@LilahRae Hi! I think our social groupings work pretty similarly to how they do in relationships that primarily occur offline-- I see many people in here that I know by name/avatar, but only know a couple things about. Then there's people whose stories I read-- through their work, I know them a bit better, but there's nothing extremely personal in our relationship. Finally, there's the layer of being really close to each other-- obviously this layer is the smallest, since at least I find it pretty hard to connect on a really personal level with a bunch of people at once. There are some people on here that I would definitely feel comfortable going to (and have gone to) when I've had problems outside of just the game.
I think how a lot of people first enter into or come across the community is by needing information on or help with something game-related. In our Stories and Legacies section, there's also additional needs for help with writing-related things and promotion of one's work-- a majority of my blog's views come from links I've posted on these forums. Also, reading a person's story can help you get to know them simply due to the nature of both gameplay and the written word. This probably also helps us form deeper connections with each other.
I can't think of anything else on the topic right now, but please let us know if you need any other information.
A question for everyone. Do you think it's okay to go back and edit previous chapters? Not changing plot details or anything but after some feedback I got from the reading group I'm in part of me wants to go back and try and fix some of the writing issues I have. Is it okay to do this or do you think I should just leave what's done alone and just focus on fixing future chapters?
That's totally fine with me so that new readers will have an easier time reading, and it will give me a feeling of satisfaction.
A question for everyone. Do you think it's okay to go back and edit previous chapters? Not changing plot details or anything but after some feedback I got from the reading group I'm in part of me wants to go back and try and fix some of the writing issues I have. Is it okay to do this or do you think I should just leave what's done alone and just focus on fixing future chapters?
That's totally fine with me so that new readers will have an easier time reading, and it will give me a feeling of satisfaction.
I have never posted or participated in an online community before so I am not sure how all of this works, but I am trying to immerse myself for a college paper. The position I took on the paper is to prove that the sims community consists mainly/only of weak ties (non-emotional, distant) with other people, and exist only/mainly to diffuse information (in order to gain cheats, information, solutions to game problems, content, etc.).
That being said, I have to intentionally involve myself in this virtual community, and I am doing so by hopefully opening up a discussion about the types of interactions you have had through the sims virtual community.
Have your interaction here been mainly for personal reasons out of which you gained some sort of non-game social support from others?
Or would you say that you make use of this virtual community purely as a resource, to gain game information and helpful tools?
Any responses would be greatly appreciated! I will keep answers anonymous but I am looking for evidence and personal responses from you as members of this virtual community that I can use for my term final paper.
I've really enjoyed your proposed thesis and your questions, and the response they've gotten!
One thing that's becoming apparent to me through the conversation is that it's perhaps useful to think beyond "Sims community" towards Sim communities. There are many communities!
There may be some communities that fit your description accurately. There's also at least one community outside of the official EA forums which accepts and seems to even encourage criticism, bullying, complaining about, and tearing down other Simmers. There are tumblr communities and communities on other forums. It's a diverse, widespread, global group, and each of communities within this larger group seem to have their own cultures.
Here in this corner of the SimLit community, we've consciously worked to create a community that is inclusive, encouraging, nurturing, supportive, welcoming, diverse, responsive, open, safer, and kind. The responses you received cheer me to no end for they show that we have been pretty successful in creating that!
Here are some of the practices we consciously engage in to promote and foster those cultural qualities:
1) Welcome newcomers!
2) Provide useful resources (like the Quick Guide to SimLit that @Julyvee94 created that's stickied at the top of this forum area)
3) Ask and answer questions! (Yay, @Bugsie2016 , for breathing new life in our conversations here through reinstating conversations! I appreciate you so much! And yay to everyone who joins in!)
4) Allow for people to come and go. Online communities, especially, need a degree of flexibility and openness, because people get busy with their lives, things come up, challenges arise, and so people might not always be here. In this community, we make a point welcoming folks back if they've taken a break, whether that break lasted a week, a month, or a year or two! There's a core group of us who have been here for years, and we're always happy to see friends return!
5) Create space for disagreement. We spent a lot of time in the early months of this thread allowing for diverse perspectives. We have so many styles of writers and nearly every point brought up here has multiple responses, so we took a lot of time to establish that no single position or style was better than other--it was just different! By now, we can identify and respect many of our differences, and that allows us to enjoy our many similarities.
6) Celebrate and welcome quirkiness! Writers and creative folk tend to be unique individuals! I know that I myself cannot belong to any community that doesn't make room for quirkiness and, as some would put it, weirdness! So, instead of feeling apologetic for being unique or unusual, we embrace it, celebrated, and welcome our individuality!
7) Respect each other.
8) Treat each other with kindness.
9) Don't hold grudges--disagreements and even hurt feelings are bound to happen in any community. We actively strive to get past it, to be resilient, and to stay involved.
