Absolute Chaos Discussion Boards
Fic Talk => General Discussion => Topic started by: RokofAges75 on August 04, 2007, 11:42:08 PM
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This is sort of an author question, but more of a reader question, so I'm posting it here and not on the Author Inquisition board.
I've noticed that some authors post summaries to all of their chapters in the Author's Notes part. How do you feel about that as a writer and, more importantly, as a reader? Do you think it helps to have an idea of what a chapter is going to be about going into it, or does it give too much away?
(I'm reaching for discussion topics here; this board is too boring lately LOL.)
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Do they? I haven't noticed that lol
I know I tend to post longish authors notes but it's never to actually summarize what's in the chapter.
I wouldn't want to know what's in the chapter before I read it lol
At first I thought you were talking summary summaries and I was about to go on a mini rant about those. lol
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I know Mel did it in just one quick sentence for every chapter of "Under My Skin". I liked it because it helped me remember where I was without having to actually search through the chapters to find my place. And it's just one sentence so it really doesn't give much away. I've never done it though and that's the only time I've ever seen it done.
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^ Hers is one I was thinking of, but I've seen it for others too. I saw it the other day, and that's what made me think of it again for a thread.
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i'll throw another question about summaries out there.
I know we've talked about this here and there as well lol but how do you feel about overly long summaries? I mean sometimes I go onto AC and the summaries are so long I feel like i've already read the story.
How long is too long or sometimes are summaries too short?
Would you ever just click onto a story without a summary at all. Like the ones that say I suck at summaries so just please read? lmao
What's your take on all that?
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I think it depends on what the actual summary says. If it's one of those long summaries that seems like it does give half the story away, I don't like that. I like to know the basic premise of the story, but not everything that is going to happen in it LOL.
On the other hand, I like to have some sort of summary, even if it's just a one-liner. The "I suck at summaries, just please read anyway!" stuff drives me nuts! My view on that is that if you can't write well enough to throw some kind of summary together, or if you don't CARE enough to make up a summary, why would I want to read your story?
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As for the chapter summaries, I'm personally not a fan of them from the reader standpoint because I find that when I click on a story with chapter summaries, I naturally start to skim through them, and then I feel like I know what the entire story is going to be like without even opening one of the chapters. That's not true in all cases, but it is when it makes the story look really formulaic, and then it doesn't look all that appealing.
I think if I had read the story already, I would like chapter summaries better because it would help me track down my favorite parts, but for the first read, I don't like them.
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I think it depends on what the actual summary says. If it's one of those long summaries that seems like it does give half the story away, I don't like that. I like to know the basic premise of the story, but not everything that is going to happen in it LOL.
On the other hand, I like to have some sort of summary, even if it's just a one-liner. The "I suck at summaries, just please read anyway!" stuff drives me nuts! My view on that is that if you can't write well enough to throw some kind of summary together, or if you don't CARE enough to make up a summary, why would I want to read your story?
Yup i'm with you on that one. I don't even bother reading stories where they say i suck at summaries just read. But I also get mega annoyed with the summaries that are so long they take up half the page on AC lol
A nice medium works best for me. I like a summary that lets me really know what the story is going to be about while at the same time not giving me too much details. Also the ones that don't deceive the reader into thinking it's one thing when it's really another.
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Also the ones that don't deceive the reader into thinking it's one thing when it's really another.
Yeah, that's what I really hate. I feel violated. haha. Like I've been lied to or tricked and it really makes me cranky.
But I think a summary is vital. I would never read one that just said "I suck at summaries." It makes me think that the writer really doesn't know what the story is about to begin with and it turns me off before ever reading any of it.
As far as chapters go though, if the chapters were all summarized I wouldn't read the summaries before reading the first time, but I do kind of like to have the place holders.
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which story is it you guys are talking about? I need to check it out because i'm having a hard time visualizing what you mean. lol
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Mel's story Under My Skin has summaries: http://accidentalchaos.net/viewstory.php?sid=6862 (Gee, Oprah, it was a story of the month here. ;))
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I tend to do the same thing that Mel does with hers - write a sentence to summarize the chapter. I think it's helpful as a reader in case I'm reading someone's story a second time so that I can go back and read a part to refresh my memory as to what happened (especially if it's been a while since there's been an update). And to tell you the truth, that's how I help myself keep track of each chapter in my own stories, too.
