Time for a system revamp?

[Eidolon]

So, there are some questions that have been churning around my head for, in some cases, years now. I'll spare the readers graphs (for now, god knows I love graphs), but in short, the 'power curve' inherent to the system as is is both linear and infinite.

What does that mean? It 1) It encourages writing every week to harvest bonuses, which can and does lead to a bit of scumming for points. 2) It encourages quantity over quality, to quote someone I talked with about this. Quantity of words and writing, week after week, before and to the detriment of quality. 3) It means duration = character strength. This isn't great, but not inherently bad for all. I for one, am not a huge fan of this equality.

Our system is also . . . well, complex. Racial templates with stats and racial techs, releases, feats, items. Each and every modifying any other. Each opening avenues for abuse and exploitation of a numerically 'large' system. Large in the sense that we're dealing with tens of thousands of 'points' in many cases, and thousands of points in almost all cases. Its not really hard to point these instances out, and I myself have created a number of 'stacking' abuses of the numerically large system.

In fact, this system in its dawn was *massively* abused this way. It took two changes of leadership for that aspect to be diminished, but far from eliminated.

All props to the original designers, as they made a fun system. But I highly doubt they imagined it lasting over a decade. And it certainly wasn't meant to(a constant scaling back of values for achieving position/role is strong evidence of this).

I think these factors are also contributing towards a large lack of new players for the community, which in my opinion is its most vital resource. We want to attract gifted writers and positive, community enriching personas. We do not want to attract system/people abusing players. We are not attracting enough, period.

Before I go spamming changes I've been looking at, I'd love to hear the community thoughts.

 

[swaswj]

From a leadership perspective, I've mostly reached a point where I'm tired of "play-testing." I'd like to move forward and just play with the systems that are there, with a little fine-tuning along the way.

As for attracting new people, I'd say the problem is on actually bringing people in, not on the RP mechanics. The need for a well-written 1000 word sample also drives some people away, with no regard for the systems involved.

Edit: However, don't take that to mean I'm not interested in hearing your idea. Someday, Halcyon Days will come to a conclusion. When that happens, it'd be nice to start something new and original built on a different system. HD still has a lot of story to tell, though, and for HD, I'd rather focus on telling the rest of the story than on making sweeping changes while we move on into its eighth year.

 

[Beaks]

I'm going to leave my own opinions and thoughts on the last revamp (of the feat system) at the door for this one, and agree with Kyle for a change. Our system isn't the most simplistic thing on the planet, and never has been. The people that only stick around to keep "scumming" points either weed themselves out or eventually change and decide they want to write better and more compelling work instead.

I've personally been here for 5 years now, and seen a lot of change both for better and for worse. The current system isn't what you could truly call "fixed," but it sure as hell isn't broken.

 

[Nargles]

I think I'm going to go with Will on this one. For the past year or so we've been implementing change after change. While everything isn't perfect, I think we should take the time to enjoy what we have and simply play around in the RP. I'm totally up to making minor changes to spotfix problem areas but I'm hesitant to make sweeping changes.

Also, I do feel that the application process should be looked at because at least for me, 1K chap at app for a noon intimidated the crap out of me.

 

[Kago]

Short Version: I don’t think the system is “broken” but I’d be interested in hearing your methods for improving it. Also, if we do anything, we definitely need to fix the disparity of power levels in favor of new members beyond the three week newbie bonus.


Long Version: On the topic of quality over quantity, most of the people who attempt to just flood the system with a lot of writing usually burn themselves out (see Beak’s comment) or are just plagiarizing (see numerous examples, including my former VC). It is difficult to reward quality without it being entirely subjective in our current system. That is why I’d like to see what ideas you had in mind for improving this. If there is merit behind the concept, I wouldn’t mind pursuing it further.

With regards to newer members, I believe that on top of the quality 1000 words necessary in the submission process, the disparity in power of the current members is overwhelming. If you look at the current power levels, Sayis = 100k, most captains and high ranking AHs = 45k+, and almost all of the remaining members = 10k+ (bankai/second ability level or higher). When I joined, it was maybe ten people at that level, with most of the RP being below it. That is what made it fun and exciting for me as a new member – having my character grow with his peers and compete with them to get stronger.

