[DomLuka] reading habits...

[97a]

Hey folks,

 

i see that every time a new chapter gets postet there's some discussion here in the forum, but I was wondering if really the majority of readers reads a new chapter right after it is out?

 

Personally i like it much more when i'm able to read a story from the beginning to the end without forced breaks of a week or a month between each chapter. I just get more "into the story", if you know what i mean...

Oh, and I really hate it (well, maybe "hate" is a bit too strong, but you get my point) when i discover that the story that i began to read and grew fond of, stops in the middle and is likely not to be continued and nothing is solved and no one found peace and happyness (so far). That's like real life! I read stories to escape from that!

 

So, i have a couple of questions for you:

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

 

Umm... i realize this sounds kinda like a test in school, but I'm curious

 

Ttyl

[Benji]

Hey folks,

 

i see that every time a new chapter gets postet there's some discussion here in the forum, but I was wondering if really the majority of readers reads a new chapter right after it is out?

 

Personally i like it much more when i'm able to read a story from the beginning to the end without forced breaks of a week or a month between each chapter. I just get more "into the story", if you know what i mean...

Oh, and I really hate it (well, maybe "hate" is a bit too strong, but you get my point) when i discover that the story that i began to read and grew fond of, stops in the middle and is likely not to be continued and nothing is solved and no one found peace and happyness (so far). That's like real life! I read stories to escape from that!

 

So, i have a couple of questions for you:

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

 

Umm... i realize this sounds kinda like a test in school, but I'm curious

 

Ttyl

 

 

 

 

.....well I for one like to read it the moment it comes out....the bad thing about that is it is easy to forget where you are in a story, when your following ten stories or more LOL. I think most authors like the feedback for reaction to their chapters. I think CJ in particular will not be influenced by the feedback and change his storyline. He leaves that up to his evil sidekick Shadowgod !!

Edited August 8, 2007 by Benji

[Graeme]

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

I've got a mixture. There are a handful of stories that I read as the chapters are posted. My problem is that I can't do that for too many stories, or I lose track of where things are at.

 

My preference is to read stories straight through, and I know a number of other people who are the same, but that's also got problems, at least for me. I read Dom's Desert Dropping over the period of a week, and I didn't get a lot of sleep (I only got to read it after I'd finished work for the day). I only managed to do that because I was away from work. If I'm home, I'm not able to do even that much reading!

 

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

 

Selfishly, yes, but I know that too many authors don't operate that way. I'm one of them Some authors need to see the feedback earlier, to give them encouragement to keep going (to see that the story is being enjoyed). Others just take so long to write (that's me) that they don't think it is fair to the readers to make them wait for months with nothing being posted.

 

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

 

For some authors, the discussion/feedback can influence the story, but a good author doesn't let the readers dictate what goes on. In my case, a comment from a reader may trigger a chain of thought that leads to a new subplot that enriches the story. I'm still in control -- I'm just using the feedback as an additional source of inspiration. I can only see that as a good thing.

[sat8997]

So, i have a couple of questions for you:

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

 

Umm... i realize this sounds kinda like a test in school, but I'm curious

 

Ttyl

 

1. Wait patiently until the whole story is posted??? This is the Domaholics you're polling, we rabidly pounce on each chapter as soon as humanly possible. Dom could post sentence by sentence and we'd still genuflect at his feet.

 

2. Start posting only when the whole story is complete?? Don't be giving Dom any crazy ideas. We'd have to hunt him down and do something physical. And no, Vic, you don't get to pick what 'physical' means.

 

3. Discussion/feedback might influence a story?? Dom's already said he avoids the discussion forums until he's done with a story, so there's no chance of our...uh...discussions influencing him. Thank God for that too, otherwise Luke might have actually ended up with Grandma Alice.

 

Sharon

[Menzoberranzen]

And no, Vic, you don't get to pick what 'physical' means.

 

Can I

 

I've become a domaholic sufficiently recently that I was able to read all of Dom's stories except ITFB in long, extended sessions. I am, however, unable to watch chapters of ITFB get posted without reading them ASAP.

 

Menzo

[Krista]

Hey folks,

 

So, i have a couple of questions for you:

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

 

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

 

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

 

Actually, I am more likely to read a story that I like if the chapters aren't already posted. I'm lazy, and if I see tons of chapters already posted then I'm actually less likely to pick it up. I'm a writer as well, so as Gay Fiction on the internet reading is concerned, I like waiting long periods of time between chapters to keep me from forgetting it altogether. I'm a patient person.

 

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

 

I think that's up to the author completely and what they can handle taking on. Some authors need to read the opinions of the work in order to have the confidence and such to continue the idea. I personally, could do both. I could write a whole story and not post it until it's complete and edited, but I'm more likely to post it as it's edited and wrote. It's longer on delays, but if you like the story you're going to take the time to read it regardless.

 

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

 

Yes, I think it happens more than Authors like to admit that it does. With Dom, he doesn't look at Discussion forums until his story is complete. People get influences from many different places, I don't think a reader discussion forum should be excluded from that. I'm sure authors aren't guided by what readers say in those forums as they have their own preferences and thoughts on the story as well. I do think it does happen though, and it could have positive and negative effects just like everything else the Author is influenced by.

