Are you biased when voting on contest entries?

[Lovepotion69]

I was skimming the Halloween contest thread. Admittedly I haven't read the last few pages (will do properly later on), but a thought occured to me. I've been here long enough to know what the contests are like, what the discussion threads are like, and that many of us on the AH become friends.

I know it's common practise to read each other's stories and vote plus send feedback. If you read mine - I'll read yours. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. What I'm curious about is how does our AH relationships affect our voting and feedback during contests?

My questions are:

When you go to the contest submissions page, do you automatically head for the AH author's submissions first? Perhaps your favourite AH author, or the one you're closest?

When you vote, does the fact that it's an AH author you know make you more prone to give that 5 vote?

Will you give the AH author only positive feedback or if you really aren't keen on the story, will you tell him/her?

If someone gives you a 5 vote and lots of praise, do you feel obliged to do the same?

 

[impressive]

When you go to the contest submissions page, do you automatically head for the AH author's submissions first?

Absolutely. In fact, I may not even read the non-AH submissions.

As for the voting, I do it no differently during a contest than at other times. I only leave public comments for "4" or "5" votes. If I vote lower than that, I send feedback by e-mail.

 

[Colleen Thomas]

In a contest, I am going to be more apt to give a five. That goes for Ah & non Ah authors. If I don't feel a story rates a four or five, i won't vote. A contest is the one time my vote can make a difference in real terms to the author, so I am more likely to be less nit picky.

It isn't that I am going to throw a five on every Ah author, but I will consider my vote a litt;le harder and it's impact on their standings.

Major trolling of contest entries is a fact. I don't feel at al guilty about having a less stric voteing regimin during them.

I'm no more apt to PC and give preaise to good works that I am normally, but I will also read a lot more during contests than I do usually.

And yes, I am going to give my freinds higher votes, give them every benefit of the doubt, and if I can't, i won't wreck their core with a low vote.

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

I won't vote any lower than a 3 on any contest story. If the story is really bad, lots of grammar issues, etc., it gets a 3. If it's a really good story but might have some minor issues, it gets a 4. If it's fantastic, and I don't notice any glaring errors, it gets a 5.

And I usually vote on Ahers stories first, but then I do go back and read/vote on non-Ahers.

 

[Alex756]

Being a relative newcomer to here, I don't have any close attachments really.

I will read stories from people from the story discussion circle first since I'll want to say the most on those normally.
I haven't been back long with public commnets so i am more likely to send feedback.

I only send constructive stuff to people I am 99% sure will take it in the spirit it's given, 1 person's opinion.

I have every intention of reading every entry

I rarely give a low score, and everything in the contest I've read so far has been amazing, as in I've AIMed several links to friends that don't normally read here with comments like You have to read this.

Favoratism is a fact of life, if not in reality, in perception.

I think everyone who took the time to enter this, and put themselves up for view in this manner, deserve my time to read their work.

I also read the work of all my friends on chat as well... often before its submitted as a second set of eyes

~Alex

 

[rgraham666]

In order.

Yes, my fellow AHers do uniformly good work so I know I'm going to get at least an interesting read.

No, I'll do my best to be fair.

I will tell them if I see glaring problems.

No. Again, I try to be fair.

There are some AHers I don't read. I have such a personal animus towards them I can't be fair reading their works.

 

[Guest]

i wont vote lower than a 4 unless its a horrid waste of time...a story filled with grammatical errors or loss of plot. i wont leave a pc if i have something negative to say...besides, how am i to know if something wasnt intentional.
i read alot
i vote alot
and honestly, if someone has gone through the trouble to actually write a story, then that effort shouldnt be put down, IMO.
yes, there are stories that i just cant read or have trouble reading but that doesnt mean the story wasnt well written...again, MO.
so, im what you might call an easy vote. have only once voted a 3 and that story was HORRID.

 

[cheerful_deviant]

I'm a troll, everyone gets a whole bucket of festering ones from me.


Actually, yes, I do start with fellow AHers, especially friends and authors that I know write in a style that I like. Eventually I'll work my way to people I don't know.

I'm probablly more apt to vote 5's to AHers, personal bias does enter into it to a certain degree. But it a fellow AHer writes complete crap then they are going to get what that story deserves. I'm not voting 5's to garbage just because I know the author. Crap is still crap.

I'm also more likely to leave PCs on friends stories than strangers. But if I'm going to give an unfavorable PC I'll do it in a PM of feedback, not a public PC, that's just not my style.

 

[kbate]

I vote fairly on all stories. My alts however, you just can't trust those bitches.

 

[CharleyH]

I was skimming the Halloween contest thread. Admittedly I haven't read the last few pages (will do properly later on), but a thought occured to me. I've been here long enough to know what the contests are like, what the discussion threads are like, and that many of us on the AH become friends.

I know it's common practise to read each other's stories and vote plus send feedback. If you read mine - I'll read yours. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. What I'm curious about is how does our AH relationships affect our voting and feedback during contests?

