From Hell Vote

[apotheosis]

I know this thread is several hours early, but I figured I should make it now because for the most part people seem to have released there stories.

Voting: Here is how voting works. You rate the story on a scale from 1-10 on three categories. These categories are:


-Enjoyment

-Plot/Originality

-Writing Quality


Star the rating you believe is most important, and that rating shall be double weighted. If you do not star any rating, each rating will be weighted 1/3 more than normal.

Example Rating:

Enjoyment: 7*
Plot/Originality: 8
Writing Quality: 5

I will then do the following calculations:


Enjoyment: 7* x 6 = 42
Plot/Originality: 8 x 3 = 24
Writing Quality: 5 x 3 = 15


Then lets say the next ratings are 6,4 and 5, respectively with none starred, I would then do the following.


Enjoyment: 6 x 4 = 24
Plot/Originality: 4 x 4 = 16
Writing Quality: 5 x 4 = 20


If these were the only two ratings submitted for a story, to determine its final overall score, I would do the following.

(42 + 24 + 15 + 24 + 16 + 20)/(6 + 3 + 3 + 4 + 4 + 4) = 5.875 overall rating.

Highest overall rating wins.

I will also provide many other pointless statistics. Ratings will be anonymous unless requested otherwise. I will however list the names of all of the raters.


Personal Message your votes to me on the sites regular messaging system, NOT the forum message system because the inbox is of limited size and I'd like to archive the votes in case there is any argument about the results. So, send me a personal message with your ratings of each submission.

I will provide advanced statistics for all the votes once they are in. The rating period lasts until Midnight, December 1st.

Feel free to ask any questions you have about the rating system.

I don't want to miss a story, so End or Dep, could one of you do the next post and list all the stories that have been submitted?

[End Master]

There’s 50 messages allowed on the forum PMs, I doubt if there’s going to be that many votes let alone any arguing about it.


The stories that I know of:

Infernal Gate- Apoth
Youngstown Demon- DEP
Death Song- End Master
Odalisque Paradise- Katie

And if she gets it in by midnight, some story by Ves.

[apotheosis]

I already have 29 pms on this forum one, and I don't like deleting things, so I'd much prefer the other messaging system.

[xnull]

I haven't even seen my story in about 4 months. Since it was intended for the competition, I'm opening it up to the public right now. It's going to be just another unfinished story.

[Vesnic]

Ok, this is cool. Isn't there also going to be feedback in written form so the writers don't just end up with a random number that they're not sure how they got? Is there something in place so that the entrants can get some in-depth commentary at least from the people who read the stories?

[apotheosis]

I'll relate any feedback sent to me in my score report. You may also send feedback to the authors directly if you wish.

I can't wait to start crunching numbers.
Woohoo!

[Usoki]

Hang on, are we actually voting on Apoth's story? If we are, I am so gonna put a bunch of summary rooms into Hellstone.

[Hi! My name is: Katie]

I enjoyed Apoth's story. There's something satisfying about being able to get through a complete story in one sitting. Plus, it didn't require a great deal of thought to process.

Usoki, you didn't like it?

~Katie

Also, I think if people intend to vote, and they take the time to read all the stories they should be able to come up with a minimum of three sentences about what they liked or disliked most about the story.

For instance:
I liked that Apoth's story was short, sweet, and to the point. I found it amusing clicking into one sentence rooms again and again. While it worked for this story, I would really HATE to see that become a standard technique on Infinite.

[donteatpoop]

For instance:
I liked that Apoth's story was short, sweet, and to the point. I found it amusing clicking into one sentence rooms again and again. While it worked for this story, I would really HATE to see that become a standard technique on Infinite.


But Katie, that already is a standard technique on infinite.

[Usoki]

Hellstone is now up for the competition, as I have filled it with enough of a skeletal plot frame to boost it over the 20 room mark. The story is now "complete", though the only rooms with actual details are the first few room's of Gabe's Tale. Still, there's enough story to get the point across.

It's very linear, and it's more melancholy than hellish, but it's "finished".

[donteatpoop]

I think this is the biggest turn out yet for the tourney.

[donteatpoop]

Hellstone is now up for the competition, as I have filled it with enough of a skeletal plot frame to boost it over the 20 room mark. The story is now "complete", though the only rooms with actual details are the first few room's of Gabe's Tale. Still, there's enough story to get the point across.

It's very linear, and it's more melancholy than hellish, but it's "finished".


Did you make it available to the public? I didn't see it when I was looking for it a moment ago...

[Vesnic]

Let's make Katie's suggestion official. In addition to the site ratings and any direct correspondence the readers want to have with the writers, everyone should also submit at least three sentences of commentary along with their ratings to Apoth. Like the contest ratings themselves, these commentaries can be left anonymous. Apoth would send each entrant their final score as well as all the comments that had been sent to him about that particular story.

[Usoki]

Did you make it available to the public? I didn't see it when I was looking for it a moment ago...

Well, I see it as available to the public. I wrote Hellstone on an old story template, so it'll appear between Teatime and Rentyre on my list.

[donteatpoop]

Well, I see it as available to the public. I wrote Hellstone on an old story template, so it'll appear between Teatime and Rentyre on my list.

