There are 12 entries, some great stories, a lot of creativity. Very fun entries. I encourage you to take a few minutes, read them, and vote,
Yep, we need more votes. There are about 20 so far and the votes are fairly evenly distributed among the stories.
I haven't seen any of them. Ok, tomorrow I'll get reading. (As I can't join the summer one, I've been waiting for the next bi-weekly).
It's mind boggling how evenly distributed the votes are. There are twenty votes so far and no one story has more than three votes.
Ok I ended up staying up late last night and voting, but the one I voted for seemed to actually make the voting even closer than make it clearer.
Well, I want people to vote just because I know how many hours went into writing those 12 stories. I know I put about 5-6 hours into my 1000 words. I just think it is respectful to the writers to give them the interest to look at what they did--and I do think some of the stories are amazing!!!
I can't believe so many members visit this site everyday and they aren't taking the time to vote. Don't people like nice things? This competition is a chance to show off your writing, learn something from other writers and take part in something fun. Guess most people don't want any of that. Come on folks, vote.
214 members have visited within the last 24 hours and we have exactly 20 votes in the short story contest. < 1% Perhaps if folks commented on why they think people don't vote or what they think would motivate people to vote, it would be useful. I think the number of stories is sometimes intimidating. When that's the case I have some suggestions: 1) Read one or two stories a day, there is still time since the voting period was extended. 2) Read the first couple paragraphs (or the beginning and end, or skim some) of each story and rule out the ones you aren't as impressed by. Then go back and read the top couple stories all the way through. When someone votes for one's story, it's very rewarding. When one doesn't get many or any votes, given how good some of the stories are, I never see it as an insult. It doesn't mean the story is bad, it just means someone else's is better. Reward these writers, tell them you liked their story.
I think the length probably does have a lot to do with it. Even still... who's going to turn down an opportunity to judge?! Are you all mad? This is really shaking all my mean-spirited preconceptions about why people are on the internet! ETA: I read them in ones and twos instead of my usual bedtime/travel reading to break it up.
1000 words stories are pretty short. I read them 2 or 3 at a time, then went back and re-read a couple of them, and then read the one I finally voted on one last time
I think some are intimidated by the amount of entries and the committment to reading them. For me this is what I did. 1) Read the first paragraph of each one and find the ones that stand out as something I would like to read. 2) With this shorter list I then read the whole story. 3) Voted for the one that grabbed me the most. Another thing is advertising. I wasn't aware that voting was open until I noticed the recent posts box on the side. Could it be made into one of those banner ads at the top? Just a thought.
I don't know if there is a way to incentivize people to vote, some forum perks perhaps? Or even if that should be necessary...I would think people interested in writing would want to read what others have created to appreciate the craft or even as a mirror to judge their own writing. It seems people love to share their opinion, so my guess would be maybe not enough people are aware that there is a contest/story going on? We should be able to get more than a 1% vote rate...even the presidential race get's more than that!
One day left--vote total hasn't moved in days. Narrow lead for one story and five-way tie for second place. Looks like that's the way it's going to end up unless there is a last minute rush to the polls.
I've just voted. I wasn't going to when I saw the number of entries and that they were 1k words, but I've managed to read them in less than half an hour using the "read beginning > skim if beginning is not good / read in full if beginning is good" method. I do think the number of entries is probably responsible for the lack of voting. How about a staged contest in future? The stories could be paired up and each week, one of the pair wins the vote. Then there can a grand final with the winners.
I have to say, I really enjoyed the entries. There's some really good stuff. The voting will close soon, so hurry up!
