Plaza Forum
General Category => Suggestions => Topic started by: Mrs. Locks on November 18, 2019, 06:30:28 am
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I've noticed that the recent storycodes added to stories after the changeover in the Plaza don't tell as much of the story anymore. You used to be able to get a general idea of what the story was about just by reading the storycodes, but now there's only a handful of elements that appear in the story and it's very difficult to find a new story you want to read if, for example, a story in self-bondage that only says "tape; pantyhose" when the story itself is actually quite lengthy. Here's a visual example of how obvious the difference is in the new ones vs the old ones.
(https://i.imgur.com/qmZAq19.jpg)
I know it's a new person handling the Plaza now, but I can't help but feel like this new lack of detail/info might eventually lead to less participation. :(
~Mrs. Locks~
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I'd certainly agree that more accurate story codes are better. On this front I am somewhat crippled by the fact that many of the authors, who know their stories the best, submit the text but don't provide me with their list of codes. There's a pretty comprehensive list (https://grometsplaza.net/pages/storycodes.html) on the main page, but it seems rarely referred to. :-(
That said, there's a balance to be struck here, and "more story codes" does not necessarily equal "better story codes." They are meant to serve as a guide to readers looking for something in particular. That's especially true when stories are really long; you typically want the codes to reflect the main themes of the story, not just a grab bag of every keyword mentioned at some point during the text. For example, just a casual mention of a pair of latex panties in a story mostly about pony-girls wouldn't warrant adding the 'latex' tag. Because then someone who's keen on stories about rubber would have to wade through a bunch of stories that aren't really about latex to find one to their taste. On the flip side, adding a bunch of tags which are really specific to only one story and no other story has them only serves to clutter and confuse. Lastly, it's also a concern to me that I don't add a tag that the author would feel doesn't really reflect their story; for example rating something non-consensual when in their mind that isn't what the story is about.
To use chapter 1 of "Rubberized" as an example, not much actually happens in it, which is why it has very few codes. The protagonist works in a sex doll factory, yes, but all that happens in the first chapter is they get transformed into a rubber-doll. There's an accidental transformation, then a hand-job (which I'll admit I missed during my edit otherwise I would have included that), but nothing much else. So other than maybe M2sexdoll as well as Solo-M, I'm not sure what additional codes that chapter deserves. Rubberized #2 probably deserves a bunch more doll-related codes, but in terms of the main action points in that chapter, the ones that are there are in my mind the key ones.
That's pretty much my process. Whenever a long story is submitted without codes, I'm reading through it, at the same time as editing it for structure and formatting, and try to take it all in and pull out what I think are the most pertinent codes. I don't have the whole list memorised, and if an element only appears very briefly, I'm very likely to either scan over it, miss that there might be a specific code it matches. Bear in mind also that at the same time I may be editing the story for problematic formatting, structural problems or conversion issues. This is why it's much easier and better all round if the authors who know their stories (and their specific favourite kinks) give me what they think is the best set of codes. Or if readers have codes they want to suggest in the forum feedback post on the story, I'd be happy to revisit them and revise the codes.
All of this will improve as I get more time to spend on each individual story, trying to plow through the backlog has undoubtedly meant that quality has suffered a little.
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I am guilty of not providing a list of story codes along with my story submission!
I will correct that on the next one!
Ron
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It takes an awful lot of time and experience to add the appropriate story codes, but it makes it much easier if the authors themselves take the time to add them. Don't forget that I had plenty of years editing the stories, Teann is still getting used to the way the plaza monster has worked in the past.
FYI: Currently, there are over 3000 unique story codes used on the plaza, though some just appear in just one story, I have tried to merge them in the past and have reduced the number somewhat, but there still remain too many.
As Teann has mentioned, sometimes there are too many story codes used in a story, something I'm guilty of, and maybe less is more. And once Teann get's used to the plaza, it's a steep learning curve after all, I'm sure that things will get easier.
In the meantime, if you're an author submitting stories, please try to include some story codes, it makes it much easier and quicker for them to be posted.
And well done Teann for getting through the backlog of stories I left for you.