@Lucy_Henley Children can certainly also ask questions and they are often quite direct.
I remember there was a period when my daughter was quite bothered by her schoolmates asking her where is your real mother?
She therefore began to confront me that I was not her real mother. We talked a lot about this issue and I told her that I definitely felt like I was her real mother. She had two mothers. A mother who had given her life and a mother who kept her alive and made sure she was loved and safe. That we were both real mothers.
She calmed down with that explanation and perhaps also with my refusal to be a substitute.
I'm not sure how much we discussed this before, but what type of feedback do you prefer?
I assume most prefer comments (I know I do). But I can see circumstances where a simple like/awesome is better because of how easy that feedback is to give and understand.
I’m not going to pretend I don’t love comments and validation but I also get that not everyone has the time, energy or the words so Likes and Awesomes work too where there’s no time for words. Sadly I don’t always have time to comment these days ;-; The reason I try and be as detailed as possible (if I have time) is because I love getting comments, so it only makes sense that I put the commenting effort in for other people when time and energy allows me to do so. I honestly feel pretty honoured to have 4 or 5 commenting regular readers TBH. I’m glad my hyperfixation project means something to people XD
My favourite type is where people talk about the story and speculate on what's going on and what's going to happen next. But I settle for the likes and awesomes.
I love comments. Likes and awesomes are good but comments are the best, those really motivate and inspire me. It's so wonderful to see that readers are making a connection to the characters and their stories. It still amazes me that I have as many readers as I do for both of my stories. Where likes and awesomes feel really good is when I post little teasers and sneak peeks in the WHIYGT thread in general discussion. It feels good knowing that readers are looking forward to the storyline or some new character or lot that is coming in the next chapter.
I also want to add that one thing I love lately is seeing conversations amongst each other about the story is plain adorable. I love seeing people discuss my story with each other on the thread, it’s fun to see people’s outlooks and speculations about plots/characters And it’s always good seeing folks engage with each other in a good way.
I also love comments! it makes my day when I see that I have new ones. I know that most people who read my story don't comment, and that's totally fine because there's not always a lot to say after each chapter, but for those who do, and always make the effort to say something, it really means a lot. I try to do the same when I leave comments too, and to leave something thoughtful or some speculation about what is going on behind the scenes etc.
I agree with @SnowBnuuy - I've had some really interesting conversations in my comments lately, and it's really special to see. Sometimes you doubt that your work is good enough, and personally i struggle a lot with feelings of inadequacy. When people really take the time to read every part of the story and analyze it it's kind of crazy cool.
Long conversations and deep analyzes of happenings in comments are often those what make me feel, that my small comment is "not enough" , and I end up deleting it and pressing "awesome" instead.
As my English would never be good enough to do those myself.
My love, my love, my fearless love, I will not say goodbye..
Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..
@Ellupelluellu this is such a good point - to my shame I never considered how it must be a bit daunting to see loads of well thought out comments and analysis on someone’s story when all you wanted to say was “I liked this chapter”.
I guess by us praising those who leave long comments we may have communicated to readers that this is the standard that we expect, and everything else isn’t as important, when really, I - we - would hate if that praise for some was making others feel any kind of inadequacy.
People should contribute what they want to, even if it’s just a “like” or a short comment. I can say for myself that anything at all is appreciated. Honestly even just seeing that 12 people clicked on the chapter is enough. Bring what you want to the table, even if it’s nothing but private enjoyment of the story ⭐️
I agree wholeheartedly with @hellohannah2, even a short comment saying you enjoyed the chapter is enough for us. It’s the thought that means so much not the length or depth.❤️
@Ellupelluellu I can assure you that even a very short comment makes me really happy
I have readers who always write a single sentence or a short comment and they are just as appreciated. I would actually prefer a like or a short comment instead of a reader delaying a reaction because they feel obliged to write a longer response. It shows that you don't write in the void.
I don't think I've ever had a conversation between people in my comments, so I can't comment on that.
@Ellupelluellu Please don't feel that way. I love your comments. Because you're not a native English speaker, you sometimes have a very clever and unique way of putting things or have to comment creatively (one of your recent comments that began with a series of emoticons was ). I appreciate that.
I think this forum has an English only policy, but on my site people can comment in whatever language they want--I don't care. I understand that reading English can sometimes be much easier than writing it.
I can reassure Mona that I get excited every time a new chapter of Tusnelda and Trix drops. I often don't comment on it but, rest assured, I am a fan and have stayed with the story since chapter one.
I haven't had the pleasure of readers of Sim 66 discussing the story among themselves but that would be cool if it happened. Heck, I'm happy to have a few readers!
