Am I just too sensitive?

[Lifestyle66]

I doubt very much the trolls are progressive, I can guarantee you they are more likely MAGA, the level of writing,the language and the emotional immaturity says otherwise.

I disagree.

IMO, it's everyone from all sides. Any disagreement seems to devolve into name-calling with claims that the other is uneducated, immature, illiterate, stupid, etc (or even a MAGA).

I think most people don't even realize when they've started an attack on another, because they're too focused on their own world and have the right to say anything they choose without consequence. And any attempt to explain it to them comes from a bigot.

 

[Wifetheif]

The only comments I delete are personal vulgar attacks and libelous insinuations. In the case of one of the latter, it was so inflammatory that Laurel deleted it herself!

 

[Salacious_Scribe]

TBH Infeed on the hate and negativity. It amuses me. Some if my favorite commenrlts are negative.

-You right [sp] like gods own drunk

The 2 below were left by the same person on a 2 part story.

-Not worth the read, stopped halfway through
- Same as part 1

I look at it this way. Writers are artists, words are our medium. The goal of any artist is to strike an emotional chord with the public. Any comment good or bad means you succeeded in giving someone an emotional reaction.

Also remember people are idiots. When Gilligans island was broadcast, the Coast Gaurd got dozens of telegrams demanding that they rescue the castaways. So do with that what you will.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

Thanks! Y'all have been very helpful - I've never had to delete a comment before and did not realize it was an option. It is very true that everyone under the sun now believes that they can comment to their heart's content about anything and everything, however wrong they might be! I will check out the the Loving Wives category, but it sounds disastrous, and unfortunately overrun with trolls. Yep, my story is tagged with 'swinger' etc so I've obviously drawn a target on my back/story. C'est la vie - I shall keep the delete key active, if necessary!

I will probably jinx myself, but I haven't received any hateful or truly derogatory comments, just the occasional English major wannabe who can't distinguish between the narrative and character dialog when criticizing grammar.

I enjoy the comments from readers that criticize something in one of my stories, only to face the wrath of other readers who come to the defense of what was written. Those interactions can be hilarious.

 

[HBuff]

Like the 1-bombers, you'll find people who get their kicks out of making a writer feel bad. With thousands of readers, I'm more or less expecting this. It still reassures me to know that Laurel may remove the worst ones and that other readers may take your side. I'd say the biggest difference online between 2020 and 2010 is how easily people get offended.

I got two nice comments for my first story here. I've left them a kind word, and it's something I'm going to do on my future stories, as I want to develop a good relationship with readers who take the time to write a meaningful comment, positive or negative.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I'm fairly new to writing on this site, and so have to say after rating and commenting on your story, what exactly is 'reviewed' when a comment is made if such vitriolic comments get reviewed and put up? Anyway, don't mind the haters. Delete the chaff and acknowledge the rest!

Comments are screened for spam, not content. It's clear a word bot does a methodical trawl on a regular basis to locate hate content which the site does take down, but mostly it's up to authors to police their comment stream.

What you delete or keep is completely up to you.

 

[Seadog777]

You can delete comments through your author controls = Works option, then click on the 'speech bubble' to the right side of the story list panel. The comments are listed on a separate page with a trash can option to delete them. The option isn't very intuitive and you have to try different page links - but the speech bubbles are where you can find them.

No, you're not too sensitive and yes, there are a lot of trolls - more in some categories than others. Loving Wives is apparently thick with haters.

Thank you for that handy piece of information.
There were some horrible comments on my first story, and I was able to delete them.

 

[Tiesto1]

Not new here, been a member since 2006 and posted several stories many years ago. Just uploaded two with a 3rd pending and one of the stories has two really, really ridiculously awful comments. As in, "I hope all your characters get VD and die etc blah blah". Totally weird. I mean, ok, you didn't like it, but is this the norm now? Bots or just grumpy old farts/kids with nothing better to do than make annon comments on Lit?

I reported the one and I seriously hope it's taken down. I used to get good feedback/comments with a random, "it would read better if you did this..." which were welcome. This vitriol, not so much.

I'm a new writer and I've faced some haters in less then 30 days on here. I've also had some good criticism of my writing. No matter what you will never make everyone happy anywhere. Like others have said delete the awful attacking comments. Some comments may come off as negative but give good feedback and some comments can come off as a hidden or slight dig at you disguised as a positive comment. I know it's not easy as no one wants to see attacks on them but try not to let it get you down too much and let it go. Keep doing you. Much luck to you on your futures works.

 

[elizaloo]

I'm fairly new to writing on this site, and so have to say after rating and commenting on your story, what exactly is 'reviewed' when a comment is made if such vitriolic comments get reviewed and put up? Anyway, don't mind the haters. Delete the chaff and acknowledge the rest!

