in-depth observations and even suggestions for other chapters.
My experience has been that for the most part people rate my stories with a 4 or 5, with a short comment about how 'hot' they are or how much that person enjoyed reading them. There are, however, some people who vote my stories down, with a rating of 3 (it's almost always a 3) and very little explanation as to why they didn't enjoy the story as much as everyone else.
Here is the typical profile of the 3-giver:
1) They rarely have an avatar, preferring to use the default male/female white shape on a red background.
2) They either joined Lush 3-5 years ago and haven't read / voted on any previous stories, or they joined Lush recently and haven't voted on any previous stories.
3) They have no friends or only a very few friends.
4) They have not written any stories, or have written just a couple of stories for which they have an average score of 4 or below.
5) They have not participated or have rarely participated in the forums.
6) Their profile is barely completed, with no images, no galleries...
7) They often pop up to cast their vote when a story is garnering too much attention and getting too many good scores.
8) They cast a vote of 3 with a comment of "undefined" (very often) or a vague comment like "it deserves a solid 3".
I can't say that I have a complete profile of the 3-giver, but I can say that I know for a fact that some people (often authors themselves) have created multiple fake accounts for the sole purpose of voting down other author's stories. Whatever the case, whenever I receive a score of 3 or less, I look firstly at the comment the voter has left and then at their profile. Thus far, in 100% of cases, I can trace it back to one or a combination of the 8 scenarios outlined above. Not all of them are other authors, of course. Sometimes they are simply people who have no clue how to rate a story or who just didn't appreciate what they read. We can't force people to make meaningful comments, although it would be interesting to try.
After having been active for 5 years on Lush, I'm pretty confident I can tell when there's a rat on the loose, and despite having to take the hit for their often spur-of-the-moment voting down of a story that is doing really well, blocking the rogues one by one will eventually lead to more accurate scores and hopefully more insightful comments.
P.S. I don't systematically block people who score my story a 3 or less, but I do evaluate their comments and look at their profile to determine my level of confidence with their feedback.
Far more people read my stories than rate them. I assume that those who don't give me a rating have become incapacitated by erotic overload, or passed out from sexual exhaustion, which I interpret as a 10 on the 5 point scale. I've never been much of a 'numbers' guy anyway. I do like receiving comments on stories, but the scoring means little to me, especially when it's mostly 5s (unless I really am the consistently excellent author I believe myself to be in my own mind). I'd be just as happy, or maybe happier with a 'thumbs up/thumbs down' system. Either you enjoy my stories or you don't - simple as that.