No one should ever feel bad about leaving short comments Love for a story is love for a story. I have a feeling that perhaps what I’ve said has been taken the wrong way as it often happens so to clarify; As I’ve said several times on this thread how you choose to interact or not with a story is up to you. You don’t exist to give endless detailed praise to a writer, so if you don’t want to comment then don’t, if you don’t have the energy then don’t. Likes, comments, page views, it’s all positive engagements in one way or another!
Likes, comments, page views, it’s all positive engagements in one way or another!
@SnowBnuuy I agree! Ironically, I'm not sure if I like page views on the earlier chapters of my legacy because it seems like most people who start there, don't like it and don't continue . I tend to be able to retain readers who start in the middle or with my later chapters. Do others with legacies or longer stories/series find themselves trying to pull potential readers away from the beginning?
Well, of course comments are always very rewarding. Actually, I have to admit to have left a few other forums because there were literally zero readers around, so to at least have some sort of feedback demonstrating that someone is actually following is quite important for me. Also, comments help me to understand what the readers are liking the most about the story and the points that could have been unclear, and this sometimes makes me modify bits of the following chapters to focus more on the most liked parts, or for explain better what was unclear.
Do others with legacies or longer stories/series find themselves trying to pull potential readers away from the beginning?
The first chapter of my legacy is always among the top most viewed in my blog (on a weekly basis), usually followed by the very last chapter I posted. I think that people are just following the link to the legacy in my signature, taking a look at the first post, and if they don't like it they just move on. Following the previous point, I can't deny that (instinctively) I would prefer them to stick and read the rest, but rationally I know that not everyone can enjoy every story and that this is completely normal.
You can follow the Legacy Miller from my blog and the forum thread, *Chapter 8.17 posted on the 18th of April 2024*
The first chapter of my legacy is always among the top most viewed in my blog (on a weekly basis), usually followed by the very last chapter I posted. I think that people are just following the link to the legacy in my signature, taking a look at the first post, and if they don't like it they just move on. Following the previous point, I can't deny that (instinctively) I would prefer them to stick and read the rest, but rationally I know that not everyone can enjoy every story and that this is completely normal.
Interesting. I think it's normal to have people check the first post or so to decide if a story is for them. For me for people who stick around a bit, if they select the first post as their starting point they have a tendency to leave after a few posts or a few visits and not come back (which is of course fine). But if they select somewhere in the middle or towards the end, more of them come back consistently. Aside from differences in quality, I think it may be overwhelming to see like 100 posts, so I'm always fine with people starting from wherever (or not at all).
Do others with legacies or longer stories/series find themselves trying to pull potential readers away from the beginning?
To be honest, newcomers rarely make it past chapter 2 of the prologue, but let's face it, it's not a very happy prologue... : P and it seems generally forum folk these days are more interested in realistic storylines, whereas when I started it seemed fantasy / supernatural was more popular. Whereas I've gone the opposite way and it's rare I'll get into anything that doesn't have some kind of fantastical element. It's quite funny though because of the little circle of people who, without fail, keep coming back for more unhinged-ness. XD
Trouble is Divided isn't really something where you can start from the middle. Like with legacies I find it's a bit different. In the past I've read some legacies out-of-order because one character's storyline interests me, so I read that one first and the others after. Or I'll just read my favourite character's section over and over... : P
Do others with legacies or longer stories/series find themselves trying to pull potential readers away from the beginning?
I periodically check on the data and viewing stats for Sim 66, to see how much readership it has but also because after 180 or so chapters I have to keep referring back to what I've written to ensure the continuity is intact. What I've noticed is that the first 50 chapters have the most views and it starts to tail off from about Chapter 100 to the current one but every few weeks I notice that the higher numbers shift up from Ch 50 to 60 and then the numbers start to rise again before tailing off....this is because people are reading Sim 66 in their own time and they haven't got to the more recent chapters yet. I have about 10 up to date readers who are reading them within 3 days of a new chapter dropping and the rest are somewhere behind making their way.
I've noticed that certain characters are way more popular than others and get the most amount of views if they feature. They are Suzy and Action. I think it's because they're the most Sixties characters in the story. She's a mod "dolly bird" in the height of Sixties fashion and he's the cool action hero who wears a turtleneck sweater under a suit and speaks in Sixties slang a lot. I know my readership comes mainly from two sources: Here and the Sims of History Discord group. I think people who find Sim 66 from here are more interested in the everyday characters like Jeremy or Julia and the Sims of History readers like the period details such as the fashion and setting.
@SnowBnuuy We often have this topic with comments up and I don't think you are expressing yourself, so it gives rise to misunderstandings.
