First Ever Crime and Punishment Story Event - Official Support Thread

[AchtungNight]

My recently released “Ruleskirter” fits this event since it starts with an attempted assault. The perp goes to jail long before the two leads who fight off the perp and help the police subdue and arrest him get it on, but that’s plot appropriate.

https://www.literotica.com/s/ruleskirter

 

[Devinter]

All of the stories have now been posted. It was a lot of fun to be a part of this, and to challenge myself with a story that honestly I probably would never have written otherwise. Many thanks to @soflabbwlvr for organizing this event!

 

[soflabbwlvr]

The list is up. The page is live. Thank you to everyone for participating. I can't wait to read all of your stories.
I'm a little embarrassed to say that I did not finish my story on time. Still have around 500-1000 words to go. I think I'll hold on to it and save it for next year's event.

 

[MelissaBaby]

https://www.literotica.com/s/crime-and-punishment-2023-the-stories

 

[MelissaBaby]

The list is up. The page is live. Thank you to everyone for participating. I can't wait to read all of your stories.
I'm a little embarrassed to say that I did not finish my story on time. Still have around 500-1000 words to go. I think I'll hold on to it and save it for next year's event.

I'm sorry you didn't get done. Thank you for organizing this event. This was the most fun I've had writing a story in a long time.

 

[WifeWatchman]

The list is up. The page is live. Thank you to everyone for participating. I can't wait to read all of your stories.
I'm a little embarrassed to say that I did not finish my story on time. Still have around 500-1000 words to go. I think I'll hold on to it and save it for next year's event.

https://www.literotica.com/s/crime-and-punishment-2023-the-stories

Thanks for the link. And thanks to soflabbwlvr for organizing the event. There are a lot of entries, so lots of good reading for me as I work through them, so congratulations on a very successful event!

 

[Candy_Kane54]

I'm glad I got to participate in this event. I'm already working on my story for next year.

 

[joy_of_cooking]

why was the decision made to have merely a list of links?

I just figured out that every challenge and contest has a dedicated tag, so I can get a much richer listing of the entries by searching for that tag instead of reading the official story list. E.g., https://tags.literotica.com/crime and punishment 2023/ Easiest way to get from the story list to the tag seems to be clicking any story, then clicking the tag in that story's "Story Info" box. Each tag is displayed as a link to the search for that tag.

 

[KeithD]

I don't know about having a dedicated tag. I rarely tag my contest stories for the contest and such a tag is only occasionally provided.

 

[MelissaBaby]

I don't know about having a dedicated tag. I rarely tag my contest stories for the contest and such a tag is only occasionally provided.

In this case, it was.

 

[overwatcher]

I've enjoyed the shit out of everything with this challenge including this support thread.
In the process I've found a new place to post that's a ways from my norm which fits real good. Comfortable, low key.
Its prompted ideas for stories - that's new for me I normally have to fight to come up with ideas. Probably do a chapter 2 to my challenge story. I wouldn't have posted in non-erotic but for this challenge.
So, stay safe. Next time.

 

[TheDeepThinker]

Sadly, I don't think I'll be participating in this next year (if it happens).
My story is currently hovering at exactly 4.5 stars, and I gained less than 20 new followers. Considering all the time I put into planning and researching the many parts of my story, it's just hard to justify all that effort for so little gain.
Congratulations to everyone who did enjoy it, but I don't think I'll be writing another Crime and Punishment story next year.

 

[Devinter]

Sadly, I don't think I'll be participating in this next year (if it happens).
My story is currently hovering at exactly 4.5 stars, and I gained less than 20 new followers. Considering all the time I put into planning and researching the many parts of my story, it's just hard to justify all that effort for so little gain.
Congratulations to everyone who did enjoy it, but I don't think I'll be writing another Crime and Punishment story next year.

Sorry to hear that you feel that way.

My advice to you is not to write anything at all that doesn't give you satisfaction during the creation process. Writing the story itself should be the fulfilling part - not the aftermath of it, or how many readers you get, or the amount of new followers. If you wouldn't enjoy writing the text if it was never going to be published and read by others, then skip it altogether.

The approach I take with each of these challenges is that I see them as a way to branch out and try new things that I perhaps wouldn't have thought of otherwise. I feel like this makes me grow as a writer. Then, whenever I write anything else, I can use all the new skills and talents I've learned along the way to craft something better. Never underestimate the joy of personal improvement!

 

[overwatcher]

Sadly, I don't think I'll be participating in this next year (if it happens).
My story is currently hovering at exactly 4.5 stars, and I gained less than 20 new followers. Considering all the time I put into planning and researching the many parts of my story, it's just hard to justify all that effort for so little gain.
Congratulations to everyone who did enjoy it, but I don't think I'll be writing another Crime and Punishment story next year.

