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I posted two stories yesterday. Got 2000 hits between them. 8 Comments. 78 Kudos. Out of 2000 hits between two stories.
I'm obviously doing something wrong. I either can't make you care about my characters, or I just absolutely suck at this. Or, I don't write your type of fiction. Or... Or...
I don't know because I get almost no feedback.
Sigh. I've had my feelings stomped on by editors and writing professionals before. It's how you grow a thick skin. So, don't sugarcoat it. Besides, you can't hit me worse than I hit myself over my work.
Comments
Actually
That's maybe a bit above average here.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
Over analisis
Could it be your over analyzing the results?
First off think of who your writing for? Your audience or you? If your audience then give it time. Why? Because there are so many stories being posted and only so much time in a day.
If for yourself then take comfort in knowing that you had posted something that only a select amount of people have done. What's that? Taking the time to tell a tale to be shared with others. Now its up to others to take the chance and read what you as a writer have given them.
If your looking for praise or other forms of compliments or feedback, join the crowd. Its like going to the dentist. He wants us to open up only we keep our mouths shut till we're forced to comply.
We as the writer can only do so much. Short of bribing the audience there's no way to force them to give us what we are looking for.
But from me to you, hang in there, don't be discouraged and remember why you write.
Me its because I got a craw in my brain and I got to get it out. Not as fast as the others but still there none the less.
Erin's right that's not bad numbers here.
It's also been a very fast story flow here lately, comments are down some just because of the speed things are going. Or at least that the way it seems lately.
*Great Big Hugs*
Bailey Summers
As other's have said, those
As other's have said, those are very good numbers for here.
"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
not all hits are created equal
Not every click on your story is a read. Not every read makes it to the end...
Some clicks are mistakes. Some 'hits' are bots cruising the site.
You have to take your stats with a grain of salt.
Dayna.
ps. I don't think I read either of your stories.
Some of my stories
Haven't made it past 1500 hits in two months, and some have never broken 30 kudos. Comments? Some stories I thought would generate a lot of comments got 4 or 5, and stories I thought were bland got 20+.
2000 hits and 78 kudos for 2 stories in 2 days is very good. Don't beat yourself up for stats which are better than you might imagine them to be.
Imagination is more important than knowledge
A. Einstein
I Can Only Say, "Ditto"
My story with the most hits has not reached 5,000, yet (close). My story with the most Kudos has 54. Consider yourself either a potential professional or very lucky. Keep up the good work.
shalimar
Those are good stats for
Those are good stats for here. Also keep in mind that a lot of times people will only post a comment on stories they do not like. I will not lie I do like your writing though did not read the contest entry and have read all of Athena's wisdom. I tend to no leave comments due to whenever I do things with my computer I am playing Russian roulette with the BLSOD and I am not sure what is causing it. I am looking forward to your next chapter of Athena's wisdom since it seams like it will start at last.
readers may not be logged on
During any day i can read stories from any of 3 computers, the main rig that i log onto during the day, the theatre computer (when i do post op excercises), and the laptop in bed.
i only log in on the main computer, so can't click kudo or leave a message from 2 of them, when i can i log onto stories next day on the main comp to click good story, but can forget due to medications, that would seriously skew results, as it would also if a lot of the readers haven't even signed up or signed in.
remember the crowd reading, a LOT may simply be scared to even register, i didn't register for a few years until i read a story that i HAD to leave a comment on, so simply being lazy or apathetic to the authors feelings may be part of it.
i will apologise now, as i have not yet had a chance to read your stories, but with it now being winter i shall make an effort.
regards
Amanda
To be honest
I didn't learn how to give kudos until a few weeks ago. Been a member for months but only just now figured it out. I couldn't find anything in the FAQ or forum about it and then one day, I was like, what does this good story button do, and I clicked it to find out and it was like... Oh, that's how I give someone kudos. True story.
Internet High Fives All Around
Stardraigh
( •_•)>⌐■-■
My Deviantart
(⌐■_■)
...
I guess I need to adjust my expectations.
I feel like I can do better, but I don't know what to do to make it better.
~And so it goes...
I have stories with less kudos and more "hits"
you're a pretty darn good author, in my opinion.
Erin's right
Those aren't bad statistics girl, be thankful for small mercies. Truly I average about one comment for about every 200 hits. But it varies wildly and there's no knowing why some stories strike it rich while others seem to fail completely.
Don't beat yourself up about it.
XX Bevs.
Just think of the old adage
Just think of the old adage no news is good news, most people have more of a tendency to make comments if they don't like something rather than if they do doesn't matter if it is comments to a story or if it pertains to a bad experience you had at a business or restaurant.Being in a job that deals with customers directly I've noticed over the years that more and more people will complain to others about a bad experience they had than brag about a good one. sometimes when I've read a story someone else already made the comment I was thinking about so I don't see the need to copy it. but I usually try to at least leave a kudos if I like the story but some times the system doesn't let me.
Too many filters maybe
I have to disable a filter to log into this website. Which I am doing more often now as I grow familiar with the site and the people here. However it still has to be manually done. The kudos so far is not going to happen because I haven't figured out which filter is blocking that link. Thus I can't leave a "kudo".
It is the times we are living in. Too many virus's and bad websites waiting for the unguarded computer so they can load it up with whatever evil is out there in the land of ether.
And then there are those who open your story and move on. They have it captured and can read it anytime and not need to come back to BC. Many won't return to leave a comment even if they liked or disliked the story.
Call them Drive by Readers if you like.
BC has readers who are NEVER going to admit they come here to read "THOSE" kind of stories. You are dreaming if you think they are going to leave behind evidence they stopped by. The counter caught them and that will be the only fingerprints left they were here.
Your numbers are above average from what I can tell.
Oklahoma born and raised cowgirl
Comments
Comments are pretty much a crap shoot. My stories seem to top out around 10, but my latest effort has only garnered 5. I wish I knew the secret to getting comments.
Melanie
Me too!!!
I wish there was a secret magic fluffy bunny button or something to push in order to make people comment.
~And so it goes...
Me too!!!
I wish there was a secret magic fluffy bunny button or something to push in order to make people comment.
~And so it goes...
yay for secret magic fluffy bunny buttons!
giggles
Try this
I have sometimes used this pic at the end of the story. Never certain whether it does any good.
I'm lucky enough to have an
I'm lucky enough to have an iPad to read BCTS and use Safari's Reader mode to read a story in a big font for tired eyes. I suspect that I cause a view (or read) when I go to a story, then another when it re reads in reader mode, and probably a third when i change back to normal mode to give a kudos. If I put the tablet down halfway thru a story, it might trigger a few more hits on the stories counter.
Someone who comments (like this-grin) causes another read with the comments form at the bottom, another with the preview and another when the comment is posted.
This all happens because BCTS or it's back end software is telling client browsers not to cache the story behind the scenes. The moral of this is to treat the reads with a big grain of scepticism. Kudos on the other hand are a reader taking the time to click (or poke on a tablet grin) the good story button.
Now comments are a different story; me, I'm shy and when I read an awesome story (like yours) I find it hard to write about what I enjoyed about a story and sound somewhat intelligent. Should my silly little comment sully a momentous work of literature? How many times can I say "I enjoyed your story, thanks for sharing" without being repetitive.
Anyway, speaking for myself, (and paraphrasing someone's signature) I leave a trail of kudos (and cause a few reads) and have a lot of respect for everyone who manages to create and publish a story here at BCTS.
Happy thoughts and best wishes, Kiwi.