The "Hot" rating

[SimonDoom]

Two things we can say about the ratings system with enough confidence that there's barely any point to even discuss them:

1. The site is not going to do anything to make it harder for people to vote. Period. Not going to happen. It is in the site's interest, for the sake of traffic, to make this experience as easy on readers as possible, and to give them the maximum tools to enjoy the site and interact with it with the least amount of effort. The site has made this clear.

2. The site is not going to complicate the voting system further, both because of reason number 1 and because complications, as RejectReality says, just provide more opportunities for gaming and more opportunities to complain about the witchcraft of it all.

 

[AchtungNight]

I’d trade all my thirty plus Hs for just one W.

Em

You’ve already earned a couple of DREs from me fyi (my initials, also stands for Definitely Read & Enjoyed).

 

[alohadave]

Two things we can say about the ratings system with enough confidence that there's barely any point to even discuss them:

1. The site is not going to do anything to make it harder for people to vote. Period. Not going to happen. It is in the site's interest, for the sake of traffic, to make this experience as easy on readers as possible, and to give them the maximum tools to enjoy the site and interact with it with the least amount of effort. The site has made this clear.

2. The site is not going to complicate the voting system further, both because of reason number 1 and because complications, as RejectReality says, just provide more opportunities for gaming and more opportunities to complain about the witchcraft of it all.

An an author, the only thing I'd like is a breakdown of the scoring. I understand why they may not want to do that though.

A historical record of stats would be super nice too, but I don't see that ever happening.

 

[Red_Herring4]

I still have that outlier story with a score of 4.84, with 505 votes on 807 views.

View attachment 2298326

Off topic, but have you checked with Laurel about the view stats on that story? It has to be a glitch. Your sequel to that story, published seven months later, has ~7,500 more views but ~130 fewer votes.

Most of the other stories on the 12-month HoF list in that category, even those with only a handful of votes, have well over 1,000 views. Heck, most of the stories on the New list for just the past week in Novels and Novellas have more views than your story. If 505 readers have voted for it, I have to believe that way more than 807 have read it. How bizarre!

 

[BobbyBrandt]

I don't think the assumptions are sound. There are plenty of anonymous readers whose opinions are every bit as sound as those of writers. This would just be an arbitrary way of distinguishing between different readers. Also, it would be less accurate. People must keep in mind the purpose of a rating system is TO CONVEY INFORMATION TO OTHER READERS, not to reward authors. This is best served by making the rating system as democratic, egalitarian, and open to all as possible.

You're implying that other readers wouldn't benefit from having more subjective ratings on stories based upon other writers experiences and skill versus only what readers with no writing skill might feel. I would have to disagree since readers would likely be conveyed more authoritative information if writers' scores counted for more.

 

[MillieDynamite]

If published writers' votes were put as separate votes with a separate score, so you had readers score 4.43, and authors score 4.65, it might work. But burying the writer's score inside and just weighing them as counting for more doesn't really achieve any meaningful change in the system.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

Off topic, but have you checked with Laurel about the view stats on that story? It has to be a glitch. Your sequel to that story, published seven months later, has ~7,500 more views but ~130 fewer votes.

Most of the other stories on the 12-month HoF list in that category, even those with only a handful of votes, have well over 1,000 views. Heck, most of the stories on the New list for just the past week in Novels and Novellas have more views than your story. If 505 readers have voted for it, I have to believe that way more than 807 have read it. How bizarre!

It has trended this way since it was published almost exactly a year ago. The site has seen multiple sweeps and data adjustments since then so any glitch would have likely been solved by now. All the other stats are fine.

The story's title and tags make it obscure. The story to which it is a prequel to was published almost ten years ago and still gets between 40 and 40 views per day. This story gets less than 3 per day.

 

[StillStunned]

You're implying that other readers wouldn't benefit from having more subjective ratings on stories based upon other writers experiences and skill versus only what readers with no writing skill might feel. I would have to disagree since readers would likely be conveyed more authoritative information if writers' scores counted for more.

I've seen quite a few stories by authors whose writing skills might charitably be described as "leaving room for improvement". Even so, they have huge numbers of views and high scores. Presumably an opinion based on a writer's experience and skill isn't as "authoritative" as you might think when it comes to what readers want.

Here in the AH, we might have lofty views of the literary merits of our work. But there's a whole Literotica site out there that doesn't really care.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

I've seen quite a few stories by authors whose writing skills might charitably be described as "leaving room for improvement". Even so, they have huge numbers of views and high scores. Presumably an opinion based on a writer's experience and skill isn't as "authoritative" as you might think when it comes to what readers want.

Here in the AH, we might have lofty views of the literary merits of our work. But there's a whole Literotica site out there that doesn't really care.

Yeah, still waiting on my notification from Columbia on my Pulitzer…
Not holding my breath.

 

[Zootonius]

In the end, I'm and advocate of KISS
Keep It Simple, Stupid!

 

[StillStunned]

In the end, I'm and advocate of KISS
Keep It Simple, Stupid!

I'm an advocate of KISS because I like cheesy metal music. Who here remembers Twisted Sister or Zodiac Mindwarp & the Love Reaction?

