News & Views: Discussion and Announcements for the Survivorphile

Current News and Announcements:


You probably have noticed the two new names under the moderator’s column for the 2005 Survivor Contest. With the close of the 2004 Survivor Contest, Laurel and Manu decided they wanted to enter into each new contest year with new moderators. At their request, Lauren Hynde and I (jthserra) volunteered to become moderators for the upcoming year. Lauren has been a frequent contributor to Literotica, most recently acting as a co-moderator at the Poetry Forum. I have been a member at Literotica for about a year and a half and, as most of you know, was the 2004 Survivor Contest winner. Lauren and I have both decided not to participate in the 2005 Survivor Contest as contestants, devoting our time solely to moderating the contest and forum.

Please join me in expressing thanks to Killermuffin and Elizabetht for their work as moderators for last year’s contest. Killermuffin’s work in kicking off the contest and Elizabetht’s subsequent work though the year and closing out the contest helped make 2004 the most competitive contest to date. The sheer volume of submissions and scoring was amazing and yet they excelled in administrating all aspects of the contest. Thank you Killermuffin and Elizabetht, your work throughout the year is greatly appreciated.

Lauren and I are working together in getting this year’s contest up and running and you may have already noticed that there were some changes made to the Official 2005 Survivor Literotica Contest Rules that had been proposed by Elizabetht a few days ago. While we understand that this may cause some temporary confusion, Lauren and I felt that it was important that we get back to the original spirit of the contest. Some changes were required to address the recent and upcoming changes in Literotica's indexing structure, others were needed to address issues that arose during the 2004 edition, and they were all made taking into account:

1. Literotica's submission guidelines;
2. The original objective of the contest.

The most significant of these changes were:

• Audio stories and poems: All audio stories must be 750 words or more to be eligible for the contest. There is no minimum length for poetry submissions. The accompanying text must be an accurate transcript of the submitted audio, and must be posted in the Text With Audio or Poetry With Audio categories as applicable.
  
  The minimum length requirement, which is not usually enforced by Literotica for Audio stories, was already in officious effect last year, but is only now being added to the official rules. The accompanying text will be required to be an accurate transcript of the audio for control purposes. The provision that was previously made requiring moderator approval and half-points for audio submissions read by someone other than the entrant was withdrawn because the case is explicitly predicted in Literotica's submission guidelines and because it would be impossible to verify, thus penalizing fair-play.
  
• Illustrated stories and poems: All illustrated stories must be 750 words or more to be eligible for the contest. There is no minimum length for poetry submissions. All submissions, including the illustrations, must be original work of the entrant, i.e. photographs taken, or drawings or paintings created by the entrant.
  
  The minimum length requirement, which is not usually enforced by Literotica for Illustrated stories, was added to the official rules for the same reasons and to reflect the changes for Audio stories. The provision that was previously made requiring moderator approval and half-points for submissions illustrated by someone other than the entrant was withdrawn because it was in direct violation of Literotica's submission guidelines. All illustrations must be original work of the entrant. The use of royalty-free and/or public domain images will make a submission ineligible for points.
  
• Non-English stories and poems: Submissions in all languages are eligible for the contest and must be posted in the corresponding categories as applicable. There will not be a specific non-English category in the scoreboards. All submissions must be original work of the entrant, and subsequent translations in any language are not eligible for points.
  
  Due to the recent changes in Literotica's indexing structure, non-English will soon cease to exist as an index category. In addition to this, there have been many complaints from non-English-speaking readers about the flood of poorly bot-translated Survivor entries that degrade the experience of reading Literotica. It is our feeling, and Laurel's as well, that our first and foremost obligation as authors is toward our readers, and we are all authors above being Survivor entrants. The current changes are being made to guarantee not only the adjustment to the site's new reality, but also that the influx of poorly translated stories stops, and to make the contest equally accessible to Literotica members of all nationalities and/or languages.
  
  As a desirable side effect, non-English stories eventually submitted by ESL participants have the potential to raise the quality of non-English entries and compensate the negative impact of the several previous editions of this contest.

Some of the other rules previously in effect were reworded, in an effort to clarify their meaning and scope, always keeping in mind the objective of the game: to write as many new and original stories in as many different categories listed on the main story index in the course of the year as possible. Of particular importance is:

• Each story or poem must be original work from the entrant for points to be awarded. Stories and poems that have already been posted at Literotica.com, as well as translated, illustrated, narrated, transcribed or templated versions of submissions already entered in the contest are not eligible for points.

