New Lit Story Page Preview

[Manu]

MANY thanks for your ongoing work in keeping this site alive. It's grown into more than just a "site" - it's become a culture, and has a life of its own.

Question, along similar lines to the story screen updates:

Are you planning any updates to the Android App?

My impression is that a LOT of people use that as the only way they read stories on LIT.

We do plan to update the Android app, we just need to get the time to actually do it!

 

[tomlitilia]

I'm uncertain if this was always the case or if it's a new feature, but at the category page, it seems the list of new stories only list 25 stories with no possibilities to keep browsing by date. For BDSM, the oldest stories listed are from yesterday. I'm sure it must happen that more than 25 stories are posted in a day, which would mean that some stories never appear in the list of new stories for a category. Again, uncertain if this was always the case, but it seems like a feature that could be improved

 

[ElectricBlue]

I'm uncertain if this was always the case or if it's a new feature, but at the category page, it seems the list of new stories only list 25 stories with no possibilities to keep browsing by date. For BDSM, the oldest stories listed are from yesterday. I'm sure it must happen that more than 25 stories are posted in a day, which would mean that some stories never appear in the list of new stories for a category. Again, uncertain if this was always the case, but it seems like a feature that could be improved

I think it's always been the case.

I agree, the ability to keep scrolling through new stories in date order would be fairer than showing the current listing of the Hall of Fame. The HoF stories have already had their years in the sun - they should be accessible as a click on side list, but not take up all that page space.

 

[tomlitilia]

I think it's always been the case.

I agree, the ability to keep scrolling through new stories in date order would be fairer than showing the current listing of the Hall of Fame. The HoF stories have already had their years in the sun - they should be accessible as a click on side list, but not take up all that page space.

I think scheme for new stories similar to the one used for HoF would be good, i.e. such that the category page lists the first 25, but there are links for further browsing.

 

[SimonDoom]

I'm uncertain if this was always the case or if it's a new feature, but at the category page, it seems the list of new stories only list 25 stories with no possibilities to keep browsing by date. For BDSM, the oldest stories listed are from yesterday. I'm sure it must happen that more than 25 stories are posted in a day, which would mean that some stories never appear in the list of new stories for a category. Again, uncertain if this was always the case, but it seems like a feature that could be improved

That seems like a freakishly large number of BDSM stories for a single day. 152 BDSM stories have been published in the last 30 days, so that's only 5 per day on average. Incest sometimes sees up to 25 per day, but it's unusual. I wonder if a bunch of BDSM stories were approved for publication at the same time.

Regardless, I think the number of stories on the new story hub should be increased, perhaps to 50. That's the same number that appears on a page of a toplist, so it's not unusual. Readers have to scroll to get through the story hubs anyway. With 50 stories on a hub page, one's story would be guaranteed, even in a busy category like incest, not to fall off right away, or, at a minimum,to have a chance to appear.

 

[HeyAll]

I'd also love to see the new list for the Hub be increased.

Especially for the busy categories like incest, which sometimes only have stories up for 1 day.

I think a fairer system would be to have the HoF stories be smaller, but have that 'random' feature where you can click the button and it will cycle new HoF stories.

 

[gordo12]

I'd also love to see the new list for the Hub be increased.

Especially for the busy categories like incest, which sometimes only have stories up for 1 day.

Agreed. LW has the same problem. I thought it would be slow over Christmas but some days were up to like 11 stories. At that rate two days in the sun is too small a return for the time it takes to write them.

As much as I appreciate this site I have to say the 25 story limit on the new hub has been a constant irritant. In my experience the hub accounts for 99% of my views. Not much comes from anywhere else.

On the last Valentine's contest one of my entries got published Saturday night. For some reason nothing got published Sunday and (as I recall) nothing Monday. The views hit 50k vs the usual 20k or so. Obviously the demand is there, but the readership are missing stories unless they're in here every day. A larger hub would give the stories a better shot.

 

[Vix_Giovanni]

I'm uncertain if this was always the case or if it's a new feature, but at the category page, it seems the list of new stories only list 25 stories with no possibilities to keep browsing by date. For BDSM, the oldest stories listed are from yesterday. I'm sure it must happen that more than 25 stories are posted in a day, which would mean that some stories never appear in the list of new stories for a category. Again, uncertain if this was always the case, but it seems like a feature that could be improved

I think it's always been the case.

I agree, the ability to keep scrolling through new stories in date order would be fairer than showing the current listing of the Hall of Fame. The HoF stories have already had their years in the sun - they should be accessible as a click on side list, but not take up all that page space.

Ditto. I think that more focus on the new stories content rather than highest rated content could also make the category pages more dynamic (The HoF of many categories stays fairly the same week to week, and even month to month, for many categories, often cycling a repeat batch of stories).

 

[RejectReality]

I agree. Cut the HOF down if necessary to expand the New Stories list on the hubs for the sake of those categories that suffer the most. Maybe even move the HOF over to the right side with Contest winners, only showing the same data that the Contest block shows. Adjust the number of HOF entries displayed by how many it takes to balance the right column with the left that includes an expanded New Stories list.

