One star on chapter two.... at least give me a chance mannnnn (ratings rant)

[BrilliantBitterBug]

Hello, my fellow writers. It's been while since I was last here due to hitting number one on the treading list (haha, yes, I can't spell to save my life; get your laughs out).

Since then, I've had quite of bit of trouble regarding ratings. Ever since that novel that got on the treading listing hit number one. Its ratings started steadily dropping. From 4.6 to a current of 3.9. An unsteady 3.9 that jumps to 4.0 one day and then falls the next (my enemies are working overtime as you can see). Anyway, I'm not bothered by its rating drop although its demotivating. Enough chapters are out that one could form their opinion on it. And given the topics it handles are of a sensitive nature, it's to be expected. But I draw the line is on this new series I'm working on....

Like only two chapters are out! You can't seriously dislike it that much to rate it a 1 already!? It hasn't even shown you what it's made of yet!!

...Look, I get it. The topics it covers are rather harsh, but we haven't even gotten there yet

Ha....

End of rant.
Signed by: An inept writer.

 

[Rosica]

Sabotage. Ask Tony to remove the ratings and ban the bots spamming them through [email protected]

 

[Bimbanana]

Try check your ex


On serious notes:

I stopped a wave of 0.5 stars by using reverse psychology. Using author's notes, something like : "There's a reason i put explicit content tag in this series. you already saw it. Please be mindful"
That way, someone will feel stupid if they want to gave me a 1 star.

 

[Eldoria]

Anyway, I'm not bothered by its rating drop although its demotivating.

 

[Bimbanana]

its okay, its not his fiction

 

[Rolanov]

I thought this kind of situation only happen on RR!

I remembered someone drop the 0.5 star right after I released the 'disturbing chapter'. It was funny thou.

 

[Arkus86]

If you have enough chapters to get a five-star, you have enough chapters to get a one-star rating as well. I don't get your problem.
(No, I actually get it, I just like to bitch about authors bitching exclusively about "undeserved" low ratings. Nothing personal.)

 

[Corty]

 

[Rosica]

I thought this kind of situation only happen on RR!

Same culprits.

 

[Makimaam]

I was going to say, two chapters in and you had 140 readers, it’s natural for you to get haters…

Until I saw this.

Content warnings: Coercion, Non-con elements, Sexual abuse, Unwanted touching, Power dynamics, Rape, Incest and Impregnation. If any of the above puts you off slightly, don’t READ! Remember, this is a story and nothing here should be emulated!!!

Some readers are genuinely uncomfortable with this. A content warning doesn’t mean the topic isn’t uncomfortable to read. I’m sure it turned some readers away and made others uncomfortable enough to leave a negative rating without even reading it.

 

[JayMark]

Some readers are genuinely uncomfortable with this. A content warning doesn’t mean the topic isn’t uncomfortable to read. I’m sure it turned some readers away and made others uncomfortable enough to leave a negative rating without even reading it.

Sounds like punishment for existing. I don't like reading smut, but seriously, content warning don't read? As long as it doesn't break the rules, why punish the author for content you're not gonna read anyway? It's like the people who leave a one star on horror because they don't like horror. Or the one's that will one star because you didn't write the main character the way they wanted. I honestly don't get these attitudes.

But at least here on the hub rating doesn't tank your visibility to badly, so you don't have stress over it as much.

 

[Makimaam]

Sounds like punishment for existing. I don't like reading smut, but seriously, content warning don't read? As long as it doesn't break the rules, why punish the author for content you're not gonna read anyway? It's like the people who leave a one star on horror because they don't like horror. Or the one's that will one star because you didn't write the main character the way they wanted. I honestly don't get these attitudes.

But at least here on the hub rating doesn't tank your visibility to badly, so you don't have stress over it as much.

First, here are SH’s content guidelines

Prohibited Content​

The following guidelines list content that are not allowed. We reserve the right to remove any content we deem to be inappropriate.