 

 

Good questions.

 

Krista

[NaperVic]

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

I go for ever chapter as soon as possible. Actually, I go for new chapters before they are even posted (they only seem to be there 1 out of each 100 times I check )

 

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

No! Personally speaking, whenever I see I full story posted that I enjoy, I ended up reading it too quickly. As well, I usually neglect something in my personal life (sleep, work, etc). I appreciate that author's dole out the chapters (just not too long of a gap in between...okay? :wacko: )

 

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

Depends on the author. Some authors like the discussion and may make adjustments with their story. The only reason I'm comfortable discussion Dom's stuff is because he said he stays out of the story threads until he completes writing the particular story.

 

So basically, I follow the author's lead. If they encourage or condone public discussion, I participate. If the author just wants the 'atta-boys', I go with that then.

 

Take Care®,

 

Vic

[AFriendlyFace]

So, i have a couple of questions for you:

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

Well I usually read it as it's posted, but sometimes I'll get a couple of chapters behind and catch them all up at once (which is fun).

 

I agree with Krista, in many ways I'm less likely to read a story if it's all there at once. I just don't have that much time for reading and once I get into something I usually can't stop, which means I do neglect other things. It's easier if I know there isn't another chapter waiting for me.

 

On the other hand I definitely enjoy it more if I have the luxury - in terms of time and completed chapters - to go ahead and read things at my own pace.

 

Personally, I really extremely slowly when I read for pleasure, barely any faster than I'm typing this up actually. So again it's probably best if I don't get too much at once...that is if I want to keep eating and stuff

 

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

I definitely think the best and most ideal system is to have everything all written up and edited and release them in set intervals. Vance usually does this for his stories and LittleBuddha also did it for his. It greatly enhanced my enjoyment of the story knowing that I could count on a new chapter every Friday or Saturday or whatever.

 

Of course it's much harder to actually pull off! When I started my story (please read it, but NOT until I start writing it again ) I fully intended to release on a weekly basis, but I just didn't have enough time to write that quickly and even though I initially started off a chapter or two ahead of the one being released it soon "caught up" to me, and I was no longer able to keep up. I think if/when I do start writing again I really will try to finish it before I start releasing chapters, but no, I won't release them all at once. It'll probably be on a weekly basis.

 

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

I think it might, and I think that's a bad thing. Just my opinion.

 

I mean I personally think that it's best for the author to follow their own vision and not be tempted to alter things based on fan desire. On the other hand it may be good in some cases, but overall I think the author shouldn't be influenced by the reader.

 

I don't however think that that means that people should comment and thoroughly discuss the story as it's being posted. In most cases if the author is against being influenced I think he/she will just avoid reading the threads until afterwards, be far enough ahead that it won't matter, be completely done, or just commit to following whatever outline - mental or physical - he/she may have originally had for the story. The ones who don't do this are probably okay with the prospect of being influenced.

 

In any case I think readers should comment and discuss the stories.

 

Excellent and thought-provoking questions!

Have an awesome day and take care all!

Kevin

Edited August 10, 2007 by AFriendlyFace

[Bob D.]

Hey folks,

 

i see that every time a new chapter gets postet there's some discussion here in the forum, but I was wondering if really the majority of readers reads a new chapter right after it is out?

 

Personally i like it much more when i'm able to read a story from the beginning to the end without forced breaks of a week or a month between each chapter. I just get more "into the story", if you know what i mean...

Oh, and I really hate it (well, maybe "hate" is a bit too strong, but you get my point) when i discover that the story that i began to read and grew fond of, stops in the middle and is likely not to be continued and nothing is solved and no one found peace and happyness (so far). That's like real life! I read stories to escape from that!

 

So, i have a couple of questions for you:

1. What do you prefer? Do you wait paitiently 'till the whole story is posted, or do you go for every chapter as soon as possible?

2. Do you think it would be better if authors only start posting chapters when they already have the whole story completed?

3. Do you think the discussion/feedback about posted chapters might influence a story? If yes, do you think that's a good thing?

 

Umm... i realize this sounds kinda like a test in school, but I'm curious

 

Ttyl

 

I'm a reader. If the whole story is there, I'll gobble the whole thing down in one or two sittings. For example, new book came out, it is a LKHamilton. The books is 422 pages long, and took me just over 4 hours to read, cover-to-cover. Which is a bit disappointing, considering I paid $22 for the book. But not too outrageous for a 4 hour time fill considering movie tickets here cost $9.50 each. I got the same 'bang' for my buck and I have 'free rentals' of the story for as long as I own it... so I guess it works. As far as the chapter to chapter bit, well, I'm all over Cjames and Shadowgod to finish their stories... and as soon as Cjames posts, I'm at my computer waiting on Tuesdays.

 

Do I think it is better to have the story completed and written before posting in sections? For discussion purposes yes and no. Some stories, like the one I'm attempting to work on, won't finish itself for a little while. And I'm not as patient as some. (I know, my spelling is atrocious. ) It really depends on how the Author deals with feedback from the general readers.

