My first story just posted ... and I have a question

[Hogwash]

All,

I just posted my first story. It is part of an extended prologue, actually, to a much larger work (now going on 100 pages).

That isn't relevant to my question, though.

I posted it allowing for voting and comments and it still shows up as x.xx as the average voting score. Internally, meaning from my account access to the story, it shows 4 votes (now) with a score, but as stated above, it does not show up on the publicly accessible version.

So to my question:

What gives?

Do I need to do anything other than wait for lit to update its servers? Or did I likely do something wrong in the submission process?

Thanks.

And happy reading! (And VOTING!!!!)

 

[PennLady]

It takes a while for the votes to be calculated and then displayed on your page, and the story listing page, and your submissions page. So just be patient, I'm sure you'll see a score posted by the end of the day, probably sooner. Also, the different pages update at different times, so if you see a different score on the story listing vs. your author page, don't worry.

 

[BrettJ]

It also takes a certain number of votes before they register. I forget what the minimum number might be but let's say, for the sake of argument, 50. I've had comments on some of my tales almost immediately with a vote attached and it wasn't counted. Best of luck on your first work.

BrettJ in Canada

 

[oggbashan]

You can see votes on your personal page before they are visible everywhere.

There used to be a minimum of 10 votes before the rating was generally seen, but depending on HOW you look, you can see a rating before that.

But - because of that minimum of 10, many stories reach their tenth vote with a perfect 5.00. That doesn't last long once the rating is visible.

 

[Hogwash]

Thanks very much.

I checked throughout the literotica submission guidelines and the FAQs and could not find an answer. I figured that being patient was the way to go (usually is, no?), but I was impatient.

Again, thanks.

 

[sr71plt]

First, there isn't a number of votes that have to be reached for the stats to show--just time, as the lists update on different schedules. Yours isn't showing vote/view totals on the public-view author list yet, but the stats are showing in the "Novels/Novellas" list. If they don't show on the author list by the new day, you might note that to Laurel in a PM (private message system, upper right of this page). I've had glitches like this happening to me of late.

In e-publishing terms this might be a novel rather than novella from what you indicate (80 pages of what? What's the wordage? Computer file pages vary to much to mean much of anything). If it hits 40,000 words, it becomes a novel in the e-world.

I probably wouldn't read this further, as what I have read comes across as being underage even if you state they are eighteen: giggly, immature high school seniors. I don't really see being old enough for erotica to be an age number; it's more an emotional maturity number. If you invoke the acceptable number with a character who isn't acting that old, I consider that just playing to a reader looking for underage stories. This is just an explanation of why I wouldn't read it--it does play the game of "acceptable" here at Literotica, so it doesn't seem to bother a lot of others.

What I have read, though, highlights the danger of thanking an editor. The editing isn't competent, which then makes the read intrusive to anyone having been told it's been edited. You may have gotten good content help, but not sufficient help in the technicals.

Just in the first paragraph: In the first sentence, the first quote really should end in a period rather than a comma, as it's followed by a declarative sentence, not a quote slug. Women are blondes, not blonds (which is the male form). "medium-length" and "full-length" combined adjectives should be hyphenated. There should be a comma in front of the "pretending" gerund phrase. And publishing uses the serial comma: "lipsticks, rouges, and other makeup and perfume."

Best of luck with this. I'm sure you'll find a large readership for it.

 

[Hogwash]

Wow.

Ouch.

I have not written an underage erotic story and I have not aimed for a readership made up folks interested in such things.

 

[sr71plt]

Sorry, but that's how it reads to me so far. Why do they have to be "on the edge" age wise (or that immature acting)? I'll see any high school student setting as playing the underage card. Others won't, of course.

 

[PennLady]

Sorry, but that's how it reads to me so far. Why do they have to be "on the edge" age wise (or that immature acting)? I'll see any high school student setting as playing the underage card. Others won't, of course.

Because they aren't all playing that card. I'll use myself as an example. Part of my story "Facing the Past" takes place with the protagonists in high school, because it's part of when the characters met. Just before graduation, when she is 18 and he is either that or 19 (I don't think I said), they have sex. It's not about trying to play the underage card, it's actually about the girl having a good, loving experience before heading back to an abusive home that she then runs away from that night.

Now the difference may be that I didn't set the entire story in high school, just a few events, but they're important events for the characters.

Let me state too that I generally do not like stories set in high school. Like you -- I think -- I don't care for giggly, immature characters, which of course many people in high school are.

But I don't think a high school setting equals an attempt at getting around the underage rule, although I would agree that a lot of writers play it that way. Just not all of them.

ETA: I just read the story and have to say that it is definitely treading that underage line, to me.

 

[sr71plt]

There always are exceptions. I have consistently said this was my personal view. And my personal view is that there is no reason to have a sex scene when they are still in high school given the rules of this Web site--to do so is to play the underage card at this Web site, IMO.

 

[xhellblazerx]

Because they aren't all playing that card. I'll use myself as an example. Part of my story "Facing the Past" takes place with the protagonists in high school, because it's part of when the characters met. Just before graduation, when she is 18 and he is either that or 19 (I don't think I said), they have sex. It's not about trying to play the underage card, it's actually about the girl having a good, loving experience before heading back to an abusive home that she then runs away from that night.