• Pornographic stories - These are content that are basically porn without a plot. This is referring to the whole story, not a chapter or 50% of your story.
• Age of Consent - The age of consent is 18+. This is referring to the real age of the character. Any sexual content between characters must abide by this age of consent.
• Encouraging Non-Consensual Sexual Content- These are stories that are encouraging non-consensual sexual acts. Your story cannot be encouraging non-consensual sex acts.
• Illegal Sex Acts - These are content which encourages illegal sexual acts including but not limited to bestiality (real-world animals) or necrophilia.

No, I’m not accusing OP of violating this, don’t get me wrong. But it verges on being considered prohibited content if not handled with nuance.

Second, readers are allowed to rate a novel, whether it’s chapter 1 or chapter 100. It’s their choice, though a 1* rating is almost always too harsh. That said, there’s no rule preventing a reader from giving 1* to something they dislike.

Should OP remove the content warning? No. Guidelines encourage being upfront. I think all OP can do is keep writing more chapters and let the work speak for itself.

 

[TheKillingAlice]

I've known this shit from RR, but they do it here as well? But ratings are basically irrelevant to most writer's here, I thought?

 

[JayMark]

I've known this shit from RR, but they do it here as well? But ratings are basically irrelevant to most writer's here, I thought?

They're not as important here, but they still have their effect. On RR bad ratings put you in a visibility hole and are used as a weapon. The way it works here is better.

 

[TheKillingAlice]

They're not as important here, but they still have their effect. On RR bad ratings put you in a visibility hole and are used as a weapon. The way it works here is better.

So that's how it is. I cared so little, all I knew was that they had some relevance, because for the longest time, there was a ratings war going on with my main Webnovel. Every time I got a 5-Star Review, within the next 30 to 60 minutes (at max) I'd get a 1-Star as a follow up. So when I saw my rating overall going up, I knew I could just count down the minutes till the next rating rolled in.

 

[ConansWitchBaby]

I just file them as "illiterate apes" and forget about them.

 

[DarkDuck09]

I'll be that guy, I guess.

The idea that someone can't dislike something within 2 chapters is asinine. Is leaving a poor rating and review a bit harsh? Maybe. Depends on what it said (if anything). If it was just a rating, it's not harsh at all; it's just that person's reality. See the ratings aren't for YOU as the author. Ratings and reviews are there for other readers. You can put all the trigger warnings you want to stave off most of the people that you know won't enjoy your work, but that won't stave them all off.

For an example: I once tried to read something here on SH. Looked through the trigger warnings to see what I was getting myself into (I don't have any triggers but it gives me a good idea of what's ahead in terms of content). Passed all that. Read the first paragraph. In the first paragraph alone the word "seed" was used in place of "sperm" no less than 10 times. Seven sentences tops. I didn't leave a negative rating or review because I don't really use ratings unless I like something, but I stopped reading half way through paragraph two.

Basically, Chapter 1 was your chance. Chapter 2 sealed the deal for them. Your work wasn't for them. They left a rating expressing that. People tend to not slug through 10 hours of slow/bad game to get to what everyone says is the good part afterwards. There's some novels on SH that are said to get good at Chapter 50. I'm not trudging my way through 50 chapters to get to where the thing gets good. I'll just read the next novel they put out and hope the improvement translated.

 

[Lysander_Works]

I thought this kind of situation only happen on RR!

I remembered someone drop the 0.5 star right after I released the 'disturbing chapter'. It was funny thou.

It is more common on RR. I think on RR people can give a one-star without writing any kind of comment or review, which I don't agree with. Not sure if it is possible here; I think I remember there being an extra step to be that petty but not sure.

 

[FRWriter]

1. Your story is smut.
2. Your story is probably AI-edited/tweaked.
3. Your stories use a WEIRD dialogue format with no narration, just pure Dialogue, which I have never seen before. This might work for Visual novels, where you can SEE the characters sprites and expressions, but not for stories, where we can't see the characters expressions and thus require narration.

Considering these three facts, it's a MIRACLE that your story is at 3.9-4.0, despite TRENDING and thus getting the attention of some people who dislike your particular genre of smut.

Usually, smut stories are rated FAR lower.

Which only goes to show that you are probably a very talented and skilled writer who has a lot of fans and created a very enjoyable story.

I think you don't need to worry, you are doing VERY well.