Unhelpful criticism

[IWroteThis]

I judge intent from simple observation of their actions, which are clear here. Saying a story is just nasty can't come from good intentions. That's not possible.

So, by that amazing logic, saying a comment is shitty can't come from good intentions.

Therefore, you are exactly what you are ranting about.

 

[Stanfield2025]

So, by that amazing logic, saying a comment is shitty can't come from good intentions.

Therefore, you are exactly what you are ranting about.

Not really, because the context is completely different. My intentions are to support the OP by making a point I believe. I find those intentions to be good, because I'm helping OP understand that the comment is not to be taken seriously. This is different from the comment's intentions. So no, the "you are what you're ranting about" doesn't apply at all.

Even if my intentions weren't good, that's completely irrelevant to the conversation anyway. I've no idea why you're trying to make it about me.

 

[Actingup]

It doesn't matter whether he sincerely believes it. It's not meant to help the author. Maybe it's not bad faith, but it's shitty. Therefore I have no respect for it. And the author ought to have no respect for it. There aren't good intentions behind it, therefore it's a comment worthy of dismissal.

One of the good things about posting a story in LW is that it helps you toughen up. The comment in question is very mild in relative terms and also tells you clearly what a dedicated reader thought of the story. I’ve had very negative and very positive comments from him and happy to see either. Often he will go into more detail.

Just treat it as a data point, which in itself can be helpful. Lots of people have said ‘meh’, and this one took the trouble to write to you. Be grateful for his time.

 

[Stanfield2025]

One of the good things about posting a story in LW is that it helps you toughen up. The comment in question is very mild in relative terms and also tells you clearly what a dedicated reader thought of the story. I’ve had very negative and very positive comments from him and happy to see either. Often he will go into more detail.

Just treat it as a data point, which in itself can be helpful. Lots of people have said ‘meh’, and this one took the trouble to write to you. Be grateful for his time.

Can't disagree. Like I implied, I am grateful for the shitty comment in my story because it was a useful data point, even if I don't respect the comment or the person who left it.

 

[IWroteThis]

Not really.

Yes, really. You don't get to excuse your own bad behavior just because you feel entitled to make up the rules.

My intentions are to support the OP by making a point I believe. I find those intentions to be good, because I'm helping OP understand that the comment is not to be taken seriously.

Well, while you might feel that you are entitled to determine the intent of both yourself and everybody else, it doesn't actually work that way. It's kind of sad, actually, if you really think you're helping the OP.

This is different from the comment's intentions. So no, the "you are what you're ranting about" doesn't apply at all.

It's really not any different. The intent behind making a comment is the intent behind making a comment, no matter where that comment is made. So, yes, it does apply.

Even if my intentions weren't good, that's completely irrelevant to the conversation anyway.

That's funny, as you are the one who claimed that intentions were important.

 

[Stanfield2025]

Yes, really. You don't get to excuse your own bad behavior just because you feel entitled to make up the rules.

I didn't make up any rules, I simply stated my opinions.

It's really not any different. The intent behind making a comment is the intent behind making a comment, no matter where that comment is made. So, yes, it does apply.

I get your point here, but the context is still completely different. My intent is pretty obvious in the remarks I've made. I've taken the time to explain specific things. I've justified my positions. But if it's less obvious then those people can feel free to say I'm shitty. Doesn't really bother me. In response, I can clarify my position and intentions. To be a bit more specific, it's the disrespect inherent in the comment that matters. If I was to make a comment under an author's story saying that their story is worth less than toilet paper, there is no world in which that's respectful. We all are obligated to be respectful toward each other unless there's an extremely good reason not to be.

Like I said, I've expressed my dislike for stories in a respectful manner, even if it didn't make the author feel good. I've had people express dislike for my story in a way that didn't feel good but I could recognize that the reader was being respectful. So I respected them. I hope that as an author, you're not just accepting basic disrespect from unpleasant readers or thinking you deserve the disrespect. It would unironically make me sad if you are.

That's funny, as you are the one who claimed that intentions were important.

