We passed 19,000 stories on Sunday, 19,001 to be exact. We'll probably hit 20,000 sometime in July; Fictionmania may get there first. :)
It's not a race but sometime in August or September, BigCloset will likely become the largest archive of Transgender stories on the web. Seven years ago, there were less than 2000 stories here. That's a lot of writing. For the last few years, we've been adding more than 3000 stories a year.
I certainly couldn't do it alone and besides technical and administrative help I get from Piper and others, there are all of those who contribute money so I can keep doing this. And of course, the writers who write some of the best stories on the internet, not just some of the best TG stories, some of the best STORIES, period.
And the commenters, bloggers and even people who just come here to read. Thank you all.
Hugs,
Erin
Comments
Quite amazing
'and all due to you,your crew and the writers.Thank you and congratulations
from 'Down Under' ,but BCTS is read all over the world.
ALISON
Even more amazing
to me is how many stories can you and your team read? We are going to kill poor Stanman63 who provides most comments. How will he sleep if we are posting 20,000 per month that is 27.45 stories per hour for 7 days per week.
But seriously I posted 1 story 15 months ago for fun and then another and another. Somehow I accrued more than 6000 kudos as well as some very nice comments and met some really great people.
There is such a nice variation of style and no sign of smut or bad taste. This must be why the site is so successful.
I expect that you will be very satisfied with your achievements.
Well Done
Congratulations
To Erin and her team for creating this oasis in an ocean of potentially dangerous cyberspace, where those of us with a mind to, can partake or create stories to share in an environment of support and care.
A huge thank you.
Angharad
Angharad
Thanks Team
For running this exceptional portal of prose allowing us mere scribblers to concentrate on our spelling!
Thanks
Mads
Madeline Anafrid Bell
Wow!
Congratulations Erin
As you said, not just great TG stories, but GREAT STORIES, period.
There some seriously talented people here, and we are all so lucky to be able to share their talent.
Fantastic stuff!!
Big hugs and kind regards
Kate
Kate
19,000 Stories
WAY COOL!!!
May Your Light Forever Shine
You have my vote Erin!
Best site by a long shot.
Best stories, and Authors!
Congrats to all your team.
Age is an issue of mind over matter.
If you don't mind, it doesn't matter!
(Mark Twain)
LoL
Rita
Kudos to Erin and BC
Mind you of those 190000, 17000 are "Bike."
-- grin --
A tribute to great work and a tollerant but firm boss, um web mistress.
John in Wauwatosa
John in Wauwatosa
I dunno...
Is bike one story or almost 2,000? :-)
It is a major milestone, Erin. Thank you very much for providing this have where we can write and share our labors in an environment that is mostly helpful! (BTW - as you already indicated, that's not just you YOU, but to all of those who work to keep this place open for us - including those who have passed on. But, it is also a thanks to YOU... Somehow, I think without you there at the top, this place wouldn't be nearly so nice.)
Thanks,
Annette
Um...John
It's kind of worrying that you inflated the number of stories to 190,000, given where you work. It wasn't you that um... you know, the banking crisis?
Angharad 8)
Angharad
Fantastic
Congratulations to Erin, all of her helpers, all of the authors, and readers.
Rami
P.S. Has anyone read all19001+ stories?
RAMI
I can't say
How much BCTS has become a part of my daily life. It connects me with my friends and let me indulge in my reading. More it's given me a place to post my own scribbles and thoughts. I would be truly lost without it. :)
hugs
Grover
PS: I counted up mine, and I guess I've done my part with the 50 or so I've put up. :)
Just passed 22 Million visits...
...and Ang on the verge of 2000 episodes. And probably the nicest group of people you'd ever want to meet? Terrific. Congratulations, Erin!
Love, Andrea Lena
Three Years Four Month Shorter Existance BCTS ROCKS
I just checked and Fictionmania has 19,711 stories. It seems there first date is Valentines Day - 2/14/1998. Checking Classic Big Closet it appears June of 2001 is when Big Closet got started. So they have almost 3 year 4 month lead. Even taking into consideration there hiatus, BCTS ROCKS.
RAMI
RAMI
BC start date
I started BigCloset in November of 1999 but took a hiatus from March of 2000 to April of 2002. Classic, the PostNuke version of BC started in 2004. The June 2005 date is when I converted to Drupal and added the TopShelf name.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
Erin, that is because you
Erin, that is because you make it a nice and friendly place to submit stories. I have gotten more positive feedback since I posted here. At FM most of the feedback is very negative.
this is an amazing site
you and the other admins should be proud of the work you do to maintain this crazy place.
KUDOS
The reason this site is so popular is that it's not an embaressment to say that your stories are here. Other sites which I won't mention allow smutt this one won't which keeps it apart from the rest. Arecee
Not the rule
It's not a rule I've made that there is no smut here, whatever smut is. :) It just seems to have happened, perhaps because the community that grew here wants it that way. So don't thank me for that, I didn't do it; I should thank all of you.
Thanks,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
Aye...
There is no actual RULE against sexually gratuitous content here, but there's a community taboo against it, which is even stronger, imo.
Highly sexual content DOES still get posted here, and often, but it's always balanced by a great story, it's never purely just about the sex here.
Abigail Drew.
Smut
Perhaps Ang could include some smut* in Bike?
Purely in the context of biological science, of course. ;-)
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* "3.
a. Any of various plant diseases, especially of cereal grasses, caused by parasitic fungi of the order Ustilaginales that form black powdery masses of spores on the affected parts.
b. A fungus causing such a disease." (From thefreedictionary.com/smut)
Kris
{I leave a trail of Kudos as I browse the site. Be careful where you step!}
Congratulations!
I think one of the great strengths of this site isn't necessarily "no smut" as there are several stories with sexual encounters; but (a) those stories with sexual encounters don't let them get in the way of the plot, and (b) the sexual encounters are almost always consensual. There's also very little forced fem here (the reposts of Vickie Tern / StacyInLove stories, and the controversial Only A Baby Machine, were about the last ones I recall).
Other potential strengths include the real sense of community, the easy navigation, comments immediately below the stories, multiple methods of showing appreciation for a story, the blog facility, and the group of casual moderators who carry out functions such as unpubbing any spam / duplicate comments they encounter.
The other place has 19,700 stories to date, but while they've been going a bit longer, they presumably were offline in January 2000 and Dec 2008 - Apr 2009, according to their month-by-month trend graph.
Also looking at that graph, over the past two years, they've averaged just over 150 stories per month (median 152, mean 155.58). How are we doing by comparison?
Incidentally, we've also breached 22 million hits! I wonder when we'll reach the magic figure of 22,222,222? :)
As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!
About 400 stories a month
Give or take 50 or so.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.