Why Voting Matters

[imhereforthestories]

Obviously having a high score is awesome, but what are the benefits? Does it help you get more views? Or is it just for your own satisfaction?

 

[Voboy]

Obviously having a high score is awesome, but what are the benefits? Does it help you get more views? Or is it just for your own satisfaction?

Yes. You’ve pretty much nailed it.

 

[FEELINGLUCKYPUNK]

I give no thought to scores, comments, etc. Last in line is OK by me.

 

[RejectReality]

A score sufficient to receive a red H ( 4.50 and at least 10 votes ) is a signpost that attracts readers to your story. Even higher scores attract even more readers. An early H on the day of release can dramatically increase your readership.

Maintaining a high score can land you on the toplists, which increases the longevity of the story. As long as it's on the toplist ( or even better, high enough to be on the Hall of Fame section of the category hubs ) it will pick up new reads at a far higher rate than one that isn't on the toplist.

Of course, being on the toplist also makes you a target for trolls who will low-ball you for a variety of reasons. It will also attract more people who will vote 4 because they liked it, but didn't love it, and every 4 knocks down a score higher than 4. So, it can be a bit of a roller coaster.

Otherwise, it's one factor ( and the most easily manipulated for good or ill ) you can use to determine how well readers liked your story compared to stories in the same category. Alone, it means little. When combined with the number of votes, favorites, comments, and views, it can give you a reasonable picture.

 

[weftandwarp]

Obviously having a high score is awesome, but what are the benefits? Does it help you get more views? Or is it just for your own satisfaction?

Oooooooooooo

Honestly, high scores are ok, but so are low ones. Getting a lot of ones indicates passion, that a real impact has been made. I'd like to know how many ones or twos I get. I'm just as proud of twos as fives, perhaps even more so. Twos indicate someone who imagines they're clever and know it has less chance of being swept than a one. So, I guess two's are the pinnacle. They have had a little more care in the choosing. It would be good to have a summary of the number of each number. Note the word number. Numb is the operative part and er reflects the confusion. So, please don't worry too much.

Remember your school text books? At my school they all deserved ones. The language was always dense and impenetrable and the plot non existant, but they sold heaps every year to people of whom, many were more confused upon completion than they were at the beginning. The authors should have been made to pay for the necessary medication for the headaches they caused. Instead, they were lauded as clever and as they kept getting on to the school book list they were probably being awarded fives. The language in the books wasn't the only thing that was dense. So, iu7t's also about other people having different perspectives.

 

[swingerjoe]

A lot of readers are under the misinformed belief that the scores on this site are actually reflective of a story’s quality, so they won’t even bother to read stories with a low score. If you want to maximize your number of readers, a higher score will help.

 

[Kantarii]

If a story can’t grab my attention in a few paragraphs, it doesn’t matter what “rating” it has because in my eyes the story sucks ass. It’s kinda like a newspaper article online. If the headline is of no relevance to me, I move to the next article of interest.Kant

Besides, I prefer to leave comments on another author’s story instead of voting. Those are worth more than a faceless vote in my eyes

 

[Oblimo]

Obviously having a high score is awesome, but what are the benefits?

The girls. Definitely all the girls.

 

[lovecraft68]

Voting here isn't important. I mean voting to show appreciation for the author counts, like thoughts count.

But in general once you've been around long enough to see how easily things are manipulated and how lemming fan bases vote up anything by their fav author no matter how bad it may be....you realize its all a damn joke.

Focus on your actual writing, enjoy the decent comments and feedback you'll get from people, anything else forget it.

 

[JasonClearwater]

A lot of readers are under the misinformed belief that the scores on this site are actually reflective of a story’s quality, so they won’t even bother to read stories with a low score. If you want to maximize your number of readers, a higher score will help.

Quick question: Before you were an author, did you think this way? Because, I didn't NOTICE red H's until another author here pointed out that I had one, and my response was 'what's a red 'h' for?'