Cool. Alright, I found it. I was looking at New Stories, my bad.

[Vesnic]

Updated IWT4 Contestants List (for quick reference):

Apotheosis: Infernal Gate
Donteatpoop: Youngstown Demon
EndMaster: Death Song
KatieWroteIt: Odalisque Paradise
Usoki: Hellstone
Vesnicie: The Country from Hell

(That's all, right?)

Also, is it the case that a person's votes won't count unless they vote for all of the stories?

[Usoki]

Oooh, good idea. But, I'd prefer hyperlinks-

The Country from Hell (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/3661/) by Vesnicie

Death Song (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/2112/) by Endmaster

Hellstone (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/2571/) by Usoki

Infernal Gate (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/3599/) by Apotheosis

Odalisque Paradise (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/3593/) by KatieWroteIt

Youngstown Demon (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/3650/) by Donteatpoop

[donteatpoop]

Oooh, good idea. But, I'd prefer hyperlinks-

The Country from Hell (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/3661/) by Vesnicie

Death Song (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/2112/) by Endmaster

Hellstone (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/2571/) by Usoki

Infernal Gate (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/3599/) by Apotheosis

Odalisque Paradise (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/3593/) by KatieWroteIt

Youngstown Demon (http://www.infinite-story.com/story/3650/) by Donteatpoop

I knew there was a reason we let you hang out here.

[apotheosis]

I'm just counting votes as they come in. I'm not planning on requiring that all stories are rated. That is at the discretion of the voter... though of course that is what they should do.


EDIT: And you forgot xnull's story.

EDIT take 2: Apparently he never added two filler rooms to it. Nevermind.

[Usoki]

I'm just counting votes as they come in. I'm not planning on requiring that all stories are rated. That is at the discretion of the voter... though of course that is what they should do.

Umm...wouldn't that mean we'd have unbalanced results at the end? The thought just bothers me. It'd mean a less accurate average for one story in the end.

If someone were to rate everything really low, but then not rate End's story...that lack of a low rating in End's average might push his story to victory. Now let's say multiple people don't rate End's story. (Maybe it's to verbose for the average dumbass.) He has a tactical advantage over everyone else. Or, maybe it's a disadvantage. Maybe he's stuck with a low score and a high score, and so his average won't get balanced. Either way.

...Except it'll get unbalanced anyway, since we can't rate our own. Hmm...

[Hi! My name is: Katie]

I agree, everyone needs to read and rate all the stories, or step down as judge. Apoth could suggest that everyone hold their ratings until they have read them all. I don't know, I just feel that it is important to hold the judges to a mimimum measure of consistency.
~Katie

[End Master]

In the past all the contestants voted for everyone's story, so I figured that's how we were doing this year too. Shouldn't be unbalanced since every story should get 5 votes.

If we get that rare non-contestant that votes, it still won't unbalance things. They just vote for every story.

[Hi! My name is: Katie]

Just to clarify: are judges responsible for reading the story completely. I mean to say, do they need to follow every thread of the story, or just pursue it to one end destination. It is my understanding that one end is acceptable. Is that how we are doing this?
~Katie

[Usoki]

I hope so- I figure, if the story doesn't make a person try and pursue other branches, then that's the author's problem, and something that should be addressed in the critiquing.

[apotheosis]

I was just planning on counting all votes that came in. I mean, I could throw out anyone's votes who don't vote for all the stories but:

Take this scenario. Someone reads and rates four of the stories. They didn't read them all, but at the same time, I do not want to just throw out all the effort they put in into rating the stories that they did.

I really don't think that counting all votes rather than just the people who voted for every story will make any major difference.

[Usoki]

But it could. With a contest this close, we'll look for any excuse to try and overthrow results. Even if it didn't, Katie, End and I overthrow your opinion. 'Tis all or nothing.

[Vesnic]

I agree on all or nothing as well.

Also, we don't rate our own story, do we?

And again, I want to receive some substantive critiques on my story, not just a number.

[End Master]

No, you don't rate your own story.

[donteatpoop]

No, you don't rate your own story.

Shit, so much for my tens.

[apotheosis]

Alright. So, to clarify the rule, you must rate all of the stories.

[donteatpoop]

I'd like to take this opportunity to express how hopeful I am that all of you are rating the fucking stories. I hope I'm not the only one. I know it's still early in the month, but this could be a lot of fucking reading, so don't wait till the last week to rate this shit.

I think I have two more stories to rate and I'm done. You should be farther along than me, at the very least. Dammit.

[apotheosis]

DEP, your ratings are the only ratings I've received I'm sorry to say. But I get the feeling people will always wait until the last minute no matter what.

I know I'm waiting until I have a solid break from school. Thanksgiving I plan on doing 25k for NaNoWriMo and reading all the stories.

[donteatpoop]

DEP, your ratings are the only ratings I've received I'm sorry to say. But I get the feeling people will always wait until the last minute no matter what.

That's pretty much what I expected. No worries, though; I'll continue to talk shit all month.

[apotheosis]

I hope everyone is reading and formulating their votes...

[Locke]

I've got my ratings pretty much sorted out; I just need to sit down sometime and type them up along with some comments.