It can feel very vulnerable to venture into the Simlit universe. We all have something at stake when we start writing, which can lead to uncertainty about whether we are worthy of participating in the community and we can feel an urge to compare ourselves with other writers. At least that's how it was for me in the beginning.
It gets better with time, but very few of us get rid of self-doubt completely.
What I'm trying to say is that I appreciate this thread where an honest statement is welcome, as it gives us all the opportunity to reflect and grow.
@Kellogg_J_Kellogg Since, as I wrote before, I never completely get rid of my self-criticism, I want to say thank you for the comment. It makes me very happy
Do others with legacies or longer stories/series find themselves trying to pull potential readers away from the beginning?
I don't know if I understand the question correctly. I would say that I myself have sometimes started my reading in the middle of a legacy because it has already run for a long time. If I am gripped by the story, I have later gone back and caught up with the past.
It is my experience that the characters of stories often really come to life in the course of the story.
As my story has gradually ended up as a longer serial, I have tried to divide it into three books, which I imagine can be read separately. I'm not sure if it's that obvious to the readers.
Although the presentation of a story can be really exciting, you cannot maintain the same level of excitement all the time. There will often be less suspenseful episodes in a story while it builds up to a new peak. This is perhaps why some readers jump off after the first few chapters.
With Magical Mastersons, it's different because it's game-driven and so there's no plot to discuss or any character motivations etc. My most popular posts are Chapters One and Two, then Chapter Ten. I don't get many comments, but I do get awesomes which I appreciate! I also post on the "What Happened In Your Game Today" thread which always gets more views, probably because it's in General Discussion.
I'm not sure if I understand stats or not, by which I mean it's not clear (to me anyway) whether me clicking on one of my posts counts.
@Lucy_Henley I’m not sure but I think clicking on our own posts counts towards the total views. I go through my profile page to view notifications or to find recent posts without sifting through a full page or more. Each time I do that the number of views for my profile goes up, so I think the same applies to the posts themselves.
@Lucy_Henley You use Blogger right if I remember correctly? There's a way to make it not count your views on your own blog if you want: Go to the stats page, and then go down to 'managing tracking your own pageviews'. Then click the tick-box, then click the Blogger logo in the top left corner to go to your blog. That way (most of the time at least) it won't track your pageviews.
Comments
She therefore began to confront me that I was not her real mother. We talked a lot about this issue and I told her that I definitely felt like I was her real mother. She had two mothers. A mother who had given her life and a mother who kept her alive and made sure she was loved and safe. That we were both real mothers.
She calmed down with that explanation and perhaps also with my refusal to be a substitute.
I assume most prefer comments (I know I do). But I can see circumstances where a simple like/awesome is better because of how easy that feedback is to give and understand.
Read Sim 66 here:https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/978195/sim-66/p1
https://kelloggjkellogg.blogspot.com/2020/10/sim-66-prologue.html
I agree with @SnowBnuuy - I've had some really interesting conversations in my comments lately, and it's really special to see. Sometimes you doubt that your work is good enough, and personally i struggle a lot with feelings of inadequacy. When people really take the time to read every part of the story and analyze it it's kind of crazy cool.
As my English would never be good enough to do those myself.
Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..
I guess by us praising those who leave long comments we may have communicated to readers that this is the standard that we expect, and everything else isn’t as important, when really, I - we - would hate if that praise for some was making others feel any kind of inadequacy.
People should contribute what they want to, even if it’s just a “like” or a short comment. I can say for myself that anything at all is appreciated. Honestly even just seeing that 12 people clicked on the chapter is enough. Bring what you want to the table, even if it’s nothing but private enjoyment of the story ⭐️
I have readers who always write a single sentence or a short comment and they are just as appreciated. I would actually prefer a like or a short comment instead of a reader delaying a reaction because they feel obliged to write a longer response. It shows that you don't write in the void.
@Ellupelluellu Please don't feel that way. I love your comments. Because you're not a native English speaker, you sometimes have a very clever and unique way of putting things or have to comment creatively (one of your recent comments that began with a series of emoticons was
I think this forum has an English only policy, but on my site people can comment in whatever language they want--I don't care.
Long comments are great too.
I haven't had the pleasure of readers of Sim 66 discussing the story among themselves but that would be cool if it happened. Heck, I'm happy to have a few readers!
Read Sim 66 here:https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/978195/sim-66/p1
https://kelloggjkellogg.blogspot.com/2020/10/sim-66-prologue.html
Well, of course comments are always very rewarding. Actually, I have to admit to have left a few other forums because there were literally zero readers around, so to at least have some sort of feedback demonstrating that someone is actually following is quite important for me. Also, comments help me to understand what the readers are liking the most about the story and the points that could have been unclear, and this sometimes makes me modify bits of the following chapters to focus more on the most liked parts, or for explain better what was unclear.