The comment's intentions are important because that's the original topic of this conversation. My intentions are less important because that's not the original topic of the conversation. Whether I'm a shitty commenter is a different conversation.

 

[IWroteThis]

It's not meant to help the author.

I know this one trips up a lot of people, so let me remind you that comments are not just for the author. If they were, they wouldn't appear on the public version of the story. Instead, they would only be visible in the author's control panel. The same is true for ratings. They are displayed publicly because they are intended for the public.

There are more who use the ratings, but there are still a lot of people who check the comments to decide if a story is worth reading. So, a comment that informs those potential readers is useful, even if it doesn't help the author.

 

[SimonDoom]

It took him four dogged years to track down one of my tales and finally deal it a lethal blow.

by 26thNC on 04/25/2020
Jim the cuck enjoys his whorewife after her gangbang. Lowest of the low.

by You on 04/26/2020

Endorsed!
Finally, four years later, my story gets dissed by 26thNC. The stamp of quality...

You must be proud!

 

[RetroFan]

If you create fiction of any kind and put it out in the public domain, then you have to accept that you are going to receive criticism and that some of it is going to be negative. Or that your work might simply be overlooked and flop.

This reminds me of an awful trend in the past decade, where creators of or producers, directors and actors from movies or TV shows that rated poorly or received adverse feedback go onto social media or during interviews respond negatively back to critics and audiences who have given these works negative reviews or simply did not bother watching them. What a great business and PR strategy. Box office bomb Supergirl was a good recent example of this and there are too many others to list here.

So while it might be disappointing to work hard on a story but for it to be met with negative feedback my advice is you do not respond negatively back to the readers who left them, learn from any criticism that might be valid, suck it up and move on.

 

[Stanfield2025]

It took him four dogged years to track down one of my tales and finally deal it a lethal blow.

by 26thNC on 04/25/2020
Jim the cuck enjoys his whorewife after her gangbang. Lowest of the low.

by You on 04/26/2020

Endorsed!
Finally, four years later, my story gets dissed by 26thNC. The stamp of quality...

Y'know, if I got a comment making fun of my main characters I wouldn't even see it as a diss to the story. That commenter sees Jim as the lowest of the low. That's a strong opinion on a character, which implies intense engagement even if it's not the opinion you hoped the reader would have. Unironically I'd want to get a comment like that.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

Never lose sleep over a comment from somebody from whom you wouldn’t have asked for an opinion in the first place.

Putting it another way, even Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel brought criticism.

Or, in the world according to Garfield, “It’s not he jumps in the road of life I find annoying, it’s the dips.”

 

[WendyTrilby]

I will never criticize another writer's work. Ever. If I make a comment (I make very few), it's because their story worked. I will never point out editing errors, logic errors, syntax, nothing. A story is a story, and if it works for me, 5 stars. If it doesn't work for me, I don't vote for it. I can't hurt anyone that way.

 

[Katie_Mae]

Does anyone else get super aggravated by unhelpful negative feedback?

Mostly on other authors' stories though.
Eg there's a German author who wrote a story set in the same city she lives in... in Germany.
During the course of the story a character takes an elevator-- as you do-- to get to a high floor in a building.
The unhelpful negative feedback? They don't have elevators in Germany.

When it gets done to me I usually think it's more funny. Like the person who corrected me that (under)pants are only every outerwear. But when directed at other people I get mad on behalf off.

 

[TheLobster]

They don't have elevators in Germany.

Why the side eye? It’s true; they don’t have elevators, they have Leuteaufziehenverkrampftschwerwagens.

 

[Djmac1031]

Does anyone else get super aggravated by unhelpful negative feedback?
I have a lot of stories in me, it's just taking some time to put them together and write them. I used to have a bunch on sex stories dot com under a different name but I had them deleted.
In any case, I write a story, make sure I tag everything accordingly so someone who isn't interested in something doesn't wander in accidentally, and still I get this comment: “That was just nasty, and not good nasty at all.” by a reader who has no published stories.
WTF?
It's not helpful, it pisses me off, and it makes me want to use my computer skills to hunt this person down and terrorize them. But I won't, because I'm trying to be a nice guy.
I welcome feedback, even negative feedback, if I can learn something from it, but a comment like that I can't do anything with except stew in my anger.
OK end of rant.

https://imgur.com/a/NbXKi0Z

 

[Djmac1031]

In his defense, he’s one of the loyal regulars who reads EVERYTHING there daily. So, no matter what you post, he'll be there reading it.

funny, because i went and looked and sure enough he commented on a 750 word LW story I posted several months ago.

it wasn't a negative comment so... win?