I actually think of chapter summaries as the little description of an episode of a TV show. It's kind of like a teaser. I try not to give too much away, but at the same time, I think it's helpful to give the readers a sense of what the chapter is about. Like I said earlier, if they're rereading a part, they can hopefully find it easier. It usually doesn't give much away with me since my chapters are 2,000-6,000 words. I also give each of my chapters a title like a lot of television shows. Just to get away from the "chapter 1... chapter 2... et cetera." I get bored with that.
I don't know if people agree with me, but I personally like it. :)
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Mel's story Under My Skin has summaries: http://accidentalchaos.net/viewstory.php?sid=6862 (Gee, Oprah, it was a story of the month here. ;))
Oprah can only remember so much. lol
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You know when I do like the summary in a chapter? When it's an NC 17 chapter and there will be a sex scene. I think in cases like that if the author takes a second and mentions it, that's something I would appreciate.
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You know when I do like the summary in a chapter? When it's an NC 17 chapter and there will be a sex scene. I think in cases like that if the author takes a second and mentions it, that's something I would appreciate.
See, I used to have those in mine, but I took them out because I thought it actually gave too much away... I thought that if the readers KNEW there was going to be sex in the chapter, it would take away from the possible surprise. Since my stories are usually rated NC-17 and include the appropriate warnings, I figure the readers are going to expect the sex scenes.
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^ I can understand that as well. I guess I meant less NC - 17 stories and more just a story that happens to have a few sex scenes in them. Where it really isn't the main point but might happen in a chapter or two. Also for disturbing scenes like rape etc..
I guess most people do read NC - 17 for the sex scenes.
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Yeah, you know sometimes I feel like my story's gotta be pretty disappointing so far since there isn't an overwhelming amount of sex. I make the ones that are going to have a lot of sex and offensive language rated NC-17 just so I don't have to put individual warnings on each chapter. I hope that isn't misleading...
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Ya know, if people are reading stories JUST for the sex, that's too bad for them LOL. That's what a visual is for. If you're reading a novel, you better be into it for the plot, not just the sex, and it's not always realistic to the plot for the characters to have sex in every chapter LOL.
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LOL I personally don't see much of a difference between visuals and NC-17. I kind of plop them into the same category but i'm probably wrong. Maybe NC-17 have plots but then visuals don't? I can honestly say i've never read either one because in my mind all I think about is sex when i see either one of those genres.
That's a good question people who write both of those, what's the difference between the two?
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Ya know, if people are reading stories JUST for the sex, that's too bad for them LOL. That's what a visual is for. If you're reading a novel, you better be into it for the plot, not just the sex, and it's not always realistic to the plot for the characters to have sex in every chapter LOL.
What? You mean most normal people don't have sex all the time? LOL Stories like that drive me crazy.
I like chapter summaries as long as they don't give away too much. I've seen some that give all the highlights and totally ruin the chapter, but most are pretty good. I like the way Mel and Tri do their chapter summaries. (I'm not downing anyone else, but right now those are the two I'm mainly reading so I don't know about others' summaries.)
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LOL I personally don't see much of a difference between visuals and NC-17. I kind of plop them into the same category but i'm probably wrong. Maybe NC-17 have plots but then visuals don't? I can honestly say i've never read either one because in my mind all I think about is sex when i see either one of those genres.
That's a good question people who write both of those, what's the difference between the two?
NC-17 stories for me are longer stories that happen to contain adult content. I know that when I was younger, I didn't like reading stories with a lot of raunchy sex, so I just stayed away from the NC-17 ones. Now that I write stories with sex in them, I attach that rating because I think it's appropriate.
On the other hand, visuals are typically short stories that talk about one encounter of a sexual nature. At least that's what I've always thought.
Maybe I should rate my story R for adult content so that more people will read it and not think it's just smut. What do you think?
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NC-17 stories for me are longer stories that happen to contain adult content. I know that when I was younger, I didn't like reading stories with a lot of raunchy sex, so I just stayed away from the NC-17 ones. Now that I write stories with sex in them, I attach that rating because I think it's appropriate.
On the other hand, visuals are typically short stories that talk about one encounter of a sexual nature. At least that's what I've always thought.
Maybe I should rate my story R for adult content so that more people will read it and not think it's just smut. What do you think?
AH okay so visuals are like a one shot deal where NC-17 stories are longer with sometimes visual type chapters.
