Murderer: Who me?

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I had no readers.

I wrote a brother/sister incest series. You know incest? My last brother sister one shot got 1700 votes. Darknicaid's contest entry has 2k we're talking a big audience here.

My chapters were lucky to see 100 votes. Know why?

My baby, my way. The series was a BDSM crossover that featured sexual abuse, child abuse, drug abuse, mental illness, and a lot of violence.

Every time I would look at the lists I would see every other Bro/sis story with five times or more the votes and comments I had.

Should I have stopped? Should I have re envisioned the series, backed off my vision?

Nope, just kept going and maybe I only had a 100 votes and 20 or so comments, but my fans were fiercely loyal and my private feedback was fantastic including many people saying they forgot the series was incest because I had them so invested in the characters

So end of the day my series "flopped" audience why because I dared to be different and not serve up the same bubble gum "sis was hot, why not" crap.

Hell I had to remove the 5 part finale after lit banned 2 of the chapters for sheer violence.

I wrote it my way and some loved it most hated it. I slept just fine and at the end was happy with the series as it stood.

Good and popular usually do not go hand and hand. Look no firther than 50 shades of gray and justin bieber.

You said it once before, YOU GOTTA GROW YOUR FAN BASE AND THEYLL SQUASH THE ONE BOMBERS. And like you say, YOU GOTTA CREATE YOUR OWN STYLE.

 

[Tx Tall Tales]

You said it once before, YOU GOTTA GROW YOUR FAN BASE AND THEYLL SQUASH THE ONE BOMBERS. And like you say, YOU GOTTA CREATE YOUR OWN STYLE.

This is a truth worth remembering.

A good fan base helps a lot. When they're unhappy, they'll tell you. And then they'll usually wait for the next story of yours that gives them what they're looking for, and all is right in the world.

I still believe the solution to Bella's Dilemma is to give her an even better story moving forward, and your readers will see the necessity of the death to further the plot.

I also think all writers should be condemned to writing a dozen stories for the LW crowd to toughen them up. These wackos will turn on a dime, but they keep coming back, and are never afraid to tell you what they think.

 

[TE999]

I'd imagine every writer here on Lit has been chastised by their readers for their story plots or outcomes from time to time and that's the way it goes. You can't please everybody, so write what you feel and want to do with your characters. For every reader that abandons you another will take his or her place. Such is the nature of writing.

 

[xelliebabex]

I have a story where I get terrible comments about the beginning. They want me to change it because I killed off so much of the family at the very start. That was the point of me doing it. It was meant to have a tragic start to get the reader to empathize with the main character.

The story currently has a 4.50 score so I'm not going to change a thing.

What you have to ask yourself is this.

Are 'you' happy with the story? With it's ending (or in my case the beginning) as you wrote it?

Are 'you' okay with the score?

Can 'you' live with comments like the ones your getting for years to come? I still get some on this story about every two months give or take.

The readers will read the story, love every bit of it, then beg for more. When they see that kind of ending they go "Damn it it's over! But I wanted more!"

Like LC said they are paying you a compliment when they take the time to make those comments.
MST

Currently it holds the lowest score i have ever got on a story at 3.70 and while i understand through the comments, it is disappointing in itself. I wonder now though if it is just the death of the main protagonist or if i changed styles in the final chapter writing it as a series of letters rather than a usual narrative. You have given me some good questions to consider.

I'll be one of the first here to go against the support tide of "it's your muse..." Yes, it's your baby, yes, and you can raise it as you see fit. But when we look around at how people are rising their babies, what do we usually say? "They raised them as they saw fit?" OR "Why didn't they think about what was best for the child?"

See, that's where the "it's your muse" rah-rah-rah! doesn't ring true for me. My mantra isn't "it's my muse." My mantra is "what's best for the story?" And frankly, we writers sometimes get it wrong. Especially on a site like this where we rush to write it all up and post. We write. We post. And then we get the fall-out and maybe the readers are wrong. But if they were, as you say, why would you be conflicted? Why would they be so overwhelmingly in agreement that they're let down? Not "moved to tears of sadness" but disappointed in the writer? Dumbledore was hard for Harry readers, but he lasted through something like six books and I don't think readers felt they'd wasted their time. Nor Hercule Pirot given how many murders he solved. Did your hero last long enough? Did he die well enough?

That's an important factor. Dying well. Do you remember Star Trek: Next Gen when they murdered off Tasha Yar? Fans were hugely upset. Not because she died, but because she died so poorly and badly. The writers wanted to get across some sort of "everyone dies meaninglessly" message. But viewers felt cheated. And they were. Readers are giving you something precious--their time and love for your writing. Don't cheat the readers. It doesn't do right by them or your story. Or your muse come to that.