 

As for number three, which relates to the dilema of number two. I'd say there is a way around the loophole here. Getting a head start is great, and not reading the responses to a chapter until the next one is ready to post might keep the author from being too influenced.

 

My plan, Post Chapter, walk away from website, finish two chapters ahead... with a bit of skill all issues from Posted Chapter are wrapped up in the untold portion of the story already completed. Check website, play with readers, post next chapter, walk away and write some more. It's kinda devious and sneaky... but hey it just might work.

 

Bob

[97a]

Alright, thanks for all the answers so far!

 

As for the first question - i guess i really forgot that i'm in the domaholics-forum. I agree with Sharon - Dom could post sentence by sentence and we'd all hail him anyway. Nevertheless, if i had known that WT is not finished, i wouldn't have started reading it. And i definitely will not start ITFB before it's finished... i prefer to enjoy the feeling of anticipation for the time being

I think it's interesting that some people are actually able to follow 5-10 different stories at once, i would loose track already with 3 different ones, i'm sure.

And it never occured to me that seeing an already completed long story would discourage someone to read it... Krista, Kevin, do also buy only books that don't have more than 200 pages or movies that are no longer than 90 minutes ?

 

I definitely think the best and most ideal system is to have everything all written up and edited and release them in set intervals.

I absolutely agree with this. A while ago (pre-internet) i used to write reviews for a record/cd-mailorder. There have been bi-monthly lists sent out by mail to the customers. At first it was great fun to do this - you got yourself a name for writing funny or original stuff and the customers appreciated that. Maybe it was just on my mind, but i felt a lot of pressure from permanent customer-requests for new lists/new reviews/new records. After a while the self-induced deadline became my worst nightmare. Fun became work, pressure became stress and after a few years i eventually quit.

So, of course people like to work differently, but i think as an author you'd be more free and relaxed if you write everything first and then, after you at least have a tentative draft, start posting (weekly/monthly/whatever).

Also, as a reader i prefer regular postings instead of checking 1000times for nothing (which is funny when you describe it, but always a slight disappointment when you see no updates... been there, done that, Vic)

And this leads straight to my 3rd question.

 

Yes, I think it happens more than Authors like to admit that it does. People get influences from many different places, I don't think a reader discussion forum should be excluded from that. I'm sure authors aren't guided by what readers say in those forums as they have their own preferences and thoughts on the story as well. I do think it does happen though, and it could have positive and negative effects just like everything else the Author is influenced by.

I was actually going to write that I think it's always a bad thing, because i saw some stories (e.g. "Matthew figures it out" over at "Da Beagle" or "SOOTB" by LittleBuddha) that at some point just began to feel wrong for some reason. But Kristas statement made me think otherwise. We are all influenced by what we see, by the people we interact with, etc., etc.,... so if an author chooses to alter his story, i guess it is not important if the influence came through TV, through a forums discussion, through personal experience or whatever. It's just the way it is.

 

C ya

[Graeme]

And this leads straight to my 3rd question.

I was actually going to write that I think it's always a bad thing, because i saw some stories (e.g. "Matthew figures it out" over at "Da Beagle" or "SOOTB" by LittleBuddha) that at some point just began to feel wrong for some reason. But Kristas statement made me think otherwise. We are all influenced by what we see, by the people we interact with, etc., etc.,... so if an author chooses to alter his story, i guess it is not important if the influence came through TV, through a forums discussion, through personal experience or whatever. It's just the way it is.

It is the degree of influence that determines if it is a good or bad thing. I've had ideas in my stories that have been inspired by feedback, but I won't let the end of the story be altered. The problem with "Matthew Figures It Out" is that the author had an ending he wanted and was convinced to keep going. That meant the story became lost because he no longer knew where it was heading. Eventually, he gave up and deleted from his site the extra chapters, returning the story to its original planned ending. He described what happened on his site as part of the explanation of why he had deleted the extra chapters.

[AFriendlyFace]

And it never occured to me that seeing an already completed long story would discourage someone to read it... Krista, Kevin, do also buy only books that don't have more than 200 pages or movies that are no longer than 90 minutes ?

Unfortunately I seldom buy books anymore. I really don't have the time to read very much. Well, I suppose I would if I cut other things out of my life, but for now as sad as it may, reading in "real life" just isn't something I find time for (well apart from a few magazines I get monthly/weekly).

 

As for movies, well actually I don't watch that many of those either. I go to the movies about 1-3 times a month, but I virtually never watch movies outside of the theater.

 

I also don't watch TV at all. In fact I just turned my television on for the first time since I moved (3 months ago), last night, and that was only for one of those rare instances when I did watch a movie outside of the theater.

 

No, if you want to know where all my free time is spent, it's mostly consumed by: being online, hanging out with friends, exercising, or trying to learn new things....okay a lot of it is spent shopping, going out, and going new places/doing new things as well

 

Anyway, I never feel like I have enough time, so I definitely don't want to get mixed up in something like reading or watching movies