Choosing stories to read.

[Luca E]

I don't think anyone has ever brought this up before. Leaving aside story recommendations, and irrespective of genres or tags, in process or completed, summaries, titles, covers, there is another aspect to searching for stories to read which influences my choice to take a look or not.

This may appear silly, superficial, or not something you even consider yourself, but the author's name influences my choice. I tend to avoid silly names, single names, or other names that simply are not proper names. So John Masters, J Masters, no problem, JM001, or SuperMasterJohn, I flip past.

I wonder if other readers find author names influence their choice of what to read. If you are wondering why, I see silly names as authors who aren't serious or are in a different universe to the world of books and literature. And yes, I know it's probably stupid on my part, but I'm like that despite everything, it's how I am and I kind of think there must be others like me or there are other things about stories that make you flip past without bothering to open and look?

[Mikiesboy]

I look at people's work and then decide if I can read it. Nicknames are a matter of personal choice/need for privacy, they are not an indicator of talent. 

[Ron]

1 hour ago, Luca E said:

I don't think anyone has ever brought this up before. Leaving aside story recommendations, and irrespective of genres or tags, in process or completed, summaries, titles, covers, there is another aspect to searching for stories to read which influences my choice to take a look or not.

This may appear silly, superficial, or not something you even consider yourself, but the author's name influences my choice. I tend to avoid silly names, single names, or other names that simply are not proper names. So John Masters, J Masters, no problem, JM001, or SuperMasterJohn, I flip past.

I wonder if other readers find author names influence their choice of what to read. If you are wondering why, I see silly names as authors who aren't serious or are in a different universe to the world of books and literature. And yes, I know it's probably stupid on my part, but I'm like that despite everything, it's how I am and I kind of think there must be others like me or there are other things about stories that make you flip past without bothering to open and look?

Authors are a creative people. Otherwise, we'd have no fiction to read. That creative nature isn't always limited to writing alone. In this world using your actual name on a piece of Gay literature could be used against you in a manner most people don't want to think about. So why not use that same creativity one uses to write in order to come up with a name for themselves. But, really, does any pen name actually affect an author's legitimacy. Perish the thought!

History is rife with famous people using a pen name for their work. Could you be one of them one day Luca E.?

[Wayne Gray]

An author's chosen handle doesn't influence me at all. I give many a shot, and if I like what they do, I keep reading.

[Headstall]

You do you, @Luca E, but just think of all the great stories you might be missing because of this name bias of yours. I read what I like, when I can find the time, and don't mind a bit checking story descriptions, reviews, views, comments from readers... and of course reputation. Does this author have a following? Does this particular story have a following? Have I liked a previous story from this author? Does he or she work hard at their craft. I can usually tell in the first few paragraphs whether that is the case. If I see a lot of mistakes, I might leave the story until the author has had some time to improve. That said, I will read new authors who are trying their best, and I try to offer my encouragement. All of these things, these tools GA provides us, help me decide, not someone's GA handle.

There is one more thing I pay attention to now. Does it exhibit signs of being AI assisted? Maybe it's just me, and maybe I'm alone in this, but I have no interest in those whatsoever. 

Cheers and good luck to you. Gary 

[Jason Rimbaud]

2 hours ago, Headstall said:

Does it exhibit signs of being AI assisted? Maybe it's just me, and maybe I'm alone in this, but I have no interest in those whatsoever. 

I agree, and there are several I have already avoided. 

Though I have reconsidered my stance just a crack.

Sometimes we have authors whose English is not the language in which they create in. And then they use AI to translate into English. Maybe they don't go in and try to clean up the AI slop but they didn't use AI as a crutch like some of the other authors I've read where you can see AI's fingerprints from the very first "not in a subtle way, not speaking truth to power, but as one would while looking at the ocean slowly erode the shore" And yes, that was a sentence I read as an opening paragraph in a high school story. 

To keep the thread on track, I do not consider names while choosing a story, but mostly I read the blurb and tags. I rarely read certain types of stories, no matter who wrote them. I normally avoid No Sex stories (don't judge I'm a known perv), werewolves, paranormal, STEM, and hardcore Sci-Fi light on action and big on world building. I tend to stick to comedies, WESTERNS!, light-hearted mysteries, and fantasy. 

 

Edited June 23 by Jason Rimbaud

[Headstall]

7 minutes ago, Jason Rimbaud said:

I agree, and there are several I have already avoided. 

Though I have reconsidered my stance just a crack.

Sometimes we have authors whose English is not the language in which they create in. And then they use AI to translate into English. Maybe they don't go in and try to clean up the AI slop but they didn't use AI as a crutch like some of the other authors I've read where you can see AI's fingerprints from the very first "not in a subtle way, not speaking truth to power, but as one would while looking at the ocean slowly erode the water" And yes, that was a sentence I read as an opening paragraph in a high school story. 