Thanks for taking the time to read and comment, I greatly value the thoughtful comments left by other authors here.

While can appreciate that some readers don't enjoy stories in the 1st person, that is the way the story wrote itself in my head, and I know y'all can understand that. The 3rd sequel has been written, also in the 1st person and I'll submit it soon. Perhaps after this story idea has run its course, I'll switch back....who knows.

 

[sinnndy]

Not new here, been a member since 2006 and posted several stories many years ago. Just uploaded two with a 3rd pending and one of the stories has two really, really ridiculously awful comments. As in, "I hope all your characters get VD and die etc blah blah". Totally weird. I mean, ok, you didn't like it, but is this the norm now? Bots or just grumpy old farts/kids with nothing better to do than make annon comments on Lit?

I reported the one and I seriously hope it's taken down. I used to get good feedback/comments with a random, "it would read better if you did this..." which were welcome. This vitriol, not so much.

Ignore them, they are just haters. I wrote a bunch of stories here a long time ago, did pretty well, got good reviews. I have no problem with constructive criticism, makes me a better writer, but the haters, fuck them, I'm here for the people who like my stories.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

A few points ...

A bad review is better than no review. You write to be read. A bad review not only means that you got read, it means that you made a strong enough impression that they had to comment. This is much better than someone who may have skimmed through and went "meh". You write to make an emotional connection with the reader. If they spit hate at you, it means that you did that, and probably big time.

Comments are opinions and it may be cliche to say so but it could not be more true: opinions are indeed like assholes, everybody has one. It's always wonderful to get feedback that gives you that extra perspective and lets you know how well your methods are working, but someone's opinion has nothing to do with the quality of your work. If you are writing for the sake of positive comments, it means that you don't believe in the quality of your own work as much as you think that you might, and are hoping for validation from others to tell you if you are good or not. You are also not really writing to tell the story that is in you. You're just writing for the applause. It may sound harsh for me to tell you this, but this is rather egotistical and in extreme cases, primadonna-esque.

If someone posts hate, you can delete it sure, but you're only protecting the hater if you do. If you leave the comment up, then the truth stands. A hateful or spiteful comment is a billboard that the hater posts about himself that says "Look at me, I'm an asshole!" Leave it there for the world to see what a total douchebag he proved himself to be that day.

Write what you believe in. Don't change just to please others. Write to the best of your ability. Enjoy the love. Use the good criticism wisely. Never take the hate personally. In fact, never take the love personally either. It'll go to your head and you'll rest on your laurels.

 

[mordbrand]

Short answer, yes.

 

[ElectricBlue]

If someone posts hate, you can delete it sure, but you're only protecting the hater if you do. If you leave the comment up, then the truth stands. A hateful or spiteful comment is a billboard that the hater posts about himself that says "Look at me, I'm an asshole!" Leave it there for the world to see what a total douchebag he proved himself to be that day.

Comments are a form of advertising, and they also reveal the neighbourhood you live in.

If your front lawn is covered in dog shit, do you leave it there, with pride, to say this is the neighbourhood I live in? Or do you clean it up? A turd comment from a dick-head is worth nothing, so why would you leave it there as an advertisement for your story? It's your story they've left the comment against, not theirs.

And if writers repeatedly get the same comment about their technical abilities as a writer, then maybe they should pay more attention, because the commenters might just be right (or they might just be assholes).

A lot of these threads about comments assume they're always negative, which tells me something, too. Generally speaking, folk get comments because they write extremely well, or they write extremely badly. Or they surround themselves with assholes.

You can influence all of those things by how you write, what you write, and the audience you write for.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

EB, there is another class of commenter, those whose sole joy in life is throwing mud, those who will diss any story, regardless of its merit. That's not the audience anybody writes for. Your main point, of course, is the importance of keeping one's lawn clean. 100% with that.

 

[Maxiine]

Yes, stop crying, boo hoo, big deal, two hours tied upside down on a Saint Andrews cross in a thunderstorm... waaaaa....

 

[ElectricBlue]

EB, there is another class of commenter, those whose sole joy in life is throwing mud, those who will diss any story, regardless of its merit. That's not the audience anybody writes for. Your main point, of course, is the importance of keeping one's lawn clean. 100% with that.

Yes, they fall into the asshole group, a turd dropping a turd on the lawn. I tend to think they're category specific, though, and avoidable.

As I say, you can choose your audience; and it comes as no surprise that most of the threads about commentary are started by folk who have wandered into LW without doing some elementary homework first. It was obvious to me in my first week at Lit what the site had there - and the nature of the stories that fuel the fire.

I still say you get the audience you write for, given that stories come before comments. We all know that some writers deliberately post to provoke, and in my view, they're just the same as those throwing mud in the commentary; worse in a way, because they're building the fire for the jerks to throw gas on.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

If your front lawn is covered in dog shit, do you leave it there, with pride, to say this is the neighbourhood I live in? Or do you clean it up? A turd comment from a dick-head is worth nothing, so why would you leave it there as an advertisement for your story? It's your story they've left the comment against, not theirs.

