DemonGoddess

Not to mention it's not even FINISHED yet.

fanpoodles are not so much empty reviews, although that's what they tend to leave, is meaningless reviews, but the clique of reviewers who "squee" for no apparent reason, and review and make popular some absolutely DREADFUL writing. Yet, because it's (the story) for a popular pair, for example, it'll get reviewed and highly rated whether or not it actually deserves it. What's even worse, is that often, the writers who HAVE all the fanpoodle following tend to be rather divaish in behavior. To me, they don't so much seem to be writing for the craft of it, but more for the ego boost.
I suppose as someone who cut their reading teeth on the likes of Homer, Asimov, and Tolkien, I tend to be a tad picky...

fanpoodles are not so much empty reviews, although that's what they tend to leave, is meaningless reviews, but the clique of reviewers who "squee" for no apparent reason, and review and make popular some absolutely DREADFUL writing. Yet, because it's (the story) for a popular pair, for example, it'll get reviewed and highly rated whether or not it actually deserves it. What's even worse, is that often, the writers who HAVE all the fanpoodle following tend to be rather divaish in behavior. To me, they don't so much seem to be writing for the craft of it, but more for the ego boost.
I suppose as someone who cut their reading teeth on the likes of Homer, Asimov, and Tolkien, I tend to be a tad picky...

As to beta readers, there are some good ones out there, but they're not easy to find. You do build up a relationship with your beta, to be sure. I know when I used to do this, I'd take on anything from a drabble, to multi chapter (with loooong chapters), without issue. But that would be when I had the time to actually beta read, and give the author who sent me the work my full attention.

yep, and now they're really deleted

Finished the table restore

Data is all restored!

So, eight months since I last posted and I'm finding that writing has been to some degree therapeutic. There is the issue of working through triggers (thank goodness for my hubby's love and patience), but I'm finding it's helped me work through being stalked/assaulted some years ago. Granted, a lot of it (especially the really horrid stuff) will never see the light of day, but I've been finding myself incorporating some of it into my main writing project. I think perhaps part of the reason for this is that I'm simply tired of seeing horrible shit be glamorized in fiction, literary or otherwise. There are some times where I want to write purely for the purpose of showing the reader that no, rape is not romantic, and no, emotional abuse is not sexy.

I'd say a fair number of us have been insulted in that manner. Yes, it is an insult. If a reader goes out of his or her way to give you what you ask for, and because you dislike hearing truth you delete the review, that makes reviewers who used to be willing to give that kind of review reluctant to do so.

I'd say a fair number of us have been insulted in that manner. Yes, it is an insult. If a reader goes out of his or her way to give you what you ask for, and because you dislike hearing truth you delete the review, that makes reviewers who used to be willing to give that kind of review reluctant to do so.

When I actually have time to read (rare these days), I make a POINT of leaving a review. If it's awful, I don't pillory the author, I simply leave the story.