10) Laugh! (Thanks, sis @friendsfan367 , for never letting us forget this! )
I'm really glad you ventured into this thread to ask your question, and I'm happy we could find exceptions to your thesis!
A question for everyone. Do you think it's okay to go back and edit previous chapters? Not changing plot details or anything but after some feedback I got from the reading group I'm in part of me wants to go back and try and fix some of the writing issues I have. Is it okay to do this or do you think I should just leave what's done alone and just focus on fixing future chapters?
@AuroraLockwood I go back and fix some spelling and grammar errors. And I fix some things that I retcon. If it's significant change, then I add a note at the top of other posts in the series. I don't know if anyone cares but I figured just in case there's confusion, it's worth it.
A question for everyone. Do you think it's okay to go back and edit previous chapters? Not changing plot details or anything but after some feedback I got from the reading group I'm in part of me wants to go back and try and fix some of the writing issues I have. Is it okay to do this or do you think I should just leave what's done alone and just focus on fixing future chapters?
I know the consensus on this thread leaned towards "it's fine" but I'm just gonna give my opinion as a former chronic revisionist, to the point of majorly retconning parts of my old story in the middle: don't.
It's easy to get caught in a cycle of wanting to further and further perfect a story but there's a point where it's pointless. Maybe no one would have noticed, or maybe it is a flaw in the story but one that can be a learning experience. But then nothing will seem good enough.
I do correct typos when readers catch them though.
@MadameLee You do make the creepiest nightmare pics!
I realize the "Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Plunges into Hollywood" one of the articles in it might have stayed in my mind to help w/ the nightmare pics.
A question for everyone. Do you think it's okay to go back and edit previous chapters? Not changing plot details or anything but after some feedback I got from the reading group I'm in part of me wants to go back and try and fix some of the writing issues I have. Is it okay to do this or do you think I should just leave what's done alone and just focus on fixing future chapters?
I know the consensus on this thread leaned towards "it's fine" but I'm just gonna give my opinion as a former chronic revisionist, to the point of majorly retconning parts of my old story in the middle: don't.
It's easy to get caught in a cycle of wanting to further and further perfect a story but there's a point where it's pointless. Maybe no one would have noticed, or maybe it is a flaw in the story but one that can be a learning experience. But then nothing will seem good enough.
I do correct typos when readers catch them though.
Oh I know what you mean, @InfraGreen. That's why I like leaving room in my stories for additions later on. Like leaving enough open ended that that I can play around with story mechanics later. And I can change things sort of sneakily if I need to.
A question for everyone. Do you think it's okay to go back and edit previous chapters? Not changing plot details or anything but after some feedback I got from the reading group I'm in part of me wants to go back and try and fix some of the writing issues I have. Is it okay to do this or do you think I should just leave what's done alone and just focus on fixing future chapters?
I know the consensus on this thread leaned towards "it's fine" but I'm just gonna give my opinion as a former chronic revisionist, to the point of majorly retconning parts of my old story in the middle: don't.
It's easy to get caught in a cycle of wanting to further and further perfect a story but there's a point where it's pointless. Maybe no one would have noticed, or maybe it is a flaw in the story but one that can be a learning experience. But then nothing will seem good enough.
I do correct typos when readers catch them though.
Oh I know what you mean, @InfraGreen. That's why I like leaving room in my stories for additions later on. Like leaving enough open ended that that I can play around with story mechanics later. And I can change things sort of sneakily if I need to.
@InfraGreen Do you find this pans out well for you? I've been leaving open ideas and plot holes in one of my stories (and building in some mystery and intrigue so it's not just "ooooh ahhhh don't look behind the curtain") but I'm afraid I'll forget about some of them!
Thank you for the responses everyone though just to point out as a couple people seem to have misinterpreted my meaning. I had no intention of altering the story or characters at all. The only thing I was considering editing was aspects like some of my writing structure and overuse of certain adjectives. Purely grammatical/technical type changes.
Thank you for the responses everyone though just to point out as a couple people seem to have misinterpreted my meaning. I had no intention of altering the story or characters at all. The only thing I was considering editing was aspects like some of my writing structure and overuse of certain adjectives. Purely grammatical/technical type changes.
oh so the things i said i ignore on purpose because it would take forever to fix. lol.
A question for everyone. Do you think it's okay to go back and edit previous chapters? Not changing plot details or anything but after some feedback I got from the reading group I'm in part of me wants to go back and try and fix some of the writing issues I have. Is it okay to do this or do you think I should just leave what's done alone and just focus on fixing future chapters?
I know the consensus on this thread leaned towards "it's fine" but I'm just gonna give my opinion as a former chronic revisionist, to the point of majorly retconning parts of my old story in the middle: don't.
It's easy to get caught in a cycle of wanting to further and further perfect a story but there's a point where it's pointless. Maybe no one would have noticed, or maybe it is a flaw in the story but one that can be a learning experience. But then nothing will seem good enough.
