Disappointments

[estragon]

If poor ol' Scouries has to come here, he must really be desperate.

 

[lovecraft68]

Well have you seen scouries world lately?

He came to the right thread to post, because talk about disappointing.

 

[estragon]

Lc68, Lol!

 

[estragon]

Bittersweet. Grandmaster dweaver999 has posted another in his "Amber" series. While I was glad to see one of the greats back on Lit, and his fans were clearly loving it, I was sorry there wasn't another Valerie story. That series was so good.

 

[estragon]

Not a story disappointment, but Plala, a newbie here, posted a lament about unfinished series, where the author fails to complete a multi-chapter story and leaves the readers hanging.

The story is an old one; I seem to remember someone telling people something like "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’" Some guy named Luke wrote it down.

Yet authors do what other people do.

 

[PennLady]

Not a story disappointment, but Plala, a newbie here, posted a lament about unfinished series, where the author fails to complete a multi-chapter story and leaves the readers hanging.

The story is an old one; I seem to remember someone telling people something like "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’" Some guy named Luke wrote it down.

Yet authors do what other people do.

Not to hijack the thread, but sometimes life and other things get in the way. A recent thread in another forum was asking about the story "Sophia," if I recall correctly, and the author had unfortunately passed away. That's an extreme example, but other things can interfere, too -- an illness, job problems, all kinds of things.

I suppose it'd be ideal to have a story finished before it posts, whether it's a stand alone or a series. But sometimes the authors could use a little encouragement, and so posting an installment can give us a boost.

The other thing is, it's a free site. You click the link, you take your chances.

 

[Saxon Stonedyke]

Not to hijack the thread, but sometimes life and other things get in the way. A recent thread in another forum was asking about the story "Sophia," if I recall correctly, and the author had unfortunately passed away. That's an extreme example, but other things can interfere, too -- an illness, job problems, all kinds of things.

I suppose it'd be ideal to have a story finished before it posts, whether it's a stand alone or a series. But sometimes the authors could use a little encouragement, and so posting an installment can give us a boost.

The other thing is, it's a free site. You click the link, you take your chances.

Well, in my case I wrote the first chapter of Lady Of My Heart in Sept of '05 and it was intended to be a stand alone story in a contest on another site. It didn't do well there.

I got up the nerve to post it here in March and was encouraged by comments to continue the story.

In the mean time life reared it's head and I became sole caretaker of a 70 year old disabled parent....

If I had realized it was going to end up being book length I would have finished it first but it was a surprise to me. I just submitted the final chapter and it's still sinking in that I actually did it and people actually like it. I had dreams of writing when I was in high school but I never thought I could do it.

 

[sr71plt]

Not to hijack the thread, but sometimes life and other things get in the way. A recent thread in another forum was asking about the story "Sophia," if I recall correctly, and the author had unfortunately passed away. That's an extreme example, but other things can interfere, too -- an illness, job problems, all kinds of things.

Yes, but those are personal issues. If you extend yourself to others, you are entering a contract with them. Thus, none of what you post excuses an author from finishing the story before beginning to feed it to readers who have a right to expect that they won't be left in the lurch if they make the investment in reading the work.

 

[PennLady]

Yes, but those are personal issues. If you extend yourself to others, you are entering a contract with them. Thus, none of what you post excuses an author from finishing the story before beginning to feed it to readers who have a right to expect that they won't be left in the lurch if they make the investment in reading the work.

Yes, sir.

 

[YDB95]

Yes, but those are personal issues. If you extend yourself to others, you are entering a contract with them. Thus, none of what you post excuses an author from finishing the story before beginning to feed it to readers who have a right to expect that they won't be left in the lurch if they make the investment in reading the work.

I might agree if this were a pay-site. But as it is, the readers' only investment is the time it takes to read a story the author wrote for free.

I admit this is something of a sore point for me at the moment, as I just posted the first chapter of what I hope to be a long series this week, and it's been getting a great response, so I'm really hyped for Chapter 2...but life has been getting in the way. My day job has to come first! I love getting positive responses from readers here, but those aren't going to pay my rent.

 

[sr71plt]

I might agree if this were a pay-site. But as it is, the readers' only investment is the time it takes to read a story the author wrote for free.

I admit this is something of a sore point for me at the moment, as I just posted the first chapter of what I hope to be a long series this week, and it's been getting a great response, so I'm really hyped for Chapter 2...but life has been getting in the way. My day job has to come first! I love getting positive responses from readers here, but those aren't going to pay my rent.

