Forum / posted work

Sam Rasnake
Sep 01, 11:40am

Hate to beat a dead rock...

As of 12:38 PM EDST -

15 submitted pieces on the general wall - in the last 69 minutes - and two comments ....

I was hunting in recent posts for a piece I commented on earlier this morning, and found it on the 3rd page in recent listings.

?

Jürgen Fauth
Sep 01, 11:46am

Hey Sam -- I probably should've made an announcement, but we're featured on Mashable today (http://mashable.com/2010/08/31/fictionaut/). As part of the article, they're giving away 100 invites, so it makes sense that the front page is a little busier than usual. I fully expect things to go back to normal in a day or two though.

Sam Rasnake
Sep 01, 12:06pm

That makes sense - and that's great Jürgen.

James Lloyd Davis
Sep 01, 01:46pm

I thought I saw a bunch of new names. I know I posted something earlier, before I took my wife's dog for a walk. Came back to look for comment and saw the piece was already gone. Thought I was losing it.

Good to know it's really there ... somewhere ... and I've not gone senile ... but only that my piece went to the back pages so fast nobody saw it.

(sigh)

I try to keep up with the postings, but this volume? No way.

Nothing to do now but go back to writing the novel, which I should have been doing anyway. BBL (Like when it's 'normal?')

Bill Yarrow
Sep 01, 01:55pm

I saw it! (read it and commented too!)

James Lloyd Davis
Sep 01, 01:59pm

Bill, thank you.

(turning off the gas)

Susan Gibb
Sep 01, 04:59pm

Yeah, I'm not able to keep up with the reading at all lately and I feel bad about that. I also put a story up and it was buried immediately. I'll try to read again after the blitz.

Martha Williams
Sep 01, 06:38pm

Mashable, and the word GENIUS. It's a great article. And ha ha, James! No, you're not senile. I'm going to go and find your story now.

David Ackley
Sep 01, 08:13pm

Just read the article on Mashable, and Jurgen, you're quoted that Fictionaut is going to "open registrations to the public sometime in the next three months." Care to give us locals an idea of how that's going to work?

Sam Rasnake
Sep 01, 10:17pm

Hopefully, some sort of restructuring of the present working method will help.

James Lloyd Davis
Sep 01, 10:32pm

Open registration doesn't sound very pretty. Hopefully, I'm wrong.

Matt Dennison
Sep 01, 10:40pm

come on, now. It's *only* 72 new pieces since 8 this morning!

;-)

Randal Houle
Sep 01, 10:40pm

Ah, James, they already let you in. LOL

James Lloyd Davis
Sep 01, 11:04pm

Yeah. Whatever. G'day.

Susan Gibb
Sep 02, 09:38am

Well, I guess it's one way of getting in all new blood...

Jürgen Fauth
Sep 02, 11:56am

Ever since our private beta phase, the goal has always been to open Fictionaut for everyone -- but you all know we have been very careful about growing the site slowly to make sure that the community and the site infrastructure can handle it.

When Mashable asked me when we might open registration, I said something to the effect of "it will take at least 3 months," and I think that estimated was probably overly optimistic. So, "sometime in the next 3 months" is a bit of misquote. We'd very much like to get there -- the waiting list of people asking for invitations is getting longer and longer -- but again, we won't open the site for everyone until we're sure new users aren't going to overwhelm the community. At the very least, yesterday's 100+ new users were an interesting test case....

Hope that helps.

christopher malo
Sep 02, 12:01pm

As one of those on the list, I was excited to get Mashable invitation number 98. In under the gun.

Happy to be here and looking to add to, and become part of, the community.

Tina Barry
Sep 02, 12:01pm

I can't keep up with the reading on the site and I'm missing out on stories from writers I admire. I'm wondering if it's a good idea to send an e-mail to writers on my/your contact list: "Hey, I'm about to post a new piece"? Would people find that obnoxious? Too self-serving?

Jürgen Fauth
Sep 02, 12:12pm

Tina, the idea is that if you follow the writers you admire, the "recent activity" feed on the front page should let you know if/when they post. Unfortunately, that list doesn't keep a history or archive beyond what you see, so if you have a lot of contacts, you might still miss their work. Improvements to this feed are very high on our to-do list.

David Ackley
Sep 02, 12:38pm

Thanks, Jurgen. I wasn't meaning to be all NIMBY sounding. It's been a wonderfully interesting ride in the months that I've been on, a little bit different every day, and I'm sure in your capable hands Fictionaut is going to continue the fun.

