pippychick

I've got to admit, I like praise and admiration (who doesn't?), and I like concrit just as much really, once I've had time to think about it.
But...
The reviews I adore are those that are a clear emotional response to what I've written. They're not always "good" reviews, since I have been known to write some rather horrific things. My favourite ever was quite long and the reviewer was sorry they had read the story, because they couldn't get it out of their mind, but they did acknowledge they'd been warned, and decided to ignore it, and then were subsequently afflicted by the horror and the atmosphere. *nods* I like those kind. It meant I did the job right for that person, regardless whether they "enjoyed" it or not.
Likewise, when I've written things I consider to be comedies, and someone says they laughed. They're good, too.
I suppose what I'm saying is that for me, the aim of all writing is to make the reader feel things, and if I get some indication I did that accurately, I'm really happy.

I've got to admit, I like praise and admiration (who doesn't?), and I like concrit just as much really, once I've had time to think about it.
But...
The reviews I adore are those that are a clear emotional response to what I've written. They're not always "good" reviews, since I have been known to write some rather horrific things. My favourite ever was quite long and the reviewer was sorry they had read the story, because they couldn't get it out of their mind, but they did acknowledge they'd been warned, and decided to ignore it, and then were subsequently afflicted by the horror and the atmosphere. *nods* I like those kind. It meant I did the job right for that person, regardless whether they "enjoyed" it or not.
Likewise, when I've written things I consider to be comedies, and someone says they laughed. They're good, too.
I suppose what I'm saying is that for me, the aim of all writing is to make the reader feel things, and if I get some indication I did that accurately, I'm really happy.

I like constructive criticism, although I'll never turn down glowing praise. I might blush a little, but I do like it. What.s really, REALLY useful is knowing what worked for readers, and what didn't. My editor was all bothered by one review on Goodreads, where the reader felt I could have done more character development in my debut novella. And you know what? That reader had a valid point. I don't see that as a negative, because it tells me what I need to do better. The reader did go on to say that they were looking forward to the second book. Let's hope I did better, but if not, that's still valid from that reader's perspective, and I'm not crushed to be told that.
I don't worry so much about long or short, or if it's one returning reviewer or many reviewers. When I write online, either is fine. When I publish, I get one shot at a review, so it's not an issue.

Constructive Criticism is probably best for me, pointing out things like missing words and incorrectly chosen words (the stuff that spell checkers don't pick up and I haven't noticed on my own check through), although "I came over your story" and "X part was hot because Y" is always nice when it is porn, and slightly confusing when it isn't.
But I'll take pretty much anything.

Hi guys,
I'm just wondering. We writers know it's hard to get reviews here, especially detailed ones that are clearly personalised to the exact stories we've posted up (ie., more specific than just, 'plz rite moar'.
I'm just wondering: if you could get the reviews you crave, what sorts would you want:
Glowing praise and encouragement?
Constructive criticism?
A mix of both?
Short and sweet reviews?
Long reviews? (and what does 'long' mean to you?)
Lots of reviews from one-time reviewers?
A series of reviews from the same reviewer who keeps coming back?
Do you like having a breakdown of your spelling and grammatical errors in reviews, or does it annoy you when that happens?
What else do you look for in reviews?
Just wonderin'!

It's way in the future, right?
"The JayDee Memorial Planetary Research Center"

This is a job... for COSMO:
http://www.cosmopolitan.com/sex-love/advice/a6896/cervical-orgasm-guide/
Anything beyond that is gonna be, from your male perspective, like putting your balls in a mincer and slowly turning the handle while listening to a deaf guy whistle.
As for the horror story, fuck it, just shove it right through there and make a point of noting the blood and agony and pissing self with excruciating pain. It's all good.
...What? I'm JayDee, damn it...

Somewhere my mother has a pile of school exercise books from when I was around seven or eight, full of stories about alien abduction and criminal overuse of the word 'suddenly'
Every now and again, an anguished cry echoes through England as I lose access to another hard drive, though to be fair it's been a few years since the last time that happened.
I've lost more work than I can bring to mind, and more than I want to remember, but I do still mourn the loss of an SPN/Torchwood crossover I was working on years ago that I never posted.