You are still making a contract with readers when you post to a site like this. So, it's still all your "bad" when you don't fulfill that contract--and all your excusing for not doing it. I'm pretty sure that it's only authors who don't want to commit to complete what they start (or not post it at all) who can condone leaving readers in the lurch--even on a free-read site.

 

[MaxSebastian]

And that JK Rowling, god did she take a long time to finish the Harry Potter series, even though I kept sending her tons of angry letters demanding to know why she didn't finish the series before starting to get them published.

 

[sr71plt]

And that JK Rowling, god did she take a long time to finish the Harry Potter series, even though I kept sending her tons of angry letters demanding to know why she didn't finish the series before starting to get them published.

Apples and kumquats. Those were not a single chaptered story. (And she did complete the series. She also has said that she had all of the books sketched out from the getgo.)

Reopening a series isn't the same thing, either. It originally was brought to a conclusion originally. And the reopening should end in a conclusion too--not just drift away.

I see no reason to spin this out and continue to respond to authors' repeated excuses on why the reader doesn't count, though.

 

[MaxSebastian]

Get a grip with your moralistic high and mighty nonsense.

You get what you pay for. The reader knows this when they commit the time to this website. You're naive if you think otherwise.

To say a writer does not care about their readers because they want the challenge of writing episodic serials is a false argument and basically you declaring that because you yourself prefer otherwise, it should be a rule for everyone.

Proscribing the way people create is pathetic in this day and age.

 

[soflabbwlvr]

You are still making a contract with readers when you post to a site like this. So, it's still all your "bad" when you don't fulfill that contract--and all your excusing for not doing it. I'm pretty sure that it's only authors who don't want to commit to complete what they start (or not post it at all) who can condone leaving readers in the lurch--even on a free-read site.

Bullshit. Obligations must run in both directions to create a contract. Here, there is no mutuality of obligation. Readers are not bound to finish reading a story, or to read even a single word. They are certainly not bound to read subsequent chapters. If one party cannot be bound to perform, then there is no contract.

 

[sr71plt]

Yep, I recognize that there are writers here who don't give a shit about their readers.

The contract was established by the writer posting it here and the reader beginning to read it.

 

[MaxSebastian]

So sue for breach of contract.

 

[soflabbwlvr]

Yep, I recognize that there are writers here who don't give a shit about their readers.

The contract was established by the writer posting it here and the reader beginning to read it.

Whether an author has concern for the readers is entirely unrelated to the creation of contractual obligations. Love and affection will not support the creation of a contract. Posting a story does not satisfy a single element in the formation of a contract.

 

[sr71plt]

Guess some folks here aren't aware of the "social contract" concept.

 

[soflabbwlvr]

Guess some folks here aren't aware of the "social contract" concept.

Or they have heard of it, and realize it has no application to this discussion whatsoever.

 

[sr71plt]

Or they have heard of it, and realize it has no application to this discussion whatsoever.

Oh, come on. Of course it does.

OK, I'm game. How about some feedback from readers. Would you start reading a story that you didn't expect to come to a conclusion? Do you expect the author to bring his/her story to a conclusion?

 

[nakdsub]

I'm going to give...

The same advice I always get. Hey, it's a free site, you take what you get. Suck it up and move on.

 

[sr71plt]

The same advice I always get. Hey, it's a free site, you take what you get. Suck it up and move on.

Posted by the same poster who wants the author to include a proslug on every story specifying every single element of a story that could possibly upset the most needy reader?

Well, I'll agree with you and suggest that no reader start reading a chaptered story until it's completely done, because there are writers here who don't give a shit about you investing time and attention to their stories in anticipation that they will be completed. Because they don't give a shit about you.

 

[MaxSebastian]

Guess some folks here aren't aware of the "social contract" concept.

What are you wittering on about? Do you mean an implied contract? A social contract involves the relationship between the governed and the government. Unless you're talking about the Mind Control section

I realize you have a fetish for winding people up, but all your talk about other writers not giving a shit about their readers makes you sound like the most sanctimonious prick.

Are you standing for office or something?

I agree if readers are having such a godawful time, they should avoid reading chaptered stories on Lit. Then they should stop watching television in case the TV networks cancel their favorite show.

 

[soflabbwlvr]

What are you wittering on about? Do you mean an implied contract? A social contract involves the relationship between the governed and the government. Unless you're talking about the Mind Control section

I realize you have a fetish for winding people up, but all your talk about other writers not giving a shit about their readers makes you sound like the most sanctimonious prick.

Are you standing for office or something?

I agree if readers are having such a godawful time, they should avoid reading chaptered stories on Lit. Then they should stop watching television in case the TV networks cancel their favorite show.

Locke, Hobbes and Rousseau are shaking their heads in disgust