Can a writer be the subject of a witch hunt by

[starrkers]

I just had a look at a couple of your stories that have been posted here. Only skimmed a few pars here and there. But I noticed they were much better punctuated than this one and they flowed a lot easier.

Maybe you just had a bad day with this one and need to give it another once over before resubmitting it.

 

[wanderlustress]

There were no flames on my part. I say what i want to and that's that. I am well aware that many of you out there are using many different (Alts I think they are called.)

(Quutoo, my "flame" remark was part of a mostly-off-topic sidebar to Cloudy/hijack of your thread. It was not about you.)

 

[LustyLucille]

In the first place did you ask permission from Redlyte if you could use his/her story for comparison? If you did not then good luck to you. I just hope that writer will come after your ass for belittling his/her effort. What you did was no different from what you retaliated saying someone else was trying to find fault with your 'work'. YOU ARE doing the same thing - trying to find fault with the other author's work in hoping yours would look more credible.

Kindly take up an english course first before you try writing anymore!

 

[AnonymousTroll]

Hey!

I didn see anyting rong with the story? What are peeeple biching about? I give a 5 vote and tink the eds should let he post it.

 

[quutoo]

I just had a look at a couple of your stories that have been posted here. Only skimmed a few pars here and there. But I noticed they were much better punctuated than this one and they flowed a lot easier.

Maybe you just had a bad day with this one and need to give it another once over before resubmitting it.

So true Starkers. When you close a story that you had to write one handed, you are glad to finish it. So looks like I used up my free bad day pass.

 

[quutoo]

In the first place did you ask permission from Redlyte if you could use his/her story for comparison? If you did not then good luck to you. I just hope that writer will come after your ass for belittling his/her effort. What you did was no different from what you retaliated saying someone else was trying to find fault with your 'work'. YOU ARE doing the same thing - trying to find fault with the other author's work in hoping yours would look more credible.

Kindly take up an english course first before you try writing anymore!

And kindly take some lessons on not being such a bitch.

 

[quutoo]

I didn see anyting rong with the story? What are peeeple biching about? I give a 5 vote and tink the eds should let he post it.

Shit troll. I don't know unless they have nothing better to do. Thaks John Quu

 

[quutoo]

(Quutoo, my "flame" remark was part of a mostly-off-topic sidebar to Cloudy/hijack of your thread. It was not about you.)

Understood Wunderlust....Why do some people have to be such bitches? Perhaps they get so much shit in life they think they have to give it back.
Cloudy must be a real miserable person.

 

[cloudy]

Understood Wunderlust....Why do some people have to be such bitches? Perhaps they get so much shit in life they think they have to give it back.
Cloudy must be a real miserable person.

Um....sure. Like you know anything about me.

It's not my fault you prefer to remain a less than mediocre writer rather than take advice from those of us already published - and not just at Literotica.

oh, and I'm not a bitch, I'm the bitch. Get it right next time, will ya?

 

[Bayoububba]

Now here is where I find a big problem. A character speaks through "quotation marks". I do not have the same character speaking in the same paragraph at the same time. If I would write (Mary said, "It's raining". I had to agree with her and came back with the old cats and dogs thing. I told her that we would need raincoats. "The red or black ones?" she asked. I told her that it didn't matter.)

This is am example of the way i write. It is also the same sort of writing i have found with some of the nations pimary fiction writers. Just because i made statements in the paragraph, I did not speak with ", marks. That would be two people speaking at the same time in the same paragraph.

I can't see doing it this way ...

Mary said, "It's raining."

I had to agree with her and came back with the cats and dogs thing. I told her that we would need raincoats.

"Tha red or black ones?" she asked.

I told her that it didn't matter.

What is wrong with condensing the speaking parts, if only one speaker is in quotations? Here is a point that I think needs to be cleared up. I have used this format in most of my stories and now I get rejected for it.