I do correct typos when readers catch them though.
Oh I know what you mean, @InfraGreen. That's why I like leaving room in my stories for additions later on. Like leaving enough open ended that that I can play around with story mechanics later. And I can change things sort of sneakily if I need to.
@InfraGreen Do you find this pans out well for you? I've been leaving open ideas and plot holes in one of my stories (and building in some mystery and intrigue so it's not just "ooooh ahhhh don't look behind the curtain") but I'm afraid I'll forget about some of them!
@Karilan I keep notes so I don't forget things. I don't think it matters if you don't address everything. I'm writing with the long story in mind so I like to drop hints as I go. I think it's good practice. In my case, some things won't be answered for awhile so I have to keep notes to keep things straight.
A question for everyone. Do you think it's okay to go back and edit previous chapters? Not changing plot details or anything but after some feedback I got from the reading group I'm in part of me wants to go back and try and fix some of the writing issues I have. Is it okay to do this or do you think I should just leave what's done alone and just focus on fixing future chapters?
I know the consensus on this thread leaned towards "it's fine" but I'm just gonna give my opinion as a former chronic revisionist, to the point of majorly retconning parts of my old story in the middle: don't.
It's easy to get caught in a cycle of wanting to further and further perfect a story but there's a point where it's pointless. Maybe no one would have noticed, or maybe it is a flaw in the story but one that can be a learning experience. But then nothing will seem good enough.
I do correct typos when readers catch them though.
Oh I know what you mean, @InfraGreen. That's why I like leaving room in my stories for additions later on. Like leaving enough open ended that that I can play around with story mechanics later. And I can change things sort of sneakily if I need to.
@InfraGreen Do you find this pans out well for you? I've been leaving open ideas and plot holes in one of my stories (and building in some mystery and intrigue so it's not just "ooooh ahhhh don't look behind the curtain") but I'm afraid I'll forget about some of them!
@Karilan I keep notes so I don't forget things. I don't think it matters if you don't address everything. I'm writing with the long story in mind so I like to drop hints as I go. I think it's good practice. In my case, some things won't be answered for awhile so I have to keep notes to keep things straight.
i used to do that but i got to generation 2 and the benders went nuts. then this time it got nuttier 6 marriages one engagement more babies than i can count oh and 2 divorces.
Comments
I think how a lot of people first enter into or come across the community is by needing information on or help with something game-related. In our Stories and Legacies section, there's also additional needs for help with writing-related things and promotion of one's work-- a majority of my blog's views come from links I've posted on these forums. Also, reading a person's story can help you get to know them simply due to the nature of both gameplay and the written word. This probably also helps us form deeper connections with each other.
I can't think of anything else on the topic right now, but please let us know if you need any other information.
That's totally fine with me so that new readers will have an easier time reading, and it will give me a feeling of satisfaction.
Origin ID: pronterus || Gallery || Undead With Benefits||The Pronteran Builder Blog
Book O' Spells: The Life and Times of Lady Ravendancer Goth
The Shadow Over Newcrest - Revised Story Blog
Antonio is played by my simself with different hair
Origin ID: pronterus || Gallery || Undead With Benefits||The Pronteran Builder Blog
Chapter 3.11
And also, happy Halloween everyone!
Origin ID: JoieWilder94 | Twitter: JoieWilder94
The Thoreau Legacy | The More the Wilder | Crazy Town | Taken by Storme | My Short Stories
Build Showcase
The Orphan Challenge - Testers welcome!
You give him your voice and humor when you write him, too, I'm venturing!
Do you also play The Elder Scrolls Online? You can find me there as CathyTea, too!
I also think it's cool!
Do you also play The Elder Scrolls Online? You can find me there as CathyTea, too!
aggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
thanks jo i needed that because cand d isn't out yet.
@LilahRae Hi, and welcome to the Writers' Lounge!
I've really enjoyed your proposed thesis and your questions, and the response they've gotten!
One thing that's becoming apparent to me through the conversation is that it's perhaps useful to think beyond "Sims community" towards Sim communities. There are many communities!
There may be some communities that fit your description accurately. There's also at least one community outside of the official EA forums which accepts and seems to even encourage criticism, bullying, complaining about, and tearing down other Simmers. There are tumblr communities and communities on other forums. It's a diverse, widespread, global group, and each of communities within this larger group seem to have their own cultures.
Here in this corner of the SimLit community, we've consciously worked to create a community that is inclusive, encouraging, nurturing, supportive, welcoming, diverse, responsive, open, safer, and kind. The responses you received cheer me to no end for they show that we have been pretty successful in creating that!
Here are some of the practices we consciously engage in to promote and foster those cultural qualities:
1) Welcome newcomers!