Because their comment is not part of my lawn, it's on their own lawn.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Because their comment is not part of my lawn, it's on their own lawn.

When it's in your story's comments trail, it's against your story, not their's.

When the stupid comment shows up in Recent Comments, it clicks in to your story, not their's. It's bad advertising for your story - they're an anon, interchangeable, but it's your story they're writing shit about. Why would you leave it there?

But hey, it's your neighbourhood, your street. I don't live there. I''ll keep driving.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

When it's in your story's comments trail, it's against your story, not their's.

When the stupid comment shows up in Recent Comments, it clicks in to your story, not their's. It's bad advertising for your story - they're an anon, interchangeable, but it's your story they're writing shit about. Why would you leave it there?

Nope. My story ends before the comments start. I'd sure hate it if someone deleted my story or even edited part of it without my consent. I write what I write. What someone else writes is not what I wrote. I'm not afraid of hateful shit and censorship sucks.

 

[elizaloo]

I chose to get rid of the dogshite, because it was bothering me, keeping me awake at night and stopping me from being interested in sex with the hubs, which was causing probs (totally T in C people), but yeah, jerk off to and complain about someone else's story please.

Ok, because I'm lazy, I'm going to leave this here:

how long is too long? I can start a new topic but then 10 people will tell me that there's already 30 posts asking the same thing and then I'll feel stupid (ish).

So - I've been on a writing binge this am !!!NOT IN THE 1st PERSON LOL!!!, and it's 7 pages in and just getting to the good part if you will. It's a memory story and if I keep going, it will be another 7 pages I'm sure. Do I break it up into Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 ad nauseum? I usually write like I like sex, quick and to the point, but a friend said this was a great story/memory to share, so I'm trying to be brief, but the real story unfolded over an entire summer, so being too concise really leaves out much of the development of what went on in that time.

Do I post up Part 1 to where the sex starts to keep readers interested? Prolong the sex part as I set the stage? HALLLLP.

 

[Voboy]

As a reader (and I am NOT "every reader"), my sweet spot is about 5-7 pages. But there better be gradual sexual activity in there every other page, at least.

As a writer, I go slightly longer than that occasionally. I don't think there's a right answer, except that you don't want your story to overstay its welcome.

I WOULD NOT post up a Part 1 with no sex in it. As a reader, I want a payoff. If I read seven pages and there was no sex? I'd never read another of your stories, most likely.

 

[elizaloo]

As a reader (and I am NOT "every reader"), my sweet spot is about 5-7 pages. But there better be gradual sexual activity in there every other page, at least.

As a writer, I go slightly longer than that occasionally. I don't think there's a right answer, except that you don't want your story to overstay its welcome.

I WOULD NOT post up a Part 1 with no sex in it. As a reader, I want a payoff. If I read seven pages and there was no sex? I'd never read another of your stories, most likely.

Thank you - that's where I am myself. I haven't done a final draft by any means, so upon reflection, I might well lead off with part of the 'end' just to give the reader an idea of where it does go.

Gosh I have such an issue with tense(s)...just realized I switched in the middle, so now I need to go back and switch them all out. Well, it will give me a chance to rethink how easy or not it is to change the storyline. Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[Cobaltofdark]

If you are getting haters then your doing something right it's a badge of honor is how i see it each ones like a flying ass keeping track of his kill count lol

 

[NewOldGuy77]

Thanks - just deleted them! It's been a minute - three OG stories were published in '06...then long dry spell. Glad THAT'S over with!

Link to the story with the DIE YOU NASTY WHORE comment LOL

https://www.literotica.com/s/you-116

I just read it, not a darn thing wrong with that piece. You seem to have disabled the scoring, but I'd give it a 5. Most of the comments I get are nice, a few jackasses (quickly deleted) but my categories are usually Romance and Mature. On the one Loving Wives story I wrote, the comments were BRUTAL. That's a tough crowd, like the Ancient Romans in the Coliseum, they want blood!

 

[KelvinBlack]

I've just published a Loving Wives story to see how it went, and there are two positive comments... the other ten (a few already binned) were negative - mostly filled with variations of 'slag', 'whore' etc. The interesting thing I noted was that a couple of the negative commenters had signed in using a profile. When I checked the profiles, they haven't published a single thing themselves. I read somewhere that some of the 'trolls' may have profiles set up which they use to only slag off other writers, and that they actually might have content up somewhere... is this true do you think or am I giving them too much credit? After researching the type of comments on some excellent stories, I'm not unduly concerned about the messages and will certainly not be climbing up onto the roof to jump off and end it all!