If you had a horror story rejected, then perhapos some mod didn't approve of the subject. Who knows...I have read a lot of the older Loving Wives stories and find that none of the new ones are as good as the old ones. I think somewhere along the way, someone said, "We are going to become a site where a story has to be perfect. I have never found the perfect story yet.
While i was reading one of Clancey's books, I found a couple of errors. Did I stop reading..?no way.It was too good.

Listen , the guidelines for online stories are much different than the stories in print material. It is just a fact, the reason is that it is so much easier for the reader to sort through. If you want to get anything on Lit., you have to abide by this. Sorry to echo the others here, but there is no shame in finding an editor to clean up your story and get it ready for submittal. But, and this is a big, "but", do not shoot yourself in the foot by getting your feelings hurt and biting the hand of those that are trying to help. One thing is for sure, if you cannot take open critisizm, you are in for a world of hurt. When you try again, leave your feelings at the door. I have 13 stories up so far, and have an excellent editor that has helped with every one of them!

 

[slyc_willie]

Sorry...no Pm. The point I was trying to make was that some stories that aren't sticklers to rule and regulations. I read the stories, not to be face to face with the best in literature. If I want that I go to the library. I come to this site because the stories...used to be at least...erotic and stimulating.

Let me just make an observation, here.

You claim (defensively, it seems to me), that the stories on this site 'used to be at least' erotic and stimulating. But you have also claimed that you read perhaps only five percent of the stories on this site. Hardly a fair sample. Try reading some of the newest submissions by writers such as Drksideofthemoon, Daniellekitten, Darkniciad, Redhairedandfriendly, Rachlou and Selenakitten. Or Jenny's if you want some cringe-in-your pants sarcastic comedy.

Secondly, you point out a story by someone named redlyte, and why theirs was approved when yours was not. Apparently, in your opinion, redlyte's submission was crap. I've read it; it does need some serious editing. So here you are asking, 'if crap this bad is approved, why wasn't mine?'

Not all stories are reviewed the same way. Stories pasted in the submission window are only cursorily looked at by a real person, whose only job (from my understanding), is to make sure there is no excessive violence, beastiality, or underaged sex. Sometimes, small details along those lines can be overlooked.

Stories submitted in .doc format are read by a real person, which increases the chance of your work being scrutinized. As with all things involving the input and opinion of another person, some reviewers might be more stringent than others. As you say, there are an awful lot of stories on this site that aren't very good, yet they were approved.

Perhaps your story was reviewed by someone with more of an eye for style, grammar, and punctuation. Perhaps it was someone who has also read a lot of bad work on this site and does not wish to see more in the same vein.

Your pitfalls have already been pointed out: switching tenses, long paragraphs that are difficult to read, choppy dialogue, and misuse of punctuation. Take a little time to read over your story from a reader's point of view. Read it out loud, see how it flows. Knowing where to break things up into smaller paragraphs, or by using an advantageous comma or semi-colon, can work wonders.

And for God's sake, when you ask for criticism and feedback, don't be surprised when you receive such in a less than flattering way. Not everyone is going to say, "I liked your story. It had a few small errors but nothing really bad." Those who said that about your work probably need some help as well.

The last thing you want to do is go on the defensive and let your ego rule your thinking. When you put something out there to be read by others, it is going to be scrutinized. It is going to be eviscerated, flambed, and served up for lunch to a pack of hungry wolves.

Some of them won't be as nice as Cloudy and Elfin. Some will just flat-out say it sucks, and provide you with a ten-page dissertation on why it was so bad.

I would suggest you go back through this thread, read all the posts over again. Swallow your pride, edit your work, and try again.

And refrain from making any childlike implications that Laurel rejected your work simply because you complained about being rejected in the first place. Laurel barely has the time or effort to indulge in such pettiness.

Your work was rejected for a reason. Fix those reasons and you'll see your name in lights . . . so to speak.

 

[LustyLucille]

And kindly take some lessons on not being such a bitch.

And kindly pull your swollen head out of your arse before it explode. Your post came across as obstinate, obnoxious, egotistical, self-centered and definitely disrespectful to your peer's work. If you show such callousness attitude towards others why should you be afforded with any respect?