 

[Red_Herring4]

It has trended this way since it was published almost exactly a year ago. The site has seen multiple sweeps and data adjustments since then so any glitch would have likely been solved by now. All the other stats are fine.

The story's title and tags make it obscure. The story to which it is a prequel to was published almost ten years ago and still gets between 40 and 40 views per day. This story gets less than 3 per day.

In that case, that's a truly incredible vote/view ratio. Wow!

 

[MillieDynamite]

Between 40 and 40? WTF is between 40 and 40?

It has trended this way since it was published almost exactly a year ago. The site has seen multiple sweeps and data adjustments since then so any glitch would have likely been solved by now. All the other stats are fine.

The story's title and tags make it obscure. The story to which it is a prequel to was published almost ten years ago and still gets between 40 and 40 views per day. This story gets less than 3 per day.

 

[AchtungNight]

Awards- I’ll take all the praise I’ve gotten here and elsewhere. Don’t need no prize named for a stinking yellow press advocate or warmonger (Pulitzer slash Nobel).

I remember KISS. Great band. They’re also fans of my work… maybe. None of my readers are people I’ve personally met, but I can dream.

 

[Voboy]

Here in the AH, we might have lofty views of the literary merits of our work. But there's a whole Literotica site out there that doesn't really care.

This X1000.

No barrier to voting is desirable.

 

[Rollinbones]

I love the little red H. But some of my 'bestly' written stories, my most creative efforts, don't have them. The red H is a popularity crown, not a literary endorsement. So, you learn to feed the beast. Enter the comps, give people what they want to consume. Shmaltz with orgasms. Are you not entertained?

 

[SimonDoom]

I've seen quite a few stories by authors whose writing skills might charitably be described as "leaving room for improvement". Even so, they have huge numbers of views and high scores. Presumably an opinion based on a writer's experience and skill isn't as "authoritative" as you might think when it comes to what readers want.

Here in the AH, we might have lofty views of the literary merits of our work. But there's a whole Literotica site out there that doesn't really care.

I totally agree, and what's more, even to the extent authors might offer judgments on stories more related to their "literary qualities," (a premise I doubt) if that IS so then it means their views diverge from those of the vast majority, the non-author readers, and non-author readers are going to be more inclined to rely on judgments like their own.

 

[SimonDoom]

The red H, or more accurately a 4.5+ rating, is influenced by quite a number of factors, making it almost meaningless as a way to compare stories across different categories, of different lengths, and of different types. Some factors:

1. Stories in Loving Wives on average have much lower scores, making them impossible to compare, quality-wise, with stories in other categories.
2. In general, mean scores vary significantly from one category to another.
3. Very short stories on average score more poorly, even if they are very well written.
4. In the case of stories with many chapters, late chapters tend to score highly, just because of reader attrition, and having nothing to do with quality.
5. Offbeat stories or stories that violate the norms of the categories in which they are published often receive lower scores even if they are well written.

 

[ElectricBlue]

You're implying that other readers wouldn't benefit from having more subjective ratings on stories based upon other writers experiences and skill versus only what readers with no writing skill might feel. I would have to disagree since readers would likely be conveyed more authoritative information if writers' scores counted for more.

Why should writer's scores get a higher weighting? Most writers write junk.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

Why should writer's scores get a higher weighting? Most writers write junk.

Then they should recognize said junk and score it accordingly instead of letting readers give them false praise.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Then they should recognize said junk and score it accordingly instead of letting readers give them false praise.

There's some reverse logic going on there. You're arguing that a score from a writer is worth more, merely because they're a writer. I'm saying, no it doesn't, because most (many?) writers aren't that good.

The bulk of my most astute commentary comes from readers who don't write at all. I don't think writers are worth more, not at all.

 

[Voboy]

Then they should recognize said junk and score it accordingly instead of letting readers give them false praise.

Lol. What's false about it? If a reader loves it and gives it a 5, that's a legit rating whether they know how to write or not. And if a writer who writes objectively shitty "junk" finds an audience that falls in love with their words? How is that a bad thing? They're expressing themselves and causing enjoyment. Well and good. Not everyone is here to "improve;" some figure they're already "improved enough."

I just don't buy that writers are more important than readers, in any meaningful way. Certainly the entire setup of this site favors readers over writers, and I'm not sure why anyone imagines that'll change. It's been this way for 25 years. We choose to write here; we're welcome to leave anytime.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Lol. What's false about it? If a reader loves it and gives it a 5, that's a legit rating whether they know how to write or not. And if a writer who writes objectively shitty "junk" finds an audience that falls in love with their words? How is that a bad thing? They're expressing themselves and causing enjoyment. Well and good. Not everyone is here to "improve;" some figure they're already "improved enough."

I just don't buy that writers are more important than readers, in any meaningful way. Certainly the entire setup of this site favors readers over writers, and I'm not sure why anyone imagines that'll change. It's been this way for 25 years. We choose to write here; we're welcome to leave anytime.

I guess we could create a committee to vote on every story. I mean it worked for the College Football Playoff, unless you're Florida State.