I am not a politically correct person, so do not expect me to mince words in this rant. I have plenty to say about the frauds who plague this and other sites. :sarcasm: is now in session because I have already read all of the favorite nauseating, too often written, worn out excuses that have triggered this overwhelmed frustration induced rant. I do apologize in advance for this being such a tactless tirade. I really need to get this off my chest because I am so frustrated with things I continue to read every time I come here.
What is the point of writing if the document is a thoughtless piece of slop without merit pounded out willy-dilly on a whim, and posted without revision? Why do some people insist upon placing such infantile things in the archives, and then get angry when someone with a basic grasp of English structure mentions a few of the problems that need addressing to create a better reading tale? Why do some individuals whine incessantly about contrit feedback, instead of considering that there might be a real problem which can be corrected with a little expended effort? If one does not understand the foundations of proper grammar and spelling, why insist upon being vile to those who seek to give actual valid aide? When did writing become a place for cop outs and egotists? Who ever said that everyone should be patted upon the head simply because they bothered to put something up at a free site like AFFnet, or FFnet? What have the lazy done to earn a touch of praise and accolades for the illiterate slop they insist upon posting?
Absolutely nothing gets done when a poorly written piece is added to the archives is my response. Give feedback to such frauds, and they delete the reviews, or proclaim concrit reviews to be trolling! Such frauds are too infantile to accept that they can improve if they get off their lazy butts and do a little research! YE Gods Forbid that such individuals ever face the wrath of a genuine editor. I can see the suicide rate escalating fast if they ever had to remove the blinders from their eyes. Such people are the bane of the writing hobbiest, and professional alike. What is the point of giving reviews if the writer is unwilling to consider critical mistake portions of an honest review? Why do lazy, insecure asses bother to beg for reviews while remaining too immature to give such reviews any thought toward self improvement? How can people call themselves writers when they are so obstinately unwilling to learn how to take a fair reading story, and make it into a genuinely beautiful tale that is memorable? Why do such frauds feel so compelled to provide a plethora of meaningless excuses for their mistakes, instead of attempting to change for the better?
The reason for my ranting questions: I am so sick and tired of the whining, lame excuses that the vast majority of writers like to pull out of their asses. People seem to love bellyaching, and giving excuses to avoid improving anything they slop together and post. To me, people are flat against learning the diverse aspects, and complex elements involved with writing style. I am also fed up with jerks who refuse to pull their heads out of the asses when it comes to a reasonable review meant to give genuine help. Nobody is attacking when they send a review that something was messed up when they mention grammar/spelling problems.
Any idea why I might be so angry about the plethora of bull I read in forums, and in author's notes in the main archive? Reality Check: I had a massive stroke a few years ago. It took two years to get to the point I could use my right side again. Then, I had to reteach myself from the foundation up how to read and to write a second time. Everything that I know I should recall from my time as an employed editor in the 90's was locked behind a wall of damage that I struggle to break down every single day of my life. I also have Dyslexia problems complicated by fine motor skill nerve damage. Do I use these difficulties as a knee jerk excuse for instances of personal, poor writing? THE ANSWER IS HELL NO!
To my way of thinking, real writers strive to overcome their disabilities, not use them as a crutch to languish within their flaws! I bought grammar based books and read them repeatedly to recover my lost knowledge. Due to a little thing called effort, I regained the vast majority of the information I once lost due to a life threatening medical crisis. Therefore, I do not give crackpot reviews whenever I take time to read over and consider the most glaring problems I see within a story's structures. I fine comb everything I write repeatedly to get rid of every flaw before I post anything. Yes, I do miss things, which I correct as I get a chance. A person who reads my work can return seven months later to find a lot of mistakes are corrected. I abuse my edit chapter button every few weeks, based upon the errors I get told about when someone reviews my stories.
Whenever I give a review to someone, I always endeavor to point out the strengths, and the weaknesses of each story I have read. The reviews I give carry my hopes that the input will help complete strangers to revise their stories to add strength to plots and characters that were devised. It is a real insult to all reviewers who give thoughtful feedback when the reviews get deleted by such frauds who pretend to be writers. Very few writers I have personally reviewed have retained my concrit reviews. Those who have kept their reviews, I am grateful to you for doing so. Your strength in keeping my review prevents me from becoming completely sick and tired of the constant flow of disrespect given to those who take reviewing for others seriously.
Put bluntly, I have seen the signs of a real epidemic of fraudulent whiners begging for reviews that are insincere. The ongoing blasphemy of it all has finally tweaked my last nerve. The majority of said frauds beg for reviews in every single chapter's author notes. My conclusion is that such begging for reviews is a form of blatant "stroke my ego or else" guilt tripping. "Please review because I live for reviews," is a blatant lie 9 times out of 10 in my personal experience with giving reviews. That type of bullshit line now reeks of the biggest attention seeking ploy in existence to me, as a reader. In the vast majority of cases I leave very tame comments compared to my actual reactions to such writer's stories. I refrain form taking every single line and pointing out the problems. If the writing is atrocious enough, I am reduced to perhaps you should use your spell/grammar checking features before posting in the future. Getting reduced to such a flippant response really hurts because I would not be writing a review at all if I did not see some kind of merit within the story. I would simply back click and be done with the author, and everything else they may have posted. I do keep a list of the unreadable slobs so I do not have to hurt my eyes by accidentally clicking on anything the royal stink writers have added.
During the last three weeks, after seeing how often that line accompanies a deletion of my reviews, experience tells me to avoid such authors as if they have the Black Plague. To date, seven out of every ten concretely focused reviews were erased because my input was not a fanpoodle. My honor code from my previous career as a "shred the writing to get it corrected in time for the sales team to make a profit from it" variety editor experience does not condone "I love it so keep writing" variety pat upon heads. I do apologize for this being such a tactless tirade. I had to get this off my chest because I am so frustrated with "poor me syndrome" type commentaries.

Welllll....from what my published friends tell me, the act of publishing can be eviscerating, as you go through the copy edits and many other things BEFORE your book is ready to be published.

As a reader, it depends on how the chapter flows. I've read very long chapters, and liked them just fine, and the same goes for short chapters. It really depends on how the chapter itself READS overall.

As a reader, it depends on how the chapter flows. I've read very long chapters, and liked them just fine, and the same goes for short chapters. It really depends on how the chapter itself READS overall.

If you entered the information incorrectly, quite frankly, that is not my problem. We take self admissions as well as extensive research to support it as proof. As this archive is restricted for use to users aged 18 and above, we find anything that says you weren't 18 when posting, you USUALLY get deleted. As you fell in to the "old minor" group (meaning you joined the site before the current mod staff was working as group). To keep the site online and able to host the content that we do, we cannot and will not be lax in the enforcement of removal of underage users and underage user posted content.

because we like so damn many of 'em?