 

[secrettreasures]

It's always good to be less of a troll than the people you're complaining about.

As far as your Loving Wives story is concerned, know that negative feedback is par for the course in the category. If you're sensitive to it, then don't post stories there.

Tags are used by readers trying to find a story, but if they find your story on the New list, through the category hub, or even through your public profile then they may never see the tags. If your story includes polarizing content, then its pretty inevitable that you'll offend some readers.

We put ourselves out there with the stories, and it would be great if the feedback were always constructive, but that's not how people work. You need to grow a thick skin.

as someone late to this conversation and also still fairly new to Lit, what is it about that category that draws such ire from readers? I haven't published anything there myself. I was thinking about it for my next story, but now I'm feeling like maybe I shouldn't.

 

[NotWise]

as someone late to this conversation and also still fairly new to Lit, what is it about that category that draws such ire from readers? I haven't published anything there myself. I was thinking about it for my next story, but now I'm feeling like maybe I shouldn't.

Each category has a different community of readers with their own norms. The norms in LW are unique.

The LW community may include a lot men who feel like they were burned in past relationships, and that drives their opinions--at least, that's what I've been told by people more familiar with that crowd. There's probably more to it than that, but that alone explains the burn-the-bitch faction in that crowd, and that seems to be where a lot of the negativity comes from.

 

[secrettreasures]

Does anyone else get super aggravated by unhelpful negative feedback?
I have a lot of stories in me, it's just taking some time to put them together and write them. I used to have a bunch on sex stories dot com under a different name but I had them deleted.
In any case, I write a story, make sure I tag everything accordingly so someone who isn't interested in something doesn't wander in accidentally, and still I get this comment: “That was just nasty, and not good nasty at all.” by a reader who has no published stories.
WTF?
It's not helpful, it pisses me off, and it makes me want to use my computer skills to hunt this person down and terrorize them. But I won't, because I'm trying to be a nice guy.
I welcome feedback, even negative feedback, if I can learn something from it, but a comment like that I can't do anything with except stew in my anger.
OK end of rant.

I'm glad we got a lot of enlightened individuals in this here chat who are above it all, but I just wanted to say: I feel your pain, CIMLover. Look. I know haters are gonna hate, and I know we have to have thick skins and all that. But I also think it's okay to get angry, frustrated, or annoyed when you get an ignorant or unhelpful comment from a mouthbreather. You don't have to make excuses or justify how you feel. And I'm glad you came here to rant about it.
So, I just want to be that friend who says: That sucks. I'm sorry that happened to you.

 

[secrettreasures]

Each category has a different community of readers with their own norms. The norms in LW are unique.

The LW community may include a lot men who feel like they were burned in past relationships, and that drives their opinions--at least, that's what I've been told by people more familiar with that crowd. There's probably more to it than that, but that alone explains the burn-the-bitch faction in that crowd, and that seems to be where a lot of the negativity comes from.

Got it. Thank you.

 

[CalBishForNow]

as someone late to this conversation and also still fairly new to Lit, what is it about that category that draws such ire from readers? I haven't published anything there myself. I was thinking about it for my next story, but now I'm feeling like maybe I shouldn't.

It's a catch-all for at least two different audiences. (And of course I'm sure someone will be along in a minute to add at least four more than this.)

1. People with a kink for married extramarital sex. Even that could be many different categories if you really wanted to break it down: mostly monogamous couples that have the occasional fling/threesome could be separate from regular swingers could be separate from hotwives could be separate from cuckoldry/cuckqueanry with a humiliating aspect.
2. People who want to see traditional monogamy vindicated. That's at least two camps too, people who want to read about hot sex involving married and only married people, and people who don't even care about hot sex, they just want to see cheaters punished.