There were also some changes to the rules recently proposed by Elizabetht that were abandoned for being contrary to the spirit of the game or contradicted by other rules already in effect, namely:

• 5-point bonus for every 10 stories in any given category.
  
  This change was discarded because, by promoting specialized writing, it negated the objective of Survivor that is for authors to branch out and write in as many different categories as possible. Had it been implemented, it would have benefited specialists who could write a few hundreds of Non-Erotic, Reviews & Essays or How To stories without touching any other categories.
  
  Instead, all the bonuses that were already in effect during the 2004 edition will be maintained: for number of categories filled, and a single 5-point bonus per category for the first 10 stories.
  
• The obligation to keep the ScoreCard updated by the end of each month under penalty of exclusion from the contest.
  
  This change was discarded because, while admittedly having its advantages in terms of added apparent competitiveness, was incompatible with and negated by several other fundamental rules in effect, including the fact that the contest is open to participants entering any time before Midnight Pacific Standard Time December 29, 2005. Its enforcement, seeing as it's impossible for only one or two moderators to adequately crosscheck every entrant's ScoreCard against their submissions' page on a monthly basis, was also impractical and prone to be biased.
  
  Entrants are encouraged to maintain their ScoreCards updated at the end of each month, of course, but they're not absolutely required to.

You should be aware that this list of changes is not extensive and that you should take this opportunity to read the entire set of Official 2005 Survivor Literotica Contest Rules. The text, but not the spirit, of several other rules was revised in an effort to make it clearer and less prone to misinterpretations, unintended or not.


Your input at this stage is of extreme value. If you have any questions, comments or opinions on the revisions to the rules, please use this thread to present them or PM Lauren or me. We will try to address any questions or concerns you may have.

Also, if you observed or participated in any of the previous editions of Survivor, you're welcome to comment or make any suggestions to improve the contest.

• What did you think of the scoring system? What did you like? What did you not like?
• What did you think of the immunities system?
• What things did you think were fair or unfair?

Well I see the rules have changed. I find it particulary interesting that this is exactly what Lauren Hyde accused last years moderator of doing last year. Changing the rules to suit her buddies. Talk about being hypocritical. So lets examine what has been changed since the new moderators have taken over.

1) Removed the requirement for the scorecard having to be accurate each month.

Meaning that there is very little work to do and we can just sit back and not care.

2)Removed the stipulation that for every ten stories you received 5 bonus points

The stated point of this contest is to flood literotica with stories. Gee not any more.

3)Changed the requirements for audio and Illustrated that requires the individual to submit both persoanlly.

Not really sure why this was changed nor do I see the point

4)Removed the Non-English category

Even with Lit changing how it posts stories this looks more like a personal shot at Velvet.






So let me see if I can remember the exact quotes used

Kind of like marshmallow!

Registered: Apr 2002
Location: Lusitânia
Posts: 10439
I have a question. Where did those changes come from? What's the reason for them?

Were these "issues, concerns and requests" discussed publicly anywhere? Who were they approved by?

In all the discussions I saw, the majority of the people participating were against these changes.

Yes. Were these "issues, concerns and requests" discussed publicly anywhere?

Where were these issues discussed?


quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by CrimsonMaiden
Lauren, it does no good to "discuss" any issues concerning this contest.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It does seem like it, but with so many threads with "discussion" in the title, the so called Moderator will have to eventually allow one to occur, I'm guessing.

This is like the Twilight Zone. Wording of the rule? Loophope?

What about the spirit of the rule? What about the core of all the rule discussions over the past three years, at least, the reason for there to be a "English versions are not eligible for points" snuck in there?

When someone has a problem with the wording of the rule, the Moderator exists to uphold the spirit in which the rule was created, to creat a consensus amongst the participants, not to rape the rule in the ass.

Nah, you're just being facetious. It's all there black in white in the soon-to-be-made-official rule change:

"Plagiarism or Cheating will result in expulsion from the Contest and potentially other actions taken by Literotica, unless Elizabetht decides to change to rules to give you the double of the points."