Bronxie and I share many authors as favorites. CJ Cherryh, Stephen King, Poe, and the others she mentioned. Then you have Roger Zelazny, absolutely LOVED the Chronicles in Amber. Michael Moorcock is another fave, with his various avatars of the Eternal Champion.
The thing the authors ALL have in common, is masterful storytelling.

Bronxie and I share many authors as favorites. CJ Cherryh, Stephen King, Poe, and the others she mentioned. Then you have Roger Zelazny, absolutely LOVED the Chronicles in Amber. Michael Moorcock is another fave, with his various avatars of the Eternal Champion.
The thing the authors ALL have in common, is masterful storytelling.

Aysha is right with what he's telling you. Ambition is all well and good, but if once you've written something, and you know you won't enjoy reading it yourself, don't expect others to. The big thing is, at least this is what I've seen with the good writers on many sites, is that first and foremost, they write for themselves.

Welllll....from what my published friends tell me, the act of publishing can be eviscerating, as you go through the copy edits and many other things BEFORE your book is ready to be published.

"Good writing" is the most nebulous phrase in existence. Personally, I think Hemingway was a troll and Fitzgerald was a parvenu.
Having summarily dismissed two literary icons so cavalierly, I define good writing as two things. One, it is technically correct. Two, I enjoy reading it.
Technically correct means getting the basics straight, and from your post above, I don't think that's an issue. Grammar and spelling are two things people neglect dreadfully, and schools no longer teach them adequately. Punctuation is a lost art. But especially when publishing online, they make a story readable. Without them, I personally won't even bother to try and puzzle my way through.
Enjoyment is the other thing that makes good writing, and that's so individual and impossible to define. I will read almost anything, although I have a preference for science fiction, fantasy, and historical settings. "Twilight" has largely ruined vampires for me, and we won't discuss the other fanfic-turned-original nonsense. I like characters who act, and talk, and engage me in their lives and plights. I like a bit of humor from time to time, especially at the worst possible moment. I like to have my imagination on full when I read. Yes, I do want to know what your character looks like in general terms, but let me imagine some things. Don't describe them down to the last mole.
And guess what? Other people will have very different ideas of what makes for enjoyable reading. That's the beauty of it all. No book will appeal to everyone, and no story is going to make everyone love it. As long as you are telling the story you want to tell, and as long as you do have a few people out there will to tell you that they like it because, you're doing good. If the hit counter goes up consistently, you're doing great. It means you may have shy readers, but they come back. You've hooked them.
There's no magic formula. There are basic rules, and while here online you can get away with flouting them, publishers and your editor will insist that you comply. Don't shift point of view from paragraph to paragraph. It makes readers dizzy. If you have two people of the same gender interacting, only one "he" or "she" per paragraph. Don't make the reader guess which one you mean. Read dialogue out loud. If it sounds silly when you say it, it'll sound silly when a reader reads it.
But aside from that, and the conventions of grammar and punctuation, it's your story to tell, and your voice that should tell it. Try writing without going back every few sentences to edit yourself. Like we do for National Novel Writers Month (and NaNo is a great deal of fun), get the rough draft down. Get a beginning and an end, know a bit about your characters and world, and then go for it. You can make it pretty afterward, with the help of a beta or not, as you choose. I love the three crises and an end gambit. It makes for fun writing middles, as I figure out what three awful things I can do to my poor characters.
Most of all, enjoy it. It comes across in your writing when you love being a writer. Readers can feel the passion you put into your work. Hells, I've forgiven George RR Martin for making me wait so long for Book 5 of his saga, because he loves his work and I love his passion. And his story.

I agree, Pittwitch. However, it is difficult to weed out those who wish real concrit from those who want ego strokes, or simply desire attention for all the wrong reasons. I see please read and review and I take those writers seriously. I review. I am not all love it vagueness oriented reviewer. I am a to the point and bunt reviewer if there is a very big writing problem, such as run on sentences. I tell the writer what strengths I see, the good points of plot, and other things also. Some stories have very little good to point out also, another problem I run into while reading. I have to refrain from reviewing the really bad fics, because at best I have an abrasive personality and know this well enough. ROFl.
When I write, it is to entertain any who choose to read the things I post. If I do a decent job, both the positive, and negative feedback equally feeds my muse. Both help me to expand as a writer, and revise so that my stories get better with each weakness discovered. I know that I get too close to my own writing, so the feedback with concrit allows me to see things that I miss even after 4 read thorough combs, and corrections done. Like Bronx elegantly put it, I make infantile mistakes in my own writing. It is a normal glitch for any writer to commit. I do edit for a couple of people, yet, I make the dumbest goofs in my own writing. I find most of them once I get through pounding the rough out, but not always.
I get very confused when I see people delete their reviews if anything less than glowing was mentioned. You simply can't improve the stories and the pleasure gained in the work process when that happens. As DemonGoddess said, it is the younger generation doing the review deletes as a matter of course. The same younger generation can not handle any form of input that is less than pedestal placement worthy of them I begin the think. Makes reviewing a real nuisance at times, but I will persevere because a few people do like real reviews.

