Am I Any Good?

[PrairieDad]

I like to write. I have an imagination and idea's. But, is my writing any good? The lack of positive comments and a low score tells me NO. I need help. I don't want to quit writing but I do want to have people enjoy my writing. I write under the name PrairieDad. Thank you for your responses and input.

 

[KeithD]

Good to lead folks to your stories.

https://www.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=5938631&page=submissions

 

[SimonDoom]

I like to write. I have an imagination and idea's. But, is my writing any good? The lack of positive comments and a low score tells me NO. I need help. I don't want to quit writing but I do want to have people enjoy my writing. I write under the name PrairieDad. Thank you for your responses and input.

I haven't seen your story yet but I have suggestions:


1. Post your inquiry to the Feedback forum. That's the right forum for this kind of question.

2. Post the link to your story.

3. Insert the link to your submission page in the signature line of your standard post. That way you make it easy for people to link to your stories. Always make it as easy as possible for people to see your stuff.

 

[lovecraft68]

I like to write. I have an imagination and idea's. But, is my writing any good? The lack of positive comments and a low score tells me NO. I need help. I don't want to quit writing but I do want to have people enjoy my writing. I write under the name PrairieDad. Thank you for your responses and input.

Don't get too caught up in lack of comments-there have been less comments in general lately due to site changes-and as far as score goes, everything is subjective to each reader and some people leave one votes just to be jerks.

The site runs a sweep every so often and gets rid of troll votes so in time your score may rise.

If you want some feedback from people on the boards go to the feedback forum and start a thread and link your story and some people will read it and let you know what they think.

I looked up your stories and I'm going to toss out a little snap analysis of what could be going on

Your first chapter is a good score 4.58.

Now first as a series progresses ensuing chapters tend to get less readers as only those invested continue. However, rule of thumb is the chapters tend to go up in score as its only fans of the series sticking to it...so...what do I see wrong?

Looking at your tags this started with an older man/younger woman which does well in Mature.

next chapter it seems like the young girl is off to college and he's now with her mother....now they're around the same age, and yes this technically falls into mature, but what that category really likes is age gap, they're now a couple with nothing special about them...

Except if the first had a promise of romance that went out the window because now he's hooking up with her mother?

In chapter three they 'become a family' that has an implication of group sex...a different kink, and...if Melanie and mom are involved at the same time you're flirting with incest even if they're not touching it could be enough to squick some people

Looks like the story went in directions different from reader expectation. That's not a bad thing, you write the story you want, but when you keep changing the dynamic of the story you're going to upset some readers.

That's my take without reading anything. Don't worry, I accept all forms of health insurance and credit cards.

 

[jaF0]

a low score tells me NO.

Why do you think 4.58, 4.29 and 4.22 are 'low'?

 

[lovecraft68]

Why do you think 4.58, 4.29 and 4.22 are 'low'?

I think this is an effect of the red H and people thinking if they don't have one there's something wrong.

That and the constant discussing of scores in the forum enforce in writers that score is all that matters.

 

[gunhilltrain]

Your scores are quite good. Maybe I'm not tough enough on myself, but anything above a 4.00 seems good to me. Even a 3.9 ain't bad.

You got some negative comments on the second chapter. Well, we've all had some as we go along. There were no comments on the last one, but it happens frequently that no one has anything to say. Usually comments are not very detailed in the sense of giving advice.

Just keep going, and think of some new plots too. The more you write, the more ideas will occur to you. One of my "gimmicks" is to use real-life locations, or fictionalized versions of real places. It gives a sense of reality to have it happening in some specific place, if you've got one to use. Are you really on the prairies somewhere? Is there a nearby town or city that you know well?

Don't quit merely because not everyone likes what you're doing. Ultimately you have to be the final judge of your own work.

 

[RejectReality]

LC has a good rundown of things. The third chapter is overtly moving into incest, and that is almost certainly alienating readers in Mature.

Another thing that's probably hurting your engagement/score is the one page chapters. Those tend to take dings to the score for two reasons. First, people openly say they don't like such short chapters. Whether it's a vocal minority or a few voices speaking for a silent majority nobody knows, but the way one page chapters suffer indicates there's some truth to it.

