This Shit Has Got To Stop

[JaxRhapsody]

Turn off anon comments will curb comments from whomever is doing it; a member too lazy to switch accounts to keep their main one unbeseeched, actual person with no account whatsoever, but reads the site, somebody upset they found it in a Google search looking for "real porn". Or turn the damn comments off all together and anybody who really gives a shit to say anything will hit up your PMs. They care enough(or deem themselves important enough) to comment, take.it for what it is. They said many people who liked Howard Stern listened to him, to hear what was going to be said next, and the many people who hated him, listened to him to hear what he was going to say next.

I don't really give a shit about the comments. I had a comment once bitching me out because I mentioned a character was a certain race, so it belonged somewhere else entirely based on that brief line in a story completely focused on something else. Fuck'em. If it hurst that bad turn off comments completely, it's the god damned internet, who hasn't left at least an upset comment on anything that lets you post comments?

It's the fucking internet; there's going to be stupid, hateful and trolling comments. There's going to be people bitching about that fact. And there's going to be people telling the people bitching that it's the internet and it happens, leave it alone, or toughen up, and generally deal with it. Nobody likes stupid comments or people bitching about stupid comments and niether will ever go away.

 

[gunhilltrain]

Someone posted above that getting your first negative reviews is like getting your literary cherry popped.

I prefer to keep the comment and voting options on. For critics who have some specific reasons, I sometimes respond with an explanation. Sometimes they have a point.

For people who just have a non-specific anonymous rant - you can give them a polite (sort of) rap on the knuckles. As in, "Hey anonymous, come out of your hidey-hole and show yourself." It won't change their minds but it might make you feel better.

 

[JCSTREET]

Yah!

I do feel that is wrong for people to mark down just because they dislike the subject matter. If a story is badly written that's fair enough but I think that some people mark down for political reasons, especially FemDom because they find it undermines their own view of how power should be shared between the sexes. I don't read Sci fi, maybe that's because I can't do the suspension of disbelief that it requires, but I don't go around marking down Sci fi authors.

If there were a LIKE button here, I'd click it

 

[SimonDoom]

I do feel that is wrong for people to mark down just because they dislike the subject matter. If a story is badly written that's fair enough but I think that some people mark down for political reasons, especially FemDom because they find it undermines their own view of how power should be shared between the sexes. I don't read Sci fi, maybe that's because I can't do the suspension of disbelief that it requires, but I don't go around marking down Sci fi authors.

I agree with this. My take is that Literotica is, for the most part, a site for erotic fantasy stories. There are some stories that are realistic, but most aren't, and you shouldn't mark down an author just because his/her fantasy is not the same as yours. It's fair to criticize a story for failing artistically, but not for failing to fulfill your own ideas about what fantasies are acceptable and what aren't.

 

[gunhilltrain]

By coincidence I just got someone commenting - her argument was that since she didn't do a particular thing during a certain era, then nobody could have done it. Or maybe her point was that nobody should have done it.

I'm tempted sometimes to submit with an author's note containing an explanation or disclaimer. But that could get silly at times. Could you imagine, say, Philip Roth adding a note like, "Dear readers, this book does cover topics like masturbation and Jewish mothers, but since I'm a wanker and Jewish myself, I believe I have some credibility here."

 

[Zeb_Carter]

This is the internet where any pussy can go out an by himself a computer or a smart phone and troll places and people without fear of retribution.

The shit will never stop...at least not until mom kicks his ass out of her basement.

 

[NotWise]

By coincidence I just got someone commenting - her argument was that since she didn't do a particular thing during a certain era, then nobody could have done it. Or maybe her point was that nobody should have done it.

I didn't read your story, but I did read the comments. You actually got comments on a story in EC. I don't know how you do that, I usually don't.

This isn't just you; there is a common line of thought among authors that critical comments -- especially those that aren't clearly expressed -- don't mean anything. Those commenting are just trolls. I've read a lot of comments that authors complain about, and most of them have content, though they're usually not conveyed in a constructive or well-conceived way.

I'd suggest both in your case in the case of the OP that you pay attention to the input you were given instead of arguing with it.

 

[HBergeron]

It's kind of funny to me, having to choose out of your post, just what the issue is.

A place like Lit invites commentary from any and all - these people aren't book critics, and their opinions should be examined, and many will be found to be irrelevant and petty. The 'real' world is much less caustic, but no less dismissive.

Try Hollywood, where everybody is nice, even when turning down your script for one reason or another, because if you ever do hit it, they want to be your supportive friend.

It's a dichotomy: there's a sensitivity that empowers the creation of good literature, but when you present your product for consideration, you better have a strong stomach and a skin made of Kevlar. Lit, no matter how much we love it and have fun here, bears little or no resemblance to the real world of hawking product.

No offense to anybody, but this place (and I do love the stories) is a hobby - perhaps a place for the novice to hone their writing skills (skeptical of that), but little more than a dalliance at best - yeah, I read the stories about people selling stuff on Amazon, but seriously - that is 'small ball' (again, no offense, but let's get real).

In the most friendly way possible, I suggest you develop a thicker skin if anything here bothers you. If you fancy yourself a serious writer at all, don't spend your time trying to please people here.

