Plus1
Well-known member
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2020
- Messages
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- 93
Alright, so if you clicked on this, you light be an up-and-coming author, or soon to be one, looking to get exposure for your story. Naturally, the best way to achieve that on this site is to get on Trending.
Now, disclaimer: I'm not going to give tips to make one's story better, not really, but rather to appeal more to the readers and get them to read, comment and rate it, thus making the story more eligible for Trending.
As an author who can semi-reliably get on the list with a smut story that could be barely called average, I could be called a bit of an expert in the field (not really lol). So, here are some tips. Quite a few might be obvious, but I'll put them in nonetheless.
—Use your time on 'Latest Series' to the fullest:
This one's for those who haven't published their story yet. Until you get on Trending, Latest Series will be your only chance at being reliably listed in the front page. It will only last a few hours or days, so pump out as many chapters as possible to entice readers while in that timeframe.
—Have a good title and cover:
The title, cover and rating are the only three factors that will determine whether readers even click on your story to give it a chance. They must be good.
There are no specific parameters for a good title. Short, long, serious or ironic, all sorts of titles can draw in the reader's attention. Just make sure it actually represents what your story is about, and don't type the first think that comes to mind. You can even ask for your friends' opinion, asking them which one makes them want to read your story more.
As for the cover, obviously don't leave the default one, but overly complex covers aren't too good either, from what I've seen. Mine are just some black silouettes on white background that I drew up, and it seems to work. I also recommend not plastering the title on it, since it will be redundant.
—Post regularly:
Once out of Latest Series, the only way you'll get on the front page will be through Latest Updates. Naturally, the more chapters you post, the most exposure you will get. At the beginning, once or twice a day is a pretty good pace. For that purpose, I recommend building up a stockpile before posting the story (unless you only really write productively while on a deadline, like me) which will also give you leeway to fix plotholes and redo earlier sections.
To avoid burnout while keeping up the pace, I also recommend posting short chapters (around 1K-1.5K words, but you probably shouldn't go below 800).
-Changing posting times:
As SH boasts audiences from all over the world, I recommend posting each chapter at a different time of day (or night, there's always the scheduling function) to reach different audiences, and maximize the number of potential readers.
—Keep the stars up:
To get readers to give your story a chance, it must have a decent rating (although I kind of failed at that.) Obviously writing an actually good story will help with this a great deal, but really, with trolls and whatnot, it is a pipedream to try to keep it above 4.6 or so.
There are some easy tricks to help a bit though, such as reading through each chapter several times to comb out any grammar errors (something I often forget to do) or just running it through a grammar checker (something I can't be bothered to do). Failing that, at least read every comment and correct any mistake pointed out by the readers, and answer their comments if possible. (Something I do do [that sounds weird]) Really, comments are a great source of inspiration and of ways to improve your story.
Polls also help with reader engagement, though do them too frequently and they will lose their novelty fast.
Oh, and let me tell you something: You really just need to keep the ratings above a minimum of 4.1, since due to how SH works, in the front page all ratings of 4.1 through 4.9 appear the same, with four stars and a half. Once they click on it, even if they see the 4.1 on the story page, they'll already be in front of your synopsis, which you can use to hook the reader. That leads us to the next tip.
—Write an engaging synopsis that hooks the reader:
This is a hard one. There are some very obvious tips; Make it have at least a paragraph, don't just paste the first part of the first chapter, don't make a full introduction of your character, don't end it with "Will X be able to escape Y's clutches and rise above adversity? Or will he fail, never to achieve his goal?" Because it's so painfully overdone it hurts me physically to read it, and we all know the answer, and don't go off on tangents nobody will wanna read, but the rest really depends.
Like the title, you can make it humorous (like mine, cause my story doesn't take itself seriously) or completely serious, short or long, within reason.
If your start is cliche'd, don't explain it in detail, but rather jump to the bits that differentiate your story from the overused tropes. You can even subtly laugh at your own story for using tropes in the synopsis, to show that you know they're overused and won't abuse them.
Try to keep the tone consistent, both with the rest of the synopsis and the story itself. I recommend looking at synopsis (synopsises?) of some popular stories, since they are often good inspiration.
—Number your chapters:
This is a small thing, but it can be really frustrating for readers. Depending on the device, the reading list may give you the number of the chapter you're at next to the total or just the name, and in the latter case it can be incredibly frustrating not to know how far along the story you are. As for adding an actual title after the number, I do it, but I don't think it's that big a deal. You can also just have a title for the whole arc, and name your chapters by arc followed by the number in said arc.
—Ah, also, TAG YOUR STORY PROPERLY!:
There are many people who filter certain stories out by tag or genre, such as BL, netorare, tragedy, horror, etc, and if you don't put those tags or genres and said people find your story, be prepared for some very angry comments, perhaps even angry reviews that will turn readers off from your story.
Now, this is a personal thing, but I recommend filling up all 25 (I think) slots for tags, as it will give people a better idea of what your story will be about, and for the people who search for stories will certain tags, your story will come up much more often. It might take a while, but you only need to do it once.
So... That's all, I think. Nothing crazy, I know, in face you probably knew most of these already, if not all, but a reminder doesn't hurt, right
So... you made it all the way here, huh? Wow. Alright, one last tip: You can advertise your story on the forum. But, it won't be very well received if you aren't an active member (like me).
There are many ways to get around that, though, such as asking for advice on how to improve your story, or giving out tips to get on Trending and referencing your story several times in the process. ¯\_( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)_/¯
www.scribblehub.com
Now, disclaimer: I'm not going to give tips to make one's story better, not really, but rather to appeal more to the readers and get them to read, comment and rate it, thus making the story more eligible for Trending.
