[ SECRET POST #5296 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #5296 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 18 secrets from Secret Submission Post #756.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Yeah, that's not a good sign.

The author really great WIP I'm reading now will occasionally be like 'I'm not sure if I'm going to include that element/event/trait' and then either they do or don't. But I always feel like they know where the story is going even if they don't have it 100% mapped out. So what I'm saying is there are gradients.

Also I really like speculating in WIPs. It's fun for me, and I feel like it shows I'm engaged, and it's fun to get to type "I KNEW IT!!!!" If I accidently do it to an author with a stance similar to anon a couple replies above me they can just delete my comment.

[(Anonymous)]

YEAH, definitely there are gradients-- as both a reader and writer of WIPs, and based on my experience with spitballing with other writer friends, both in fandom and in writing groups for original fiction, like... I always have a map, and I know that the writers who write long things that stay good and engaging, they also have maps. But that doesn't mean there's not wiggle room.

I think there's a HUGE difference between 'what do you think will happen?' or even 'what are you interested in seeing more of?' and 'what should I do next?'! A writer asking what people think they SHOULD write in upcoming chapters is a red flag that they're off-roading without a map. But asking what people *expect* is a great way of gauging how well you're laying in foreshadowing-- or, to make sure you haven't accidentally written a great lead-up... to a payoff you never intended to write! And asking which elements you're already including are most interesting to your readers is a fair 'keeping up engagement' question-- you MIGHT tailor future chapters to lean into what's resonating with people, but you're not promising to change major plot points or write a specific ending based on what people want. You're doing market research, essentially, and it's an important part of the process for some writers.

[(Anonymous)]

AYRT from above - I enjoy when readers speculate and get excited if they’re right. I’m referring to a specific type of “tone” which is rare but has still happened to me on several occasions where it is much more aggressive or entitled, especially when it turns out the commenter was “wrong”.