My questions are:

When you go to the contest submissions page, do you automatically head for the AH author's submissions first? Perhaps your favourite AH author, or the one you're closest?

When you vote, does the fact that it's an AH author you know make you more prone to give that 5 vote?

Will you give the AH author only positive feedback or if you really aren't keen on the story, will you tell him/her?

If someone gives you a 5 vote and lots of praise, do you feel obliged to do the same?

I am biased, initially. I read as much as I can, when I can, but usually authors from th AH first unless they dont hold my attention, then I move on and on, until I get to a story I want to read. If I want to read, and read it I vote fairly, AH author or not and based on what I enjoy from an erotic or porn story. I will leave a comment good or bad, and sometimes just a smile if I like it. Although I must add sometimes I just vote good or bad without comment. As I have learned on Lit, criticism is not always welcome.

 

[Guest]

 

[BlackShanglan]

I started with people whose work I knew, people I knew from the AH, and anyone kind enough to leave a PC for me. I do find it hard to vote objectively, though. It's not just that I know some of the people and don't wish to hurt their feelings, although that is true - and, yes, it's hard to vote someone lower when they've left you kind PC's or feedback. But it's also that I can honestly see good work in different types of stories, and I don't wish to punish people for not having the same literary tastes or goals that I do. For me, a work with powerful characterization, strong plot, and fine transmission of complex human emotion is vastly superior to the best-written stand-alone sex scene. However, I do understand that the latter is what some people are looking to read and what some authors wish to write. Generally I try to rate according to what I think the author is trying to do; a '5' means I think it's a '5'-level stand-alone sex scene, whether I like that genre or not.

It's harder, though, with contests. It's all very well to say "this first piece is a 5 for what it's trying to do, and this other is a 5 for what it's trying to do," but I can't help feeling that there must be some recognition for authors who attempt difficult, challenging, complex tasks, especially when they succeed beautifully. I suppose I think it something like Olympic diving; you can do a beautiful dive and score a perfect 10 whether you've chosen a simple or a difficult dive, but there's a weighting system that rewards those who attempt the more complex challenges. I'd like to be able to do something like this in a contest, but I don't know how. It doesn't seem fair to give lower marks to well-written works that happen to chose simpler goals; for that reason, I do still vote a '5' if the world seems to achieve its own goals very well. But I wish that there was a way to vote, say, a first, second, and third place for the contest that gave a little extra weight to the selected stories, or that otherwise let one distinguish, to use the diving metaphor, between a '5' for a single somersault and a '5' for a triple back pike.

Shanglan

 

[lonelyforyou]

Authors as trolls?

I'm still pretty new to all this--especially the contests and the voting.

What I'm wondering is if there are a bunch of authors out there who are sabotaging other people's stories so that their own stories are more competitive. Do you think so? I'm not suggesting that AHers do this. So far you all seem much more friendly than a lot of readers.

I know I would never intentionally give a decent/good/excellent story a poor rating. But there must be people out there just trying to make their stories win. I don't suppose there's any way to stop them, huh? Kinda sad.

- Lonely

* Someone just voted my most recent story a "1" so I guess I'm a little bummed. It was going pretty strong until that vote. I'll have to develop a thicker skin if I'm going to keep writing and plan to enjoy doing it...

 

[cloudy]

I'm still pretty new to all this--especially the contests and the voting.

What I'm wondering is if there are a bunch of authors out there who are sabotaging other people's stories so that their own stories are more competitive. Do you think so? I'm not suggesting that AHers do this. So far you all seem much more friendly than a lot of readers.

I know I would never intentionally give a decent/good/excellent story a poor rating. But there must be people out there just trying to make their stories win. I don't suppose there's any way to stop them, huh? Kinda sad.

- Lonely

* Someone just voted my most recent story a "1" so I guess I'm a little bummed. It was going pretty strong until that vote. I'll have to develop a thicker skin if I'm going to keep writing and plan to enjoy doing it...

It happens, I'm sure, although I don't think any regular in the AH does that. A couple of the more "competitive" authors come to mind, though.

 

[Guest]

 

[hugo_sam]

Hi Vamp,

Hope you are well.

Question: It seems that everyone can tell their votes easily and precisely.

The only method I know (being new) is the average on the submissions page..
It there another, more accurate method?

Hugo

 

[cloudy]

Hi Vamp,

Hope you are well.

Question: It seems that everyone can tell their votes easily and precisely.

The only method I know (being new) is the average on the submissions page..
It there another, more accurate method?

Hugo

If you keep very close track of your votes, it's fairly easy.

if you have 20 votes, and your rating is 4.65:

say you get one more vote, and your rating goes to 4.48, then you got a vote of 1.

20 votes X 4.65 = 93.00

21 votes X 4.48 = 94.00

 

[hugo_sam]

If you keep very close track of your votes, it's fairly easy.

if you have 20 votes, and your rating is 4.65:

say you get one more vote, and your rating goes to 4.48, then you got a vote of 1.