And in the end, what did Star Trek do? They did an alternate universe where she could die well. Not live, just die well. And guess what? That satisfied everyone. Even the character

You and the reader have a contract. And the reader feels you broke that. So. Let's consider for a moment that the readers may be right. And if so, why not give them a twist and make them feel better about the time they gave your story? Your hero wasn't really killed. It was a set up to make him seem like he was killed and he's gone into hiding. Or, hell, do what Soaps do in such cases. Bring in his long-lost twin brother. Readers aren't always right and rarely want characters to die. But writers aren't always right either, and often kill off characters for bad reasons (like Sherlock Holmes there). The question isn't what your muse says or your readers, but what's right for the story.

Thank you very much for taking the time to give me the alternative perspective to the question i originally asked.
While I actually really like what I wrote and how i wrote it, it is not what what my readers were used to and perhaps that was inconsiderate of me to change suddenly as I did. More things to think about.

Look! You can do both. Dickens did it with Great Expectations.

I slept on it as you told me too JBJ and perhaps you are right, leaving the ending as i first conceives but add like a chapter 10.2 for those who need an alternative ending.
Its as i thought about doing this late last night that i actually realised that i didn't want to right now. There are many other things i would rather be writing at this moment as i finally came up with a semi-decent plot bunny for Halloween.




That lead me to a whole new question: Do you think there is a window of time i have to repair the damage? (for when i inevitably to cave in to pressure)

 

[xelliebabex]

This is a truth worth remembering.

A good fan base helps a lot. When they're unhappy, they'll tell you. And then they'll usually wait for the next story of yours that gives them what they're looking for, and all is right in the world.

I still believe the solution to Bella's Dilemma is to give her an even better story moving forward, and your readers will see the necessity of the death to further the plot.

I also think all writers should be condemned to writing a dozen stories for the LW crowd to toughen them up. These wackos will turn on a dime, but they keep coming back, and are never afraid to tell you what they think.

I wrote one in LW that did well but I don't think it fit either the cuck or burn the bitch crowd so they just didn't know how to deal with it lol.

I would like to think you are right about Bella but as much as JBJ thinks i should just decide and get on with it I am still undecided.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Currently it holds the lowest score i have ever got on a story at 3.70 and while i understand through the comments, it is disappointing in itself. I wonder now though if it is just the death of the main protagonist or if i changed styles in the final chapter writing it as a series of letters rather than a usual narrative. You have given me some good questions to consider.



Thank you very much for taking the time to give me the alternative perspective to the question i originally asked.
While I actually really like what I wrote and how i wrote it, it is not what what my readers were used to and perhaps that was inconsiderate of me to change suddenly as I did. More things to think about.



I slept on it as you told me too JBJ and perhaps you are right, leaving the ending as i first conceives but add like a chapter 10.2 for those who need an alternative ending.
Its as i thought about doing this late last night that i actually realised that i didn't want to right now. There are many other things i would rather be writing at this moment as i finally came up with a semi-decent plot bunny for Halloween.




That lead me to a whole new question: Do you think there is a window of time i have to repair the damage? (for when i inevitably to cave in to pressure)

How do you ever get dressed in the morning?

 

[xelliebabex]

I'd imagine every writer here on Lit has been chastised by their readers for their story plots or outcomes from time to time and that's the way it goes. You can't please everybody, so write what you feel and want to do with your characters. For every reader that abandons you another will take his or her place. Such is the nature of writing.

You said it once before, YOU GOTTA GROW YOUR FAN BASE AND THEYLL SQUASH THE ONE BOMBERS. And like you say, YOU GOTTA CREATE YOUR OWN STYLE.

And in that lies my indecision. I went against my typical style and upset my small fan base.
Thank you both for your words of wisdom.

I have written a few stories with alternate endings and the some readers do not seem to like it. It's your story and it should end the way you conceived it.

The reason I wrote alternate endings was because; first, I was new and not sure what I wanted to do after reciving pressure from readers. The second reason is I wasn't happy with the way I ended the story so I gave it an alternate ending.

It's your story, you need to please yourself first.
Hope tis helps.
DG Hear

Thanks DG Its true they could dislike the alternative more, in the end the protagonist would have to go. The death was quick and clean unlike the messy break up they would have to have for me to give the little heroine the life I see for her.

More to think about as I skip off to work this chilly Monday morning.

 

[soflabbwlvr]

If given a choice, most readers will prefer a HEA outcome. (Except the LW crowd, but that's a subject for a different thread). If you're writing a romance, that's what you should deliver--the most you can hope to get away with by stepping outside the box is a bittersweet ending. But if your story is a tragedy, there has to be suffering. There's no way around it. What was your intent when you started? Did it change? Answer those questions, and you'll have your answer.

 

[xelliebabex]

How do you ever get dressed in the morning?

I have a uniform of sorts, saves the indecision that wold take me ages...

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I have a uniform of sorts, saves the indecision that wold take me ages...

forehead slap!