When you factor no bonuses in, you need 200k words just to “catch up” to almost the entire RP. The fun shouldn’t have to wait or come in after 200k words – or even 100k for that matter. We need to address this issue because it is only going to continue to grow. Bearing that in mind, perhaps we need to perform some sort of reset for the stats or do a time-skip.

Looking forward, a time-skip would lower the barrier for entry and perhaps re-invigorate the RP. Writers could switch characters without too much explanation, the missing years could provide new avenues of exploring existing characters, and it would allow “bad-guys” the time to regroup and get stronger (yeah, I’m looking at you espada).

Anyway, this is just my two cents; take it for what it’s worth.

 

[K3]

Welp, may as well throw what few thoughts I have on the matter into the ring.

1) Too much change in too short a time helps nobody. It creates a flux of information where the amount of people who understand what is going on lessens with every passing change. Case and point - the Advent Human rework with the introduction of Resonance. It still takes the occasional explanation to help people understand how it works.

2) Quantity over quality is not an enforced ideal in the RP, because sacrificing quality gets noticed and you lose grades over it. I know quite a few graders who specifically look out for people who write for the sake of getting points, myself included.

3) Power disparity comes off as a non-issue when I pull up the Top Stats thread and see the largest difference in reiatsu is exclusively at the highest point in the RP.

Sayis Inuzuri [1st Division, Captain-Commander] - 104,959
Amaterasu Nana [3rd Division, Captain] - 70,412
Ciro Martelli [Cerberus Corp., Chairman] - 69,234
Tsubaki [3rd Division, Unseated] - 56,310
Lilith Maikeru [10th Division, Captain] - 55,024
Haresuno Uchiharu [5th Division, Captain] - 52,732
Arano [Cerberus Corp., Director] - 51,054
Reijuu Kyuketsu [11th Division, Captain] - 50,347
Picca Lilli [1st Division, 4th Seat] - 47,458
Kago Takimoto [8th Division, Lieutenant] - 46,585
Arashi Ryoujin [11th Division, Co-3rd Seat] - 39,628
Zakki Shihara [Cerberus Corp., Director] - 38,432
Isamu Ueshita [Independent] - 37,117
Adelaide Pierce [10th Division, Lieutenant] - 35,436
Thaleia [4th Division, Unseated] - 29,137
Tetsuo Kanzaki [11th Division, Unseated] - 28,269
Ewan Philips, Jr. [Orpheus] - 25,126
Ilsa Maruyama [1st Division, Lieutenant] - 24,137
Igasho Okamii [12th Division, 16th Seat] - 23,726
Masato Fujikawa [Orpheus, General] - 23,650

That is the largest power gap in the RP from one level to the next, and it's in the #3 spot.

4) I'm going to play a bit of devil's advocate on this and say Van has a very solid point when it comes to the power creep we're experiencing. As the general strength of the upper tier increases, so too must the threat of the challenges to make situations remain threatening or challenging to that upper tier.

This in turn takes what might've been challenging or daunting to lower tiers and makes it completely inaccessible or impossible. I'm all for hearing ideas on how to sidestep this power creep.

5) System complexity may or may not be a bad thing/good thing. I disagree that we need to change things again, I agree that what systems we have in place need to be better laid out, stream-lined, or otherwise refined into a proper formula.

6) Last thing - have we considered the fact that we have a terribly laid-out Rules section? The fact that we've split the locations of our system information over five separate sub-forums may contribute to when newer players don't have a better grasp on rules and outlines in the RP.

 

[Beaks]

Don't say timeskip Kago, you'll get me all hot and bothered.

 

[Eidolon]

System revamp was probably the wrong title. In short, in a lot of ways what we have is garbage. How many weeks have we seen the 'end of the week rush' where pchaps are spammed to meet the deadline, in order to get that 50 points (and god help you if you aren't staff/a grader in this linear system, you'll get left behind hard)? More or less, every week since BF launched.

