Is it a coincidence...

[Aukey]

...that whenever I post in AH, the scores on a handful of my stories drop? I've never posted much, never got past virgin status. My posts have been replies to threads such as: "whats your favorite...?" or "has anyone encountered this technical problem posting a story?" I started a couple threads along the lines of what grammar to use in a particular scenario, or asking where people get inspiration for certain character traits.

Everyone I've interacted with in AH with has been nice. Never got into fight with anyone or talked about politics, etc. My stories are not in LW (they're mostly in romance and EC). Yet, without fail, I see the drop in my scores a day or two after any post I make, even just a thumbs up to someone saying they have a new story out.

Rationally I think it must be a coincidence, and my general shyness is just making me paranoid. Has anyone else experienced this? Could there actually be people who just troll user names that pop up in forums? Its gotten to the point that I don't ever want to do anything that might call attention to my stories (including making this new alt to post this).

 

[RejectReality]

Romance and EC aren't typically vote gathering powerhouse categories. Keep in mind that if your score is greater than 4.0, even a 4 makes the score go down. If your vote totals are low enough, a 4 can make them go down quite a bit.

Absent making enemies or posting in LW, I doubt posting to the forum is influencing your score changes. Really, it's absent making enemies, because if you were posting to LW, you probably wouldn't even be able to detect whatever forum nastiness might be bleeding into the carnage there. The forum is a fraction of the traffic the site gets. Most people will never venture into this backwater of Lit.

 

[Escierto]

I got a lot of grief from some idiots for using a different userid on the forum than I use for my stories. It was to avoid exactly what you are talking about. I am sure there are people who 1 bombed all your stories and this is probably a common occurrence.

 

[Euphony]

Rationally I think it must be a coincidence, and my general shyness is just making me paranoid. Has anyone else experienced this? Could there actually be people who just troll user names that pop up in forums? Its gotten to the point that I don't ever want to do anything that might call attention to my stories (including making this new alt to post this).

Doubtful. Not that it *can't* happen (I've seen some real weirdo gems in my time) but much of the draw for trolls is revenging perceived slights or culture wars. If you rarely cause a stir, I don't see what you offer as incentive to a troll.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Rationally I think it must be a coincidence, and my general shyness is just making me paranoid. Has anyone else experienced this? Could there actually be people who just troll user names that pop up in forums? Its gotten to the point that I don't ever want to do anything that might call attention to my stories (including making this new alt to post this).

There might be some idiot lurkers, who knows.

I'm highly visible in the AH, but I rarely see kick back into my stories (maybe once or twice), but they're always too gutless to comment. Or they send me anonymous feedback (once or twice).

If you're paranoid, it's probably paranoia.

 

[RejectReality]

Randomly bombing someone just because it's an unfamiliar name on the forum would be some seriously weird randomness. There's so many triggers that could "validate" that sort of behavior that I can't see someone picking an unknown name with benign posts as a target.

I suppose that maybe there could be somebody who bombs everyone who posts here, but it's harder to see for those of us who are more established because the odd bomb can't move our scores that much. Still seems far-fetched — especially since such a troll would probably brag about their dastardly deeds at some point.

 

[SimonDoom]

I am very outspoken in the forums, and I've published some stories that pissed people off, and I've never observed obvious carpet bombing of my stories. Maybe it happened and I just didn't see it. But I think the most likely explanation is that you are seeing a pattern where none exists. I suspect that's very common here.

 

[NotWise]

I am very outspoken in the forums, and I've published some stories that pissed people off, and I've never observed obvious carpet bombing of my stories. Maybe it happened and I just didn't see it. But I think the most likely explanation is that you are seeing a pattern where none exists. I suspect that's very common here.

Not just here. I think it's human nature.

And yeah, probably just coincidence.

 

[Lifestyle66]

I've seen the carpet bombing after having a disagreement in the Forums. It happens. Those who say it doesn't just haven't been there, or their posts are non-contentious or in line with the haters.

I've even attracted one or two shitheads who rate my new stories a 1 within ten minutes of the story going public ... EVERY story I've posted for the past year and a half. It started after one particular exchange in December 2021, when within an hour, EVERY story I already had published received a new 1 rating. Since then, I have a shitty follower who tracks my posts. It makes the little people feel powerful to give me those 1's!