What got my attention was the category it was in. I didn't even care about the name of it, or the description. I cared that it was in my chosen cat. I didn't know about the 'new story' area until it was pointed out to me. I didn't care about comments. I just went through the a-z of my category.

Now, maybe I'm the odd one out, or maybe I lack the sophistication of the average lit reader *cough* fucking doubt it *cough*, but I think these scores are more for the authors than the readers. Readers just want smut that floats their boat.

I think you're more likely to get reads and favs if you write a story name that tells people what it is:

i.e. "My dad sold me to his poker buddies"

And then add a description that further whets their appetite.

i.e. "Teen son sold to pay his father's poker debts sucks ten cocks!"

I mean, like that, but obviously not that, since in most categories that would get you death threats.

But you get the idea.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Votes? Only if you really give a crap...

You will find most of mine have voting turned off. Also comments. Sometimes I leave voting on and comments on just to get a laugh at the assholes out there in internetland. Sure the fuck are a lot of them.

At some point I go back and turn off the votes and comments. Because? I don't care.

I write for myself, what I would like to read, what I like to write about. I don't write for any readers...seriously, I don't.

 

[ThatsTheGuy]

So glad this isn't about politics. Oops.

 

[Shamadoom]

Look at the opposite. What would you say if you literally had zero votes? You'd think something was wrong.

 

[imhereforthestories]

Thanks! This is what I thought, I just didn’t know if there were possible other reasons besides self gratification that would be a reason for wanting a high vote score.

 

[NotWise]

Obviously having a high score is awesome, but what are the benefits? Does it help you get more views? Or is it just for your own satisfaction?

High scores advertise your story. But voting results are about popularity, and totally not about any other standard for writing quality.

Do you want to be popular? I do, but not necessarily popular with everyone. My writing is mine and it isn't for everyone.

 

[Emirus]

Massage my ego please.

I can only write this comment as a newbie but initially I write for me. I started writing a couple of years or so ago and it was purely for me to see if I could put my imagination down in an entertaining way. Some stories I finished and some are ongoing for various reasons. It’s only a short time ago that I decided to submit them

As for scores if it maintains 4+ then to me, on balance, readers have enjoyed it. That’s when my ego bounces in elation. At this early stage in my writing career I prefer comments to points particularly from those that found fault. Tell me why you voted low and more importantly how you think I can avoid making the same mistake again.

It’s a bit like Trip Advisor for someone wondering whether or not to read a story. You look at the feedback but it’s only part of the decision.

 

[RejectReality]

Before somebody pops in with the inevitable comment about pandering, getting a high score doesn't have to be about that.

#1 is quality writing. Without that, you're going to struggle, no matter how popular the subject matter or how well you place it.

#2 is placing it. Pick the right category. Sometimes, that's simple. There may be an overarching theme that makes it obvious. Sometimes, it's not. If you have two basically equal themes, you have to do your research and determine which category is going to give you the most bang for your buck.

Does one thing squick or bore the readers of one possible category? If the themes are compatible in either category, then which one gets the most readership with solid scores? If all things are equal, do you have a track record in one of the categories? That's probably the place to put it, then. Your regular readers, who are the base of all your scores, are more likely to notice it there.

It may very well be that there are problems with any potential category. That's where you have to decide whether to post it here at all. Most of my stories hit everywhere I post. Some don't, though. Different categories, different rules, and different readerships have made me decide to put some stories exclusively on only one site. Sometimes it's two, and not the third.

My last two stories, for example, haven't gone here. One was a cuckold ( actually, wittol ) story, which is simply asking for hate here. It's also quite short, which also doesn't go over well here, or on one of my other sites. So it was a single site exclusive.

The other was a reluctance story that was on the soft end of the scale. Here, rougher stuff is what the readership of the category seems to prefer. On one site, that sort of rougher story is forbidden, so my story was the norm. On the other, tag-based navigation eliminates a lot of the tribalism and "this isn't what I expected" low votes. So that one ended up on two sites.