Most of this end of the week spam is intellectual fluff with no real merit. This is not meant as an attack, as I've done it too, just saying what I see. I also know its a bit of a drain. And most weeks, graders let them go by with no note, thought, or at most a hand slap. Our grading system itself is flawed as well. There's no accountability, no standards, its basically just pick your personal thoughts on a person and act on them. Or worse yet, things like, "you missed a comma" as more or less the only response. A hollow response to a grinding process.

After talking with Sev, I got a quota on unique IP visiting the site, accounting for 50% bot/ip changes/etc per month, we have an attraction rate of about .1%. Not 1%, 1%. 1/10th of a percent. That's horrifying. Even if we up the bot rate we aren't hitting a 1% benchmark easily. Apparently we don't attract the people looking for this kind of site either (diaper and playboy are our most powerful hits). Upgrading the non-rp content of the site will help. But it isn't the only stick in the mud.

I'm not talking about a change to a thing here or there. I'm talking about tossing out the thing and putting in its place something better. And if you're feeling complacent with our system because you know it and so on, I suggest reading one of the 1000's of "change is good" books out there. Change is, sadly or wonderfully, the essence of life.

 

[Kago]

@ Beaks: Just trying to pose a constructive thought. I highly doubt it'll be adopted.

@ Van: What you’re proposing will take a lot of time and effort. I think most people would be content with continuing on the way things are (with tweaks here and there) since what little time they do have they want to focus on writing. As it stands, if we continue to change the system every few months, we lose focus on an important item: writing.

With that having been said, I am not against change; however, changing the whole system will definitely be met with resistance and will require full adoption by the entire RP or we will lose what little writers we have left. If you are keen on moving forward with this, I think you need to “pitch” some ideas and get some people on the bandwagon or else I’m sure the topic will just die.

 

[Several Zombies]

A agree with Kago's latest post. Also for the record, the top hits were anime/manga related, "diaper" and "playboy" were among them. The very top was obviously "mangaden".

Also worth mentioning was the keyphrase "how to build a boomerang".

We're apparently authorities on boomerang construction.

Basically my view on the subject, as I discussed with Van, is that the notion of updating the system is secondary to actually attracting members. It remains to be seen whether or not the current system is turning people away from HD, because frankly, there's no one to turn away.

As I pointed out to him, I think that in the past, the website proper served as an anchor for members interested in general content, who would then move on to join the RP. We had the odd few who specifically set out to find a Bleach RP, sure, but they were focused on that goal and weren't deterred by the systems in place.

My point is, we still lack general content to keep members here so that they eventually join the RP. We have no anchor.

I tried to improve this with our frontend site, but as it is, only Finny and Kago really post content. It's not even about SEO anymore. I've done all the free SEO I can do. Now it's about having some sort of a draw, something to keep people who hit on the site interested in staying here, and eventually, interested in participating in HD.

It's about the long-haul here, people, and until we sort out that particular issue, the notion that our system is somehow turning people away seems unfounded to me.

That being said I'm not opposed to change, but I think any changes we do make need to be treated very carefully, while paying attention to our long-term members as well as any potential newbies. If you've got ideas, you should share them here.

 

[Shadowwind]

Now I know we've been avoiding it because spam wars etc. but we do have a massive database of email addresses of possible new members who can/will fill up the other areas of the forum. People in the RP proper tend not to use them because if we want to discuss something we'll just do it in chat. Sending out a mass email to all the registered members will at the very worst put us exactly where we currently are or at best provide a flood of either new members or people eager to fill up the sections of the forum we tend to ignore.

 

[Time Lady Katie]

I want to say that I keep Bish and Dysney in mind with these comments. I was the last member from the last real influx of newbies, as well, so again I am not averse to the concerns of new members.

I don't think, though, dropping everyone back to 100 is a rational answer. I think we need to make it easier for new members to ascend in the ranks. A boost from the bottom-up seems the better response than smacking down the people who've put in the hours.

