Filler?
- Thread starter bi_brain
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ADirtyPerv
I/T Guy
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Can you link to the story in question? Might be easier to tell then.
IWroteThis
Mature Amateur
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I didn't read the story, but as it was on part 3 of a series, my interpretation would be that commenter thought the chapter didn't really advance the story. It was just filler to lengthen it.
YmaOHyd
Wife Guy
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Hate to say it, but probably. If it's part of a series, almost certainly. Filler comes from TV with serialized storylines rather than self-contained episodes. Filler episodes exist to fill time. They don't advance the plot, they often don't have a lot of action or stuff happening; they're created because the showrunners have an obligation to put something on TV at 8:00 PM on Thursday, so they have to put something together. The sitcom Community has several filler episodes in the second half of its second season; the writers and showrunners were so busy working on a My Dinner with Andre parody that they didn't have time to dedicate to the episodes leading up to it.
Anime is notorious for having filler; showrunners depend on the mangas and light novels to outline the plots. Because the anime and manga often run concurrently and the animes are usually produced faster, animes put in whole arcs and sometimes even seasons of filler to allow the manga to get ahead. Dragon Ball Z was notorious for this; when it was remastered for its 20th anniversary, the filler was removed and the first six seasons dropped from 194 episodes to 97.
EmilyMiller
Story marketing slut
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They probably meant to write, “Fill her!”
VerbalAbuse
Literotica Guru
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filler is great. just ask stephen king.
alohadave
Doing better
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Random comments happen. It's not usually worth worrying too much about what they mean. If the commenter wanted to give you a cohesive comment, they had the opportunity. Since they didn't, don't waste time trying to interpret it.
lovecraft68
Bad Doggie
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I wonder what this reader would think of the 100+ and still going chapter "stories" on this site. Milking would be a better term.
BobbyBrandt
Virgin Wannabe
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This is one of the challenges with submitting piece-meal work.
Readers initially only get to analyze what the writer has given them to that point, without the benefit of having the entire context to compare it to. Part 3 might very well pave the way for later parts, and be crucial to the story, but without being able to read ahead, the readers might not see that.
lovecraft68
Bad Doggie
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I tried to read Insomnia but it ended up being the cure for it.
Bazzle
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When you read a novel, there is always the main story line. If that was the only plot the book would be 40-50000 words. The authors have to use filler and additional plots to fill time.
In TV shows, like murder mysteries, there is all the detective stuff, and then it jumps to the home life romance shite, that just fills time and gives the character depth, but ultimately doesn't help solve the murder. It has nothing to do with murders.
Back in the 1990's in the UK we had a TV show "London's Burning" it was a fictional fire station and the stories of how they fought fires. As the series/seasons went on, less time was spent fire fighting and more on who was shagging who. It was cheaper to film love stories than fire fighting. The viewing numbers plummeted. It became filler.
In TV shows, like murder mysteries, there is all the detective stuff, and then it jumps to the home life romance shite, that just fills time and gives the character depth, but ultimately doesn't help solve the murder. It has nothing to do with murders.
Back in the 1990's in the UK we had a TV show "London's Burning" it was a fictional fire station and the stories of how they fought fires. As the series/seasons went on, less time was spent fire fighting and more on who was shagging who. It was cheaper to film love stories than fire fighting. The viewing numbers plummeted. It became filler.
StillStunned
Monsieur le Chat
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I hate that, when a series shifts from plot-driven to character-driven. I used to watch "Royal Pains", which was essentially about a medical McGyver until it became a soap about the personal drama of the various main characters.
MelissaBaby
Wordy Bitch
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It's also commonly used as a term for second rate songs, instrumentals and such that artists would put on their albums to make them long enough.
Bazzle
Smoking Hot
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There is also the filler when reading a story it suddenly jumps from the plot and character to sounding like a Wikipedia entry, almost as if the Editor has gone. Err I think you need to explain this thing in greater detail.
I read a Kate Mosse book and there was about three pages explaining something niche, it had nothing to do with the story or plot, but clearly someone had gone "This needs explaining."
I read a Kate Mosse book and there was about three pages explaining something niche, it had nothing to do with the story or plot, but clearly someone had gone "This needs explaining."
StillStunned
Monsieur le Chat
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I had this problem when I was writing "The Oath and the Fear". Specifically, I wanted to give an explanation for why the monster was in the sewers. But after the action was resolved, there was so much left for the characters to figure out that it felt awkward.
In the end I had to leave out several bits, restructure the ending, lean into some character development and add a sex scene before it didn't feel forced.