Computer $1000.00

Internet Connection $50.00 a month

Books on how to write $75.00

Your own words coming back to bite you in the bum PRICLESS



Gee have I whined and cried enough now can I be a mod too?

(Chuckles) My tag line reads Its is not enough to refrain from evil it must be actively fought against. Lauren, jim I would personally like to thank you for being the two most evil people I know. It gives me alot of joy to in fact live my dream.


Jo


Edited to remove extensive quotation of the entire Official 2005 Survivor Literotica Contest Rules that can be found here

Thank you Joseki for your comments.

Joseki,

I thank you for your continued interest in the contest and the rules. As we had stated in the above announcement and in the explanation of the rule modifications we made, our intent was to work to maintain the original spirit of the contest, while addressing some problems in the wording of rules that became evident during last year's highly competitive competition.

To address your specific concerns:

Joseki Ko said:

1) Removed the requirement for the scorecard having to be accurate each month.

Meaning that there is very little work to do and we can just sit back and not care.

Click to expand...

In this instance we returned to the original ruling as it stood for all previous contests. This issue is addressed in the announcement above stating pros and cons to making a change at this time and the reasoning for not changing this rule.

Originally posted by Joseki Ko
2)Removed the stipulation that for every ten stories you received 5 bonus points

The stated point of this contest is to flood literotica with stories. Gee not any more.

Click to expand...

Once again, this was a return to the original scoring used in all previous contests. The stated objective was to encourage writers to write and post to all categories and the point structure supported that goal. The bonus system does award 5 bonus points for writing 10 stories in each category.

In the contest that inspired Literotica's Survivor Contest, survival in the game requires a wide range of skills. The objective of the Literotica Survivor Contest presently matches this feature. Again, in this instance we felt a change to this rule counterproductive to the objective of the game.

Originally posted by Joseki Ko
3)Changed the requirements for audio and Illustrated that requires the individual to submit both persoanlly.

Not really sure why this was changed nor do I see the point

Click to expand...

The changes to the audio and illustrated categories included adding specific provisions detailing that both must have a minimum of 750 words. This was needed since the automatic filters requiring a minimum of 750 words are bypassed in the submission process for these categories. This change simply reinforces the basic site guidelines for stories.

With respect to the comment above regarding the individual submitting personally, the rules originally allowed for submission of photos and recordings made by others if the permission of the moderators was received prior to submission. This provision did not direct the moderators in how a specific decision in this matter was to be made, opening the possibility of bias in this specific decision. The changes eliminate this.

Originally posted by Joseki Ko
4)Removed the Non-English category

Even with Lit changing how it posts stories this looks more like a personal shot at Velvet.

Click to expand...

The reasons for this change are well expressed in the announcement post above. They were made to specifically address a problem expressed by the site administrators and to conform to the new indexing system for foreign language story submissions. You will note that Non-English submissions are no longer identified as such in list of authors stories.




We indicated the purpose of the rules changes in the announcement at the beginning of this thread and are open to continued discussion on the rules and the game itself. Thank you Joseki for your comments, I hope your concerns have been sufficiently addressed. Good luck in the game.


jim : )

Re: Thank you Joseki for your comments.

jthserra said:

Joseki,



We indicated the purpose of the rules changes in the announcement at the beginning of this thread and are open to continued discussion on the rules and the game itself. Thank you Joseki for your comments, I hope your concerns have been sufficiently addressed. Good luck in the game.


jim : )

Click to expand...

Nope not even close. In each case you have stated that you felt it was better for the contest. And to be fair the non-english one may be true. I find all your other points to be mere sophisty. At no point do you make a telling argument other than Well I think. This is exactly the same crap Lauren was on elizabetht for last year.

In short pal show a little consistancy.

And just out of curiosity, I'm sure the AV thing was directed at me. I had a couple of stories called in by some of my girls. I thought and still think that the submissions were better for having been read with feeling. And not in my rough broken voice.
Last year we were able to get consent for that to happen.

So kim in summation I see you girls just continuing on with your program of anything Elizabetht liked id bad.

And I find most of your reasons to be complete and utter BS

Work on your reasons and get back to me or just give up and tell the truth

Have a great day Jo

Re: Re: Thank you Joseki for your comments.

Joseki Ko said:

Nope not even close. In each case you have stated that you felt it was better for the contest. And to be fair the non-english one may be true. I find all your other points to be mere sophisty. At no point do you make a telling argument other than Well I think. This is exactly the same crap Lauren was on elizabetht for last year.