Somewhere my mother has a pile of school exercise books from when I was around seven or eight, full of stories about alien abduction and criminal overuse of the word 'suddenly'
Every now and again, an anguished cry echoes through England as I lose access to another hard drive, though to be fair it's been a few years since the last time that happened.
I've lost more work than I can bring to mind, and more than I want to remember, but I do still mourn the loss of an SPN/Torchwood crossover I was working on years ago that I never posted.

I've read it for you, Bronx, and to be honest, you kept the same rugged flavor that caught my imagination in the first short novel in tact. Second novels rarely live up to the first novel's potential. The fact that you maintained the ancient cultural hints and capitalized on them made the story. Seeing the undertones of prejudice and fear of knowledge was very believable. SO yeah, it was a great reading story due to those nuances.

I'll just point out here that everyone should buy this book. It's got everything you want. It has all the best bits of sci-fi, fantasy, magic, m/m romance, and it's a great story!
Oh - and there's witches!
And snow!
It's a wonderful read, and if you haven't read the first one - where have you been? You really should do that right now.

More shameless self promotion...

***New M/M Fantasy Romance*** Ghost's Dilemma by Morwen Navarre February 4, 2015
"I'm leaving my village in a crisis and walking out on my alpha and mate. I won't be forgiven."
A fierce male witch is torn from his protective lover's bed to face down a deadly threat. A spellbinding tale of devotion and love.
Goodreads http://goo.gl/aaXfkB
***Now available for pre-order on Torquere Books http://goo.gl/Ngn2xU***
You're Invited to the Launch Party Feb 5 http://goo.gl/UzyNkn
Ghost's Sight Book #1 is on sale for $0.99 for a limited time on Torque Books. http://goo.gl/w1WDRL but Book #2 Ghost's Dilemma can be read as a stand alone.
Pinterest http://goo.gl/z10TuP
Win an ecopy or a $25 Gift Card
Raffle#1 http://goo.gl/0LubX9
Raffle#2 http://goo.gl/3ZXAZC
Ghost's Dilemma (Ghost's Sight #2) Ghost is content to spend all his time in bed with his new mate. Being claimed by Gerry, his virile and possessive alpha, has brought Gho... Save GOODREADS.COM

As a PWP writer, I say stretch that fucker 'til it snaps.
But I may be a minority.

I read a Guy N. Smith novel that went a bit like that once. The eighties were great for horror. Now... *growls and grumbles*