20 votes X 4.65 = 93.00

21 votes X 4.48 = 94.00

Thank You

 

[BlackShanglan]

* Someone just voted my most recent story a "1" so I guess I'm a little bummed. It was going pretty strong until that vote. I'll have to develop a thicker skin if I'm going to keep writing and plan to enjoy doing it...

Welcome in, and I'm sorry that the trolls have hit you. It always does hurt a bit. That said ... generally they'll go for you if you look like a threat, so they must have seen something they liked! Take it as a compliment; if the story was awful, they wouldn't trouble themselves. Drop by the AH, have a pint or two, and join in on the tales of the more comical trolls. Eventually they become amusing.

Shanglan

 

[yui]

It happens, I'm sure, although I don't think any regular in the AH does that. A couple of the more "competitive" authors come to mind, though.

I am such a bitch, but I would love to compare your list of "competitive" authors to my list. I suspect there are a few recurring names.


Yes, LP69, I am biased. I read AHers unless it's something that just catches my fancy. I don't vote less than a four and I'm more likely to vote a five. Sometimes, I stay out of the contest stories simply because I don't have time to read everyone's story that I should read, and I feel guilty.

 

[lonelyforyou]

thanks for the encouragement

Welcome in, and I'm sorry that the trolls have hit you. It always does hurt a bit. That said ... generally they'll go for you if you look like a threat, so they must have seen something they liked! Take it as a compliment; if the story was awful, they wouldn't trouble themselves. Drop by the AH, have a pint or two, and join in on the tales of the more comical trolls. Eventually they become amusing.

Shanglan

Good point. I'll definitely try to remember that. I've been reading some old threads about the well-known trolls... Very amusing. Thanks for the welcome. I appreciate it.

- Lonely

 

[Kassiana]

When you go to the contest submissions page, do you automatically head for the AH author's submissions first?
--No. Honestly, a lot of people here write in categories that either don't turn me on or turn me off, so I don't read their work. No offense. I'm sure a lot of people on here don't read my things as well for the same reason. I'd rather not have someone read my stuff that'll be turned off by it. There are only a couple authors who post on here who I read regularly.

 

[JamesSD]

Slightly off topic, but with this contest I'm finding myself reading a lot more stories in styles and genres I otherwise wouldn't. I also find that since it's a contest I'm more inclined to give a 4 or a 3 than no-vote.

I will not be submitting a Halloween story myself. Haven't had much time to write, and when I have it's been focusing on stories I started a while ago. C'est la vie.

 

[oggbashan]

I delay reading any of the entries until I have finished writing mine.

I have a fear of conscious or unconscious plaigarism and that reading someone else's story will derail the plot of mine.

Once I have submitted, I try to read every entry. I might choose to read AH authors, or authors whose work I have already liked, first.

As for voting? In a contest I change my normal procedure. I will not vote at all for any story unless I can give it a 5 because there are enough people voting down contest entries.

I find it very difficult to give PCs or feedback. My first take on any story on Lit or in my general reading is 'How would I have written it?' That is not an objective measure and unfortunately tends to colour any comment that I might make. The story may work perfectly well as it is but is not how I would have produced it. I have no intention of forcing anyone to write like me. If someone tried to I would advise them against it.

If a story works as it is I might be inclined to put a brief comment. Beyond that I find that analysis destroys the enjoyment, rather like pulling a flower to pieces to see how it fits together. I'd rather enjoy the flower.

If asked, I am happy to help friends with their work in progress but once the work is complete I like to leave it whole. That is perhaps a flaw in me. I appreciate the work of many authors in the AH, and in Literotica as a whole, but once I start to write constructive? criticism I am losing the pleasure the author has given me.

I'd rather enjoy, not destroy.

Og

 

[woodnymph_O]

to a point what I read is governed by what Og mentioned, I don't read much of the current erotica, especially while I am writing, I'm so afraid of my subconcious stealing an idea and borrowing a plot. So when I have the passion to read during a writing time, I read poetry, reviews, novellas etc..but whatever I read I vote on. And I'm a fair voter, I think. My vote will be based on the level of enjoyment I recieve. Basiclly It comes down to this. Did you take me there? to the place and time you wrote about. Was I able to see it and touch it in my mind?
Now to contests, I try to make a big effort to read, but hell , I'm as biased as anyone else, I will give a read quicker to people I know, and people I know have taken the time to read me, but eventually I will get around to everyone else as well.
but this I do notice. The more popular posters from the AH usually win contests. I do not believe this to be a set up, just that our human nature leads us too read our friends first, and sometimes shortage of time does not allow us to get much further. The average reader also does not seem to notice or care about our voting system, I have had feedback come in my email so many times that a vote was not posted. But do I care? Nope I would have rather had the feedback anyway.
anyway my 2 cents
feel free to leave the change on the table

Nymphy