 

[gunhilltrain]

I should have been clearer. It's actually a good thing to get comments, including critical ones. (At least somebody is providing feedback.) But I also think it's good for authors to defend their work in counter-comments if they have a point to make.

In contrast to the Hollywood studio example given above, or I imagine a creative writing program, everything here is unfiltered with potentially thousands of readers. They owe no agenda to the writers. I did mention earlier in this thread that feedback of that sort can encourage writers to think about their work and spur them to do better in the future.

 

[SimonDoom]

In contrast to the Hollywood studio example given above, or I imagine a creative writing program, everything here is unfiltered with potentially thousands of readers. They owe no agenda to the writers. I did mention earlier in this thread that feedback of that sort can encourage writers to think about their work and spur them to do better in the future.

I agree.

I think what comments, even the nasty ones and poorly reasoned ones, give you a good idea of how much power words have, and how strongly people react to them. It's a good thing to know when you write. Knowing that, I think, encourages you to write in a more mindful way.

 

[suboots]

The person who awards me a 1* every time I publish a chapter kind of rankles, but only for a very short time. By the time I have received twenty or so ratings their unfair assessment only drops my score by around .15

I wouldn't in normal circumstances rate my own story, it's a bit like cheating. But if I see that 1* has been awarded then I do click on 5 just to aggregate them both as 3's. If that person desists, then so will I.

 

[ThatsTheGuy]

The person who awards me a 1* every time I publish a chapter kind of rankles, but only for a very short time. By the time I have received twenty or so ratings their unfair assessment only drops my score by around .15

I wouldn't in normal circumstances rate my own story, it's a bit like cheating. But if I see that 1* has been awarded then I do click on 5 just to aggregate them both as 3's. If that person desists, then so will I.

When someone cheats, you have to level the playing field however you can.

 

[MelissaBaby]

I should have been clearer. It's actually a good thing to get comments, including critical ones. (At least somebody is providing feedback.) But I also think it's good for authors to defend their work in counter-comments if they have a point to make.

In contrast to the Hollywood studio example given above, or I imagine a creative writing program, everything here is unfiltered with potentially thousands of readers. They owe no agenda to the writers. I did mention earlier in this thread that feedback of that sort can encourage writers to think about their work and spur them to do better in the future.

I started a thread in the Story Feedback forum about my series, Mary and Alvin. Another author gave their view and in my view, they wildly misinterpreted one of the main characters. The person they read had virtually no resemblance to the one I wrote. Or, I should probably say, the one I thought I wrote.

I think they were wrong, and I was right, and the reaction of readers has, in my view, vindicated my position. But the fact that they gave me that negative feedback has made me think more carefully about how I present my characters, and consider ways that what I write can be misread. Feedback is a useful tool, it's up to you to decide if you want to use it or not.

 

[rutger5]

I've been reading some fantasy genre book reviews on Goodreads the past couple of days, what with trying to inspire myself to write for the geekday event.

Some reviewer had written what I thought was a very insightful, positive review on a book I like which could make me believe that he and I have similar tastes. Then I read another of his reviews for a more popular and successful book (which I also like) and this reviewer trashed it.

My conclusion being that as long as someone is giving their honest assessment (no matter whether it is popular or even coherent) then that is all that matters. Unless someone is being a troll just to be a troll then just take it for what its worth - an opinion. Doesn't mean that a reader is right about how they see your character/story and you need to change anything but its still nice to see what people think.

 

[ThatsTheGuy]

I started a thread in the Story Feedback forum about my series, Mary and Alvin. Another author gave their view and in my view, they wildly misinterpreted one of the main characters. The person they read had virtually no resemblance to the one I wrote. Or, I should probably say, the one I thought I wrote.

I think they were wrong, and I was right, and the reaction of readers has, in my view, vindicated my position. But the fact that they gave me that negative feedback has made me think more carefully about how I present my characters, and consider ways that what I write can be misread. Feedback is a useful tool, it's up to you to decide if you want to use it or not.

Maybe that author was thinking about the chipmunks? Or a predetermined mind set? Interpretations vary from person to person. If the majority seem to agree in a way you intended, I'd say you've accomplished whatever you intended.

I get defensive about some of my characters. Most are intentional, others are simply fillers as a means to an end.

 

[ThatsTheGuy]

I've been reading some fantasy genre book reviews on Goodreads the past couple of days, what with trying to inspire myself to write for the geekday event.

Some reviewer had written what I thought was a very insightful, positive review on a book I like which could make me believe that he and I have similar tastes. Then I read another of his reviews for a more popular and successful book (which I also like) and this reviewer trashed it.

My conclusion being that as long as someone is giving their honest assessment (no matter whether it is popular or even coherent) then that is all that matters. Unless someone is being a troll just to be a troll then just take it for what its worth - an opinion. Doesn't mean that a reader is right about how they see your character/story and you need to change anything but its still nice to see what people think.

Word.

 

[MelissaBaby]

Maybe that author was thinking about the chipmunks? Or a predetermined mind set? Interpretations vary from person to person. If the majority seem to agree in a way you intended, I'd say you've accomplished whatever you intended.

I get defensive about some of my characters. Most are intentional, others are simply fillers as a means to an end.

I give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it was an honest interpretation of the character. But, yes, all the chapters in the series have gotten very good ratings, so I can also assume the majority of readers did not agree with his view.