I did my last challenge in 2019. I noticed two more favorites have appeared on that story in the last two weeks since I posted for this challenge. I've not even got quarter way thru the stories, and I think a lot of readers are the same. We enjoy reading and take our time. Most aren't ambivalent about the research we do, they may not necessarily reward but they appreciate and some take the time to comment or email. And they certainly remind you if you get bits wrong too, as I did in that first challenge. If the story is a worthwhile journey then people read and appreciate.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Sadly, I don't think I'll be participating in this next year (if it happens).
My story is currently hovering at exactly 4.5 stars, and I gained less than 20 new followers. Considering all the time I put into planning and researching the many parts of my story, it's just hard to justify all that effort for so little gain.
Congratulations to everyone who did enjoy it, but I don't think I'll be writing another Crime and Punishment story next year.

Can I link to this post every time someone flames me for suggesting that there are many authors here that are largely writing for the accolades rather than the craft?

Only 20 new followers? Only 4.5? Pfft. How dare these heathen readers not laud your brilliance!

 

[WifeWatchman]

Sadly, I don't think I'll be participating in this next year (if it happens).
My story is currently hovering at exactly 4.5 stars, and I gained less than 20 new followers. Considering all the time I put into planning and researching the many parts of my story, it's just hard to justify all that effort for so little gain.
Congratulations to everyone who did enjoy it, but I don't think I'll be writing another Crime and Punishment story next year.

Some people would sell their souls for a 4.5 rating. And new followers will come in time. Hopefully by the time this challenge rolls around next year, you'll think about submitting a story for it.

Having said that, I understand where you're coming from. I admit that one reason I submitted my story was to get exposure for my writing here. And submitting one got me out of sync with my Iron Crowbar series, and I'm struggling to get the train back on the tracks. So next year I might not submit a story unless it fits the rhythm of my overall series. Of course, that's if I'm here next year to submit a story, Lord willin' and the Creek don't rise...

 

[NoTalentHack]

Can I link to this post every time someone flames me for suggesting that there are many authors here that are largely writing for the accolades rather than the craft?

Only 20 new followers? Only 4.5? Pfft. How dare these heathen readers not laud your brilliance!

It can be both, you know. I want people to read my stories; followers are a way to lock that in, and ratings are a way to guide readers to my stories. It's not an either-or thing; you can care about your craft, want to write just to write, but also want to be seen.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

It can be both, you know. I want people to read my stories; followers are a way to lock that in, and ratings are a way to guide readers to my stories. It's not an either-or thing; you can care about your craft, want to write just to write, but also want to be seen.

Absolutely you can.

But wanting to be seen and wanting recognition aren't the same thing. Wanting to be read is not so much a motivation as it is a given. Everybody wants to be read. Everyone posting on lit at least. Otherwise one would write in a diary and never share anything.

One cannot be 100% committed to writing a story from the heart and also expecting accolades. It's a spectrum, a pie chart. Writing the story that's in you to tell is writing from the heart. Writing for scores and applause is writing from the ego. If you are doing both, the ego takes away from the heart. One could be writing 50% each, or 90%/10% in favor of heart or any other ratio. Any time that someone gets a little tiny bit bummed that the score dropped, that's that little bit of ego that took away from your heart. Imagine the little slice of ego in that pie chart. Imagine the needle on the meter a couple of ticks away from the heart end. That is the test. Any time that we see someone complaining that they'll quit because the scores and comments aren't good enough, that's someone writing primarily from ego.

Writing from the heart is putting energy out there for others to share. Writing to collect accolades feeds on the energy of the readers. It's the opposite. You can't do both 100% at the same time. It's karma. It's chakras. It's yin and yang. The door to your heart is only so wide. You decide what percent it will let out and what percent it will take in.

Wanting to be read is separate from this ratio. Every story deserves the widest audience possible. That is a given.

 

[NoTalentHack]

Any time that we see someone complaining that they'll quit because the scores and comments aren't good enough, that's someone writing primarily from ego.

I don't think that's necessarily true. If they say they're going to quit entirely, maybe. If they say "I'm not doing this event again," that's different.

I have around 150 unwritten story seeds in my spreadsheet. Given enough time, I would write every one if I could; maybe I'll get lucky and I will. But there are some in there that absolutely will take more effort than others, and they'll offer significantly less readership/ratings/etc. As you said, it's a give and take; but as much as I'd like to write a deserted island story, I have to put a ton of effort into researching it, from the mechanisms that get them there to insurance issues to survival, etc. I want to do that because it sounds fun.

But I also want to grow my readership, and I know that I have other stories that sound equally fun, and they'll take less effort and/or they'll take effort that I can reuse on other stories, e.g., studying up on divorce laws, since I write mostly in Loving Wives. Hell, I can probably write three stories of a similar length in the time that it'll take me to research and write the castaway story.

