Voting for your own submissions

[SanityCheck]

I'd like the community's opinion on voting for your own submissions.

I'll admit I vote for my own submissions in two situations.

1) The story has been sitting at 9 votes with a 4.5 score or higher for a couple of weeks. I'm not too hung up on voting, but I like seeing a red H as much as anyone. If the number of votes hasn't moved in several weeks, I'll vote to push it over the top. If it's less than 4.5 I don't bother because I wouldn't get the 'Hot' banner anyway.

2) If I think my story was unfairly punished. A perfect example of this is I got a one vote because the voter thought the story should be in Love Wives instead of Romance.

In the story, the heroine has a fling with the hero. They connect online and then after some weeks flirting online, decide to meet and make it physical.

I wrote the story to intentionally lead the reader into thinking this was a straight up story of a man and woman cheating on their spouse, but in the last half-chapter it is revealed they are husband and wife and are role playing to try to get some passion back into their marriage.

If, after you know the ending, you read the story again, you would realize all the things the hero said that would have originally been taken as come-ons and pickup lines was actually him (and her) reassuring their spouse they wouldn't actually cheat on the other, and the little clues I'd dribbled into the story that suggest there was more to this than simply cheating suddenly pop out.

If the reader had missed the point I might have let it go, but the reader specifically pointed out how even though it was a husband and wife doing this, it was STILL a Loving Wives story because they were pretending to cheat, and they should be punished for doing so because life has consequences for their actions.

I voted on that story to offset the 1 vote the reader proudly gave me.

---

So, I'm wondering if I'm breaking some honor among writers by occasionally voting on my own works, or if its a common practice, or their's no consensus.

Thank you in advance for any feedback.

 

[Areala-chan]

I don't think you're breaking any sort of rule. The site allows for author self-votes, so I don't see any problem with using them unless you're gaming the system with a ton of proxy votes. It's entirely possible the site sweeps author self-votes, so in the end it may not even matter. Vote how you want.

 

[SimonDoom]

I don't think there is any consensus or "house rule" at work on this issue. I see nothing wrong with voting for your own submission.

For my money, the only wrongful vote is a vote based on gamesmanship rather than a genuine appraisal of a story's quality. But I see no problem with voting for your own story.

 

[KeithD]

Sometime in the past Laurel commented on this, saying one vote for yourself would be retained, which would mean the Web site is fine with it.

 

[CuteSlaveLisa]

Lesson uze be a right'n Sturriz lik dis wif bad Grammer Ann dun' say'n et wif weeeerd spell'n wif abzulut Lee no punkt Atten an gotz no plot ta jus get 2 da Oh Oh Oh Fuk Dee Fuk good weez dun git me a beer Margret taint no sturrie no Aurthur werk'd on ohn werf a Wun er a Too nun demz legitt if yuze don lik Eh-thul gone hind Clides back at da Shrinerz Vention wif Earl den don be read'n nun dem Luffin Wifz sturries

Ann if-n ize wanna gif mize own sef six dem starz fer mine sturrie Iz do et ain nobodz biz sept Laurels

Love and Kisses

Lisa Ann

 

[GroverLang]

I'd like the community's opinion on voting for your own submissions.

I'll admit I vote for my own submissions in two situations.

1) The story has been sitting at 9 votes with a 4.5 score or higher for a couple of weeks. I'm not too hung up on voting, but I like seeing a red H as much as anyone. If the number of votes hasn't moved in several weeks, I'll vote to push it over the top. If it's less than 4.5 I don't bother because I wouldn't get the 'Hot' banner anyway.

If you have a story with 9 votes and it’s on 4.5 by my calculation a 1 vote would knock it down to 4.2. You would need 6 @ 5 stars to get it back to 4.5. Vote for yourself if you want. You still need another five people to give it 5 stars.

The reason given for the one star is stupid but they always are. Did you enjoy the story even though you think it’s in the wrong category? Yes, I did enjoy it. Then WTF are you giving it a 1 star? Because I’m a f*****g moron.

I’ve had the same done to me. Something like this is a good reason for deactivating the one button, and the two.

