A lot of times...I'm sure that it's more times than not...you guys have to do some searching through a lot of stories online to find one that you're willing to invest some time and emotion in. With hundreds of possibilities staring you in the face, you've got to find a story that's going to satisfy whatever urges you're looking to please at that particular moment. Right?

So while sifting through stories, a few titles might catch your eye, and you might start reading the first few paragraphs. Just to see if you can get a 'feel' for what kind of story this is going to be. And based on what you see...you'll either continue on to see where the story takes you, or you'll back out and look elsewhere for something that's more to your 'taste'.

The question this week.....what is it about the beginning (or skimming) of a story that let's you know that it might have good potential of being something you'll enjoy? Do you skim over it and look for something to catch your eye? Is it the language and descriptions used by the author? Is it the instant set up? Is it the form used by the writer? Is it the 'look' of the characters, or the dialogue? When you lightly skim over a brand new story to see if you'd like to read the whole thing....what is it that catches your attention and says 'yes' to you?

And...if you've got a chance...let us know what instantly turns you OFF as well, and tells you, "I don't want to waste my time reading another line of this stuff?" There's gotta be an easy 'make of break' line for you guys that tells you to either follow the trail of bread crumbs laid out for you, or to go searching elsewhere. What is it?

.......Hey Comsie,

I prefer stories with perseverance, survival, win-win situations over stories filled with too much graphic sexual detail.

Turn-offs: Stories whose formatting makes it hard to read. This includes extremely long paragraphs, odd fonts, paragraphs that aren't spaced apart and poor background/foreground contrast. Please note that some of these apply online only -- they don't apply to a printed story.

What am I looking for? An early indication of a plot. I want something interesting to be happening. If I've read the first page and it appears like another "let me introduce myself" or "it's another day in the life of your average person" story, then I will often stop reading. I'm happy for the plot to develop slowly, but I need something early on to make the story interesting. A story where nothing much happens for the first five pages is unlikely to find me still reading by page six.

Apart from that major point, I want a story that I can read without having the mechanics being obvious. By that, I mean I'm not being distracted by trying to sort out what the author is trying to say. If I keep being jarred out of my involvement by issues with the writing itself, I'm not likely to continue.

After that, I just want it to seem believable. I'm pretty tolerant in what constitutes believable, but, as was once pointed out to me about an early draft of my own first story, teenagers don't talk like they have PhDs. My goal is to find myself 'inside' the story, not observing cynically from the outside. If what I read seems natural/realistic, then I'll keep reading. That applies to fantasy & science fiction, too. It is the characters, more than anything else, that makes a story feel real, and if I think they are acting the way I think they should act, then I'm happy. If they act in ways I don't expect and there doesn't appear to be a possible explanation, then I'm likely to stop reading.

People that write fan-fiction stories and make up false info about a characters history. For example Iwasreading a HP fan-fiction story and it said harry potter was fat when he was a kid.

There are several things that kindle my interest in a story.

First, the author [based on my experiences with his work]. If one of a number of authors submits a story, I'll make a point to read it. If he's on my short list, I'll drop what I'm doing and read it.

Second, word of mouth or what others are saying about a story.

Third, if I don't know the author or I haven't heard of the story, a catchy title will sometimes do the trick.

Fourth, I prefur some genres to others. I WILL read a sci-fi story and will turn my nose up at a Western. I WILL read a mystery and pass on horror.


On the other hand, there are several things that make me lose interest in a story.

First, if the story is a spooge covered sex-fest, I'll probably move on... unless its a really, really good spooge covered sex-fest and those are few and far between.

Second, if the story is cliche...

Third, if the story is a mess with lots of spelling and gramatical errors, it'll wear me out and I'll give up.

Fourth, if the story sucks, and lots of them do for tons of reasons, you can't expect people to read it.


NOTE: Hey Comsie: maybe what makes a story suck? would be a good weekly topic.