Voting Based on Characters

[LadynStFreknBed]

Don't you find that a lot of Lit readers vote and comment on a story based on how much they liked or hated a character?
Today, I received a comment on my newest incest story. Personally, I think incest is just wrong and gross. But, as a writer, I love putting myself into other people's shoes. I mean, that's the whole thrill of writing. You create a unique world, as foreign as it may be to your very own.
Anyway, I got a comment saying that my main character is "slimmy," which I assume is supposed to be "slimy." LOL Of course, they ranked my story a 0. First of all, I'd like to say to that person, "Yes, but what did you think of the STORY?" Secondly, why the hell do some people read incest if they feel the need to berate it? People are funny.

-Sheila

 

[cloudy]

Happens all the time - read the feedback on the stories in Loving Wives. They think the stories are real.

 

[TE999]

They certainly are!

The two Incest/Taboo stories that I have submitted were some of my highest scoring ones with predominantly positive feedback. Not a 'slimmy' comment in the bunch.

I just submitted a sequel to my story 'Coming Clean', posted in March of this year, in response to readers requests for more stories about the characters. 'Coming Clean II: Wild Weekend' continues their adventures and another story is in the works.

Reader feedback, good and bad, is always a stimulus for writing stories. Being able to please (and irritate) readers with your words is heady wine indeed.

 

[3113]

Don't you find that a lot of Lit readers vote and comment on a story based on how much they liked or hated a character?..."Yes, but what did you think of the STORY?"

Name of the game in any type of fiction writing. It's a rare percentage of readers who will intelligently and astutely really see and really want to discuss the actual story and it's merits, not just how much they loved (or hated) the characters as if the characters were real. Now this isn't to say that they actually believe the characters are real--but they invest themselves in the characters. If a character is "slimmy" they'll take it personally, like this character abused them, not another character.

Of course, the upside (or another downside?) is that if you have a character everyone likes they'll want stories of that character forever.

People invest in the characters--and that's why so much bad fiction gets away with being popular. If people like the characters then it doesn't matter who little sense the story makes. They excuse any number of silly story problems so long as the story contains their beloved characters.

 

[TxRad]

Name of the game in any type of fiction writing. It's a rare percentage of readers who will intelligently and astutely really see and really want to discuss the actual story and it's merits, not just how much they loved (or hated) the characters as if the characters were real. Now this isn't to say that they actually believe the characters are real--but they invest themselves in the characters. If a character is "slimmy" they'll take it personally, like this character abused them, not another character.

Of course, the upside (or another downside?) is that if you have a character everyone likes they'll want stories of that character forever.

People invest in the characters--and that's why so much bad fiction gets away with being popular. If people like the characters then it doesn't matter who little sense the story makes. They excuse any number of silly story problems so long as the story contains their beloved characters.

The best description and reason for daytime soaps I've ever read.....

 

[galaxygoddess]

The best description and reason for daytime soaps I've ever read.....

Don't ask me how I know this.


Some years ago they interviewed "marlena" from "days of our lives" and she said:

The thing that kills me, is how the other day I was in the grocery store with my two year old and someone came up to me and said "You're a bitch how dare you do that to Sammy!" and then she turned to my child and said "Do you know your mom is a total bitch?" and I said to her "Woman, I am an actor and someone wrote the story for me to read! There is no reason for you to say that to my child!" and then she proceeded to argue with me and yell at me and they had to get security to remove her!