The Wait Weight

[dr_mabeuse]

Yes, yet another beef about the waiting time for submitted stories, now ~10-14 days.

I don't care. That's just too damned long. Something has to be done.

Waiting that long for a story to post not only discourages people from writing by deferring their reward, it has an even more pernicious effect that non-authors may not appreciate: it hurts. It's painful. The anxiety and anguish one experiences while waiting for his or her creation to meet the light of day can really be agonizing. And the more time and effort that's gone into the piece of work, the more excruciating the pain is, so long waiting times actually encourage mediocrity in story quality. They encourage the throw-away piece, the "aw-the-hell-with-it" story. They create a kind of frictional drag on the whole quality of the site.

There has to be something we can do. With Litizens standing hand to shoulder, or foot to mouth, or something, ever onward and over backwards, there must be some way we can drive this maltemporal scourge from our shores and return things to the glory days of maybe a one-week wait.

No, seriously. Waiting times of a week shouldn't be out of the question. This hurts. This sucks.

 

[TxRad]

10-14 days? My latest and greatest went up in 7 as usual.....

Yeah that to long to wait... depression sets in about then......

Sorry Doc...

 

[Guest]

Yes, yet another beef about the waiting time for submitted stories, now ~10-14 days.

I don't care. That's just too damned long. Something has to be done.

Waiting that long for a story to post not only discourages people from writing by deferring their reward, it has an even more pernicious effect that non-authors may not appreciate: it hurts. It's painful. The anxiety and anguish one experiences while waiting for his or her creation to meet the light of day can really be agonizing. And the more time and effort that's gone into the piece of work, the more excruciating the pain is, so long waiting times actually encourage mediocrity in story quality. They encourage the throw-away piece, the "aw-the-hell-with-it" story. They create a kind of frictional drag on the whole quality of the site.

There has to be something we can do. With Litizens standing hand to shoulder, or foot to mouth, or something, ever onward and over backwards, there must be some way we can drive this maltemporal scourge from our shores and return things to the glory days of maybe a one-week wait.

No, seriously. Waiting times of a week shouldn't be out of the question. This hurts. This sucks.

 

[MagicaPractica]

Yes, yet another beef about the waiting time for submitted stories, now ~10-14 days.

I usually have to wait two weeks. I actually got my rejection in just one week last time, for using the same html I've always put in it.

 

[dr_mabeuse]

I usually have to wait two weeks. I actually got my rejection in just one week last time, for using the same html I've always put in it.

So that's it? My stuff is so good my stories rise to the top and float away and have to be hunted down? I kind of doubt it.

Which reminds me: what do you think the Lit offices really look like anyhow? I always pictured a cinder-block room in the basement of a school with a big folding-leg table with like 6 old IBM's on it and Laurel and Manu at one end and 4 exhausted geeks at the other with their tongues out and their eyes all red, glasses misted over, scrolling through endless lists of stories...

Or do they have a giant corporate campus in upstate New York with hunky security guards in crisply-pressed uniforms and impressive truncheons?

Probably more like the first.

 

[jomar]

I've always cut and pasted and waited 7 days or longer - definitely longer on my last submission. On a couple of threads lately it's been mentioned that if you cut and past to submit, a computer program does the screening (keywords, spellcheck and such) and the story is never seen by human eyes. If this is true, why would take so long for a story to be accepted if a computer is screening stories 24/7? Doesn't make sense to me.

 

[reignophelia]

Prescription.

Ok...

Breathe in through your nose, and out through your mouth.

Repeat as needed.



Are they short on volunteers or something?

 

[Guest]

So that's it? My stuff is so good they just float off the stack and out the windows?

Which reminds me: what do you think the Lit offices really look like anyhow? I always pictured a cinder-block room in the basement of a school with a big folding-leg table with like 6 old IBM's on it and Laurel and Manu at one end and 4 exhausted geeks at the other with their tongues out and their eyes all red, glasses misted over, scrolling through endless lists of stories...(mine's in there somewhere)

Or do they have a giant corporate campus in upstate New York with hunky security guards in crisply-pressed uniforms and impressive truncheons?

Probably more like the first.

But where are the cats?

Laurel rescues more cats than we do.

And do the cats read the stories or do they just bite the toes of the exhausted geeks?

 

[dr_mabeuse]

I've always cut and pasted and waited 7 days or longer - definitely longer on my last submission. On a couple of threads lately it's been mentioned that if you cut and past to submit, a computer program does the screening (keywords, spellcheck and such) and the story is never seen by human eyes. If this is true, why would take so long for a story to be accepted if a computer is screening stories 24/7? Doesn't make sense to me.