Needless to say, fans of one won't enjoy a story aimed at the other. For more, Loving Loving Wives is a popular essay about the history of the category.

 

[secrettreasures]

It's a catch-all for at least two different audiences. (And of course I'm sure someone will be along in a minute to add at least four more than this.)

1. People with a kink for married extramarital sex. Even that could be many different categories if you really wanted to break it down: mostly monogamous couples that have the occasional fling/threesome could be separate from regular swingers could be separate from hotwives could be separate from cuckoldry/cuckqueanry with a humiliating aspect.
2. People who want to see traditional monogamy vindicated. That's at least two camps too, people who want to read about hot sex involving married and only married people, and people who don't even care about hot sex, they just want to see cheaters punished.

Needless to say, fans of one won't enjoy a story aimed at the other. For more, Loving Loving Wives is a popular essay about the history of the category.

Much obliged! Heading off to read that essay now.

 

[JuicyLittleKitty]

Does anyone else get super aggravated by unhelpful negative feedback?
I have a lot of stories in me, it's just taking some time to put them together and write them. I used to have a bunch on sex stories dot com under a different name but I had them deleted.
In any case, I write a story, make sure I tag everything accordingly so someone who isn't interested in something doesn't wander in accidentally, and still I get this comment: “That was just nasty, and not good nasty at all.” by a reader who has no published stories.
WTF?
It's not helpful, it pisses me off, and it makes me want to use my computer skills to hunt this person down and terrorize them. But I won't, because I'm trying to be a nice guy.
I welcome feedback, even negative feedback, if I can learn something from it, but a comment like that I can't do anything with except stew in my anger.
OK end of rant.

 

[JuicyLittleKitty]

Does anyone else get super aggravated by unhelpful negative feedback?
I have a lot of stories in me, it's just taking some time to put them together and write them. I used to have a bunch on sex stories dot com under a different name but I had them deleted.
In any case, I write a story, make sure I tag everything accordingly so someone who isn't interested in something doesn't wander in accidentally, and still I get this comment: “That was just nasty, and not good nasty at all.” by a reader who has no published stories.
WTF?
It's not helpful, it pisses me off, and it makes me want to use my computer skills to hunt this person down and terrorize them. But I won't, because I'm trying to be a nice guy.
I welcome feedback, even negative feedback, if I can learn something from it, but a comment like that I can't do anything with except stew in my anger.
OK end of rant.

You put your heart and soul into something and someone rocks up who shoots holes in it. In this case, they didn't. They just said it was 'bad nasty". I would have asked the person what was nasty as it would be a great help. However, set that aside and don't bother hunting them down. They aren't worth it. Life will deal with them and they probably eat a bag of extra sour lemons for breakfast every day.

Why do people write - either they are full of hubris or they write because they have to. In the same way, the wind has to blow and fires have to burn. Regardless of the genre, most writers write about their experiences either autobiographical or their observations. They often do poorly to begin with until they have developed their specific "voice". Artists have to develop theirs too. Then there is the green eyed monster. That little serpent of jealousy that can't bear someone's gifts. They may struggle to write a shopping list let alone a story.

So, chin up, best foot forward and all that. And go knock 'em dead.

 

[secrettreasures]

It's a catch-all for at least two different audiences. (And of course I'm sure someone will be along in a minute to add at least four more than this.)

1. People with a kink for married extramarital sex. Even that could be many different categories if you really wanted to break it down: mostly monogamous couples that have the occasional fling/threesome could be separate from regular swingers could be separate from hotwives could be separate from cuckoldry/cuckqueanry with a humiliating aspect.
2. People who want to see traditional monogamy vindicated. That's at least two camps too, people who want to read about hot sex involving married and only married people, and people who don't even care about hot sex, they just want to see cheaters punished.

Needless to say, fans of one won't enjoy a story aimed at the other. For more, Loving Loving Wives is a popular essay about the history of the category.

that essay was incredible, btw. thank you.