Good luck NOT in your future submission.

 

[curiositykitten]

Dear Q:
I have to reply as a newbie, waiting as we speak for my first 2 stories to be approved and wondering if they will make the cut. Since you seem to want a response from perhaps less experienced writers and maybe from avid readers, I feel compelled to comment, because I LOVE reading the stories on Lit and that was the attraction for me! As a new writer and new Lit member, I read several stories daily, trying to support new stories as they come out, making comments & voting, often PM'ing the authors. I always vote and make comments for stories I read. However, when I come across a story I find unreadable, I may read as much a few paragraphs - and then you get a hit, but no votes, because I don't vote, comment or pm at all if I can't read the story.

The first part of your story has so many grammar, punctuation & syntax errors that I would not have finished it - and didn't, but gave yours a better chance than I normally would have. Your style is lacking and you need a lot of editorial assistance in brushing up word choices and improving sentence structure. Now, I'm just an amateur like you with limited experience, but I'm serious about my writing and have graded lots of papers. If you're writing just for fun and "to give people something to jerk to," then let it go. But if you're writing and really want to improve, then listen to these folks. Pardon my candor, but that is what you requested.

I actually am scared about what criticism I will receive because I know my writing doesn't compare to the more experienced authors on lit, but I know I can learn from them and will appreciate their input without becoming defensive - especially if I have the courage to ask for it as you did!

 

[elfin_odalisque]

Curiosity, don't be nervous.

Do your best and you'll be surprized how welcoming the place is. Just avoid Loving Wives until you've found your feet.

If you've got your punctuation, grammar, typos and layout under control and you've got a halfway decent story to tell, you'll get favorable reactions.

Don't forget to put a self- publicising thread here (with hyperlink) so we can all go take a look.

This place is not so scary as some people tell you.

Good luck.

edited to add: most people here would give any story a read to see if things look good.

 

[Jenny_Jackson]

Curiosity, don't be nervous.

Do your best and you'll be surprized how welcoming the place is. Just avoid Loving Wives until you've found your feet.

If you've got your punctuation, grammar, typos and layout under control and you've got a halfway decent story to tell, you'll get favorable reactions.

Don't forget to put a self- publicising thread here (with hyperlink) so we can all go take a look.

This place is not so scary as some people tell you.

Good luck.

edited to add: most people here would give any story a read to see if things look good.

Elfin is right. There are some regulars in this forum. Kbate, Elfin, Cloudy, me, Dark and Willie, just to name a few. We generally try and give you honest opinions of what is both wrong and right with your work. Most of the time none of us are mean. The story has to be so bad that nobody would find anything likable or constructive about the story for that to happen.

We have all been at the beginning, as you are, and we remember how it was. Lit is a place to learn the craft and all of us are still learning. You won't find Steven King, Dan Brown or John Updyke posting here. But we have learned, what makes a story readable, how to make a good story better and are happy to pass that along.

JJ

 

[cloudy]

Elfin is right. There are some regulars in this forum. Kbate, Elfin, Cloudy, me, Dark and Willie, just to name a few. We generally try and give you honest opinions of what is both wrong and right with your work. Most of the time none of us are mean. The story has to be so bad that nobody would find anything likable or constructive about the story for that to happen.

We have all been at the beginning, as you are, and we remember how it was. Lit is a place to learn the craft and all of us are still learning. You won't find Steven King, Dan Brown or John Updyke posting here. But we have learned, what makes a story readable, how to make a good story better and are happy to pass that along.

JJ

Quite right.

If, however, you ask for advice, and then reveal that you're too "perfect" to accept it as it's offered, then all bets are off.

 

[curiositykitten]

THANKS to all of you! I appreciate it and look forward to your input - just a little insecure with my first attempts at this style of writing, especially in first person & personally invested in my stories at this point. I did finally hear back from my editor and was pleased with the response & advice. Still awaiting approval, but will let you know...