Whose Fault Is It: The Authors or the Site?

[englishnospeak]

There are tons of great stories here but finding some of them is a real pain because writers don’t know how to use tags properly.
Some of the tags are downright idiotic and make no sense at all.
I mean, who uses character names as tags? or shit like 'Jen do this' 'Jen do that'
Is this the site’s fault for not explaining how tags should work or some writers just clueless?

 

[TheLobster]

Both.

The site does nothing to suggest tags that would be appropriate for the story. It also doesn’t warn if the tag you chose has low usage count, is misspelled, or hasn’t been used before, etc. As far as I know there is also no length limit on them, so you sometimes get Tumblr tags that no one would search for.

The authors are first and foremost writers so they may not have a good idea how pick the right keywords. Many also don’t use the 10 slots they are allotted, leaving the possibility their story would be discovered by more people on the table.

 

[englishnospeak]

anal in your story? tag it 'anal'! water sport? tag it 'water sports'! not that complicated unless you dont care if anyone finds your story, explains why the tags are poorly used

 

[StillStunned]

There are tons of great stories here but finding some of them is a real pain because writers don’t know how to use tags properly.

Good point. I'll start using the tag "great story" from now on.

 

[Bamagan]

The tag system was added some time after the site was established, so many older stories didn't have the option when they were submitted. There's also a subset of writers who consider tags to be spoilers and refuse to use them so as not to ruin the 'surprise' of whatever their content is. Sometimes, picking a unique tag is done to serve as a kind of code word for people who are already 'in the know' about its otherwise unclear meaning.
Yeah, there's definitely ways that the tagging system could be improved, both from above and below, but there will always be some holdouts and some clumsy applications.

 

[Bamagan]

Good point. I'll start using the tag "great story" from now on.

After the recent thread about rare and unique tags, I decided to use 'I wrote this for my cat' on one of my stories, or maybe more than one.

 

[englishnospeak]

Good point. I'll start using the tag "great story" from now on.

yes do that, you’ll get a solid 5 stars from me

 

[englishnospeak]

The tag system was added some time after the site was established, so many older stories didn't have the option when they were submitted. There's also a subset of writers who consider tags to be spoilers and refuse to use them so as not to ruin the 'surprise' of whatever their content is. Sometimes, picking a unique tag is done to serve as a kind of code word for people who are already 'in the know' about its otherwise unclear meaning.
Yeah, there's definitely ways that the tagging system could be improved, both from above and below, but there will always be some holdouts and some clumsy applications.

tags only show up at the end or last page no? I always go straight to the end to see them

 

[Bamagan]

tags only show up at the end or last page no? I always go straight to the end to see them

That's true on the 'classic' interface. On the 'modern' interface, there's a control panel of sorts on the first page of the story (near the top) that can toggle between the metadata like votes, views, etc. on one tab and the tags on another. And there's a planned upcoming feature that's in beta testing that would show the tags on the 'story card', the little boxed section on the story lists that contains the title, blurb, metadata, etc. That presumably will only apply to the modern interface, though, whenever they roll it out.

 

[ElectricBlue]

tags only show up at the end or last page no? I always go straight to the end to see them

You must be wedded to the old "classic" display. The new one has been available since, I dunno, 2020. It shows tags at the top of the first page of a story.

Generally speaking, tag stupidity is down to authors. The site provides "most used" tag lists for each category, which you'd think writers would look at.

 

[THBGato]

I mean, who uses character names as tags? or shit like 'Jen do this' 'Jen do that'

My impression is that older stories (20+ years) that existed pre-tags had tags added afterwards by a very bad algorithm. Hence the odd ones that are often two words including a character's name.

I could be wrong.

 

[Candy_Kane54]

When I was a newbie and submitted my first few stories, someone added several tags before they were published. I started using them in similar stories and they help sell my stories.

 

[SimonDoom]

I'd say the fault lies 80% with the authors. The Site could do a better job explaining to authors how best to use tags, but it doesn't do much, I think, to regulate authors' choices, which probably is for the best.

The mistake some authors make is picking tags that have something to do with the story (like a character name or setting) but are very unlikely to be featured in a search.

 

[astuffedshirt_perv]

I'd say the fault lies 80% with the authors. The Site could do a better job explaining to authors how best to use tags, but it doesn't do much, I think, to regulate authors' choices, which probably is for the best.

What would be ideal is an AI trained on the Lit corpus that auto-tags the first 8 tags or so. But that would require a decent database of well-tagged stories.

 

[SimonDoom]

What would be ideal is an AI trained on the Lit corpus that auto-tags the first 8 tags or so. But that would require a decent database of well-tagged stories.

I wonder. I think some authors (me, maybe) would like more control over the tags for my stories. But from a reader's point of view it makes sense to standardize the process to facilitate finding stories most effectively.

Question to the group: Are you aware of any instances in which Literotica has changed the tags you selected?