To keep the thread on track, I do not consider names while choosing a story, but mostly I read the blurb and tags. I rarely read certain types of stories, no matter who wrote them. I normally avoid No Sex stories (don't judge I'm a known perv), werewolves, paranormal, STEM, and hardcore Sci-Fi light on action and big on world building. I tend to stick to comedies, WESTERNS!, light-hearted mysteries, and fantasy. 

 

I like that you capitalized WESTERNS!   it's kind of been my thing the last few years. That said, I have to say that though I wasn't a werewolf fan per se, I wrote a shifter story I spent years working on. Why? It came to me out of the blue and I like a challenge, and truly believe it is my best work. It's a mystery, an adventure, a romance, and is one that keeps on giving.   If you ever get the urge....  

AI makes me sad. I see the point on the horizon where human authors take a back seat to it. I abhor the idea, and hope I'm wrong, but it has already taken away my daughter's livelihood. Cheers!  

[Jason Rimbaud]

10 minutes ago, Headstall said:

I wrote a shifter story

And that is why I will never read it!  . 

It's werewolves, not shifters. . 

You can ask Jack about my thoughts on WEREWOLVES. Though his story, Big Paws was highly entertaining, though he vilified the heroes, Vampires! 

I did give your Sidewinder Tale a read through. no graphic sex, but it was a nice oater.  

I'm currently reading another fun western from Topher, no sex either, but its a hoot.  Can't remember the name, but its one of his new ones. 

[Headstall]

3 minutes ago, Jason Rimbaud said:

And that is why I will never read it!  . 

It's werewolves, not shifters. . 

You can ask Jack about my thoughts on WEREWOLVES. Though his story, Big Paws was highly entertaining, though he vilified the heroes, Vampires! 

I did give your Sidewinder Tale a read through. no graphic sex, but it was a nice oater.  

I'm currently reading another fun western from Topher, no sex either, but its a hoot.  Can't remember the name, but its one of his new ones. 

Fair enough. We all have our preferences. I love vampires, just for the record.   Werewolf stories are often more of a trope to me, so I set out to write something different, and I believe I succeeded. My shifters are more about magic... and just another fascinating form of humanity. 

Ah... Sidewinder... I don't know what you read, but there is definitely graphic lovemaking scenes. I don't write over the top sex scenes for the sake of it, but I don't shy away from writing sex when it involves love. I've been told many times I have a knack for it.   

I'm posting a new western myself called "Roping the Moon" (shameless plug). I just posted chapter four, and it, like most all my stories, does not shy away from sex.   Cheers! 

[Jason Rimbaud]

1 minute ago, Headstall said:

I love vampires, just for the record

As nature intended!  

1 minute ago, Headstall said:

Ah... Sidewinder... I don't know what you read, but there is definitely graphic lovemaking scenes.

It has been a while since I read it, but my memory is that I loved it, but was disappointed that there was no sex in it. I will say it's been a long time and many bottles of whiskey ago. Is it the one with a sequel? Right? 

I didn't see a new Western pop-up; I must have missed it. I usually read all westerns, a genre I love to read, but can't figure out how to write/right. I have a great idea based on the town of Bodie, California, but can't get the language right/write. 

[Headstall]

18 minutes ago, Jason Rimbaud said:

As nature intended!  

It has been a while since I read it, but my memory is that I loved it, but was disappointed that there was no sex in it. I will say it's been a long time and many bottles of whiskey ago. Is it the one with a sequel? Right? 

I didn't see a new Western pop-up; I must have missed it. I usually read all westerns, a genre I love to read, but can't figure out how to write/right. I have a great idea based on the town of Bodie, California, but can't get the language right/write. 

I did a lot of research and came up with a brand of western speak that seems to work, one I find myself thinking in now. If you're going to write a western, try mixing up the tenses first of all, use double negatives which appears to have been really common, and research the origins of words you use. You might find out some are inappropriate for the time... same with colloquialisms (y'all) and sayings and cuss words. I know I often find ones that don't fit with the time. Another suggestion is to use the same language in narration that you do in dialogue. It's too jarring if you don't... can't have a character thinking one way and speaking another. Try a short story first maybe.

As far as "Sidewinder", yes it is the first one, and "Larkspur: A Sidewinder Tale" is the sequel. There is a third loosely tied to the first two called "Bearpaw: An Old West Tale" (and a couple or three shorter stories) and they all have sex in them, again, tied to characters in love. I often make you wait for it, though.  

"Roping the Moon" started posting 3+ weeks ago. It posts every Monday, and there is a fair ways to go. 

I've been a vampire fan since I was a kid. Anne Rice, Brian Lumley, and many many others.   

 

[Jason Rimbaud]

2 minutes ago, Headstall said:

"Roping the Moon" started posting 3+ weeks ago

I'm just there now. I think I read the sequel only, but it was a while ago. I'mma check out this new one and I apologize in advance. 

[Headstall]

1 minute ago, Jason Rimbaud said:

I'm just there now. I think I read the sequel only, but it was a while ago. I'mma check out this new one and I apologize in advance. 

