Winter Holiday 2024 Contest Support and Seasonal Story Discussion Thread

[TheLobster]

Can anyone explain why a reader would mark a story as a favorite but NOT give it a star rating?

Very frustrating....

I've told that the notification "X has favorited your story" may actually mean it's been added to user's custom list and not actually favorited. So perhaps that's what's the case there.

 

[RBeemer]

I've told that the notification "X has favorited your story" may actually mean it's been added to user's custom list and not actually favorited. So perhaps that's what's the case there.

That makes a lot of sense. Thanks!

 

[AlexFourways]

That makes a lot of sense. Thanks!

I was curious about favourites and lists and if you look on your home page under Reading Lists you have Favourites and (two) Read Later - plus the option to create more - but also Favourites. I'm not sure if Favourites get counted twice. Evidence of things having evolved over the years rather than designed.

 

[Aoife_from_Ulster]

Some readers treat Favorites as a To Be Read Later list. They'll subsequently unmark it after they've read it.

Honestly there are so many stories at times, given the season, where I just do not get to all of them but I want to read them. I am sort of lazy and mark them as a fav and then go back to read them. Easier than remembering and finding the story later.

If this is bad please let me know. I do not mean to be ill-willed toward an author.

 

[NotWise]

Honestly there are so many stories at times, given the season, where I just do not get to all of them but I want to read them. I am sort of lazy and mark them as a fav and then go back to read them. Easier than remembering and finding the story later.

If this is bad please let me know. I do not mean to be ill-willed toward an author.

It isn't bad. Until the last few years "Favorites" were the only way the site let you bookmark stories. The newer lists are ways to organize your bookmarks. Maybe some users are learning to use lists, but Favorites is still the easiest solution for the basic problem.

 

[RBeemer]

Honestly there are so many stories at times, given the season, where I just do not get to all of them but I want to read them. I am sort of lazy and mark them as a fav and then go back to read them. Easier than remembering and finding the story later.

If this is bad please let me know. I do not mean to be ill-willed toward an author.

Not a problem at all. I just didn't understand and now I do. It's all good.

 

[Actingup]

If I submit a story tonight, what are the chances it's published in time to be entered for the contest?

Excellent IMHO. I had a turnaround of less than 8 hours between submission and approval earlier this week. You've got until midnight on 6 December US EST time to submit. You've still got time to make sure it's a high quality submission rather than a rushed submission. Make sure you proof read, spent time on formatting, check the contest rules, and in general make it an easy story to approve. Don't use any AI tools as they do a ruthless AI check. And think about how you're going to engage your readers so that you can get your minimum 25 votes quickly.

Edit: just looked at your published work - you're not going to have any trouble sailing through the above steps in my opinion

 

[Actingup]

140 stories. Sixteen more would equal the 2023 record (for the past ten years). I can't find any stats older than that.

 

[TPS23]

After months of writing, I submitted my contest entry on Monday. Unfortunately, it got flagged for suspected AI use. I've re-submitted with an expanded admin note, and hope it will be reconsidered, but I'm not sure it will make it in.

Unpleasantly, the rejection seemed to trigger a chain reaction, with my other stories (previously published without issue) being retrospectively rejected for the same reason. It all happened within a few minutes, so surely automated. Has anyone seen that before? I've messaged Laurel.

 

[AlexFourways]

Excellent IMHO. I had a turnaround of less than 8 hours between submission and approval earlier this week. You've got until midnight on 6 December US EST time to submit. You've still got time to make sure it's a high quality submission rather than a rushed submission. Make sure you proof read, spent time on formatting, check the contest rules, and in general make it an easy story to approve. Don't use any AI tools as they do a ruthless AI check. And think about how you're going to engage your readers so that you can get your minimum 25 votes quickly.