In short pal show a little consistancy.

Click to expand...

Hi, Joseki.

Thanks again for your continued interest in improving the contest. As was extensively explained above, the rules changes were proposed by us taking into account:

1. Literotica's submission guidelines;
2. The original objective of the contest.

These rules are currently under discussion in this thread, and if you have any found ideas on how to improve them, you're encouraged to express them intelligibly.

Joseki Ko said:

And just out of curiosity, I'm sure the AV thing was directed at me. I had a couple of stories called in by some of my girls. I thought and still think that the submissions were better for having been read with feeling. And not in my rough broken voice.
Last year we were able to get consent for that to happen.


So kim in summation I see you girls just continuing on with your program of anything Elizabetht liked id bad.

And I find most of your reasons to be complete and utter BS

Work on your reasons and get back to me or just give up and tell the truth

Have a great day Jo

Click to expand...

I presume you're referring to the Audio stories and poems rule, which reads:

All audio stories must be 750 words or more to be eligible for the contest. There is no minimum length for poetry submissions. The accompanying text must be an accurate transcript of the submitted audio, and must be posted in the Text With Audio or Poetry With Audio categories as applicable. See Audio Story FAQ for information on submitting work.

There is no reference in it to who reads the story, other than referring the entrants to the Audio Stories FAQ and Submission Guidelines. It was also explained extensively above that the provision that was previously made requiring moderator approval and half-points for audio submissions read by someone other than the entrant was withdrawn because the case is explicitly predicted in Literotica's submission guidelines and because it would be impossible to verify, thus penalizing fair-play.

Had the provision stood, it would be up to the moderators to decide, without any frame of reference and on a case-by-case basis, whether or not to allow those submission to be accepted, and even then only with half the points. With the rule change, all those submissions are automatically eligible with full points.

This way, the possibility of bias included in previous years' rules and aggravated by Elizabetht's proposed changes is eliminated.

We did not take into account what Elizabetht "liked", nor do we believe Elizabetht proposed any changes because she "liked" them. It's the moderators' obligation to administer the contest and uphold the spirit in which the contest was created regardless of any personal preferences.

I hope your concerns have been sufficiently addressed this time. Good luck in the game.

Its enforcement, seeing as it's impossible for only one or two moderators to adequately crosscheck every entrant's ScoreCard against their submissions' page on a monthly basis, was also impractical and prone to be biased.

Click to expand...

I had already thought of this and is why I put my grand total and link to my submissions page at the top of my score card, in the hopes of making it easier on the Mods.

PoliteSuccubus said:

I had already thought of this and is why I put my grand total and link to my submissions page at the top of my score card, in the hopes of making it easier on the Mods.

Click to expand...

Good idea PoliteSuccubus. I hope you don't mind if I copy your idea.

As to the rest, it really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. Besides the emphasis should really be on the quality, not the quantity of submissions to Lit. But, that is just my humble opinion, please don't let it influence anyone. Kudos to those who excell at both.

I don't mind at all, MSboy, help yourself to any of my ideas!

PoliteSuccubus said:

I had already thought of this and is why I put my grand total and link to my submissions page at the top of my score card, in the hopes of making it easier on the Mods.

Click to expand...

And we thank you for that, Polite.

Unfortunately, the reasons for the impracticality (and nonsense) of enforcing the rule that had been proposed by Elizabetht are many. First of all, there is no requirement for every story and poem submitted by a contestant to be entered in Survivor. In fact, it has always been an explicit rule that the official scorecard threads are the basis for judging the winners of the contest and that it is the entrant's (not the moderator's) responsibility to accurately track their scores.

All scorecards are, at all times and by definition, updated, because a submission is only considered entered in the contest after it is added to the scorecard.

msboy8 said:

As to the rest, it really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. Besides the emphasis should really be on the quality, not the quantity of submissions to Lit.

Click to expand...

I would personally like nothing more than to see the quality bar raised. It is our obligation as writers to see to that.

In the other thread, Master_Vassago also expressed some concern over this:

Master_Vassago said:

Please, for the love of all things sacred, can't we find a way to make the quantity have a little quality to it. I refuse to single any one person out, some did produce a lot of stories that were on the whole really good.