I hit almost every event this year; it was a fun challenge, and I'm glad I undertook it. I'm trying to hit the vast majority of categories, too. That's been interesting. But next year? Hell no. Unless a contest really tickles my fancy, I probably won;t write for it; my preferred stomping grounds don't offer the necessary ratings to win, and while I enjoyed writing the stories in those other categories, they're not what I really want to do, either in terms of an artistic choice or growing readership/getting comments. And most of the non-contest events are the same or, alternately, it's not easy to fit a story that I want to write within event parameters.

I don't think of it as a pie chart so much as a set of converging or diverging goals; I'll do Geek Pride next year because I have a perfect story I want to write for it, one that I think will do well both within the context of the event and in my own goals. I'm willing to take a hit if it doesn't do as well as I want in comments, etc. But if heart//beats comes back next year, I probably won't; it was actually entering the event that went against my artistic interests, not participating. I'm glad I stretched to do it, but I can write something that's easier/more near and dear to my heart AND probably get better ratings AND probably get more comments by not joining in next year.

Saying "I'm done with this because it wasn't a good payoff for my time" isn't a proof that the person did or did not write something for the accolades. It certainly isn't something you can point to as proof that people are only doing it for the accolades. All it says is that they made a choice on how to use their time and didn't find it satisfying, especially since they noted the amount of research they had to do for the project.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

I don't think that's necessarily true. If they say they're going to quit entirely, maybe. If they say "I'm not doing this event again," that's different.

Someone saying that they won't do the event again because they didn't get the scores and faves and feedback that they wanted means that they absolutely wrote the piece for accolades. Totally completely true.

You are arguing that you may not participate in a specific event because of time constraints and stretching your comfort zone and/or already getting what you wanted from it last year etc, is completely different argument than what I said. You even admit that without the constraints of time or comfort zone etc you would finish every idea that you have and put them out there - as most of us likely would). That's completely different than "Well I had another idea for next year but the first idea didn't get me a Red H so f it!"

I'm not saying what you're saying is necessarliy wrong (other than the contradiction off the top) but rather you aren't understanding what I'm saying. Your examples are papayas to my apples.

 

[NoTalentHack]

Someone saying that they won't do the event again because they didn't get the scores and faves and feedback that they wanted means that they absolutely wrote the piece for accolades. Totally completely true.

You are arguing that you may not participate in a specific event because of time constraints and stretching your comfort zone and/or already getting what you wanted from it last year etc, is completely different argument than what I said. You even admit that without the constraints of time or comfort zone etc you would finish every idea that you have and put them out there - as most of us likely would). That's completely different than "Well I had another idea for next year but the first idea didn't get me a Red H so f it!"

I'm not saying what you're saying is necessarliy wrong (other than the contradiction off the top) but rather you aren't understanding what I'm saying. Your examples are papayas to my apples.

No, I’m saying it because they literally wrote:

Considering all the time I put into planning and researching the many parts of my story, it's just hard to justify all that effort for so little gain.

That’s not really any different than what I was saying, except for me fleshing my examples out a bit.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

No, I’m saying it because they literally wrote:

Considering all the time I put into planning and researching the many parts of my story, it's just hard to justify all that effort for so little gain.

That’s not really any different than what I was saying, except for me fleshing my examples out a bit.

What was the gain sought? Accolades. That means that they wrote the piece looking for accolades at least in some part, and judging by the fact that the author was so disappointed to voice disgust and effectively declare the piece a waste of time (because of weak accolades - and one could argue actually weren't that weak) tells that that part of accolades was actually the majority of the motivation. Therefore, heavily rooted in ego. That's fine. If they don't get the energy back that they hoped for they can quit.

 

[joy_of_cooking]

@pink_silk_glove this is a recurrent topic for you and I keep wondering why you are so fascinated by the motivations of other authors. What do you want out of these discussions?

 

[MillieDynamite]

I don't know what metrics you use for success, but I would be more than happy with the accomplishment you found lacking. The list will always be there, people will continue to find the story, and once the new followers you have garnered don't find a story by you in the next outing, they'll be disappointed.

Sadly, I don't think I'll be participating in this next year (if it happens).
My story is currently hovering at exactly 4.5 stars, and I gained less than 20 new followers. Considering all the time I put into planning and researching the many parts of my story, it's just hard to justify all that effort for so little gain.
Congratulations to everyone who did enjoy it, but I don't think I'll be writing another Crime and Punishment story next year.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

@pink_silk_glove this is a recurrent topic for you and I keep wondering why you are so fascinated by the motivations of other authors. What do you want out of these discussions?

It's an open discussion and I offer what I feel is relevant to the discussion. I feel that this topic has significance because it is generally not well understood.