Do others with legacies or longer stories/series find themselves trying to pull potential readers away from the beginning?
The first chapter of my legacy is always among the top most viewed in my blog (on a weekly basis), usually followed by the very last chapter I posted. I think that people are just following the link to the legacy in my signature, taking a look at the first post, and if they don't like it they just move on. Following the previous point, I can't deny that (instinctively) I would prefer them to stick and read the rest, but rationally I know that not everyone can enjoy every story and that this is completely normal.
Interesting. I think it's normal to have people check the first post or so to decide if a story is for them. For me for people who stick around a bit, if they select the first post as their starting point they have a tendency to leave after a few posts or a few visits and not come back (which is of course fine). But if they select somewhere in the middle or towards the end, more of them come back consistently. Aside from differences in quality, I think it may be overwhelming to see like 100 posts, so I'm always fine with people starting from wherever (or not at all).
To be honest, newcomers rarely make it past chapter 2 of the prologue, but let's face it, it's not a very happy prologue... : P and it seems generally forum folk these days are more interested in realistic storylines, whereas when I started it seemed fantasy / supernatural was more popular. Whereas I've gone the opposite way and it's rare I'll get into anything that doesn't have some kind of fantastical element. It's quite funny though because of the little circle of people who, without fail, keep coming back for more unhinged-ness. XD
Trouble is Divided isn't really something where you can start from the middle. Like with legacies I find it's a bit different. In the past I've read some legacies out-of-order because one character's storyline interests me, so I read that one first and the others after. Or I'll just read my favourite character's section over and over... : P
I periodically check on the data and viewing stats for Sim 66, to see how much readership it has but also because after 180 or so chapters I have to keep referring back to what I've written to ensure the continuity is intact. What I've noticed is that the first 50 chapters have the most views and it starts to tail off from about Chapter 100 to the current one but every few weeks I notice that the higher numbers shift up from Ch 50 to 60 and then the numbers start to rise again before tailing off....this is because people are reading Sim 66 in their own time and they haven't got to the more recent chapters yet. I have about 10 up to date readers who are reading them within 3 days of a new chapter dropping and the rest are somewhere behind making their way.
I've noticed that certain characters are way more popular than others and get the most amount of views if they feature. They are Suzy and Action. I think it's because they're the most Sixties characters in the story. She's a mod "dolly bird" in the height of Sixties fashion and he's the cool action hero who wears a turtleneck sweater under a suit and speaks in Sixties slang a lot. I know my readership comes mainly from two sources: Here and the Sims of History Discord group. I think people who find Sim 66 from here are more interested in the everyday characters like Jeremy or Julia and the Sims of History readers like the period details such as the fashion and setting.
Read Sim 66 here:https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/978195/sim-66/p1
https://kelloggjkellogg.blogspot.com/2020/10/sim-66-prologue.html
It can feel very vulnerable to venture into the Simlit universe. We all have something at stake when we start writing, which can lead to uncertainty about whether we are worthy of participating in the community and we can feel an urge to compare ourselves with other writers. At least that's how it was for me in the beginning.
It gets better with time, but very few of us get rid of self-doubt completely.
What I'm trying to say is that I appreciate this thread where an honest statement is welcome, as it gives us all the opportunity to reflect and grow.
@Kellogg_J_Kellogg Since, as I wrote before, I never completely get rid of my self-criticism, I want to say thank you for the comment. It makes me very happy
I don't know if I understand the question correctly. I would say that I myself have sometimes started my reading in the middle of a legacy because it has already run for a long time. If I am gripped by the story, I have later gone back and caught up with the past.
It is my experience that the characters of stories often really come to life in the course of the story.
As my story has gradually ended up as a longer serial, I have tried to divide it into three books, which I imagine can be read separately. I'm not sure if it's that obvious to the readers.
Although the presentation of a story can be really exciting, you cannot maintain the same level of excitement all the time. There will often be less suspenseful episodes in a story while it builds up to a new peak. This is perhaps why some readers jump off after the first few chapters.
I'm not sure if I understand stats or not, by which I mean it's not clear (to me anyway) whether me clicking on one of my posts counts.
As long as it's clear they actually read the thing (Sims or otherwise), any feedback works for me.
Part One(Complete 9/24/16) /Part Two(on hold)/Short Stories(on hold)/Twinbrook 1996(on hold)/Ten Crystal Hearts (on hold)
I own the TS3 Store as of 12/11/16 (sort of. It's complicated)