I've noticed a really weird trend in the fan fiction world, and it's utterly baffling to me. I'm talking about the fan fiction reader who doesn't write, themselves, but seems to think that all fan fiction should be tailored specifically to their tastes. They go on public forums and post things like, "Here are the things I hate about fan fiction stories!" and then proceed to make a long list of things they dislike seeing in fan fiction, implying that these things should never be "allowed" in any fan fiction publication. These are the same people who will write reviews saying, "Ew, gross! This is disgusting, why would you even write this?" even when the story was clearly tagged.
I don't get this mindset at all. It's such a weird sort of entitlement.
"How dare these authors spend their valuable time creating stories that they don't get paid for, and then post them online for me to read absolutely for free! They should magically know what I want and write only that! It's such a waste of my time to have to scroll through stories that don't interest me! All these authors I don't like should gtfo because I DESERVE BETTER!"
Here's what I have to say to these readers:
Why do you think you deserve better? Even if the story is the stupidest thing ever written.... It's free. What are you offering in exchange for the author's hard work that's supposed to be so valuable that it will motivate them to want to write something you personally will like? Obviously it's not money, because in most cases, fan fiction readers don't make the "leap" to purchasing original fiction by their favorite authors. They're hard-core freebie-seekers. And it's sure as hell not attention, because fan fiction authors just don't really get much of that either (have you ever calculated the average review per hit ratio? It's abysmal.).
What exactly do these readers think authors get out of writing fan fiction? Are we supposed to magically know that they're reading and enjoying it, and be spiritually fulfilled by the knowledge that some schmuck in Idaho thinks we "write good smut"? Why do they suppose we are doing this, if it's not for attention or money?
Reality check: Most authors are just writing stories to entertain themselves, because anything else would be an exercise in constant disappointment. We share our stories online out of the goodness of our heart because what the hell? It's already written and maybe someone, somewhere will derive some enjoyment from it... Some of us listen to feedback if it's given, but by the time the story gets posted, we've already received our main "payment," because the fun of writing the story was the whole point for us.
Ultimately, we're writing for ourselves, not for the readers. If the readers happen to like it, that's just a nice bonus.
What some people don't seem to realize is that learning to write well is a HUGELY time-consuming endeavor that is very unlikely to ever "pay off." It's a labor of love. The very fact that anyone ever even tries to do it at all is pretty damn impressive, no matter how bad their attempts are.
Let's talk about what it REALLY takes to learn to write well, shall we? Because realistically, this is what you're expecting writers to do FOR FREE when you demand high quality fan fiction.
First, you have to spend literally years learning the nuts and bolts of your language (grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc). And just knowing what's correct isn't enough for fiction. You have to understand WHY it's considered correct, keep track of how the language is changing over time to be sure that your knowledge isn't out of date, and learn how to break the rules intelligently for artistic effect (to achieve effects such as unique voice, character dialects, etc.) Even things such as whether words are Germanic or Latin in origin is important (because Germanic words sound 'casual' and Latin words sound 'academic' and 'smart' and that makes a difference for how your work is perceived by the reader).
At the same time, you have to spend years reading and studying anything you can get your hands on. Being well-read from an author's perspective does not mean having read 100 books within your favorite genre. It means having read AND ANALYZED thousands of books, across all genres, both in fiction and nonfiction. It means reading books you don't like to try to figure out why other people like them. It means reading in genres you hate so that you can understand the perspectives of the types of people who may be the villains in your novels someday. You need to have not only read for enjoyment, but studied the structure, voice, use of dialogue, description, etc... Reading as a writer is hard work, and it takes a special kind of person to think of it as 'fun'.
And that's still not the end of it. Even a barely passable writer who has done none of this will at the very least have spent countless hours writing stories that will never see the light of day (expect perhaps in an online forum or critique group, since feedback can help writers get better...) And all of this is just the bare minimum of what is required to write basic commercial-style fiction. If you want to write something more "artistic" you have to go back and study the classics, and also keep track of what's being done in the lit fic world, so that you understand what has already been done and why it was unique or groundbreaking. Getting an MFA doesn't hurt, if this is the route you want to go (though it's by no means mandatory).
Now think about all that for a second. Knowing what is required for "good" writing, what does bitching about bad fan fiction contribute to this process? How does it help authors to write better stories (or even make them WANT to!)? It doesn't.
So let's talk about action steps.
Let's say that you really deeply do want to actually help promote good fan fiction. There are two main ways you can do it:
1) Provide substantive critiques for authors who want them.
Reviews help writers know that someone is enjoying their work, and even bad reviews can help a writer who is actively trying to get better. Hits don't count. Votes don't count. Reviews that say, "I like this, it's great!" don't count. All of these things are nice and will definitely give the writer the warm fuzzies (which is a very nice thing to do!), but it won't help them write better stories.
Here are some examples of what is helpful to a writer who is actively trying to improve:
"Chapter X made me feel ______. I liked it/didn't like it."
"I really liked the way you described _______. It was really beautiful, and did a great job evoking the atmosphere of the scene!"
"Man, that foreshadowing in Chapter 1 was really cool."
"I generally liked it, but this word wasn't used correctly. A better word might be ______."
"The way you wrote Character X's dialogue was really true to the source material. You captured his voice wonderfully."
"I was really interested in _____, but you never followed up on that. I was a little disappointed, because it was a neat idea and I was really looking forward to seeing where you went with that!"
"This line was hilarious/sexy/heart-breaking: _______. Good job!"
2) Support fan fiction authors whose work you enjoy.
Follow their work and read/review when they post something new. Let them know you like their work and want to see more of it. Subscribe to their stories if that's an option. Pay attention to whether they have published original fiction, and if they have... buy it, if you can scrape together the money! And then, tell your friends about their work.
In the end, the only truly reliable way to ensure that good artists continue to create their art is to support their career.

I just don't understand it at all. Here we are surrounded by near 8GB of hardcore man on man butt fucking action, male pregnancy, demonic tentacle rape, pony molestation, deep anal French kissing. sonic the hedgehog being used as toilet paper, torture, violence, sex outside marriage, romance and even a little foot fetishism, and you haven't been able to find more than two or three active Conservative Christians amongst the users of the forum!
What is the world coming to?