 

[HeyAll]

Agreed. LW has the same problem. I thought it would be slow over Christmas but some days were up to like 11 stories. At that rate two days in the sun is too small a return for the time it takes to write them.

As much as I appreciate this site I have to say the 25 story limit on the new hub has been a constant irritant. In my experience the hub accounts for 99% of my views. Not much comes from anywhere else.

On the last Valentine's contest one of my entries got published Saturday night. For some reason nothing got published Sunday and (as I recall) nothing Monday. The views hit 50k vs the usual 20k or so. Obviously the demand is there, but the readership are missing stories unless they're in here every day. A larger hub would give the stories a better shot.

Obviously that's hyperbole (if I'm using that word right) but 99% is extremely. The New List still brings in solid buisness.

Pre-approved stories get posted at 10 pm on the west coast. In the first half hour, I can see views trickling in. It's usually below 50.

Then at 10:30, when it goes on the Hub, the views start climbing fast, immediately going into the hundreds if it's a mom/son story. Smarter people at numbers can do the research and breakdown what percent come from where.

And of course there are story tags and the Top List if you're lucky enough to rank high with views.

 

[Haulover]

We do plan to update the Android app, we just need to get the time to actually do it!

Many thanks!!

 

[gordo12]

Obviously that's hyperbole (if I'm using that word right) but 99% is extremely. The New List still brings in solid buisness.

Pre-approved stories get posted at 10 pm on the west coast. In the first half hour, I can see views trickling in. It's usually below 50.

Then at 10:30, when it goes on the Hub, the views start climbing fast, immediately going into the hundreds if it's a mom/son story. Smarter people at numbers can do the research and breakdown what percent come from where.

And of course there are story tags and the Top List if you're lucky enough to rank high with views.

I have no idea what the numbers are in other categories. I only post in LW and the views often top 18-20k first day. Thing is once it drops off the hub (2-3 days) the traffic dies down to around 4-5/day. Percentage wise that's pretty anemic. So 99% isn't an exaggeration. As far as the top list goes I have 5 stories in the LW 1 year list. Don't see much traffic from that either.

 

[Kojak01]

I don't know if I'm too late but I've been using the new page for a couple of weeks now and would like to add my thoughts. I admit I've not read every post in this thread so maybe what I'm about to say has already been covered. If so, just ignore me...

Generally, I like it a lot and if the choice is between the old and the new page, I'd take the new one in a heartbeat.

I would like to see an extension of the "Story info"-box.
First, it would be nice if it followed me when scrolling downwards (I mostly read on a laptop).
Second, it would be nice if the current rating of the story was included.
Third, I would like to have the box not only on the first but also the following pages.
And last, the bookmark option should also remain visible on screen at all times and also remember where I'm at. I find it inconvenient when I'm somewhere on page 5 of chapter 6 out of 35 and then have to scroll to put it in the reading list and remember which page I'm on.

Imho, these would be small, additional improvements to an already huge step forward.

 

[Manu]

I don't know if I'm too late but I've been using the new page for a couple of weeks now and would like to add my thoughts. I admit I've not read every post in this thread so maybe what I'm about to say has already been covered. If so, just ignore me...

Generally, I like it a lot and if the choice is between the old and the new page, I'd take the new one in a heartbeat.

I would like to see an extension of the "Story info"-box.
First, it would be nice if it followed me when scrolling downwards (I mostly read on a laptop).
Second, it would be nice if the current rating of the story was included.
Third, I would like to have the box not only on the first but also the following pages.
And last, the bookmark option should also remain visible on screen at all times and also remember where I'm at. I find it inconvenient when I'm somewhere on page 5 of chapter 6 out of 35 and then have to scroll to put it in the reading list and remember which page I'm on.

Imho, these would be small, additional improvements to an already huge step forward.

Thank you for the suggestions.

We have been working on a bookmark feature that will allow readers to bookmark a story anywhere in the text. It is not expected to be based on a "page" since page length may change on different devices, but rather on the specific place in the text where the user is reading at the time they bookmark.

As far as the Story Info Box, how would having it available on each page help you? Our research led us to believe that a reader only needed the story description, for example, at the start of the story. Once they are in the middle of reading a story, most of the info in the Story Info Box didn't seem very useful?

 

[Kojak01]

Thank you for the suggestions.

We have been working on a bookmark feature that will allow readers to bookmark a story anywhere in the text. It is not expected to be based on a "page" since page length may change on different devices, but rather on the specific place in the text where the user is reading at the time they bookmark.

That would be even better! I actually thought such a suggesting would be over the top, so I held it back

As far as the Story Info Box, how would having it available on each page help you? Our research led us to believe that a reader only needed the story description, for example, at the start of the story. Once they are in the middle of reading a story, most of the info in the Story Info Box didn't seem very useful?

Sometimes, I'm reading several (longer) stories from different categories parallel, depending on my mood. With the "Reading List"-feature, it's even easier now to keep track. When I continue on a story, I haven't read for a couple of days, the info could help to remind me of what it was about without having to jump back a page or two.
But I could well be the odd one out. Wouldn't be the first time
If you asked ten (or more) others and they said they don't need it, I'm the statistical anomaly (and proud of it ).