2) Provide useful resources (like the Quick Guide to SimLit that @Julyvee94 created that's stickied at the top of this forum area)
3) Ask and answer questions! (Yay, @Bugsie2016 , for breathing new life in our conversations here through reinstating conversations! I appreciate you so much! And yay to everyone who joins in!)
4) Allow for people to come and go. Online communities, especially, need a degree of flexibility and openness, because people get busy with their lives, things come up, challenges arise, and so people might not always be here. In this community, we make a point welcoming folks back if they've taken a break, whether that break lasted a week, a month, or a year or two! There's a core group of us who have been here for years, and we're always happy to see friends return!
5) Create space for disagreement. We spent a lot of time in the early months of this thread allowing for diverse perspectives. We have so many styles of writers and nearly every point brought up here has multiple responses, so we took a lot of time to establish that no single position or style was better than other--it was just different! By now, we can identify and respect many of our differences, and that allows us to enjoy our many similarities.
6) Celebrate and welcome quirkiness! Writers and creative folk tend to be unique individuals! I know that I myself cannot belong to any community that doesn't make room for quirkiness and, as some would put it, weirdness! So, instead of feeling apologetic for being unique or unusual, we embrace it, celebrated, and welcome our individuality!
7) Respect each other.
8) Treat each other with kindness.
9) Don't hold grudges--disagreements and even hurt feelings are bound to happen in any community. We actively strive to get past it, to be resilient, and to stay involved.
10) Laugh! (Thanks, sis @friendsfan367 , for never letting us forget this!
I'm really glad you ventured into this thread to ask your question, and I'm happy we could find exceptions to your thesis!
Do you also play The Elder Scrolls Online? You can find me there as CathyTea, too!
Gen 6 nightmares
Gen 7 nightmares:
[
PS guess who has the simming cold bug now?
why did you buy so many you'll be eating walfes for weeks,
The Freaky Night
Origin ID: pronterus || Gallery || Undead With Benefits||The Pronteran Builder Blog
@AuroraLockwood I go back and fix some spelling and grammar errors. And I fix some things that I retcon. If it's significant change, then I add a note at the top of other posts in the series. I don't know if anyone cares but I figured just in case there's confusion, it's worth it.
Find me elsewhere:
My EA App ID: livinasimminlife
Livin' A Simmin' Life Stories
My Worldbuilding Blog
Simblr
My Sims Pinterest
I know the consensus on this thread leaned towards "it's fine" but I'm just gonna give my opinion as a former chronic revisionist, to the point of majorly retconning parts of my old story in the middle: don't.
It's easy to get caught in a cycle of wanting to further and further perfect a story but there's a point where it's pointless. Maybe no one would have noticed, or maybe it is a flaw in the story but one that can be a learning experience. But then nothing will seem good enough.
I do correct typos when readers catch them though.
outrun / blog / tunglr
Do you also play The Elder Scrolls Online? You can find me there as CathyTea, too!
I realize the "Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Plunges into Hollywood" one of the articles in it might have stayed in my mind to help w/ the nightmare pics.
Oh I know what you mean, @InfraGreen. That's why I like leaving room in my stories for additions later on. Like leaving enough open ended that that I can play around with story mechanics later. And I can change things sort of sneakily if I need to.
Find me elsewhere:
My EA App ID: livinasimminlife
Livin' A Simmin' Life Stories
My Worldbuilding Blog
Simblr
My Sims Pinterest
@InfraGreen Do you find this pans out well for you? I've been leaving open ideas and plot holes in one of my stories (and building in some mystery and intrigue so it's not just "ooooh ahhhh don't look behind the curtain") but I'm afraid I'll forget about some of them!
My hubby causes chaos in How To Live With Grace - - Pine Point tells Miranda Cole's survival tale - - Criminals build legacies in Glassbolt Prison
oh so the things i said i ignore on purpose because it would take forever to fix. lol.
i think thats what you mean anyway.
@Karilan I keep notes so I don't forget things. I don't think it matters if you don't address everything. I'm writing with the long story in mind so I like to drop hints as I go. I think it's good practice. In my case, some things won't be answered for awhile so I have to keep notes to keep things straight.
Find me elsewhere:
My EA App ID: livinasimminlife
Livin' A Simmin' Life Stories
My Worldbuilding Blog
Simblr
My Sims Pinterest
i used to do that but i got to generation 2 and the benders went nuts. then this time it got nuttier 6 marriages one engagement more babies than i can count oh and 2 divorces.
The past four days have been busy. I went to a jack o lantern exhibit, went to a baby shower, GOT MARRIED, and went trick or treating with fam
I love halloween time
Ps. We definitely got eloped, because we were tired of waiting to plan a wedding. I guess went with the sims way xD
https://soulgal7.wordpress.com/2017/11/01/ch-16-wk-2-retail-wars-spooky-special-part-2-hanks-store