I'm really, terribly sorry for your losses, DemonGoddess and BronxWench. I am glad the hospice helped you out with it all though. It does get easier eventually, and I know that phrase gets thrown around a lot, but that doesn't make it any less true. I speak from experience. All of their good things still live on in you, and they don't fade.
Regarding the article (which is briliant, btw): I just wanted to say that it is now a proven fact that dogs have mirror neurons too. It must be why we two species' get along so well.
Mine have been sticking to me like velcro for the last day or two. I'd like to think it's because they care, and not because they're just waiting for me to have that one big accident that will mean they can eat me. Actually, now I've said that it is kind of suspicious that the greyhound hasn't been eating her breakfast... like she's holding out for something better...
Back to the topic, after reading what you wrote, I'm sure that whatever field you go into will benefit from having you involved in it. I've always thought a well-developed sense of empathy is one of the markers of a truly civilised and healthy society. It's important for everyone.

You know, there is no doubt that I definitely lean, and lean HARD to the left. However, that doesn't mean I'm intolerant, or that others are intolerant. That also doesn't mean all I do is bitch and not progress along with day to day to life. If that's what I did, I sure as hell wouldn't be working six to seven days a week, or any of the other things that I will do in my own life, as I'm sure that also applies to others posting.
What is a discussion topic, but an avenue to voice an opinion?
As to intolerance, I live in area which is, as much as I like it, still holds on to many intolerant views and viewpoints. Yet you will never hear ME or my children telling these others the same sort of intolerant viewpoints and insisting that the opinions we have are the only thoughts that should be voiced.
Generalization does you no favors in this discussion.

I already left. This is a spambot.
Click here to add inches to your penis.

Dear gods, love...
I vote Libre Office, by the way. Much more stable and better updates. It's able to read .doc and .docx, and can save in those formats as well as many more, and it's free. Completely and totally free. You can donate a small sum if you wish, to support their work, but they do not require that at all.
And we won't get me started on fascists or touchy-feeley liberal bastards who think being middle class is a crime.

While I normally would consider this a sort of baiting post, I'd like to take the time to address this.
First of all, I want to point out that this site is run and maintained by volunteers. None of us, including our owner and administrators, make one cent from what we do. Revenue generated by our advertising banners, and from the generous donations of those users who wish to help goes into paying the hosting costs for the site, and to pay for the code upgrades necessary to keep things moving smoothly. So, right from the start, the people working to maintain this site do it because we love AFF and what it stands for.
Having said that, we have a clearly written, plain English Terms of Service and Content Guidelines. We make the rules and expectations very clear. Since this is an adult site, we expect that our members, being adults, can read and comprehend those rules. They are few and quite simple. In the event that a member might not understand a rule, we have forums where they can ask us, and we are always happy to explain what we mean by a given rule. The rules are necessary so that the site can continue to exist. We are required to comply with the laws of our domicile, and it is the site's owner and administrators who stand to face the consequences if we don't enforce our rules. Jail time, fines, and lifetime registration as a sex offender are all potential consequences. I would strongly suggest that it is morally repugnant to expect anyone to face those consequences because another person doesn't want to observe clearly stated rules.
I will assure you that we do document infractions, and the methods are in keeping with the nature of the infraction. Given that we are human, it is inevitable that we will make a mistake from time to time. There is no absolute guarantee of infallibility promised, nor is that even remotely possible. If you believe we have warned you, or taken other action that was not correct, you would be better served by emailing us with facts to refute our conclusions.
To address moral standards, by what benchmark do you judge? How do you determine whether you are a more moral person than I, for example? You don't know me, and I don't know you. Therefore, that entire line of reasoning is specious and childish. If you question whether or not any staff member can behave badly with no consequences, we do have oversight at all levels. It is simply impossible for any moderator to apply warnings incorrectly without that error being caught. Moderators are supervised by the administrators, who are long-term staff members, who have written the rules and guidelines, and who insist that those rules and guidelines be implied impartially.
In short, you posture nicely, but you lack sufficient training in logic, or in classical rhetoric and grammar to make this debate sustainable.