Well, I read older fandoms, so the writers there have been around for a long, long time, and are certainly not in this age bracket which tends to delete if it's not a fanpoodle review. So, I know that when I do actually have time to read, and leave a well though out review, THEY like it. I've also noticed, as I said before, that the older writers (meaning IRL age) are much more likely to take the concrit and RUN with it. Use it as it was intended, as a help to improve his or her writing.
For that matter, I've also noticed that one leaves actual concrit and the author is NOT an American (and a young one at that), the review is much more likely to be left, and the author will again tend to run with it.

Pregnancy food cravings: To be honest even I do not understand the twisted foods I was eating, or why I could not do the reasonable swap outs over the course of the day. I was driven batty until I ate these really revolting combinations. My now ex hubby would be the one running most often to the bathroom with the fits of nausea over the bizarre foods I was chowing down on incessantly. I've been told by other moms that I craved really strange food combinations, and I am not talking the often mentioned pickles and ice cream status quot. I did have the morning sickness, usually after the sun went down which tapered off around 3 am most nights.
I was strangely obsessed with BBQ potato chips, licorice candy, and spaghetti sauce on ice cream. (yes at the same exact time as toppings for Butter pecan ice cream no less-Revolted yet?) I ate garlic pickles with berry flavored yogurt and peperchinis and funions brand chips (SP?) when not cramming the other down my throat as if my life depended upon it. The two biggest and weirdest food combo's never coincided for which I remain very grateful to this day. Another strange food combo I ate often was kippered snacks with mustard and orange marmalade on rye bread. Just typing that out is making me shudder.
To this day, after my second son was born, I can not stomach BBQ flavored Potato Chips, and rarely can handle more than a coupe bites of BBQ smothered meat before I gag. Same goes with Butter pecan ice cream. Even spaghetti sauce is a very rare edible because I ate so much of it when I was pregnant both times. I had to switch out ice cream favorites and a lot of other items after my second son. ROFL. Both of my living children were discovered before I had any clue I was pregnant. I went in for regular medical check ups because I was on birth control. I have had seven miscarriages because of not having a medical check up. My second was discovered at 5 weeks, so I had to have medications changed. Luckily I was on a drug that required blood tests to make sure levels were fine.
Like everyone else that has ever given birth is saying, each birth is a unique process. Some of us have nightmare labors, yet we do it all over again because we love our children so much that the temporary downsides can't possibly overcome the joys of watching our little ones grow, learn and change into remarkable human beings.
The pregnancy & birth ordeal: I was completely bed ridden for seven months with my second child. He was mercifully smaller than the first. My first was 10 pounds 11 and 1/2 oz and a C section because my right hip was pinned together a year before, after a riding accident where the 1900 pound horse fell on top of me. The horse went down so fast I could not escape the saddle so his weight falling on top of me crushed a big chunk of my body.

Both times I gave birth, I was over 4 weeks late for delivery, and had aged placenta break away before the actual births happened. One son was 10 and 1/2 months, the other a week shy of 11 months. My water never broke because the embryonic fluid bag was way too thick also. It was miserable being in active labor so long and the water not breaking to allow for the birthing process to progress. My second son was 6 pounds and 12 oz, so he was reasonable for natural birth once they managed to get my water bag busted and the birth progressed over many hours. Both labors wiped me out because I was in active for an insane number of hours. My first was 3 days of harder level labor pains without result, the second was 39 hours which ended with a baby in my arms. I had an epidural because they assumed I would need a second c section, but the hip had healed enough that it unlocked so I could have natural birth the second time around. I was one of those who showed nothing at all, not even a missed period until the 5th month with either pregnancy. I carried against my spine though. Having the babies against the spine can be difficult when they start kicking. If they are in the wrong position, you find yourself on the ground cause the spine gets hit and that can make a mess of your stride as I found out the hard way. Both my sons were football and soccer stars before birth. They kept me from sleeping for 4 months. I would sit in a rocking chair to get relief since the motion soothed them enough that they would sleep, even if I could not.
I hear folks say that I am lucky to have survived either birth, and they are probably correct. However, I would not change anything I went through when I look at both my grown sons. Despite their flaws, they remain my greatest pride, joy, and heart break because they are both my precious babies. They grew up to be strong men. It was all worth it even if I do still have moments where I wonder how nuts I was to go through it twice. Chukles@myself.