Anybody else flirting with Hot?

[Mister_Chris]

Of the 6 stories I've had published on Literotica, 1 is sitting at 4.51; and 2 more are sitting at 4.50.

Exactly.

So the wind shifts, the breeze changes direction... and my stories are suddenly hot. And then, just as suddenly, not. All my little red H's blink on and off so rapidly, my stories page looks like a Las Vegas neon sign.

Does this happen to anyone else?

When I take the mean average of my scores, I wind up around 4.45 (depending on the day). So, I'm not quite hot. Not boiling. More of a gentle simmer. A bit of steam.

And an occasional burp.

Sigh. Anybody else sitting on the teetering edge of hotness?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rdF7o08KXw

 

[Handley_Page]

Of the 6 stories I've had published on Literotica, 1 is sitting at 4.51; and 2 more are sitting at 4.50.

Exactly.

So the wind shifts, the breeze changes direction... and my stories are suddenly hot. And then, just as suddenly, not. All my little red H's blink on and off so rapidly, my stories page looks like a Las Vegas neon sign.

Does this happen to anyone else?

When I take the mean average of my scores, I wind up around 4.45 (depending on the day). So, I'm not quite hot. Not boiling. More of a gentle simmer. A bit of steam.

And an occasional burp.

Sigh. Anybody else sitting on the teetering edge of hotness?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rdF7o08KXw

I have yet to understand why it is so all-fired important.
I figure that anything over 4 means I have pleased more than I've disappointed.

 

[CyranoJ]

I figured I wouldn't care about the red H when I finally submitted stories, but I have to admit it's a nice bonus in an "Achievement Unlocked" sort of way. I was displeased when my April Fool's story cycled out of Hottness and pleased when it cycled firmly back into red "H" territory, so I can see where the OP is coming from.

 

[Mister_Chris]

I have yet to understand why it is so all-fired important.

I guess it's sorta like Jazz. If you don't get it, you never will.

Or something.

 

[Handley_Page]

I guess it's sorta like Jazz. If you don't get it, you never will.

Or something.

Oh; I get it Jazz or the real Rock n Roll ?

 

[lovecraft68]

I've flirted with hot before...then my wife showed up

Anything like a Red H will be something people will usually chase. Its a goal, something to strive for.

How much does it actually mean as to quality of the story? It varies, some deserve it, some are products of large fan bases and maybe just popular subject matter. I don't think an H equates that it is automatically a good story, but again what is "good" here, people all read for different reasons.

What I do know is the ones who disparage the H so strongly are the ones that don't see many of them.

The same that say top lists and hall of fame and blue W's mean nothing

Those authors remind me of the kids who didn't get picked to play pick up football games and walked away saying "I don't like football anyway"

Haters gotta hate. That's why we have so much trolling, jealous authors and rabid fans of other authors targeting the scores of people whose stories do well here.

 

[lowphat]

When I do a search for stories I tend to click the "Hot only" box, just so it weeds out all the really bad ones. I guess I'm probably missing out on some good ones, but the sheer number of stories here now, can be overwhelming.

 

[elfin_odalisque]

The red 'H' is not the same in different cats. SciFi virtually awards an H to every story whilst you'll wait til he'll freezes over to get an H in loving Wives.

Romance is generous to certain authors whilst Incest seems a winner.

All this to say, look to your number of reads/favorites, comments and suchlike to form a judgement on the general view of your writing.

It is strange that male writers seem to top the list for lesbian stories.

 

[DreamCloud]

It is strange that male writers seem to top the list for lesbian stories.

I suspect there are more male readers on this site.
Lesbians are a beautiful mystery to most males.
Males have an easier time expressing that mystery in a male-ish way.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Yep. No.

Most of mine have voting turned off for one reason - Loving Wives. Both voting and comments are turned off on those stories.

Sci-Fi - latest is only .03 points away.

Erotic Couplings - .25 away

First Time - .09 away

Incest/Taboo - .23 away

Although anything above a or close to 4 is considered really good.

Then there are those readers who think that anyone posting here doesn't deserve more than a 3. (one reader told me that in an email)

 

[Swilly]

I have a few that flirt around the edges of hot.

Some people think the red H means nothing. At times, and in certain categories, they are right. But often, the red H does mean something. Although there are exceptions, stories with the red H usually have to be fairly well written AND fairly well liked. A well written story that people don't like won't get it, and a poorly written story that people like-story wise- probably won't get it either.

As an example, Last June we had a FAWC challenge. I wrote a story that, although not a winner, was firmly planted in the red H territory. It was in the romance category and had a happy ending. Once the FAWC had ended, I edited the story, cleaning up some grammatical errors and changing the ending. Changing the ending to a Romeo and Juliet type of ending was not something the majority of readers cared for. The story now sits at a 3.83 score.

If you want all red H's, you need to give people what they want. Of course, you limit yourself as a writer if you do that. I'm willing to take a few hits to tell the story that wants to be told.

 

[oggbashan]

My stories have a scattering of Hs, less than a third of the total.

When I write as jeanne_d_artois I get even fewer Hs.

I know why. My stories have limited appeal, and some voters don't like a man writing as Jeanne.