I could have gotten more readers for both stories here, but they would have scored poorly, because they don't fit the expectations of the readers in the categories where they best fit. Where I did put them, they did well.

You can write what you want and simply put it in front of the readers who are most likely to appreciate it. That maintains those high scores that attract more readers without pandering to anybody.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Quick question: Before you were an author, did you think this way? Because, I didn't NOTICE red H's until another author here pointed out that I had one, and my response was 'what's a red 'h' for?'

I mostly looked at category and blurb, and author's name if I was familiar with them. But I also looked at the category toplists, which are based on score.

Thanks! This is what I thought, I just didn’t know if there were possible other reasons besides self gratification that would be a reason for wanting a high vote score.

Here's another reason: http://forum.literotica.com/showthread.php?t=1473227

 

[JasonClearwater]

I mostly looked at category and blurb, and author's name if I was familiar with them. But I also looked at the category toplists, which are based on score.

I'm starting to think some of the authors here are not even porn addicts. Before I started writing, I'd read almost every story in my chosen category. Thousands of them. Category, blurb, and then the fact they existed, drew me to them.

it occurs to me that I have a problem.

 

[Kantarii]

This seems against the grain but, as a writer, I would rather not have all of my comments be praise only. Why - because I would never try to fix any of the legitimate problems I have with grammar, mood, flow and mechanics, etc. I would continue to post stories, thinking they were the greatest thing ever.

In all honesty, a blunt comment or a little constructive criticism moves me more and to improve myself as a writer. We all like to get praise for what we’ve accomplished, but the fact is not everything we do is praise worthy.

The comments I get are reflective of my efforts, but I wouldn’t have gotten them had one person not been bold enough to point out that fallacy in my writing in my beginnings.
Kant

 

[SimonDoom]

I'm starting to think some of the authors here are not even porn addicts. Before I started writing, I'd read almost every story in my chosen category. Thousands of them. Category, blurb, and then the fact they existed, drew me to them.

it occurs to me that I have a problem.

I wouldn't number the stories I read in the thousands, but I get your meaning, and like you I read lots and lots of stories before I started writing -- years before. That reading shaped a lot of what I write today, and what I want to write.

You may or may not have a problem. We'd probably have to know more, but I'm not sure we'd want to.

Now that I'm writing more I read less erotica than I used to. Part of it is having less time and energy to do it, but I think part of, too, is that when you're focused on writing your own stuff it's a little less easy to unhinge your mind and appreciate other people's kinks and fantasies.

 

[Kantarii]

I wouldn't number the stories I read in the thousands, but I get your meaning, and like you I read lots and lots of stories before I started writing -- years before. That reading shaped a lot of what I write today, and what I want to write.

You may or may not have a problem. We'd probably have to know more, but I'm not sure we'd want to.

Now that I'm writing more I read less erotica than I used to. Part of it is having less time and energy to do it, but I think part of, too, is that when you're focused on writing your own stuff it's a little less easy to unhinge your mind and appreciate other people's kinks and fantasies.

There’s a lot of truth in this. I used to read tons of stories here, too, but when I started submitting my own I stopped reading other stuff to keep from being influenced. I still read as a break between chapters, but while I’m working on something, reading is a no-no for me.
Kant

 

[JasonClearwater]

You may or may not have a problem. We'd probably have to know more, but I'm not sure we'd want to.

I have a lot of problems, but porn addiction isn't one of them. Turns out, writing porn removes the desire to read it, by and large. I imagine porn directors don't log into PornHub after a hard day's directing cocks into orifices.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Now that I'm writing more I read less erotica than I used to. Part of it is having less time and energy to do it, but I think part of, too, is that when you're focused on writing your own stuff it's a little less easy to unhinge your mind and appreciate other people's kinks and fantasies.

This. I read very little here, now that I'm writing so much more myself. Simply not enough time.

I dived in pretty quickly with my writing, so I've never been a huge reader, not like some of you guys. I wanted to write, the site aligned, and now I've found my style, I just keep on keeping on.