I've reached them! And I can MAKE them react, just by posting another story! Just don't react to the low ratings!

 

[RejectReality]

I've seen the carpet bombing after having a disagreement in the Forums. It happens. Those who say it doesn't just haven't been there, or their posts are non-contentious or in line with the haters.

I've even attracted one or two shitheads who rate my new stories a 1 within ten minutes of the story going public ... EVERY story I've posted for the past year and a half. It started after one particular exchange in December 2021, when within an hour, EVERY story I already had published received a new 1 rating. Since then, I have a shitty follower who tracks my posts. It makes the little people feel powerful to give me those 1's!

I've reached them! And I can MAKE them react, just by posting another story! Just don't react to the low ratings!

The OP says they didn't get into politics or arguments. If that's accurate, then it makes little sense. There are so many people expressing militant opinions that targeting a rando who isn't doesn't make much sense.

I have little doubt that getting into a heated exchange with the wrong person or saying something that runs afoul of their political/cultural philosophy could get you bombed to hell and back.

 

[Escierto]

The OP says they didn't get into politics or arguments. If that's accurate, then it makes little sense. There are so many people expressing militant opinions that targeting a rando who isn't doesn't make much sense.

I have little doubt that getting into a heated exchange with the wrong person or saying something that runs afoul of their political/cultural philosophy could get you bombed to hell and back.

You want it to make sense to you but it could easily make sense to someone else. I reached the limit of 500 ignores and then went back to see why I was ignoring some of these people and I couldn’t figure out why. There had to have been a reason but it wasn’t obvious.

 

[Escierto]

People can see something you post and they don’t argue with you. They just get even. If I knew someone was a [Redacted] I would 1 bomb everything he ever wrote. I would not even say anything to him. I would just bomb his ass.

[We have a politics section of the forum if you wish to engage in political discussions. - AH Mod]

 

[Lifestyle66]

The OP says they didn't get into politics or arguments. If that's accurate, then it makes little sense. There are so many people expressing militant opinions that targeting a rando who isn't doesn't make much sense.

I have little doubt that getting into a heated exchange with the wrong person or saying something that runs afoul of their political/cultural philosophy could get you bombed to hell and back.

You have no idea what triggers some haters. And they don't even need to post on these forums. All the reading public needs to see on this free Internet site is you posting something they personally hate. You might even think you're being reasonable. But of the 8 billion people on this planet, all it takes is ONE of them to take offense and start 1-bombing you. It makes the insignificant feel powerful!

 

[RejectReality]

I would 1 bomb everything he ever wrote. I would not even say anything to him. I would just bomb his ass.

Any chance that posts like this ( political reference removed from the quote ) might have contributed to someone bombing your work when you were posting under your writing handle? Maybe? LOL

 

[Lifestyle66]

Any chance that posts like this ( political reference removed from the quote ) might have contributed to someone bombing your work when you were posting under your writing handle? Maybe? LOL

The turds don't post stories and use that ID to 1-bomb. They have multiple IDs with no stories posted to use when spewing their hate.

So, for the naive ones who come here to the AH thinking this is an author support forum, ... grow up. This is the anonymous Internet sewer you're stepping into.

 

[RejectReality]

You have no idea what triggers some haters. And they don't even need to post on these forums. All the reading public needs to see on this free Internet site is you posting something they personally hate. You might even think you're being reasonable. But of the 8 billion people on this planet, all it takes is ONE of them to take offense and start 1-bombing you. It makes the insignificant feel powerful!

I'm taking the OP's initial post at face value. Rare, non-confrontational posts do not a personal troll inspire. Assuming that's accurate, and considering the level of voting common in the two mentioned categories, the more likely scenario is natural score ebbs and flows, which are more pronounced at smaller vote totals.

Now, if the opening post of this thread was in the OP's writing name, there's a trigger. Trolls will take that as a sign you can be hurt by score attacks, and that may be all they need.

 

[Escierto]

Any chance that posts like this ( political reference removed from the quote ) might have contributed to someone bombing your work when you were posting under your writing handle? Maybe? LOL

I never posted under my writing username. Redacted.