Just to make sure: I really like the new page. It's more much more pleasant to use both on laptops and mobiles.

 

[JuanSeiszFitzHall]

In case it hasn't already been noted, I appreciate the new feature allowing changes in type size, and the option to go to sans serif.

 

[NotWise]

I have no idea what the numbers are in other categories. I only post in LW and the views often top 18-20k first day. Thing is once it drops off the hub (2-3 days) the traffic dies down to around 4-5/day. Percentage wise that's pretty anemic. So 99% isn't an exaggeration. As far as the top list goes I have 5 stories in the LW 1 year list. Don't see much traffic from that either.

In my experience, 99% is an exaggeration. I've kept track of votes on most of my stories, but it's only been a year or so that I've kept track of when the story fell off their category hub. I have that record for stories in EC, I/T, and Romance.

The votes after falling off the category hub obviously vary with time. They probably also vary with whether or not a story is in a contest, but the variation is such that I can't really resolve that. My stories range from 90% of the votes coming from the category hub to 54% of the votes coming from the category hub. Aside from those two exceptions, my stories have had about 70% of their votes from the category hub.

There have to be a lot of factors that can change that result.

 

[ElectricBlue]

If you asked ten (or more) others and they said they don't need it, I'm the statistical anomaly (and proud of it ).

I'll be one of the ten who says, "Don't clutter the rest of the pages." The ad at the top is a distraction already, I don't want any more unnecessary bits.

 

[gordo12]

In my experience, 99% is an exaggeration.

I ran the last 30 days. Came to roughly 2.5% but the stats were skewed by the fact there was a contest going on and the stats taken were 32 days apart. Also the site had my stories popping in the promotional slots for 2-3 days. All that generated more than normal traffic. comments and votes. So somewhere around 97.5 - 98% comes from the LW hub is the closest answer.

If you feel the need to discuss this more take it private. This isn't the thread for this discussion.

 

[Kojak01]

I'll be one of the ten who says, "Don't clutter the rest of the pages." The ad at the top is a distraction already, I don't want any more unnecessary bits.

That's certainly a valid point but I don't think the page would be cluttered with the infobox on every page, potentially moving with the reader when scrolling.

But as I said before: I can live without it very easily. I have no problem accepting that other's have different povs and other priorities. Sometimes you're with the majority and sometimes you're not.

 

[UsuallyPresent]

Manu -

Has there been any thought about an ad-free, monthly subscription based model for Literotica? I’m primarily thinking of the Reddit model.

 

[Manu]

We are getting ready to rollout an update to the BETA story page that will change the read time from Minutes to Number of Words. I'll be expecting a wave of feedback soon after.

We've talked to a lot of readers and authors on this and there doesn't seem to be one solution that is going to make everyone happy. One benefit of Number of Words is that we can then start to calculate how many words each Lit Author has published, how many words long each Lit Series is, how many words each Lit Reader has read on the site (once we have a way to allow readers to keep track of all of the stories they've read), etc. The Words metric feels more transparent and objective than Minutes.

It's possible we may re-introduce an option to show how many Minutes long a story is, based on your own personal reading speed, in the future.

 

[ElectricBlue]

We are getting ready to rollout an update to the BETA story page that will change the read time from Minutes to Number of Words. I'll be expecting a wave of feedback soon after.

We've talked to a lot of readers and authors on this and there doesn't seem to be one solution that is going to make everyone happy. One benefit of Number of Words is that we can then start to calculate how many words each Lit Author has published, how many words long each Lit Series is, how many words each Lit Reader has read on the site (once we have a way to allow readers to keep track of all of the stories they've read), etc. The Words metric feels more transparent and objective than Minutes.

It's possible we may re-introduce an option to show how many Minutes long a story is, based on your own personal reading speed, in the future.

I think that's a good call - any tailored reading speed derives from the word count anyway, so presenting the primary data is best.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

We are getting ready to rollout an update to the BETA story page that will change the read time from Minutes to Number of Words. I'll be expecting a wave of feedback soon after.

We've talked to a lot of readers and authors on this and there doesn't seem to be one solution that is going to make everyone happy. One benefit of Number of Words is that we can then start to calculate how many words each Lit Author has published, how many words long each Lit Series is, how many words each Lit Reader has read on the site (once we have a way to allow readers to keep track of all of the stories they've read), etc. The Words metric feels more transparent and objective than Minutes.

It's possible we may re-introduce an option to show how many Minutes long a story is, based on your own personal reading speed, in the future.

I was hoping for a word count as most other sites give that to the author if not the reader. It will also be interesting to see how much the word count differs from that in word.

 

[Manu]

I was hoping for a word count as most other sites give that to the author if not the reader. It will also be interesting to see how much the word count differs from that in word.

Yeah, that's one problem with word count, even Google and Microsoft can't agree on what makes a "word" in a document. Hopefully it will be close.