 

[SanityCheck]

Sometime in the past Laurel commented on this, saying one vote for yourself would be retained, which would mean the Web site is fine with it.

I understand.

My question was less about what was 'allowed' by the site, and more what do other authors do?

I assumed if the site didn't want us voting for our stuff it probably wouldn't be difficult to prevent the author from voting (without resorting to subterfuge) on their own stories.

 

[KeithD]

I understand.

My question was less about what was 'allowed' by the site, and more what do other authors do?

I consider "what do other authors do?" on such a question as a lack of self-confidence writer. I don't feed that.

 

[SanityCheck]

Lesson uze be a right'n Sturriz lik dis wif bad Grammer Ann dun' say'n et wif weeeerd spell'n wif abzulut Lee no punkt Atten an gotz no plot ta jus get 2 da Oh Oh Oh Fuk Dee Fuk good weez dun git me a beer Margret taint no sturrie no Aurthur werk'd on ohn werf a Wun er a Too nun demz legitt if yuze don lik Eh-thul gone hind Clides back at da Shrinerz Vention wif Earl den don be read'n nun dem Luffin Wifz sturries

Ann if-n ize wanna gif mize own sef six dem starz fer mine sturrie Iz do et ain nobodz biz sept Laurels

Love and Kisses

Lisa Ann

Trying to parse that gave me a headache.

 

[KeithD]

Trying to parse that gave me a headache.

I didn't try.

 

[SimonDoom]

I understand.

My question was less about what was 'allowed' by the site, and more what do other authors do?

I assumed if the site didn't want us voting for our stuff it probably wouldn't be difficult to prevent the author from voting (without having to resorting to subterfuge) on their own stories.

They won't do anything, unless, possibly, you make a big deal of broadcasting the fact you vote for your stories and you've pissed some of them off. Unless you tell people you are voting on your stories, they won't know.

My suggestion is to go ahead without guilt, bit don't make a point of telling people about it.

 

[SanityCheck]

I consider "what do other authors do?" on such a question as a lack of self-confidence writer. I don't feed that.

Perhaps... but at the same time, I don't want to be an ass if there's a gentlemen's/gentlewomen's agreement.

 

[KeithD]

Perhaps... but at the same time, I don't want to be an ass if there's a gentlemen's/gentlewomen's agreement.

There isn't, nor should there be. Writing is not a committee process.

 

[wxpprnpprnt]

Everyone gets a vote, you are part of everyone, so you ought to as well. Just be sure to vote accurately (unless righting injustice).

 

[CuteSlaveLisa]

Lesson uze be a right'n Sturriz lik dis wif bad Grammer Ann dun' say'n et wif weeeerd spell'n wif abzulut Lee no punkt Atten an gotz no plot ta jus get 2 da Oh Oh Oh Fuk Dee Fuk good weez dun git me a beer Margret taint no sturrie no Aurthur werk'd on ohn werf a Wun er a Too nun demz legitt if yuze don lik Eh-thul gone hind Clides back at da Shrinerz Vention wif Earl den don be read'n nun dem Luffin Wifz sturries

Ann if-n ize wanna gif mize own sef six dem starz fer mine sturrie Iz do et ain nobodz biz sept Laurels

Love and Kisses

Lisa Ann

Unless you are writing story's like this with bad grammar, and are (writing) it with weird spelling, and absolutely no punctuation... And it has no plot, its just (a way) to get to "Oh, Oh, Oh, Fuck-a-dee-Fuck, good I'm done, get me a beer Margaret." No story an author worked on is only (deserving) of a one or two.

(IMHO) no one or two votes are legitimate (except for my apparently unreadable hillbilly prose above). If you don't like (reading) stories about Ethel going behind Clyde's back with Earl at the (forty-third Annual) Convention (of the Grand Mystic Royal Order of the Nobles of the Ali-Baba Temple of the) Shrine, then you should not be reading Loving Wives stories.

If I want to give my story six stars it isn't anyone's business but Laurel's, (well maybe Manu's too to figure out how I was able to do that.)

(I thought my post was funny - but then I'm just a little weird.)

