Forum: Author Hangout

I'd question any author who wasn't willing to vouch for the quality of his story

A writer thinks about his idea for a new story, researches it, spends hours writing the first draft, and additional time and effort finalizing it. The writer is proud of the result, so the story is posted.

I would also look unfavorably on a writer who gave their story less than a 10. Less than a 10 means, the writer posted something less than what the writer thought it could be.

I would also look unfavorably on a writer who gave their story less than a 10. Less than a 10 means, the writer posted something less than what the writer thought it could be.

I had an issue with goodreads.com for awhile. I couldn't figure out how to post a review of my own story (to reveal information about the story) without scoring it. I feel it was disingenuous to rate my story a 10 before anyone had a chance to vote on it. I've since discovered how to do it (without rating my own work), but I still have several self-rated stories as a result.

In general, it doesn't look good for authors to rate their own works either too high or too low. Better to stick with descriptions and avoid rating your own stories.

Better to stick with descriptions and avoid rating your own stories.

I agree. I believe ratings should reflect you readers opinions.

I would also look unfavorably on a writer who gave their story less than a 10.

I wouldn't give any of my SOL stories a 10. To me, that signifies a story of sufficient quality to attract a dead tree publisher (although the subject matter may well be an impediment).

I've done a significant amount of editing and proofreading for other authors and I believe I can be reasonably objective when rating my work and that of others.

AJ

I wouldn't give any of my SOL stories a 10.

If you felt the story was less than ideal, why did you post it instead of improve it?

If you felt the story was less than ideal, why did you post it instead of improve it?

I would say less than amazing, rather than less than ideal, but there are two reasons. Firstly the stories I submit here are experimental, representing a learning process on my behalf. And secondly they're the stories I want to tell.

Take my most recent, 'And a Half'. I had fun writing it and I believe some of the readers have enjoyed it too. But structurally it's a train-wreck, and the genre(?) veers all over the place. It's quite definitely not an amazing story, and yet it says what I wanted to say.

AJ

To give your own story a 10 score would be so Trump :o)

While to give your own story a 10,
create another account to do it again,
then give all the rest a 1 to be silly,
is just so Hillary.

Once in a while, certainly not more often than once a month unless it is an amazing month, you may read a story even better than an A plus. That's when you vote it a ten.

And I think it's more than once in a while. Maybe it goes back to a curve. If I were comparing SOL stories to published stories none would get a 10. Maybe none would even get a 6. But I'm not. So when you rate a story you have to rate it against it's peers. So compared to the other stories you read on SOL, is it amazing?

And I think it's more than once in a while. Maybe it goes back to a curve. If I were comparing SOL stories to published stories none would get a 10. Maybe none would even get a 6. But I'm not. So when you rate a story you have to rate it against it's peers. So compared to the other stories you read on SOL, is it amazing?

It depends. Are you grading according to the Olympics (only extraordinary effort receives a 10) or do you rate what you think of the story (which is how Lazeez instructs readers to do). If you think the story speaks to you, most will rate it as a 10, even if it's not excellent prose.

You don't vote stories based on technical quality (something readers aren't expected to understand), instead they vote on how much they enjoyed the story.

You don't vote stories based on technical quality (something readers aren't expected to understand), instead they vote on how much they enjoyed the story.

I include technical quality in my score.

If I were comparing SOL stories to published stories

That's the metric I would use. I believe there are a few stories on SOL that are better than some published stories, only they would not be attractive to dead tree publishers because of content or possibly length.

However I decline to vote because, for example, if I read a good story and think it's worth a 7 or 8, in most cases that would negatively impact the story's score.

AJ