Can't we make the stories have a minimum of something simple like a three point rating after say a month of being posted. I know there will be disputes over this but anyone can type the minimum words per story and submit them. Hell I could do one a day at that rate. Most people could.

Click to expand...

I really sympathise with this view, but I'll have to answer the same way KillerMuffin answered last year:

There is no way of keeping score in a system based in the ratings of the story. H's are transient, here today and gone tomorrow, and there is no way for anyone to keep track of the ratings of all the stories and poems posted at the site at all times.

It would be possible, on the other hand, to institute some sort of bonus for stories and poems that win people's choice awards and monthly nominations for the year-end awards. Do you think that is something worth exploring?

I do not think there ought to be bonuses for that kind of stuff. We all know the voting system here leaves something to be desired. Not all worthy stories manage to get an H, whether it be from lack of votes or trolls or what-have-you.


Even very good stories with excellent ratings sometimes don't get in the running for the monthly contests because they don't get enough votes. I'm sorry, but I just don't think it would be a fair way to give out bonuses.

I'd have to agree 100% with you, Vixen, for exactly the same reasons. I've seen mediocre stories receive the coveted "H" and others not receive it at all.

Sometimes, the voting around here reminds me of the ice skating debacle a few years ago. If you're popular, you get the H. If not, you get bombed. I'm sure it's happened to all of us, one time or another, and it's extremely hurtful when it happens.

I'd definitely have to agree that bonuses, etc., are not a good idea. Besides, as Lauren said, how would the mods keep up with the scores when they can fluctuate with every minute of the day. I can just see what would happen. Near the last day, everyone would vote their stories up and bomb everyone else's. HEADACHE!

In the interest of the entrants and the mods, the contest should be kept simple. And enjoyable.

Velvet

Sexxy Vixen said:

I do not think there ought to be bonuses for that kind of stuff. We all know the voting system here leaves something to be desired. Not all worthy stories manage to get an H, whether it be from lack of votes or trolls or what-have-you.


Even very good stories with excellent ratings sometimes don't get in the running for the monthly contests because they don't get enough votes. I'm sorry, but I just don't think it would be a fair way to give out bonuses.

Click to expand...

Yes, you have a very good point. Any solution based on the stories' ratings would be synonym with an exponential increase of trolling and low-voting.

There is one provision in the rules that can, in some way, signify a quality standard - the ineligibility of templated stories - but it's only a small step.

Other than hoping that Laurel raises the standards of the work that is accepted for publication, I don't think there's much anyone can do.

What's a "templated" story?

velvetpie said:

What's a "templated" story?

Click to expand...

A template is a pre-determined structure from which you can change key words to create a slightly different story. For example:

• I grabbed my cock and slid it along the wet folds of her cunt. I could feel her body pulsing, trembling underneath me, her breath fast and shallow. I forced my cock into her, immediately feeling her inner muscles clasping around it, as she cried out and met my thrust. > Erotic Couplings
  
• I grabbed my cock and slid it against the ring of her ass. I could feel her body pulsing, trembling underneath me, her breath fast and shallow. I forced my cock into her, immediately feeling her inner muscles clasping around it, as she cried out and met my thrust. > Anal
  
• I grabbed my cock and slid it against the ring of his ass. I could feel his body pulsing, trembling underneath me, his breath fast and shallow. I forced my cock into him, immediately feeling his inner muscles clasping around it, as he cried out and met my thrust. > Gay Male

You get the point. With the right template, one could put out hundreds of stories every week.

The objective of the Contest is to write new and original stories, so the same reasoning that makes translated stories ineligible for points also applies to templates.

People actually do that? I guess maybe I'm naive in that respect. If I am going to write a story, I want to write a story... not use the same stuff over and over and just change it to fit the categories.

Sexxy Vixen said:

People actually do that? I guess maybe I'm naive in that respect. If I am going to write a story, I want to write a story... not use the same stuff over and over and just change it to fit the categories.

Click to expand...

I'm not saying people do that, but the rules must be comprehensive enough to protect you against it.

It may not even be a template to fit several categories. I think it would be much easier to find a template for each category and then, feeding it names for the characters and the shifting the order of the events, automatically generate 300 Group Sex vignettes in one night.

I agree with Vixen that I was shocked to learn that people do that! And am glad the Mods of the board are on task about keeping the contest honest.