Love and Kisses

Lisa Ann

 

[SanityCheck]

Unless you are writing story's like this with bad grammar, and are (writing) it with weird spelling, and absolutely no punctuation... And it has no plot, its just (a way) to get to "Oh, Oh, Oh, Fuck-a-dee-Fuck, good I'm done, get me a beer Margaret." No story an author worked on is only (deserving) of a one or two.

(IMHO) no one or two votes are legitimate (except for my apparently unreadable hillbilly prose above). If you don't like (reading) stories about Ethel going behind Clyde's back with Earl at the (forty-third Annual) Convention (of the Grand Mystic Royal Order of the Nobles of the Ali-Baba Temple of the) Shrine, then you should not be reading Loving Wives stories.

If I want to give my story six stars it isn't anyone's business but Laurel's, (well maybe Manu's too to figure out how I was able to do that.)

(I thought my post was funny - but then I'm just a little weird.)

Love and Kisses

Lisa Ann

It gave me a headache, but it did make me smile.

<Edit to add>
Maybe I was able to get through it because it reminds me of how some of my relatives speak.
</Edit to add>

 

[CuteSlaveLisa]

...Writing is not a committee process.

Well, good writing isn't.

Incomprehensible things like legislation, instruction and owners manuals are written my committee, and often self-contradictory.

Love and Kisses

Lisa Ann

 

[RejectReality]

I used to 4 vote my own stories in the beginning. I discovered that finally picking up a 10th vote giving me a perfect 5 score ensured that it would be immediately bombed into oblivion as soon as it appeared on the toplist.

Casting a 4 as the 10th vote myself left me with a 4.90, which seemed to place it outside the target range, but left it high enough to still attract new readers.

Eventually, I reached a point where I hit 10 in hours, rather than days, and almost always seemed to have a 4 or less come in early, making it no longer necessary.

 

[Hypoxia]

If you don't like what you've written, why should anyone else?

 

[MelissaBaby]

They won't do anything, unless, possibly, you make a big deal of broadcasting the fact you vote for your stories and you've pissed some of them off. Unless you tell people you are voting on your stories, they won't know.

My suggestion is to go ahead without guilt, bit don't make a point of telling people about it.

I think it's pretty likely that if an author announces that they vote for their own stories, there are going to be people who decide to counter their vote.

 

[blozo]

It's kind of like scoring in golf. You can write a 4 on the card, but you know you made a 5, and since the only one who really cares is you, what have you accomplished?

 

[WoolyWorm]

It's kind of like scoring in golf. You can write a 4 on the card, but you know you made a 5, and since the only one who really cares is you, what have you accomplished?

Counteracted the insta-1-bomb that came in within a minute or two of the story going live, thereby potentially making the story look more attractive to readers on that critical first day, and hopefully increasing the number of people who will read it and cast honest votes.

That's the only reason I vote for my own stories. I wouldn't care much if my vote got swept after my story fell off the front page, though.

I also probably wouldn't vote if I posted a story in in one of the less popular categories, where a single vote could significantly affect its score. But then again, I might be tempted if it were hovering at 4.49.

 

[KeithD]

It's like whether or not to zap comments you really, really don't like. If you think you did a good job and have confidence in yourself, go ahead and vote it a 5, if you want. Don't let others shame you from doing it. You want your story read and there have been plenty of people post here that they let voting and comments sway them--which gives the zappers added power. The Web site lets you delete unwanted comments and says you can vote for your own stories (although I'm not sure it really does leave the votes). So, do as you please.

 

[blozo]

Counteracted the insta-1-bomb that came in within a minute or two of the story going live, thereby potentially making the story look more attractive to readers on that critical first day

I have a story, "The Babymaker of Springwood", which had a perfect 1.0 score on ten votes faster than it is possible for a human being to have read it, yet I didn't bother to vote for it.

My lifelong struggle with insomnia allows me to be awake for those first few hours, and I agree they are important to getting eyes on your story.

But one 5 from me does nothing significant to stop the dedicated one bombers.

The story currently sits around 4.47, about what it deserves, so in the long run things balanced out, with no help from me.

 

[ElectricBlue]

If you don't like what you've written, why should anyone else?

Exactly what I was going to say, and it's only one vote, anyway.