As for a more dramatic change; maybe tossing out stats or grading altogether as it sounds like Van might be headed toward, the unique and rather inspired system of HD is by far one of the biggest areas of appeal in my opinion. The idea that your character reflects both your quantity and your quality of writing, that being a reliable and dependable member of the community translates directly into character, those are the reasons I've never left HD and will continue to be loyal to it - because my loyalty counts for something, and the amount of effort I put in is directly related to the amount of benefit I get back out. And I realize not everyone can put in the kind of pen-hours I've done, but the fact that I after a year stand toe-to-toe with the elders of the community. That's nice too.

And, not for nothing, but a wild rebuild of our entire system wouldn't do shit for the real problem. If our key search term involves the construction of boomerangs, clearly Google optimization and marketing need to be our focus, not the rebuilding of a system that, honestly, I'm pretty proud of most days. It's not perfect, but clearly the Google optimization is the immediate problem.

 

[K3]

Gonna agree with Kago on this one: you keep listing problems without solutions.

You're basically slamming things without suggesting any actual way to fix them. Like I said, I'm all for fixing power creep, but unless you've got something already in mind - the GMs have enough shit on their plate, they don't need "Remake the RP" on it too.

As for a non-RP draw?

If I weren't a dependant I'd be putting out content, but the curse of Real Life continues to drain on my assets. Again, though, is the fact that people keep posting problems without throwing any solutions into the batter...so...

Non-RP Draws for the Site (In Clever List Form):

- Encourage popular manga discussion via forums instead of chat
- Utilize a consistent content creation group (Let's Plays, Write-offs, Journalism, Podcasts, etc.)
- Incentivize solo content creation on the forums (mini-series, art panels, review columns)
- Create a 'Hub Group' for content creation to be pushed through (Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, etc.)

Just off the top of my head. There are solutions guys - we just need to dedicate ourselves to them. I'm willing to give it a try, but we can't just say we'll do something. We've got to actually do it.

 

[Doc]

Any kind of system that involves the accumulation of stats/points/abilities/feats/techs will ALWAYS have a "problem". Those that stick around longer will always be stronger than the new folks. Creating a subsystem that allows newbies to become stronger faster is not the answer. Lowering all numbers is a placebo - they will rise up again, and frankly this is unnecessary. It also happens that using Sayis as an example for needing enemies equally strong doesn't work - if there were a more reliable source of new blood there would be more people at relatively low strength which creates the need for more enemies at that strength.

As with everything our "problem" does not lie with perhaps the most complex system conceived by modern RP boards - it's hardly as complex as some video games and can be taught. Sure, we can examine the folly of having power creep at all, or look at the fact that some people will write at the end of the week (are we forgetting that it falls on a Saturday, which is when most people will have the most free time? I'd wager that there would be less of an "End of week rush" were it on, just for example, Tuesday). Abuse is also an inherent part of having accumulated strength over time, this is not something we can totally stop it can only be slowed down. There's more important things than worrying about people figuring out how to write well AND abuse the system. Seriously.

I'VE GOT MORE TO SAY THOUGH

The application process has been hammered so hard that there isn't a great deal about it to fix, unless you count the lack of new applicants. Can app staff fix that? Get on it, Finny.

If we remove the 1k sample chapter requirement we are cheating the new applicant out of getting used to our system - they will still be expected to provide that quantity of writing outside of the application and removing it won't do them any favors.

Shades didn't have a bad idea about getting people active somewhere on the forum. Just off the top of my head, I know we got Wayne from Spam Wars so it couldn't have been that bad. Emailing the entire userbase is a start - assuming that's not already been done. I may be late to the party on this.

 

[Eidolon]

I'm a little startled by the responses, honestly. When did I say: "lower the top or increase the lower" in terms of current stats? Never. I never even looked in the direction of modifying existing numbers as an option, good or bad. I said that the cap was infinite, and that's likely a problem. When did I say I don't have an answer? Never(In fact, the opposite: "Before I go spamming changes I've been looking at, I'd love to hear the community thoughts."). The process isn't: come up with a solution then try to fit it to a problem. Its find a problem then develop a solution. These are assumptions and really problematic on a reading comprehension level, and suggest some are not trying to read but rather gathering a benchmark and just posting on what they think was said. Not good.