Now the difference may be that I didn't set the entire story in high school, just a few events, but they're important events for the characters.

Let me state too that I generally do not like stories set in high school. Like you -- I think -- I don't care for giggly, immature characters, which of course many people in high school are.

But I don't think a high school setting equals an attempt at getting around the underage rule, although I would agree that a lot of writers play it that way. Just not all of them.

ETA: I just read the story and have to say that it is definitely treading that underage line, to me.

I have read a lot of stories that use high school that seem like yours no noticeable effort to get people to think they are younger.

But I see a lot of stories that state the characters are older than eighteen around twentyish then have them talk like children.

It seems more aimed at the girls. I don't see a lot of boys acting below eighteen, but a lot of girls talking borderline baby talk and dressing in ways a young girl would dress. A MY little Pony nightshirt? Seriously? And they are described physically as sounding like they are barely into puberty.

But because the authors says "19/20" this does not seem an issue. What I am rambling along to is that there seems less games with High School or people saying "18" than there are in stories with less obvious underage scenarios and that tells me the author is deliberately playing that game

Its a big failing in the editing process here, maybe the rule is "don't be obvious" because there is too much of what I described to be an accident and to have never been caught one author...every story is like that and he/she is very popular. Disturbing that they are tells you that many here are fine with children having sex.

 

[Hogwash]

I never had any intention, at all, of even suggesting that any of my characters were underage.

I was shocked and aghast at sr71plt's initial post, which I read as accusing me of writing erotica designed to tittilate pedophiles.

I was offended by it, in part because I loathe underage sex anything, but also because of the tone.

After waiting to relax a bit, and rereading his post very carefully, and rereading my story again, I understand his initial concern.

I still think his initial post was aggressive and rude, but I suppose I might be aggressive and rude to someone I thought was intentionally writing underage porn.

This prologue is a backstory to events in Carrie's life during College. I chose end of High School because it is a clear differentiation between the college experience.

I need not have used High School - and I am going to take down my initial chapter and pull my second, presently under review by lit - and rewrite them both taking into account the interpretation of my writing effort by those on this thread.

 

[sr71plt]

I posted that they came across as underage to me, and said I don't read such stories. No more, no less. I reject your claim I was being rude. You posted requesting feedback and I took the time and effort to respond. If I'd known you didn't want honest responses, I guess I wouldn't have bothered.

 

[robertreams]

no story name, no link?

 

[PennLady]

I never had any intention, at all, of even suggesting that any of my characters were underage.

All of us as writers, I think, have had people make interpretations of our stories that we didn't intend. It happens with any kind of art.

And I didn't think you were trying to skirt the line purposely, just that the story did seem to be walking that line, and it was more with the characters' behavior. I'm not saying 18yo girls don't act like that, because some do (and so do some 18yo guys, and so do some of both genders at later ages).

You're right that going from high school to college is a major life change, and so to me there's nothing wrong with including it. I tend not to care for high-school-age characters in stories -- and I have long before I started reading on Lit -- precisely because they do tend to be immature and I don't like that.

Good luck with the rewrite, if it's what you want to do, but keep in mind that you'll never please everyone. Someone will always read something into your story that you didn't intend, or be offended by something, or whatever.

 

[Hogwash]

Thank you. I appreciate it very much. I was staggered by the false accusation that I was intentionally skirting the age rules in order to post under age erotica. Your last post helps.

 

[PennLady]

Thank you. I appreciate it very much. I was staggered by the false accusation that I was intentionally skirting the age rules in order to post under age erotica. Your last post helps.

Glad it helped.

I was thinking about it, and just going by my limited experience, it seems to me that most people write high school students as immature, which they aren't necessarily, versus inexperienced, which most are. By the time a lot -- most? -- people graduate high school, they have held a job or two, met requirements at their school for academics or athletics or both, joined clubs or done plays/musicals that require responsibiilty and commitment, and things like that. Many are aiming for college, some for the military, some for other things. That can't be all done, or done well, if a person is immature.

So I guess what I'm kind of musing on is that if more high school characters were written more maturely, perhaps I'd like some of the stories better.

But I think also as we get older we probably project more immaturity on people younger than us. Not all the time, but probably sometimes.

/end musings

 

[8letters]

In e-publishing terms this might be a novel rather than novella from what you indicate (80 pages of what? What's the wordage? Computer file pages vary to much to mean much of anything). If it hits 40,000 words, it becomes a novel in the e-world.

40K? Really? I have a near-finished story that is sitting at 31K and it doesn't seem close to novel length to me. I am planning on publishing it as one story when it's done.

 

[sr71plt]

40K? Really? I have a near-finished story that is sitting at 31K and it doesn't seem close to novel length to me. I am planning on publishing it as one story when it's done.

31K would be novella length in e-publishing. Anything above about 25K can be put out in print now of 100+ pages, so would be considered a novella. Thanks to the e-revolution, novellas are marketable once again--and can be shorter than the old lower limit of 35K.