I used to upload the Word file and now I C&P. It was actually faster in the upload days, but that was like 3 years ago when there wasn't this volume. Back then, a week was a long wait. We complained.

Now I'm writing books, serialized novels. You have people waiting for chapters. I don't want to wear out the strings on my violin here, and the pinchpoint in the process certainly isn't the publishing time, but it's aggravating to feel your audience evaporating while you're waiting for the installment to go up, while you're waiting to see their reaction to a plot move before you can plan your next chapter, while you're waiting to see how 5 weeks of work pays off.

And I admit it: I'm a praise whore. I need those strokes. I'm not one of these people who writes for himself. To me, a story's not done until it's read, and during that wait time I'm still very emotionally involved in that story without being able to do anything with it. It's a very impotent, frustrating feeling, and it eats at me. I can be unpleasant to be around.

 

[dr_mabeuse]

Ok...

Breathe in through your nose, and out through your mouth.

Repeat as needed.



Are they short on volunteers or something?

I don't know!!!

And all the phone lines have been cut!!!!

 

[reignophelia]

Whoa!

I don't know!!!

And all the phone lines have been cut!!!!

Ok, everyone calm down. There has to be some sort of explanation for all this.
Are you still breathing?

 

[cloudy]

I think a rescue party is definitely in order. Who's with me?

 

[Guest]

I think a rescue party is definitely in order. Who's with me?

I've got the wine!

 

[reignophelia]

I've got the wine!

Good. What else will we need?

 

[slyc_willie]

I've got the wine!

And I've got the towel

(Yes, that was for you, Sarahh )

As for your wait time . . . I wish I could relate. Maybe there's something about your stories that demands closer scrutiny, Doc? Not that I'm insinuating anything other than the idea that perhaps there is something unique about your work that the PTB would want to take extra time in examining it.

As for the Lit HQ . . . I see a country house with one big bedroom completely transformed into a do-it-yourself server mecha, complete with gasoline generators outside in case the power goes out. And, naturally, with LOTS of room for all the cats.

 

[Guest]

Good. What else will we need?

Well, let's see.

Wine, beer, and of course, a big ol' bottle of rum.

Slyc's towel, at least for awhile.

Ummmm. I don't know what else.

Massage oil?

 

[reignophelia]

Well, let's see.

Wine, beer, and of course, a big ol' bottle of rum.

Slyc's towel, at least for awhile.

Ummmm. I don't know what else.

Massage oil?

Ok, and I have some duct tape and rope.
I'm thinking along the lines of WWMD: What Would MacGuyver Do?

 

[Guest]

Ok, and I have some duct tape and rope.
I'm thinking along the lines of WWMD: What Would MacGuyver Do?

Chocolate.

And, um, some sort of pulley restraint system.

 

[cloudy]

Well, let's see.

Wine, beer, and of course, a big ol' bottle of rum.

Slyc's towel, at least for awhile.

Ummmm. I don't know what else.

Massage oil?

Toys. Definitely toys.

 

[scriptordelecto]

Ok, and I have some duct tape and rope.
I'm thinking along the lines of WWMD: What Would MacGuyver Do?

*nods*

I'll bring the Godiva.

 

[reignophelia]

Chocolate.

And, um, some sort of pulley restraint system.

Wait is that for us, or for them?
I mean I'm all for search and rescue, but I'm not very good at sharing chocolate.

 

[slyc_willie]

Ok, and I have some duct tape and rope.
I'm thinking along the lines of WWMD: What Would MacGuyver Do?

Toothpicks, paper clips, 5-weight ball bearings, glue, a sock, chewing gum and aspirin.

Pretty much all you need to infiltrate any installation on the planet.

 

[reignophelia]

Toothpicks, paper clips, 5-weight ball bearings, glue, a sock, chewing gum and aspirin.

Pretty much all you need to infiltrate any installation on the planet.

Ok, but now what are we going to do with all of our supplies?

Hey! Where'd Doc. go?

MAN DOWN! MAN DOWN!

We never leave one of our own behind!

 

[Guest]

Ok, but now what are we going to do with all of our supplies?

Hey! Where'd Doc. go?

MAN DOWN! MAN DOWN!

We never leave one of our own behind!

Um, if Zoot has gone down, then we probably shouldn't bother him.

Just saying.

 

[slyc_willie]

Ok, but now what are we going to do with all of our supplies?

Okay . . . .

Toothpicks: used to keep windows jammed open before crawling through.

Paper clips: lock picks

Ball Bearings: sets off motion detectors while you run the other way.

Sock: fill it with rocks or anything else you can find; use as a sap to knock out guards.

Gum: all-purpose adhesive.

Aspirin and the foil from the gum wrapper: Makes a small bomb.

Any questions?