However, despite these problems, it seems so far people aren't interested. Carry on.

Having delved into this has revealed some interesting statistics from the back end gotten out of Sev. We are getting, say ~100 unique IP's a month. We get 300 total, but bots, spammers, members with dynamic IP's, and people searching for the basics of depth perception(funny, someone in my lab is working on AI vision) so that number likely needs a 2/3 cut or more. Our content is so unappealing we're just not turning around any sort of volume of people over the last year or a bit more the site's been up. Another bad assumption is that the RP is *not* part of that content. It is. Its curious that people note those who come directly for the forum are 'weird' or the 'odd man out'. Lots I talked to came for it exclusively, lots were on the forums and eventually joined. It's not that polarized.

But as said by Sev during our discussion, the rest of the site matters in keeping interest up. Down in the MoBA section I've already posted one thing I'm willing to bump Mangaden in(well before 'solutions' were talked about), check it out.

On that note, rather then foist things on HD, I think I'll take the tact of approaching it another way. When my work calms down, I'll likely grind a little more on the system I started and showed a few people (with encouraging feedback) on another popular anime/manga: Naruto. Diversity won't be a bad thing, assuming I can pull off what I've claimed are issues for HD: required weekly grinding, quantity over quality focus. It also will have 0 to do with HD, no tie ins, character/stat porting, ported staff, etc.

If you're interested, chat me up. If not, no worries.

Lastly, if we are going to branch out into the realm beyond manga/anime, perhaps its time to orient the site to more then just the anime/manga side of our interests(and more or less, just a forum/blog). Video games/competitive hobbies, etc, would suggest we can do more then just be a forum. (Look at what the LoL sites do as an example).

 

[swaswj]

I'm a little startled by the responses, honestly. When did I say: "lower the top or increase the lower" in terms of current stats? Never. I never even looked in the direction of modifying existing numbers as an option, good or bad. I said that the cap was infinite, and that's likely a problem. When did I say I don't have an answer? Never(In fact, the opposite: "Before I go spamming changes I've been looking at, I'd love to hear the community thoughts."). The process isn't: come up with a solution then try to fit it to a problem. Its find a problem then develop a solution. These are assumptions and really problematic on a reading comprehension level, and suggest some are not trying to read but rather gathering a benchmark and just posting on what they think was said. Not good.

However, despite these problems, it seems so far people aren't interested. Carry on.

Having delved into this has revealed some interesting statistics from the back end gotten out of Sev. We are getting, say ~100 unique IP's a month. We get 300 total, but bots, spammers, members with dynamic IP's, and people searching for the basics of depth perception(funny, someone in my lab is working on AI vision) so that number likely needs a 2/3 cut or more. Our content is so unappealing we're just not turning around any sort of volume of people over the last year or a bit more the site's been up. Another bad assumption is that the RP is *not* part of that content. It is. Its curious that people note those who come directly for the forum are 'weird' or the 'odd man out'. Lots I talked to came for it exclusively, lots were on the forums and eventually joined. It's not that polarized.

But as said by Sev during our discussion, the rest of the site matters in keeping interest up. Down in the MoBA section I've already posted one thing I'm willing to bump Mangaden in(well before 'solutions' were talked about), check it out.

On that note, rather then foist things on HD, I think I'll take the tact of approaching it another way. When my work calms down, I'll likely grind a little more on the system I started and showed a few people (with encouraging feedback) on another popular anime/manga: Naruto. Diversity won't be a bad thing, assuming I can pull off what I've claimed are issues for HD: required weekly grinding, quantity over quality focus. It also will have 0 to do with HD, no tie ins, character/stat porting, ported staff, etc.

If you're interested, chat me up. If not, no worries.

