Such vivid imagery in so few words. Have to admit ole Johnny K nailed it.
I'd have probably rambled on about the temperature, color of the bunny rabbit, how far out of town the field was, weather forecast, brand of puffy jacket …
Yet, judging by the popularity of some of you celebrated SOL writers, brevity does not seem to be that much of a treasured commodity here.
Discuss.
Paige
brevity does not seem to be that much of a treasured commodity here.
It is for me.
The more I've written, the more I cherish brevity for it's own sake. What's more, the more experienced authors skimp where possible, and then expand when necessary (classic 'show vs. tell' discussion). In this case, Johnny K seems to have done both, created a wonderful description while telling the reader how the bunny responded in only eight words.
At the risk of gender stereotyping, I believe the distaff side is more interested in discussing circumference rather than length ;)
AJ
At the risk of gender stereotyping, I believe the distaff side is more interested in discussing circumference rather than length ;)
To reply in the vernacular. "That is a load of cock."
:)
At the risk of gender stereotyping, I believe the distaff side is more interested in discussing circumference rather than length ;)
To reply in the vernacular. "That is a load of cock."
No, it's a load of Bull by someone without a load of cock (as they instead have a 'short fatty').
Out of curiosity:
1. No I won't discuss it?
2. No it doesn't work for me?
3. Other?
*sigh*
Ok, lets break down the OP:
Such vivid imagery in so few words. Have to admit ole Johnny K nailed it.
Statement, requires no answer.
I'd have probably rambled on about the temperature, color of the bunny rabbit, how far out of town the field was, weather forecast, brand of puffy jacket …
Admission of verbosity. Requires no answer.
Yet, judging by the popularity of some of you celebrated SOL writers, brevity does not seem to be that much of a treasured commodity here.
Although missing the question mark and badly phrased as a question, it seems to be the point in question.
Discuss.
Redundant. Posted to a discussion forum. Of course it's going to be discussed.
So. The OP thinks that "brevity does not seem to be that much of a treasured commodity here."
I could have replied, "No, it does not seem to be that much of a treasured commodity here."
I could have replied, "Yes it is a treasured commodity here."
BUT
My answer is still...
No.
how to be brief
The ideal is to be both brief and unambiguous. Remus2's post indicates her simple answer was not clear to him.
The ideal is to be both brief and unambiguous. Remus2's post indicates her simple answer was not clear to him.
That about sums it up.
No.
Wonderful response illustrating how to be brief.
Actually, it's how NOT to be brief.
Actually, it's how NOT to be brief.
As everyone (wearer & observers both) knows, briefs don't do much good if they don't cover all the 'naughty bits'. Think of how you respond to seeing something sticking out of someone's pants leg while riding on a subway train.
Wonderful response illustrating how to be brief.
At the risk of gender stereotyping, I believe the distaff side is more interested in discussing circumference rather than length ;)
And that is a wonderful example of gender stereotyping. ;) back attcha
Such vivid imagery in so few words. Have to admit ole Johnny K nailed it.
And on SOL it would deserve a 1.
It's poetry.
You call that a story?
;)
AJ
You call that a story?
;)
Try "The Cremation of Sam McGee" By Robert Service
I'd definitely call that a story. ;)
GM
And on SOL it would deserve a 1.
It's poetry.
You call that a story?
Please remember this comment you made the next time "1 bombs" are being discussed.
By your own admission you consider a poem posted on SOL to be deserving of a 1. Not for its quality, but simply because it is a poem.
That is exactly the reasons offered for the actions of a number of the so called "1 bombers". They score stories as 1 simply because they dislike that genre, not because of the story itself.
Perhaps worse is your admission;
"Being unable to write the stuff, I have a strong prejudice against it and its exponents."
A reader with such an attitude is lamentable, but from an author.....?
I was pointing out the strange wording defining a 1-vote. There is a grain of truth behind my not enjoying poetry, but I'm able to read story tags and avoid it.
A reader with such an attitude is lamentable, but from an author.....?
You deliberately left off my smiley.
AJ
I was pointing out the strange wording defining a 1-vote.
A minor digression. In multiple choice questionnaire design, the first option has a voter premium. Hence the UK's EU referendum question had a small bias towards 'remain' because that was the first of the two options presented. From the point of view of running a website with a vested interest in getting good scores for its stories, the story ratings should be in descending rank rather than ascending, making 'You call this a story' the last option rather than the first.
AJ
In elections, a randomized list would work best, but that's difficult to manage with paper ballots (yes, there are ways, but they would complicate things to a great degree).
That won't work at all in this case. Probably the 'best' solution is a blank which is filled in with a numeric score (if you're going to use numerica scores). I prefer a simple 'thumbs up' and 'thumbs down' approach, where the score is a ratio. No need to adjust for score creep, no need to discard 5% of the high/low scores, etc. But Lazeez has declared the scoring system 'done' so, I'm just blathering. :-)
In elections, a randomized list would work best, but that's difficult to manage with paper ballots
Nah, in the UK you get marked off as having voted, and the next serial-numbered slip is given to you to cast your vote on after the serial number is recorded. It just needs the pad of voting slips to be randomised.
Nah, in the UK you get marked off as having voted, and the next serial-numbered slip is given to you to cast your vote on after the serial number is recorded. It just needs the pad of voting slips to be randomised.
How is the counting done when the names are randomized on the ballot? That seems fraught with error.
Split the cast ballots by order of names, then count as normal, then recombine (add). The names don't have to be random to eliminate the first-candidate bias, just evenly distributed, so having the names in alphabetical order wrapping round from last to first, and each candidate appearing at the top of the slip an equal number of times, would do it. Sorting by order of names could be aided by each name-order being printed on different coloured paper, or by a large index letter in the top-left corner etc. The latter could be used for automated OCR pre-sort, and the technology used to read lottery choice marks for sorting by candidate, giving just piles to be counted (and verified that they are in the expected bin).
That won't work at all in this case. Probably the 'best' solution is a blank which is filled in with a numeric score (if you're going to use numerica scores). I prefer a simple 'thumbs up' and 'thumbs down' approach, where the score is a ratio.
I've always maintained that the biggest problem with SOL scoring is that the distance between 1 and 10 is so wide, which thereby provides a simple 1-vote with much more power than it deserves. Amazon, which is known for company employees 'up-voting' their products on company time, the 1 - 4 scores help minimize the damage inflicted.
But you're right, it's long been a dead issue here, as Lazeez would have to throw away years of data collection and start the entire process from scratch in order to institute any change to the scoring system. :(
From the point of view of running a website with a vested interest in getting good scores for its stories, the story ratings should be in descending rank rather than ascending, making 'You call this a story' the last option rather than the first.
Excellent point. While I've long understood selection bias, I've never considered it in regard to story scoring.
Poetry is allowed on site.
Don't mind me. Being unable to write the stuff, I have a strong prejudice against it and its exponents ;)
AJ
Don't mind me. Being unable to write the stuff, I have a strong prejudice against it and its exponents ;)
Not me. Being utterly unable to craft such finely compiled, flowing text, exuding in beauty, I can only marvel at it as I struggle on with overwrought and wordy descriptions. I wish I had a more 'natural' style (or expression, not Guidebook).
Poets spend decades learning how to write beautifully, and the few who manage to transpose the craft into novels create captivating text, but it takes too long to learn for us late starters, and few ever successfully transition. :( So we shouldn't hold it against the few who do.
Why can't we all get along? :p
Like the bunnies do ... in the fields, in the grass, in the key, on the sidewalk, under the bushes, ...