Edit: just looked at your published work - you're not going to have any trouble sailing through the above steps in my opinion

On proof read (as I and StillStunned have said often) if nothing else, use a screen reader - I use Word's as it finds whist where you meant whilst and if you know it's whilst, you mind will read whist as whilst!

 

[Actingup]

After months of writing, I submitted my contest entry on Monday. Unfortunately, it got flagged for suspected AI use. I've re-submitted with an expanded admin note, and hope it will be reconsidered, but I'm not sure it will make it in.

Unpleasantly, the rejection seemed to trigger a chain reaction, with my other stories (previously published without issue) being retrospectively rejected for the same reason. It all happened within a few minutes, so surely automated. Has anyone seen that before? I've messaged Laurel.

That is more than unpleasant. Retrospective rejection of your other stories? Urgh.
There are lots of AI threads - eg https://forum.literotica.com/threads/the-ai-rejection-conversation-matters.1607870/
I haven't been keeping up with them but maybe this should be raised there? I'm starting to think that we should be submitting our stories using punch cards only.

 

[NotWise]

Did someone put a lid on the ballot box? I get addicted to the steady stream of new votes, but my story hasn't had a new vote since early yesterday. I'm feeling the withdrawal symptoms.

 

[SouthernCrossfire]

Voting on mine is still open but it's about to fall off the category New list and views and votes have already slowed to a trickle; being on the contest list doesn't help as much as it used to due to the large number of entries.

On mine, there have been about six new votes since yesterday morning (out of over 350 total). At this pace by the time the contest ends, this will be my second lowest number of views in a contest (even fewer than the last time that happened). Unfortunately, unlike the last time when I was concerned about such few views, this story got blasted so hard after the first 100 votes that it doesn't look like it might have a chance to be in contention.

 

[RBeemer]

Did someone put a lid on the ballot box? I get addicted to the steady stream of new votes, but my story hasn't had a new vote since early yesterday. I'm feeling the withdrawal symptoms.

That's partly why I was wondering about the Favorites! I've gotten several of those but not many votes.

Weird.

 

[Jorunn]

I submitted my second contest story today, A Cowgurlz Christmas. For some reason, I thought the deadline was December 11th! Yikes! Double checking the Heading to use in the Notes section saved me, this time.

 

[Inkent]

And in! Hoping Killer Chris Crimble makes it in time, another attempt at a bit of romance but with a very light dusting of loving wife for good measure. Next stop is a personal challenge to write a story in exactly 2025 words centred around the New Year's celebrations. You can guess what I'll be hopefully cracked into tomorrow

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

And in! Hoping Killer Chris Crimble makes it in time, another attempt at a bit of romance but with a very light dusting of loving wife for good measure. Next stop is a personal challenge to write a story in exactly 2025 words centred around the New Year's celebrations. You can guess what I'll be hopefully cracked into tomorrow

That would be an interesting challenge for January. You should start a new thread around the idea. I'll play...
@StillStunned, You love things like this. What say you?

 

[Morevinila]

That would be an interesting challenge for January. You should start a new thread around the idea. I'll play...
@StillStunned, You love things like this. What say you?

Talking of new challenges and before this thread gets dormant, @FreyaGersemi , @AlexFourways , what about that interesting idea of characters and/or authors meeting at a Literotica conference in a hotel? That could be a long-term feature with authors adding their own stories as they get their inspiration (maybe from the first stories submitted) or a recurrent event with a deadline each time. It would be an interesting challenge to use a character created by another writer and place him/her in a story while keeping the personality the original creator gave him/her. Of course, some rules need to be set down like getting permission from the original author to use his/her character.

 

[Actingup]

10 more. We've hit the big 150.


In a spirit of mischief, I asked Microsoft's copilot to write a poem celebrating the occasion. That's another half a litre of the world's water wasted. I'll rate it a 3 out of 5, but I've sung worse carols.

150 Saucy Tales of Winter

In winter’s realm, where passions blend,

A storytelling band that knows no end.