Lastly, if we are going to branch out into the realm beyond manga/anime, perhaps its time to orient the site to more then just the anime/manga side of our interests(and more or less, just a forum/blog). Video games/competitive hobbies, etc, would suggest we can do more then just be a forum. (Look at what the LoL sites do as an example).

Before I say this, I want to clarify that I'm not against anything you just said.

Here's my problem:

Literally everyone agrees that we need to expand our content if we want to attract new blood. You don't have to argue that, we've all said it, we've all agreed on it. You don't have to convince anybody.

We just need to do it.
​

If we're going to have a discussion on pulling people in, I'm very much not interested in reading another thread about what we "should do," or what "the forum needs."

I want to see threads on, "We need a writing podcast, I'd like to get started. What do you think I'll need?" Or, like this, "I've got the beginnings of a new RP in the works, who would like to help me flesh it out?" or "I have a blog I'd like to merge with the site to increase traffic for both of us, let's talk shop." If you have ideas you want to follow up on, get with me or Sev, we can look into what our options are.

 

[Cad]

This might seem like an attempt to give Van's post a handjob. It might be.

System revamp was probably the wrong title. In short, in a lot of ways what we have is garbage. How many weeks have we seen the 'end of the week rush' where pchaps are spammed to meet the deadline, in order to get that 50 points (and god help you if you aren't staff/a grader in this linear system, you'll get left behind hard)? More or less, every week since BF launched.

Most of this end of the week spam is intellectual fluff with no real merit. This is not meant as an attack, as I've done it too, just saying what I see. I also know its a bit of a drain. And most weeks, graders let them go by with no note, thought, or at most a hand slap. Our grading system itself is flawed as well. There's no accountability, no standards, its basically just pick your personal thoughts on a person and act on them. Or worse yet, things like, "you missed a comma" as more or less the only response. A hollow response to a grinding process.

First: I see what you did there with the hollow reference. Wait, you see what I did there? I actually made the pun by making it seem like you made the reference, which you likely didn't. Brilliant!

Second: Yup. It became a life-interrupting 'thing': "Sorry babe, I have to get this in by midnight." Anecdote aside, it detracts from the most natural "write what you want, when you want" atmosphere but, then again, how else would we know when to grade and reward for the consistency? Is that consistency worth rewarding, though? Is that chapter strengthening the community? One could argue that it's merely a number in the system - the reflection of activity and life in the forum (aside from what the writer gains, personally). I'm not making that argument....just pointing it out.

Also, if you are 'staffing' each week AND write, getting left behind, HARD, is a great way to put it. The extra work certainly deserves its rewards but what about those who want to help? Maybe we can brainstorm a way to give anyone/everyone the opportunity for some well-earned extra credit.

Idea: Grade based on a word-count limit, rather than a time frame. Example: Whenever your personal chapter or collaboration reaches 1000 words, you can post and be graded. Maybe it accumulates. Bonuses, grading requirements, et cetera can be rethought but something like this might eliminate the saturday night rush and bring focus back to quality.

Note on grading: I truly enjoy grading, when I get the chance. I truly enjoy the bonus, too. Hell, it's one of the driving factors is wanting to get my character to captain-level. It doesn't make me want to skimp on grading, though. I know how much it benefits a write when you have a good grader - someone that really reads your stuff and really has an opinion. If I write a collab, I read the other person's grade, in hopes of a second opinion. It says something, though, that I've already developed favorites when it comes to who is grading. I'd rather get 40/50 with some solid input than 50/50 "good job bro".

Should the grade necessarily be based on word-count, only though? I'm sure that SEVERAL people in this forum can write a 500 word-count snippet that would put my 1000 word-count story to shame. The quality of story, grammar and/or colorful imagery that fills the 500 wc post should be worth the same, if not more, than my 1000 wc story that is clearly doesn't match up. It doesn't quite seem right to say one should go back and fluff up their story and add filler if they feel they've achieved what they were looking for in less than the standard word count. Perhaps give graders the ability to add a quality bonus?

I'm not talking about a change to a thing here or there. I'm talking about tossing out the thing and putting in its place something better. And if you're feeling complacent with our system because you know it and so on, I suggest reading one of the 1000's of "change is good" books out there. Change is, sadly or wonderfully, the essence of life.