No worries, friend. Happy you might check out the new one.  

[Jason Rimbaud]

4 minutes ago, Headstall said:

No worries, friend. Happy you might check out the new one.  

You say that now before you read my silly comments.  . 

[Headstall]

6 minutes ago, Jason Rimbaud said:

You say that now before you read my silly comments.  . 

Bring it on, buddy. Silly comments are my jam.  

[ReaderPaul]

I don't let the author's name or nickname stop me, unless it implies something I don't want to read -- for example, if the name implies the author would molest kids, forget it.  I don't read many westerns.  I have read some of those by @Headstall and enjoyed them.  He is one of the few authors I have actually enjoyed westerns by (awkward phrasing, I know).  I often enjoy stories set in Australia, such as by @Mark Ponyboy Peters.  Often stories featuring rural living have horses, and I tend to like those.

When we have good authors like @BendtedWreath, @Myr, @gor mu, @chris191070, @dkstories and others which don't have "normal" names -- I'm not going to let the author nickname stop me from evaluating them as an author.   I will read story descriptions, possibly seeing what genres are listed, and sometimes the title causes me to read a story, such as the excellent story by @P. E. Knapp, "It All Started with a Shuttle Flight."  (Excellent science fiction.)   (I will try to get down from my soapbox now.)

[Ron]

4 minutes ago, ReaderPaul said:

I often enjoy stories set in Australia

If you're into well done Sci-Fi where the science part appears as highly plausible and includes an Australia connection no-less, may I suggest reading @Palantir's writing -- begin with Attunga, I highly recommend it.

[Myr]

To be honest, I only look at an author's name if I'm trying to find more stories by an author I've enjoyed. At least so far as story selections go when I'm wearing my reader's hat.

 

[Krista]

Why pay attention to such superficial things? It has no bearing on value, talent, or anything.

Krista for example is a nickname I've had since the sixth grade. That simple. Born from the fact that my real name at the time was extremely popular and even in my semi-rural neck of the woods there were multiple girls that shared it. My real name's first letter was also shared with a lot of my older siblings, because for whatever reason that letter was the go-to letter for my family with names. I also don't want people knowing my business, so Krista is all I'm going to give.  

Anyway, story descriptions are what I pay attention to mostly. I don't care about the name, gender, age, race, whether the story is in first/third. I am not too heavy on restricting myself in theme either. Although if I see Incest, Mpreg, and a few other things, I'm out. I am more careful and pay attention to stories if the story's status is "in progress," though. Despite being guilty of not having the most consistent posting schedule, I like seeing other authors behaving as far as that is concerned.  If I see consistency, I read. If I don't I simply wait until it is completed before reading. 

Edited June 24 by Krista

[chris191070]

The author's name isn't important. It's the story that's important to me. I will give any type of story a read.

[E K Stokes]

I recognise there are conventions with publishing novels and one such convention is the author has a name, nom de plume, or real, and the format is either initials or first and last name. Online publishing is essentially the same as printed, ebook publishing, but does not always follow this convention. It's a mix of traditional and current mode, where traditional is a proper name, current mode copies influencers, YouTubers, bloggers. Its like the site itself, a mixture of novels, stories, blogs, and forum.

Back to the topic, do author names influence me? Yes, but not too much. Just the same as a cover image, the title, but very much less of an influence than a good summary by the author or a proper review. I think these last two have much more influence on my choice than what the author chooses to call him or herself, but that said, an author's choice of name does say something about them, although I'm not always sure what, except for the obvious like the horsey writers and Mikiesboy. 

[Luca E]

16 hours ago, Ron said:

using your actual name on a piece of Gay literature could be used against you in a manner most people don't want to think about

Not suggesting that at all, wondering if author names (real or pseudo) influence choice of reading, like cover images?

[Luca E]

14 hours ago, Headstall said:

don't mind a bit checking story descriptions, reviews, views, comments from readers... and of course reputation.

Interesting! I read story descriptions and reviews, although often they are not very comprehensive. Views, I ignore entirely, number of page hits doesn't influence my choice of what to read. Same for reputation, if that means classic, promising authors, because who decides that and on what basis? But still, being honest, names like cover images influence me even despite myself. I'm trying to decide what to buy (read) in a shop with the shelves packed full. Spoilt for choice, or too much choice, which usually leaves me in the story in process section and I hardly ever look at old stuff!

[Luca E]

People have brought up the topic of AI with the view that they are emphatically opposed to anything with even the slightest hint of AI influence. It's not the thread topic (should maybe start one), but my thoughts are: have you heard of Ludittes?

[Luca E]

4 hours ago, Krista said:

Why pay attention to such superficial things? It has no bearing on value, talent, or anything.

You are absolutely right, it has no bearing on anything, but I still pay attention to superficial things like names and covers and even does a title grab me. What can I say, I'm influenced by even the most mundane things when choosing what to read, maybe (as I said before) because there is so much choice I'll use anything to narrow down what I pick up to read.