Creating magic with a saucy flair,

In this literary land, we dare.

Let’s raise a toast to stories bold,

To dreams and wishes, heated and cold,

One hundred fifty voices unfold,

In a celebration, rich and gold.

In the heart of winter’s chill and thrill,

Literotica shines, giving quite a fill,

A beacon of stories, spiced and still,

Celebrating tales with a saucy quill.

From firesides warm and cozy light,

To starry skies on a sultry night,

Each tale crafted, oh so tight,

In Literotica’s flair, delight.

Characters in festive cheer,

Whispers of joy, seduction near,

Lovers meet, and bonds endear,

Through words that bring them oh so clear.

Snowmen built with hands so bright,

Candles flicker through the night,

Gifts exchanged with hearts alight,

Dreams woven in the moonlight.

Reindeer soar through starlit skies,

Echoes of laughter, joyful cries,

A tapestry where fiction lies,

Imagination's wondrous rise.

So here’s to the authors, bold and grand,

Who penned these tales by loving hand,

In winter’s realm, a storytelling band,

Creating magic in this literary land.

Let’s raise a toast to stories shared,

To dreams and wishes, deeply paired,

One hundred fifty voices dared,

In a celebration that’s truly ensnared.

In the heart of winter's chill and grace,

Literotica shines in its special place,

A beacon of stories, joy, and space,

Celebrating tales of winter’s embrace.

 

[FreyaGersemi]

150!! Wow!!!

 

[FreyaGersemi]

Talking of new challenges and before this thread gets dormant, @FreyaGersemi , @AlexFourways , what about that interesting idea of characters and/or authors meeting at a Literotica conference in a hotel? That could be a long-term feature with authors adding their own stories as they get their inspiration (maybe from the first stories submitted) or a recurrent event with a deadline each time. It would be an interesting challenge to use a character created by another writer and place him/her in a story while keeping the personality the original creator gave him/her. Of course, some rules need to be set down like getting permission from the original author to use his/her character.

Okay. Let me think about how to go about this and I'll start a thread and we'll see where it goes!!

 

[Actingup]

Okay. Let me think about how to go about this and I'll start a thread and we'll see where it goes!!

It would be a fun exercise. I know I should save this for the thread, but could I suggest a resort rather than a hotel? So that there's lots of scope for outdoor activities: snorkeling, beach, extreme sports, abandoned mine shafts, etc. The physical layout of the resort could be reasonably well defined for internal consistency, together with peculiar features like the lift that always breaks down, the disused basement with the rather interesting old gym equipment, the smuggler's cave, the clearing in the forest where the aliens land...

 

[FreyaGersemi]

It would be a fun exercise. I know I should save this for the thread, but could I suggest a resort rather than a hotel? So that there's lots of scope for outdoor activities: snorkeling, beach, extreme sports, abandoned mine shafts, etc. The physical layout of the resort could be reasonably well defined for internal consistency, together with peculiar features like the lift that always breaks down, the disused basement with the rather interesting old gym equipment, the smuggler's cave, the clearing in the forest where the aliens land...

Here's the thread: https://forum.literotica.com/threads/2025-virtual-literotica-conference-story-idea.1623589/

I thought of that, but made it a hotel to keep things a little more confined. But, of course, there are really no other constraints. I don't like creative rules -- just set your mind free!!! So, although it's technically a hotel, that does not preclude any of the activities and/or settings that you described. There could be "excursions" or there could be an abandoned mine shaft a couple blocks over. Whatever!

 

[RBeemer]

Can we talk about some of the stories in the contest?

All I Want for Christmas C'est Toi by Redgarters is fantastic! My stories don't have a chance against this one.

Which is your favorite? Don't pick your own....

 

[Inkent]

Can we talk about some of the stories in the contest?

All I Want for Christmas C'est Toi by Redgarters is fantastic! My stories don't have a chance against this one.

Just read it. A superb piece of well-written erotica.