As for the rest (in no certain order):

I am happy that Non-English is being removed for purly selfish reasons, but that doesn't mean that someone like Velvet has fewer points available, but actually MORE since then they can put Non-English in more cat's than just one.

It was my understanding that the spoken and illustrated were always "by writer" and I was unaware that it had changed. But, if I've read it correctly, with pre-approval someone could have someone else read the story?

I remember last year several people were targeted by others and were purposefully voted "bad" on their stories for no other reason than politics on the GB, so useing the rateing system would not be fair.

I think the one time point bonus per 10 story/Cat rule is a good thing. I join this comp to improve as a writer, and last year it did help me (tho I whimped out before the end, due to personal problems) by forcing me to go beyond my norm. In theory, someone could win by writing a couple hundred stories in their fiew cats, thus downgrading the "idea" of the contest. I realize that I nail my own coffin by supporting this rule, as I write a lot of poems.

It's obvious to me that I have a lot to learn. Could someone please explain the criteria needed for getting an H. I was pleasantly surprised to find one beside one of my stories. It wasn't there before, I thought the Mods determined what was Hot and what was not.

PoliteSuccubus said:

It was my understanding that the spoken and illustrated were always "by writer" and I was unaware that it had changed. But, if I've read it correctly, with pre-approval someone could have someone else read the story?

Click to expand...

In previous years the rules for Audio with Text and Illustrated had a provision that allowed the use of photographs, illustrations, and audio created by others provided permission was obtained from a moderator.

The rules no longer require permission in either category. The Audio with Text, in line with the story guidlines, allows for another person's voice to be used in your recordings. The Illustrated category, again in line with the story guidlines require that the author be the creator of the illustration or photograph. The specific rules are listed below.



Audio stories and poems: All audio stories must be 750 words or more to be eligible for the contest. There is no minimum length for poetry submissions. The accompanying text must be an accurate transcript of the submitted audio, and must be posted in the Text With Audio or Poetry With Audio categories as applicable. See Audio Story FAQ for information on submitting work.


Illustrated stories and poems: All illustrated stories must be 750 words or more to be eligible for the contest. There is no minimum length for poetry submissions. All submissions, including the illustrations, must be original work of the entrant, i.e. photographs taken, or drawings or paintings created by the entrant. See Illustrated Story FAQ for information on submitting work.


I hope my explanation answered your question Polite... if not, shoot back here in the forum or PM Lauren or me.

Thank you for your interest in the rules and for your questions and comments.

jim : )

msboy8 said:

It's obvious to me that I have a lot to learn. Could someone please explain the criteria needed for getting an H. I was pleasantly surprised to find one beside one of my stories. It wasn't there before, I thought the Mods determined what was Hot and what was not.

Click to expand...

The red H's denote stories which have received 10 or more votes from readers, and maintain an average vote of 4.5 out of 5 or better.

The green E's denote "Editor's Choice" stories. These are pieces that the editors really like - just their opinion.

The blue W's are next to stories that have been chosen by readers as winners in Monthly, Yearly, or Special contests.

3 points I'd like to address here...

First of all, the sad departure of Non_English... It affects me negatively, as I before had an advantage over those who didn't know any other language but English, but I'm perfectly fine with it. Might make browsing through the cats more interesting, too, plus it makes Lit more international, in my eyes.

Second, the Audio-cats (both poetry and Text)... I do wish the same thing could happen to them! I don't own a microphone, so I can't record anything, and that limits me in this competition. I think Audio should go the same way as Non-English, that is to be more or less optional.
And while we're talking about lack of technology limiting our ability to write, I suppose the same goes for anyone who don't own a scanner - I've seen some "illustrations", and I think there should be SOME quality check of the so called illustration - drawing a smiley in MSPaint does NOT qualify as a proper illustration for an erotic story, to me!

Third, when we're on the subject of quality, I'm very glad to see that the bonus per 10 stories has gone. Seeing people skip every category but one, filling it with "Angel's Sexual Adventures In Slutland, chapters 1 - 437" made me loose interest in the contest altogether last year. What's the point in making an effort to write in all sorts of genres, when someone specializes in one type of story and churns out dozens of chapters of the same story? Honestly, I don't think sequels qualify as separate stories, as they are just continuing an old one.

