Messages

I wish people were more genuine

---

The site here is great but it has become frustrating getting literally the same canned responses on every poem. I would like to grow, and I would like to hear positive and negative aspects and not just a pat on the back or a participation award.

And there are definitely notable exceptions here. I am certainly being critical right now, but I don?t want to not acknowledge those of you who really do make every review a meaningful one. I just wish there were more of you.

I will still probably post here and there but my motivation is definitely dwindling down.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

I have wondered if the system wouldn't work better if the reviews were anonymous.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

Honestly that would be great. I wish they were.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

Yes, a double blind system. But many members would protest that, as if would touch on fans, and following your favorites. Also, it would hurt one of the main reasons some join: for the friendship or social aspect.

Most of the fictive reviews and ratings are to keep internet friends and reciprocate reviews and ratings to climb that ladder. That's why we had so many peer interview posts in 2023. Because those almost guarantee a #1 All Time Best status.

Vanity is very powerful on FanStory.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

"Vanity is very powerful on FanStory." You nailed that observation spot on.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

True, but every year new members join. I just hope by being honest in reviews and ratings, while giving helpful feedback, the new members will see the benefit of it. Then, they will reject the bad habits of those who trade in faux reviews and ratings.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

Here are the real issues with reviewing and rating.

1) Adults are not adults anymore. Stop crying about a four or three star. You don't deserve pats on the head. You should be able to face criticism. My God, the world is tough. FanStory is not a Safe Space.

2) Friends. These are not your friends, no more than those who FaceBook you are friends. They will not bail you out of jail. They will not give you a kidney. You can't leave your kids with them, while you go on vacation. These are people on the internet. You don't even know that old woman you're talking isn't a 30 year-old man.

3) Encouragement and self-esteem. If I have to explain why an adult shouldn't be seeking this from the internet, then what's the point.

4) My baby: NO! These words on the screen are not your baby. They are not your heart and soul. They are mostly fiction. They aren't real. You aren't getting paid to write them, actually, just the opposite.

5) The Point. LEARN. We should be here to improve our craft, so one day, we will be paid to write. But that cannot happen unless you know where you went wrong, and have motivation to fix it and get better the next time.

6) Ratings and Rankings. This was designed, and in the beginning it worked, to give writers motivation to improve, to see that improvement. But, that required honest ratings, and in the beginning (Yeah, I was here) We all did that. We gave three and twos when earned, and fives only when earned, no matter what our name was.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

when I joined in 2006, the site stood by its rating system, which it now calls "guidelines." They should call it rules, but nobody likes "rules." I suspect that because the site doesn't push any rules, nobody even knows they exist. In addition, the site has become a social network, with many writers who don't care that what they post is full of errors. Many don't know the difference between fiction and nonfiction or between a story and a poem. All they want to do is win the contest and climb in the rankings.

You will receive reviews from people for trying to help you with your craft. When you get one of those, become that person's fan and review their postings. If you do that, you will build a group of honest reviewers and can just ignore the rest of them.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

I read five star praise filled reviews from top ranking authors to others and new folk, and I shake my head.

I read several contest entries today that would be automatically disqualified for obvious reason. I mean reason so clear, there is no way another member, especially top tanking ones, didn't see it.

Those entries were given five-star glowing reviews, with no mention of the HUGE disqualifying errors.

I told them (and reviewed/rated honestly) of course, but it was sad that no one else did.

It makes you wonder: Are top ranking authors giving phony (free) five-star reviews on purpose to lower the competition?

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

In reality, there are only 2 ratings:

5 star means "Congratulations, you posted something" (a participation award)
5 plus means "well done"

The only other option I've really seen is a total lack of reviews (<2 reviews after a few days) which seems to indicate the reviewers don't connect with it.

RE: I wish people were more genuine

---

Lancellot you always surprise me. When you wrote your comment that you reviewed several contest entries (the word several being a number anywhere between three and five) when you had in fact only reviewed one, how is a person to believe you? And yes, that one entrant was not informed by one reviewer that the contest required a story of a minimum of 2,000 words, not a poem.

But then you went on to give another member a totally unwarranted three star review because they had mistakenly entered their write in the script category. How do you think your rating helped that member and isn't the purpose of honest reviews to help writers? Perhaps you will have some cynical response to that but all I see is that you have hurt another person based on some misguided notion you have about what constitutes "honest" reviewing.

And yes, FanStory members have helped other members in dire, real life situations, in fact saving lives, so your comment about them not being real friends is just false.

You truly don't seem to understand that your speculations about other's actions are not facts, but are only extensions of what you think. Unless other people have told you what they think, you DO NOT know what they think.

Moreover I am tired of people asserting a story can't be told without dialogue. It's utter nonsense and people should read more widely to know this is true. Of course one can tell a fine story without dialogue.