Well...you are right, there... but I am complacent with the system because I know it. AND because it seems simplest way to help manifest the growth of our characters. If there is something better, though, what would it entail?

 

[Time Lady Katie]

I want to see threads on, "We need a writing podcast, I'd like to get started. What do you think I'll need?" Or, like this, "I've got the beginnings of a new RP in the works, who would like to help me flesh it out?" or "I have a blog I'd like to merge with the site to increase traffic for both of us, let's talk shop." If you have ideas you want to follow up on, get with me or Sev, we can look into what our options are.

I want to say with pride that though we're not moving all our work to HD, Lily Girls is syndicating some of our writing and writing a few things just for this community. Reviews, maybe even con coverage from where we take our panels, that sort of thing. Really proud of that today.

Idea: Grade based on a word-count limit, rather than a time frame. Example: Whenever your personal chapter or collaboration reaches 1000 words, you can post and be graded. Maybe it accumulates. Bonuses, grading requirements, et cetera can be rethought but something like this might eliminate the saturday night rush and bring focus back to quality.

This goes out to you and to Van.

There's a concept in my field of work/study called the "ten-word answer". The idea is to sound really clever without actually saying anything. "Taxes are too high" being one, "Grading isn't good enough" seems to be another. The ten-word answer can be the tip of the sword, but too often it's not well enough developed, not thought out enough, to become policy. Without a deadline, how do we graders know when to kick in and start grading things? I know it would be insane to ask us to grade every thousand words people write as they complete it. That'd be a nightmare, considering a number of folks don't report their writing as it is. So I'd be expected to check every time someone turns in a collab and grade them once they hit a new thousand mark? I'm supposed to have that kind of time?

I'm not saying that's the answer you're proposing, I'm saying that's the best answer I can come up with for how it's going to work. And, by the way, as someone who posts Saturday chapters a lot, I don't like the implication that they're crap. Okay, it's me we're talking about, you all know I hate my own writing, but I've been told, honestly or not, that though they aren't always the best proofread, the Prism Angels stuff is apparently funny. And are we going to say that comic relief is too fluffy for us now? No, the problem is writing that isn't what it should be and the answer is to stop ticking off a point when ticking off ten is the proper reaction. Sterner grading that makes these empty shills - my own writing especially - not worth doing anymore.

That's my ten-word answer.

 

[swaswj]

I've been writing stories since I was... 8 years old. I had a lot of dry spells, though, where I would lose the motivation or feel like I wasn't going anywhere. I wouldn't write because I had lost the drive to do so. Some of these dry spells lasted for literally years.

In between 2002 when I wrote a short story for a school anthology and 2006 when I began writing hentai stories, I wrote... nothing. Just school essays as needed, nothing creative.

One thing I will say in favor of weekly deadlines... it gives me a reason to write. Even if there wasn't a bonus, that expectation that you write something, at least 1000 words, per week has really pushed me to keep writing. I don't always hit it, I don't always make it to 1000 words in a week. However, I am always writing now, always finding little ways to improve. In the five years I've been writing for Halcyon Days, I have not stopped writing for more than a few days, even if it's only a couple hundred words at a time.

No, all of the work isn't my best, but one of the biggest things anyone will tell you about writing is that you have to keep doing it, you have to keep writing, putting words and ideas to paper just to keep loose and in-practice.

Don't ever tell me that quantity is bad, because you will never attain quality if you aren't willing to put forth quantity along with effort.

 

[Wayne]

IN terms of advertising and bringing in new people, might I suggest venturing out of the box a little bit? Ad site for RPGs like the one we're already in is nice, although I'm thinking more of other outlets like Reddit. I'm not particularly well-versed in the community there, but the traffic there is pretty high. On a bit more challenging standpoint, YouTube videos that advertise the site might do some good too. A personalized channel for MangaDen that puts up AMVs and all that stuff--hell, it doesn't even have to be professional-looking in terms of quality so long as it attracts views and comments.