I propose a limit to 5 chapters to each story, so that the writers have to write DIFFERENT stories every time, instead of just continuing where they left off yesterday.

Hey Flicka, I think I remember from when I first signed up here at Lit on the submissions page that there was a phone number audio's could be called into!

I'll shoot over there and peek and get back with that!

Darn, I can't find it now. I do not know it it's still available or not.

Sorry.

Thank you Svenskaflicka for your comments here. As one of the moderators I want to reply to some of what you said. Without dictated a ruling or particularly arguing against anything you say, but more to offer some alternatives for you on one of the issues and explain Lauren's and my approach as moderators on the other issues you raise.

Svenskaflicka said:

3 points I'd like to address here...

First of all, the sad departure of Non_English... It affects me negatively, as I before had an advantage over those who didn't know any other language but English, but I'm perfectly fine with it. Might make browsing through the cats more interesting, too, plus it makes Lit more international, in my eyes.

Click to expand...

Yes, again the site's indexing changes was one of the difficulties here. It does allow you to post your non-english stories in more than just the one category, so while you do lose some advantage all categories are now open to your non-english stories.

Second, the Audio-cats (both poetry and Text)... I do wish the same thing could happen to them! I don't own a microphone, so I can't record anything, and that limits me in this competition. I think Audio should go the same way as Non-English, that is to be more or less optional.
And while we're talking about lack of technology limiting our ability to write, I suppose the same goes for anyone who don't own a scanner - I've seen some "illustrations", and I think there should be SOME quality check of the so called illustration - drawing a smiley in MSPaint does NOT qualify as a proper illustration for an erotic story, to me!

Click to expand...

Of course the immunity feature of the contest does allow you to complete a category without having to submit a story. Using an immunity does limit your scoring in the category, so you may want to consider some alternatives for Audio and Illustrated stories.

There are some methods to overcome the lack of a recorder. The FAQs provide several means of submitting audio, one of them involves calling in and reading the story or poem on the phone. Understanding this is not much help to writers outside the United States, there are other things you can do.

As Lauren mentioned in her explanation of the rules for Audio submittals, a writer can email a story to an aquaintence who has audio equipment, let them record the story or poem and email the file back to the writer, who can then submit it to Lit.

Photographs or drawings completed by the writer can also be mailed to someone who has a scanner.

Third, when we're on the subject of quality, I'm very glad to see that the bonus per 10 stories has gone. Seeing people skip every category but one, filling it with "Angel's Sexual Adventures In Slutland, chapters 1 - 437" made me loose interest in the contest altogether last year. What's the point in making an effort to write in all sorts of genres, when someone specializes in one type of story and churns out dozens of chapters of the same story? Honestly, I don't think sequels qualify as separate stories, as they are just continuing an old one.

I propose a limit to 5 chapters to each story, so that the writers have to write DIFFERENT stories every time, instead of just continuing where they left off yesterday.

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In a contest like the Survivor Contest here at Lit, where quantity of output is rewarded, the question of quality is obviously a concern. Certainly the points made here on the chapters are worthy of further discussion (perhaps excluding the Novel and Novella category). As moderators of the survivor contest, Lauren and I are not in a position to judge or validate any stories as to their merit or quality. If Survivor Contest moderaters were to take that position, it would certainly open the possibility of bias into story selection or validation. Presently, we leave the question of quality control for text, audio and illustrations to the initial submission process. Beyond that we would look to individual contestants to provide their own quality control. The question of limiting chaptered stories to 5 (excepting the Novel and Novella category) is certainly worth discussing further, as is the question of overall quality, not just for the Survivor Contest but at the site in its entirety.

Individual submissions not meeting guidelines can be reported to Laurel for her review. For contest purposes, we will let Laurel make final decisions in these instances.


Again, my responses here are not to limit debate or further discussions. I felt I could offer some options to writers facing some of the difficulties described by Svenskaflicka. I also wanted to outline the moderator's position regarding quality control for the contest.

Thank you for your interest and comments Svenskaflicka. I hope I helped you with some options for the audio and illustrated stories.

jim : )

I don't think there should be a limit on chapters. Just because one person doesn't like reading a longer story doesn't mean someone esle wouldn't. On top of that, for those of us who write short chapters, we wouldn't be finished telling the story in five chapters.

Just because you have several chapters doesn't mean the later ones are less in quality compared to the earlier ones.