For me writing fan fiction invariably starts with hearing dialogue. I've usually become inspired after immersing myself in whatever the canon is. If it's a visual canon like a film or television series, the voices are even clearer, and I'm aware that I will both consciously and unconsciously add in little mannerisms that the actors bring to their characters.
Once the dialogue is in my mind, I have to write it. If it's insistent enough, I'll need to fill it in, and fan fiction happens. In the case of multichapter stories, I've never started writing one where I knew how it was going to end. A couple of chapters in I'll start seeing scenes from further on in the story - they're like little lights appearing on a darkened map, showing me where to head to. About halfway through the story, then I'll usually know the ending and the important scenes along the way, so my dark map is now a collection of beacons with little ley lines lit up between them.
The strange thing is, that visualisation of the map with the lights isn't new on me. It's something I've been aware of for a while, which is why I posted a reply to this topic. Yet, if forced to say what it looked like, I'd say it seems more like a network than a continuous line, which doesn't really lend itself to a longer narrative. But then, perhaps I'm visualising the scenes as ingredients that lead to the conclusion, rather than a sequence of events.
It's most like seeing a lighted up town from space, or a collection of synapses, or some strange mix of the two. Sorry if that doesn't make much sense.
Somewhere I read something by Stephen King, talking about how it is for him, and he describes finding a story as if it were an archaeological dig, and he only knows the shape of it as he scrapes away all the dirt around it.
I suppose it's different for us all.

For me writing fan fiction invariably starts with hearing dialogue. I've usually become inspired after immersing myself in whatever the canon is. If it's a visual canon like a film or television series, the voices are even clearer, and I'm aware that I will both consciously and unconsciously add in little mannerisms that the actors bring to their characters.
Once the dialogue is in my mind, I have to write it. If it's insistent enough, I'll need to fill it in, and fan fiction happens. In the case of multichapter stories, I've never started writing one where I knew how it was going to end. A couple of chapters in I'll start seeing scenes from further on in the story - they're like little lights appearing on a darkened map, showing me where to head to. About halfway through the story, then I'll usually know the ending and the important scenes along the way, so my dark map is now a collection of beacons with little ley lines lit up between them.
The strange thing is, that visualisation of the map with the lights isn't new on me. It's something I've been aware of for a while, which is why I posted a reply to this topic. Yet, if forced to say what it looked like, I'd say it seems more like a network than a continuous line, which doesn't really lend itself to a longer narrative. But then, perhaps I'm visualising the scenes as ingredients that lead to the conclusion, rather than a sequence of events.
It's most like seeing a lighted up town from space, or a collection of synapses, or some strange mix of the two. Sorry if that doesn't make much sense.
Somewhere I read something by Stephen King, talking about how it is for him, and he describes finding a story as if it were an archaeological dig, and he only knows the shape of it as he scrapes away all the dirt around it.
I suppose it's different for us all.

Actually, I disagree to an extent. Even a "Good story, keep it up!" review can provide a lot of motivation for a writer. It's certainly easier to garner hoards of reviews if you write in one of the more popular fandoms, or if you follow the more popular trends in Original fiction. For me, that just makes my few reviews the more wonderful.
Some of my most cherished reviews are the wonderful concrit my dear friend Shadowknight left for me. Sadly, real life has him far too busy to come and play with the deviants here, but he was a treasure as a reader and reviewer. However, the reaction from some authors, who delete reviews they think are unfavorable or reflect a lack of understanding on the part of a reader, will cause reviewers to stop reviewing.
If you take the time to leave a review, it means the author got a response from you. As an author, that's what I want. I want to know I got to you, good or bad. I also want to grow as a writer, and knowing what I did wrong is as valuable as knowing what I did right.
To touch on what LockedBox said, creating a thread to communicate with readers is a great way to build a loyal base of readers who'll review you. Readers love getting to know an author, and they might be more candid in a discussion thread than on a public review board as well.
Scribophile is a good workshop/writing group, but it's not really an archive, since non-paying members can only have two works at a time posted there. However, if you want to improve as a writer, it's a great place to belong. You actually need to review/critique to obtain points before you can post, so the entire site is involved in the review and critique of the submitted works. It's plentiful feedback, but again, it's not an archive. At some point, you'll need to either pay for membership, or move your reviewed, critiqued and polished works to an archive.

Please note that you are being held to the same standard as every other author on this site. You are not being asked to do anything different. If you believe that you deserve special treatment, I suggest you take the time to read your very childish rant above, and consider why anyone who behaves like that should be permitted to maintain an account on a site that is for adults.