 

[alohadave]

Question to the group: Are you aware of any instances in which Literotica has changed the tags you selected?

I've heard of and have had category tags removed from submissions. Ie: submit in incest and had the incest tag removed.

But it's inconsistent.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

The tag system is there and if authors don't take advantage of it, that is on them. However, the main reason that stories are so difficult to find is the obsolete and inconsistent category system. We need more and better categories and subcategories so that writers can place their stories where they can be easily found and readers can find theme easily.

 

[12oclocktales]

Many writers use unusual tags in order to make their story stand out. Why tag your story “orgy,” “group sex,” “party,” etc. which makes it look like a thousand other multi-partner sex stories, when putting on a unique tag like “wedding fuckarama” gets the same point of the story across but makes it sound cooler? And get more views.

 

[alohadave]

Many writers use unusual tags in order to make their story stand out. Why tag your story “orgy,” “group sex,” “party,” etc. which makes it look like a thousand other multi-partner sex stories, when putting on a unique tag like “wedding fuckarama” gets the same point of the story across but makes it sound cooler? And get more views.

"wedding fuckarama" as a tag is only useful if someone is searching for that term. That's what tags are for, to search for stories.

 

[SimonDoom]

I've heard of and have had category tags removed from submissions. Ie: submit in incest and had the incest tag removed.

But it's inconsistent.

I seem to recall the Site changing my tags at some point but I don't recall when or for what story. I think I had some arguably duplicative tags and they simplified things and maybe added a few they thought were appropriate. But I might be misremembering.

 

[SimonDoom]

Many writers use unusual tags in order to make their story stand out. Why tag your story “orgy,” “group sex,” “party,” etc. which makes it look like a thousand other multi-partner sex stories, when putting on a unique tag like “wedding fuckarama” gets the same point of the story across but makes it sound cooler? And get more views.

I'm trying to envision the situation where a tag like "wedding fuckarama" would result in more views, and I can't think of one. Tags come into play in two situations. One is when you are searching for a story. The other is when you've already clicked on a story and you're at the first page (with the updated display) and you want to get more information of what the story is about. Nobody, ever is going to search for a story with the tag "wedding fuckarama," so it's not going to increase views. It might make some people who've already clicked on the story (thereby generating a "view") more likely to read the story through.

Tags should be carefully crafted to do two things: one is to maximize the likelihood that readers will come to your story through the search process, and the other is to provide information to those who've already clicked on your story to determine if it's something they want to read. If the story has the proper title and tagline I doubt "wedding fuckarama" would serve either purpose.

 

[yowser]

I've no evidence of any being 'changed' (which would probably require a different process/effort) but they can be added or dropped from a story.

 

[Bamagan]

Like aloha, my only experience with tags being changed is having an arguably redundant category tag removed from the list before publication. And, I'm told, there are a handful of tags related to banned topics, like snuff, that will not display if included, although I've never tested the claim.

 

[12oclocktales]

I'm trying to envision the situation where a tag like "wedding fuckarama" would result in more views, and I can't think of one. Tags come into play in two situations. One is when you are searching for a story. The other is when you've already clicked on a story and you're at the first page (with the updated display) and you want to get more information of what the story is about. Nobody, ever is going to search for a story with the tag "wedding fuckarama," so it's not going to increase views. It might make some people who've already clicked on the story (thereby generating a "view") more likely to read the story through.

Tags should be carefully crafted to do two things: one is to maximize the likelihood that readers will come to your story through the search process, and the other is to provide information to those who've already clicked on your story to determine if it's something they want to read. If the story has the proper title and tagline I doubt "wedding fuckarama" would serve either purpose.

A poor choice off the top of my head, but I still think some authors do it to attract attention any way they can. Look at sites that allow an unlimited number of tags and see how off-the-wall they can get. You’re right about the views; I should have said votes: a viewer might read a story, and eventually vote on it, just to check out what that weird tag was all about. It’s also possible, as has been already mentioned, these authors are targeting an established audience who react to these unusual tags.

 

[SimonDoom]

A poor choice off the top of my head, but I still think some authors do it to attract attention any way they can. Look at sites that allow an unlimited number of tags and see how off-the-wall they can get. You’re right about the views; I should have said votes: a viewer might read a story, and eventually vote on it, just to check out what that weird tag was all about. It’s also possible, as has been already mentioned, these authors are targeting an established audience who react to these unusual tags.

My fundamental principle, having done this for over 7 years, is that the key is to get eyeballs on the story. The more you do that, the better. The rest is gravy. I'm mindful of this concept when I come up with the title, category, tagline, and tags. The more views you get, then the more of everything else you will get (though not necessarily a higher score, which I've always thought is overrated). So, when I come up with tags, I ask myself, "Which combination of tags will maximize the ability of people searching for a story to find and click on MY story?"