Now that makes sense.
as far as changing your ratings, that's up to you. I'm not sure if everyone views NC-17 as smutty lol i'm just naive when it comes to reading this stuff. I would say if your story is less about the sex and more about the plot, maybe it would be a good idea to change it. You can try to see if it makes a difference?
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AH okay so visuals are like a one shot deal where NC-17 stories are longer with sometimes visual type chapters.
Now that makes sense.
as far as changing your ratings, that's up to you. I'm not sure if everyone views NC-17 as smutty lol i'm just naive when it comes to reading this stuff. I would say if your story is less about the sex and more about the plot, maybe it would be a good idea to change it. You can try to see if it makes a difference?
Honestly, I just didn't want to get in trouble on the site for having my story available to unregistered readers that may be too young. Originally, I would've rated it R. I'm going to change it right now. I'm curious to see if I'll get more readers that think the same way you do and stay away from the NC-17 stories. lol. I'm glad you told me that or I never would've known!
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LOL no problem, I hope it works out for you.
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That's interesting;
NC-17 stories for me are longer stories that happen to contain adult content. I know that when I was younger, I didn't like reading stories with a lot of raunchy sex, so I just stayed away from the NC-17 ones. Now that I write stories with sex in them, I attach that rating because I think it's appropriate.
On the other hand, visuals are typically short stories that talk about one encounter of a sexual nature. At least that's what I've always thought.
Maybe I should rate my story R for adult content so that more people will read it and not think it's just smut. What do you think?
That's how I think of NC-17 stories too. I just view them as one step up from R, whether it be because of sex or just extreme violence and other "adult" situations.
Truth be told, I don't pay a whole lot of attention to ratings; I just read whatever sounds good. I never know for sure how to rate my own stories either. BMS I gave an R because it does have a couple of sex scenes that are described in some detail, and it has cussing and stuff too. My other stories are more PG-13.
I think unless your story has a TON of graphic, graphic sex scenes, you're fine with an R rating.
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That's interesting;
That's how I think of NC-17 stories too. I just view them as one step up from R, whether it be because of sex or just extreme violence and other "adult" situations.
Truth be told, I don't pay a whole lot of attention to ratings; I just read whatever sounds good. I never know for sure how to rate my own stories either. BMS I gave an R because it does have a couple of sex scenes that are described in some detail, and it has cussing and stuff too. My other stories are more PG-13.
I think unless your story has a TON of graphic, graphic sex scenes, you're fine with an R rating.
Well I changed it to R. If I get an overwhelming response to my new chapters now that it has a "tamer" rating, I'll know why. lol.
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Can't believe I didn't comment in here since I do use chapter summaries pretty religiously at least with UMS. I haven't integrated it to my other stories yet and I'm not sure if I will. I think it works really well with UMS just cuz its such a complicated and twisted plot that like Tri does it even helps me as a writer to remind me what happene in each chapter when I need to refer back to something. Usually I just use a sentence or two at most just vaguely summarizing what happens in the chapter. So for example, my summary for lets say Chapter 26 says : "Alyssa fills Izzy on what's been going on between her and Nick." Very simple and to the point, but you still want to read because you have no idea how Izzy is going to react. I try to write just enough to pique the readers interest.
As far as putting in individual chapter warnings, like for sex scenes, I don't bother. My story is Rated R and it does say there may be graphc sexual content on the front page. Sometimes you can tell by the summary that there might be a sex scene like in Ch 22 the summary is "Nick and Alyssa finally give in to their feelings for each other." and Ch 23 says "Nothing is as simple the next morning." So, yea obviously if you have a brain you can probably connect the dots, but as a reader I don't like knowing there's sexual content in a chapter before I begin reading cuz it ruins the surprise for me. Plus, you get those readers who just want the characters to finally "do it" so they are prolly going to skip right to the sex parts.
As far as actual story summaries go, I think two to three sentences is more than sufficient. And I also hate when writers go OMG I suck at summaries! I think thats pretty unprofessional and its going to make me doubt your abilities as a writer. If you don't even have the confidence in yourself to write a simple summary then how am I as a reader, going to appreciate your work?
Lastly about the NC-17/visual debate... I've read some extremely well written NC-17 stories that were not at ALL smutty. I do tend to think a lot of writers over rate their work cuz I mean I see NC-17 rated stories that only have mild lanuguage in them or like ONE sexually explicit scene. I do think there is a major difference in the two, but thats why I try to shy away from the NC-17 rating. I'd rather keep my stuff at R so more readers will be inhibited to read it.