@jhncanson
I guess it breaks my immersion when a story mentions a story on the same site i am reading the story?
Damn site, it ate my response again because I used a "not-to-be-named keyboard character" character instead of a "[". Grr!
Geez, Lazeez! This is the third time I've had to compose this message (and all the attachments) from scratch!
That's my issue to. It isn't that he mentions another story, but that he's trying to appeal to readers by mentioning the site they're on, it's a cheap trick that doesn't help convince me he has any idea of how to write. It's the same as rock stars and politicians always shouting "Hello [insert name of city they're appearing in]!", and receiving thunderous applause. Maybe it's just me, but that just announces that the idiot didn't even know what city he was in until he walked on stage.
I'd be fine if the story mentioned a book outside of SOL.
I guess it breaks my immersion when a story mentions a story on the same site i am reading the story?
That's the issue, by mentioning the site, your pandering, not telling (showing?) a story.
@Ernest
I have, on occasion, mentioned a character reading a story on-line. To limit potential issues with authors I usually don't name it or I make a simple one line reference to a story of my own when doing it.
In that case, instead of 'not naming names', I'd reference a fictitious story on a fictitious site. Naming a particular author sounds like you're trying to steal the authors fans by playing on their interests to the exclusion of everyone else. It's the literary equivalent of bad sportsmanship.
@docholladay
I sometimes find overlooked writers this way. Of course it helps when stories are named if they are by a different writer but I have even gone back and read a few of Ernest's stories when they were referenced.
The place for that is either here on the Forum, your blog or the "Favorite Authors" list. It doesn't belong in the story itself, as it's interjecting a non-fiction event into a fictitious story, which yanks the reader out of their imaginary world.
Though again, if it doesn't disturb the rest of the world, have at it. But it's one of the fastest story turn-offs for me. But again, that's just me.