First, I want to thank everyone for their over-whelming response to my last entry. Many of you have written me and have scored my story very highly to make up for the 1's. I'm humbled and I appreciate everyone's efforts.
I feel bad now, though, because I feel I was pandering for votes and that wasn't what I was trying to do.
I have some goals for this story. One, I have to like what I write. Two, I hope to get e-mails from people who've read it. Three, I want to become a better writer through writing the story.
My last entry was meant for number three. Honestly, I don't mind getting a 1 or 2 or 3 if you feel I deserve it. I know I'm an amateur and there are going to be some people who really hate what I've written. What I was trying to get was some honest responses from one or more people who hated what I wrote so that I could use their criticism to become a better writer (they can even send me e-mail anonymously!).
Many e-mails pointed out that the scores could be political as well to make one story score higher than another. It's sad if that is the case but I can understand. I just want to be a better writer.