As an author who can semi-reliably get on the list with a smut story that could be barely called average, I could be called a bit of an expert in the field (not really lol). So, here are some tips. Quite a few might be obvious, but I'll put them in nonetheless.
—Use your time on 'Latest Series' to the fullest:
This one's for those who haven't published their story yet. Until you get on Trending, Latest Series will be your only chance at being reliably listed in the front page. It will only last a few hours or days, so pump out as many chapters as possible to entice readers while in that timeframe.
—Have a good title and cover:
The title, cover and rating are the only three factors that will determine whether readers even click on your story to give it a chance. They must be good.
There are no specific parameters for a good title. Short, long, serious or ironic, all sorts of titles can draw in the reader's attention. Just make sure it actually represents what your story is about, and don't type the first think that comes to mind. You can even ask for your friends' opinion, asking them which one makes them want to read your story more.
As for the cover, obviously don't leave the default one, but overly complex covers aren't too good either, from what I've seen. Mine are just some black silouettes on white background that I drew up, and it seems to work. I also recommend not plastering the title on it, since it will be redundant.
—Post regularly:
Once out of Latest Series, the only way you'll get on the front page will be through Latest Updates. Naturally, the more chapters you post, the most exposure you will get. At the beginning, once or twice a day is a pretty good pace. For that purpose, I recommend building up a stockpile before posting the story (unless you only really write productively while on a deadline, like me) which will also give you leeway to fix plotholes and redo earlier sections.
To avoid burnout while keeping up the pace, I also recommend posting short chapters (around 1K-1.5K words, but you probably shouldn't go below 800).
-Changing posting times:
As SH boasts audiences from all over the world, I recommend posting each chapter at a different time of day (or night, there's always the scheduling function) to reach different audiences, and maximize the number of potential readers.
—Keep the stars up:
To get readers to give your story a chance, it must have a decent rating (although I kind of failed at that.) Obviously writing an actually good story will help with this a great deal, but really, with trolls and whatnot, it is a pipedream to try to keep it above 4.6 or so.
There are some easy tricks to help a bit though, such as reading through each chapter several times to comb out any grammar errors (something I often forget to do) or just running it through a grammar checker (something I can't be bothered to do). Failing that, at least read every comment and correct any mistake pointed out by the readers, and answer their comments if possible. (Something I do do [that sounds weird]) Really, comments are a great source of inspiration and of ways to improve your story.
Polls also help with reader engagement, though do them too frequently and they will lose their novelty fast.
Oh, and let me tell you something: You really just need to keep the ratings above a minimum of 4.1, since due to how SH works, in the front page all ratings of 4.1 through 4.9 appear the same, with four stars and a half. Once they click on it, even if they see the 4.1 on the story page, they'll already be in front of your synopsis, which you can use to hook the reader. That leads us to the next tip.
—Write an engaging synopsis that hooks the reader:
This is a hard one. There are some very obvious tips; Make it have at least a paragraph, don't just paste the first part of the first chapter, don't make a full introduction of your character, don't end it with "Will X be able to escape Y's clutches and rise above adversity? Or will he fail, never to achieve his goal?" Because it's so painfully overdone it hurts me physically to read it, and we all know the answer, and don't go off on tangents nobody will wanna read, but the rest really depends.
Like the title, you can make it humorous (like mine, cause my story doesn't take itself seriously) or completely serious, short or long, within reason.
If your start is cliche'd, don't explain it in detail, but rather jump to the bits that differentiate your story from the overused tropes. You can even subtly laugh at your own story for using tropes in the synopsis, to show that you know they're overused and won't abuse them.
Try to keep the tone consistent, both with the rest of the synopsis and the story itself. I recommend looking at synopsis (synopsises?) of some popular stories, since they are often good inspiration.
—Number your chapters:
This is a small thing, but it can be really frustrating for readers. Depending on the device, the reading list may give you the number of the chapter you're at next to the total or just the name, and in the latter case it can be incredibly frustrating not to know how far along the story you are. As for adding an actual title after the number, I do it, but I don't think it's that big a deal. You can also just have a title for the whole arc, and name your chapters by arc followed by the number in said arc.
—Ah, also, TAG YOUR STORY PROPERLY!:
There are many people who filter certain stories out by tag or genre, such as BL, netorare, tragedy, horror, etc, and if you don't put those tags or genres and said people find your story, be prepared for some very angry comments, perhaps even angry reviews that will turn readers off from your story.
Now, this is a personal thing, but I recommend filling up all 25 (I think) slots for tags, as it will give people a better idea of what your story will be about, and for the people who search for stories will certain tags, your story will come up much more often. It might take a while, but you only need to do it once.
So... That's all, I think. Nothing crazy, I know, in face you probably knew most of these already, if not all, but a reminder doesn't hurt, right
So... you made it all the way here, huh? Wow. Alright, one last tip: You can advertise your story on the forum. But, it won't be very well received if you aren't an active member (like me).
There are many ways to get around that, though, such as asking for advice on how to improve your story, or giving out tips to get on Trending and referencing your story several times in the process. ¯\_( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)_/¯
I Really Wasn’t Going for a Harem, I Swear!
By some strange turn of fate, my soul travelled to another world when I died from stupid bravado. (I know, cliché, right?) I woke up with a new body and an existential crisis, due to my soul merging with that of Raynold, the owner of said body and the youngest...