The second is likely that the voting form is right there. Some who might otherwise back out on page one without voting might be inclined to go ahead and cast a vote because it's right there. Probably a minority, but it doesn't take many 3s and 4s to seriously ding you at low vote totals.

Mixed kink stories are difficult to categorize on Lit. ( And any site that uses kink categories as the primary means of navigation for users ) That's just the way it is. The level of incest kink in 3 means it's going to suffer virtually anywhere else. The lack of it in earlier chapters means it will never get off the ground in Incest, even if you go full tilt into close blood relatives getting it on.

You could try putting each chapter in a category best suited to the content, but the readerships aren't particularly mobile. You'll usually see more fall-off than even the standard that happens with any chaptered story. A chapter in a popular category like incest may boost the numbers for that chapter, but if you move away afterwards, you'll lose virtually all of them, plus anyone you lost by venturing to incest in the first place.

If it's the story you want to tell, then tell it. There's a readership here for it, because there's a readership for everything on a site this big. You just have to prepare yourself for the realities of each category's readership, and some bugaboos like short chapters that are site-wide.

 

[LAHomedog]

I like to write. I have an imagination and idea's. But, is my writing any good? The lack of positive comments and a low score tells me NO. I need help.

If you believe in your writing and in your talent maybe you might consider working with an editor. There are a number on here who are very good and help author's find their best writing and voice.

Lit has a volunteer editors list. Have you checked it out? For example, I'm on it -- that's how I started on here -- and I coach writers with story, narrative and character development.

And there are hundreds of editors who will gladly guide you to a better end product whether it is story, category, or punctuation and grammar. Please check it out.

Good luck.

 

[jaF0]

Lit has a volunteer editors list. Have you checked it out? For example, I'm on it -- that's how I started on here -- and I coach writers with story, narrative and character development.

Do you catch stray apostrophes?

 

[lovecraft68]

LC has a good rundown of things. The third chapter is overtly moving into incest, and that is almost certainly alienating readers in Mature.

Another thing that's probably hurting your engagement/score is the one page chapters. Those tend to take dings to the score for two reasons. First, people openly say they don't like such short chapters. Whether it's a vocal minority or a few voices speaking for a silent majority nobody knows, but the way one page chapters suffer indicates there's some truth to it.

The second is likely that the voting form is right there. Some who might otherwise back out on page one without voting might be inclined to go ahead and cast a vote because it's right there. Probably a minority, but it doesn't take many 3s and 4s to seriously ding you at low vote totals.

Mixed kink stories are difficult to categorize on Lit. ( And any site that uses kink categories as the primary means of navigation for users ) That's just the way it is. The level of incest kink in 3 means it's going to suffer virtually anywhere else. The lack of it in earlier chapters means it will never get off the ground in Incest, even if you go full tilt into close blood relatives getting it on.

You could try putting each chapter in a category best suited to the content, but the readerships aren't particularly mobile. You'll usually see more fall-off than even the standard that happens with any chaptered story. A chapter in a popular category like incest may boost the numbers for that chapter, but if you move away afterwards, you'll lose virtually all of them, plus anyone you lost by venturing to incest in the first place.

If it's the story you want to tell, then tell it. There's a readership here for it, because there's a readership for everything on a site this big. You just have to prepare yourself for the realities of each category's readership, and some bugaboos like short chapters that are site-wide.

Because the chapters are so short, he probably could have gotten a decent score in incest if he poster the first three as one story. That would make two pages of first daughter, then mom, then culminating in both.

Incest readers have some patience within a story, but in a series if there's no family fun after two chapters (for some readers even just the first one) then its checkout time.

 

[LAHomedog]

Do you catch stray apostrophes?

Yeah. And that is why I specifically say in my editor's profile that I am not the guy to help you with spelling, grammar, or punctuation. You know, that dyslexia thing...

That's why I always write with a writing partner, someone who is a wordsmith and can catch all of my errors, or have a wordsmith as a proof reader. Thank God for spellcheck

But if you need help with story, dialogue or making each character having their own unique voice...

 

[PrairieDad]

Thank you all for your replies and offers of help. They are very much appreciated.