But I have noticed that the Hs erode over time as the rating slowly drops.

I still like my Blue Ws. And the Green E.

 

[LesLumens]

You only signed up a few months ago. It takes a time to build a following that will negate the low-ball bombs that everyone gets. In the meantime, you're likely to always be on the edge of 4.5.

An especially strong ( or hot ) story can overcome that, and some categories are more friendly, but that's the general experience everyone has when they start out.

 

[PTWaters1]

I've got 2 flirting with the red H...but I don't sweat the small stuff. Yes, I know that people tend to read the "Hots" rather than the "Nots", but those who have added me or my stories to their favorite lists don't necessarily care about the "H factor".

While I do like to see an H on my story, I know there are trolls and malcontents who just like to mess with people and the system. For this reason alone, I will never win a monthly contest unless I get the support of that group of people. But winning the loyalty of readers is everything and that is better than any red H.

 

[JKendallDane]

I just did my quarterly stats and as of the end of March my Lit collection of 53 stories between both IDs is setting at 79% with the infamous H attached to them.

I do have two, one-off strokers that...depending on the day of the week, the price of KY jelly at Walmart, and the position of Venus in the sky...are either at 4.49 or 4.50. Right now, both are at that super tease 4.49 stage. It used to really aggravate me sitting on the edge like that, but it's just part of the way the system works and the readers vote. It all weeds itself out in the end, one way or the other. I look at them as having a "leaner" in horseshoes. One little nudge and it's suddenly a "ringer" if you just wait it out.

One icon I would love to see added as Laurel and Manu do the upgrades to the site, would be one to denote a story has made it onto the "All Time Hall of Fame" category lists. To me, having stories ranked by the readers in the top two percent is as much an honor as a blue W, a green E, or a whole bagful of red H's.

 

[sr71plt]

What does seem to happen around here is for the red Hs to disappear right after you've posted to the forum about having them.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

If youre really any good someone would offer you a contract and pay for your wares. So mostly we're sluts who hang out to be picked up by anyone.

 

[sr71plt]

Speaking only for yourself there, Jim. Some here have been offered contracts from what they have posted here and are making money off it. Probably not many, but enough to belie your statement.

 

[slyc_willie]

Most of mine flirt with the red H right out of the starting gate, probably due to fans. I figure about two-thirds end up keeping it . . .

What does seem to happen around here is for the red Hs to disappear right after you've posted to the forum about having them.

. . . oh, damn. Now I've done it.

 

[sr71plt]

Mine don't wait for mention on the forum. They systematically disappear later in the evening of the first day of posting--sort of as soon as the red H registers after 10 votes. Eventually, you become accustomed to that and just appreciate that it took a bit of effort and more than a bit of bile for those doing it.

 

[Swilly]

Speaking only for yourself there, Jim. Some here have been offered contracts from what they have posted here and are making money off it. Probably not many, but enough to belie your statement.

Hmmm. Jim wrote "mostly we're sluts", which would indicate that there was a possibility that some are not sluts, and had been offered contracts.

You're slipping to be missing such a simple distinction. Maybe it's time for yet ANOTHER new career.

 

[lovecraft68]

I just did my quarterly stats and as of the end of March my Lit collection of 53 stories between both IDs is setting at 79% with the infamous H attached to them.

I do have two, one-off strokers that...depending on the day of the week, the price of KY jelly at Walmart, and the position of Venus in the sky...are either at 4.49 or 4.50. Right now, both are at that super tease 4.49 stage. It used to really aggravate me sitting on the edge like that, but it's just part of the way the system works and the readers vote. It all weeds itself out in the end, one way or the other. I look at them as having a "leaner" in horseshoes. One little nudge and it's suddenly a "ringer" if you just wait it out.

One icon I would love to see added as Laurel and Manu do the upgrades to the site, would be one to denote a story has made it onto the "All Time Hall of Fame" category lists. To me, having stories ranked by the readers in the top two percent is as much an honor as a blue W, a green E, or a whole bagful of red H's.

The problem with a hall of fame symbol is...you think people target H's or W's or E's when they see them? That HOF symbol would get the story sniped off of said list pretty damn fast.

Plus the site would have to keep track of them. If your story was bumped they would have to remove the symbol...

Oh and....they would have to fix the three broken top lists to make it fair and that will never happen.

 

[JKendallDane]

What does seem to happen around here is for the red Hs to disappear right after you've posted to the forum about having them.

And 90% or better of the time, the regular sweep takes care of that petty bullshit. No biggie to sweat there.

The trick with red H's is to wear them with pride but remain humble in the process and most definitely don't obsess over them one way or the other.

 

[lovecraft68]

Mine don't wait for mention on the forum. They systematically disappear later in the evening of the first day of posting--sort of as soon as the red H registers after 10 votes. Eventually, you become accustomed to that and just appreciate that it took a bit of effort and more than a bit of bile for those doing it.

I've wondered what would happen if they made it a higher total to get the H.

Move it to asay 25-50 at that point the troll vote would not have much effect and if the story took a day to get the fifty votes then it would fall off the new list and not be noticed....

 

[TamLin01]

Dwelling on it doesn't move the needle one bit. Spend the time writing instead. You'll feel better.