[We have a politics section of the forum if you wish to engage in political discussion - AH Mod]​

 

[Escierto]

I'm taking the OP's initial post at face value. Rare, non-confrontational posts do not a personal troll inspire. Assuming that's accurate, and considering the level of voting common in the two mentioned categories, the more likely scenario is natural score ebbs and flows, which are more pronounced at smaller vote totals.

Now, if the opening post of this thread was in the OP's writing name, there's a trigger. Trolls will take that as a sign you can be hurt by score attacks, and that may be all they need.

You don’t seem to understand that if you write something I don’t like and it pisses me off, I could 1 bomb you. I could 1 bomb you now but I won’t.

 

[RejectReality]

The turds don't post stories and use that ID to 1-bomb. They have multiple IDs with no stories posted to use when spewing their hate.

So, for the naive ones who come here to the AH thinking this is an author support forum, ... grow up. This is the anonymous Internet sewer you're stepping into.

Escierto said that this ID is used rather than the story posting ID because posting here was resulting in troll activity on the stories. ( Correction: apparently this ID was a pre-emptive move to prevent that ) I asked if perhaps comments of the nature expressed in this thread might have been the sort of thing that could trigger that kind of behavior.

It had nothing to do with how the trolls engage in that behavior. I think you may be a little overheated and reading what you expect to be there, rather than what is.

 

[Lifestyle66]

Escierto said that this ID is used rather than the story posting ID because posting here was resulting in troll activity on the stories. ( Correction: apparently this ID was a pre-emptive move to prevent that ) I asked if perhaps comments of the nature expressed in this thread might have been the sort of thing that could trigger that kind of behavior.

It had nothing to do with how the trolls engage in that behavior. I think you may be a little overheated and reading what you expect to be there, rather than what is.

I think your ignoring the point and getting confused.

"Aukey" is the OP who said his stories under a different ID are being bombed.

"Escierto" is validating what I said in that Escierto will be triggered and pissed at whatever he chooses to hate and 1-bomb the daylights out of that author's stories!

Some people are easily triggered, and you can't tell what it will be that sets the retards off.

 

[RejectReality]

I think your ignoring the point and getting confused.

"Aukey" is the OP who said his stories under a different ID are being bombed.

"Escierto" is validating what I said in that Escierto will be triggered and pissed at whatever he chooses to hate and 1-bomb the daylights out of that author's stories!

Some people are easily triggered, and you can't tell what it will be that sets the retards off.

It's still more likely that it's natural score flux. The majority of what people think are bombs are perfectly normal 3s and 4s that move low vote total scores. The first thing anyone should do before assuming they're the victim of a troll attack is start doing the math to see how many 1s it would take to move the score the amount they see. Then how many 4s. You can never know for certain, but you'll often find that the 4s are the more likely scenario.

If you find a dead bird on your porch, look for stray cats before you start looking for satanic cultists in the neighborhood.

 

[Lifestyle66]

It's still more likely that it's natural score flux. The majority of what people think are bombs are perfectly normal 3s and 4s that move low vote total scores. The first thing anyone should do before assuming they're the victim of a troll attack is start doing the math to see how many 1s it would take to move the score the amount they see. Then how many 4s. You can never know for certain, but you'll often find that the 4s are the more likely scenario.

If you find a dead bird on your porch, look for stray cats before you start looking for satanic cultists in the neighborhood.

Within the last hour, several of my stories have just received 1-bombs.

Two hours ago, I had four stories with red-H. Now the list has just one.

Those red-H stories were in different categories.

So, the turd is watching us ... here ... in this thread! I triggered it!

(And I know how to do the math. They are 1's!!!)

 

[EmilyMiller]

Is it a coincidence...​

Probably. Unless you do something really awful to provoke people. Like being a mouthy bitch.

Otherwise, probably just Brownian Motion,

Em

 

[Euphony]

Probably. Unless you do something really awful to provoke people. Like being a mouthy bitch.

Otherwise, probably just Brownian Motion,

Em

Who do we report "the womenfolk are talking again" to?

Surely that's against the rules. Surely.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Who do we report "the womenfolk are talking again" to?

Surely that's against the rules. Surely.

I’d like to answer, but it’s not my place.

Em