Bill Yarrow
Sep 02, 12:54pm

Jurgen,
When I click on the name of a writer I want to follow, I am taken to a list of the writer's works on Fictionaut. How is that list organized? Could the most recent work posted by the writer be at the top of the list? One way to stay on top of postings by certain writers. Just an idea.
Thanks.
Bill

eamon byrne
Sep 03, 11:53pm

Bill's idea is excellent. The list of works for each writer should appear in date order.

On another note, opening the site to all-comers will inevitably lead to a diluting of the standards. On the other hand, do I suggest not going that way? Not really. But the debate is probably worth having. Though remember, this is Jurgen's site, and it's easy to be critical.

James Lloyd Davis
Sep 04, 07:24am

Please note the civility in debates here in these forums (for the most part). Note the way that Eamon politely makes his case, as does most everyone in this thread.

When registration is opened, this polite, civil tone will degrade, and as Eamon suggests, so will the proportionate quality of content in the postings.

Is that a bad thing?

That's a debate of a whole 'nother kind, the one that 'unregulated internet' advocates have been having for years.

What is inevitable and too easily predictable is that you will have to wade through more chaff to get to the grain when you visit the site. The result will be that the pool of intelligent, responsible readers who provide good feedback will diminish proportionately to the volume of postings.

Reasonably so, since keeping up with the volume would be difficult. Who has the time it takes to invest, going through a veritable 'slush pile' of postings to find quality writing? Most do not, so they will take the easy way ... to follow the pack, look for postings that have comments and stars ... that is, if they can see them. Because of the high volume, they will disappear quickly to the back pages under the present design.

Fn is going to change and one would hope that the design of the web site will change to match the increased volume and the inevitable shift in quality of content.

As Eamon says, the debate is probably worth having, but the decision ultimately rests with Jurgen.

Jane Hammons
Sep 04, 12:59pm

I'm not sure why the assumption is that more writers equals less quality. My experience of inviting writers--some of them unpublished and not particularly experienced--is that most people new to the site are a bit intimidated, almost afraid to post. I know that I was. And early on I only posted pieces that had been published. As I felt more confident and trusting of readers here, I became willing to take more risks and post fresh writing that I had not gotten any feedback on. That is the case with Pleiku Jacket and Beckett not Joyce--both written response to Fictionaut challenges.

Maybe because I teach writing--often to peple who are convinced that they cannot write--I truly believe that writers at all levels have something to learn from each other. I agree that the site will need to change to accommodate the new numbers, but I trust that people who know far more about this than Id have a plan.

One of the greatest pleasures of Fictionaut is stumbling across the writing of someone I don't know, have never heard of, and just being blown away by it. I've become a better, more confident writer here. I feel obligated to support that experience for others. Pay it forward, you know?

Matt Dennison
Sep 04, 02:27pm

Scenario uno: The same 'ol, same 'ol being posted by the same 'ol-same 'ols (mesef included) gradually depleting all the oxygen in a stagnating pond until a mere sentence is jumped on as if it were The Holy Grail(!), a rare bit of greenery in an otherwise beige-complacent world, and praised to high heavens in a desperate effort to generate SOME sense of life among the brown...

Scenario duo: THE BIG FLUSH! Sudden-down-pour-dam-burst of new creatures everywhere! Man, it's happening so fast I can't keep up!

First one = death of site (imo), second one equals... not exactly sure, but ultimately probably good for the health of site IF

perhaps some mild (common-sense) suggestions of chillin' a bit, hanging out a bit, before flooding the main read page...

?

Matt Dennison
Sep 04, 03:40pm

final thought:

It's the health of the pond that's important. Too little new water = death/stagnation, too much all at once = life not being able to establish itself.

It's gonna be tricky-interesting.

Good luck & appreciation for all you've done and continue to do, Jurgen!

D'Arcy Fallon
Sep 04, 03:58pm

All of your thoughts are interesting to read. I myself have felt a bit overwhelmed by all the new names and the tidal wave of postings. But like Jane, I agree with paying it forward. I never would've "met" any of you if someone hadn't invited me to join Fictionaut and now that I feel that I "know" you through your writing I automatically read your stuff because I appreciate your voices and viewpoints.

I was an Army brat growing up. Always the new kid, the outsider, the one who didn't know anybody. I say this not to whine but because I've compassion for newcomers and because I have been shown compassion and made to feel welcome at this amazing site. It is very scary to post work to a bunch of strangers.

What I've been doing is poking around. I don't feel guilty about not keeping up with EVERYTHING (there simply aren't enough hours in the day), but if I see something that looks promising, I read it and try to make a helpful comment.

I have learned so much from all of you. I mean that. I study what you moves you're doing in your writing. I occasionally feel jealous. But mostly what I feel is so grateful for this stimulus to my writing life. Jurgen, you are a sweetheart!
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