Read it or Not *A Workshop/Publicity Stunt for Reviews and Stories*

[THEBIRD]

Read/Rate it or Not
The 'Not' is only there so the thread title sounds like "Ready or Not (here I come)". In reality, we will read/rate it. No 'Not's or 'But's included.

A quick summary of this thread- If you need some readers, post here (after readind below) and I'll get you some. If you need your story or review critiqued, post here and you'll get it critiqued.

If you are writing stories or reviews here, but need some readers, you?ve come to the right place. This is the Read/Rate it or Not thread. The goal of this thread is to get your story or review some readers if it is in dire need of some publicity. There is more to it, as not only will we read your story or review, but we will also rate them based on five categories. I?ll go over this whole thing in sections, so read through the areas that you have questions/want more info on.

Jobs and You (For Staff and You, the Writer)
- The Readers- Applies to Stories These people are guaranteed to read your story or review, then reply to it. The amount of people I?ll send to read it depends on how many chapters you have. [Prologues and Epilogues do not count.]

1-3 Chapters- 1 Reader
4-6 Chapters- 2 Readers
7-10 Chapters- 3 Readers
11+ Chapters- 4 Readers

If we do not have enough staff available, then I?ll make up for that staff by sticking with your story for another chapter per Reader that wasn?t available. Also, you can not request more Readers to the same story until you?ve updated it with 3 more chapters and it?s been a month since your last request.

Applies to Reviews I'll have one Reader read it and reply to it. Since Reviews aren't meant for that much publicity over long periods of time, after being read and replied to once, that same Review can not be read and replied to again.

- The Critics- Applies to Stories These people will rate your story or review after reading it with stars. 1-5 stars. 1 being poor, 2.5 being mediocre, and 5 being the best. They will rate your story in 5 categories, plus an extra overall category.

1. Grammar- The spelling and grammar of the story.
2. Plot- The overall plot and plot development of the story.
3. Character Development- The development of the characters throughout the story.
4. Description- How fluently and well detailed the story is.
5. Design/Layout- The overall design and organization of the story.
(6.) Overall- Basically, this is the final star rating that will show up with your story in our archives.

Note: Each category should have a quick summary on why that star rating was chosen. For the overall, the summary is optional.

You can only request your story be critiqued after 5 chapters (not including the Prologue and Epilogue). For every 5 chapters, we will send an extra Critic. That way, you can get your story critiqued by more then one person, thus giving different views. You may not get your story critiqued a second time until you?ve added 5 new chapters, and it?s been a month since your last review.

If we don?t have enough Critics for the amount of chapters you have, you?ll only be getting that one Critic?s review.

Applies to Reviews It will be critiqued in these 5 categories (plus the extra overall):

1. Grammar- The spelling and grammar of the review.
2. Unbias- Whether the reviewer appears to be biased or not.
3. Design/Layout- The overall design and organization of the review
4. Categories- The categories that the reviewer went over and how well they reviewed each spot.
5. Final Rating- What the final rating/average came to and how well it was averaged out.
(6.) Overall- Basically, this is the final star rating that will show up with your story in our archives.

Your review will be done by one Critic, and it can not be critiqued again. Once again, each category will have a quick summary along with the rating. The overall is not required to have a summary.

Note: A Reader and Critic can be the same person.

Grading and Staff Notices (For Staff Only)

Staffers get rewards for jobs well done too, you know. First of all, I?ll keep a list of each Critic/Reader with a smiley system rating underneath their names. Yes, I?m bringing back the smiley system rating (how it works can be found below).

:) = 1 point
:( = -1 point
:D = 10 points

Obviously, the more points, the better. In the future, these points may be able to give you added bonuses. If this gets that good, I?ll request a custom title to people who make it up to a certain amount of points. That remains to be seen and will most likely only happen if this becomes a big thing with plenty of staff and people submitting.

Something that will go into effect immediately is the work load you'll get with the smilies. The more happy smilies you get, the less work you'll get. Most likely, you'll get a job every other week, perhaps less if your name is booming with smiles. It's just something to show I appreciate the dedication you've put in.

-Taking Time Off- If, for whatever reason, you can no longer do your duties, but still want to remain on the team, I?ll give you up to a month off to take a break and just get out of this atmosphere. Please PM me if this happens. Also, if you end up needing longer, please inform me via PM and we can negotiate a compromise. If worst comes to worst, you may retire from the staff at any given time.

To-Do List (For Staff and You, the Writer)

I?ll keep a post of all the stories and reviews that still need to be read or critiqued with a link to that story/review. It may take us a while to get to you, but I ensure you that the wait will not be over one month. I?ll be sure to add the date of when it was asked to be critiqued or read, and I will keep watch of it in order to send people down to get it done.

The Archived List (For Staff and You, the Writer)

All work that has been completed will be archived with the date of its completion. This helps us remember when we last read or critiqued your story/review. Also, if critiqued, it will have the rating it was given with it.

Stories/reviews that got 5/5 stars in every single category may be in for a surprise. If this gets big enough, I?ll come up with a reward for someone who gains a perfect score. If this gets big enough, I?ll also come up with a reward for anyone who gets an overall of 5/5 stars.

Submit your Work (For You, the Writer)

Pertaining to Stories To submit your work, just post a link to that story, the amount of chapters it has, and whether you want it read, critiqued, or both. On a side note, the story must be posted on NSF. My staff and I will not go to other forums to see your story and critique or read it there.

Also, the 1 month, X amount of posts rule does not apply to you as an author, it just applies to that specific story. You can give us a second story to do within the same time period, just not that same one.

Pertaining to Reviews To submit your work, just post a link to that review and whether you want it read or critiqued. On a side note, that review must be posted on NSF. My staff and I will not go to other forums to see your story and critique it or read it over there.

Once again, reviews can only be done once in both categories. This is because they aren't meant to last as long as stories. If you have a problem with this, PM me and we can negotiate a compromise.

To Become Staff (For You, the person who wants to be Staff)
Just PM me with a short summary about why you want the job and all that. Also, tell me whether you'd like to be a Reader, Critic, both, or if you even have a preference.

I promise not to over work you. If I don't have enough staff, I'll take most of the work to prevent you guys being loaded with jobs. And, you only will have up to one job a week/month, if that much at all. This is mostly because I'm the creator of this thread, so I know exactly what I'm getting into. Also, because I know there aren't that many people on this board, so there most likely won't be too many staff.

On a final note, Staff can get their own work read or critiqued. Just not by themselves.

Questions, Comments, Concerns

PM them to me. If I think they are big enough of a deal for me to explain to everyone, I?ll add them here.

The Other Posts (Applies to whoever would like to know what you'll find below)
Post 2- The Staff
Post 3- The Archive
Post 4- The Archive cont...
Post 5- The To-Do List
Post 6- Extra [Later on, this will most likely become a 'Reward Post' for great Critics, Readers, or Writers.]

You may now post :)

[THEBIRD]

The Staff

Birdie of Aces :)
Status: Pending...
Job: Writing Team

LightningSword :)
Status: Pending...
Job: RioN Team

Mackormoses :)
Status: Pending...
Job: Review Team

Key for Status
Pending: Awaiting Job
Away: Currently taking time off
Working: Currently working on a job
Retired: No longer in service. [The person will stay for 30 days before I finally take the name off].

Key for Jobs
Reader: Reads over and replies to a story or review. Pretty much a guaranteed reader to your story.
Critic: Critiques your story or review.
RioN Team: Does both reading and critiquing for both stories and reviews.
Review Team: Reads or critiques reviews, but only works with reviews.
Writing Team: Reads or critiques stories, but only works with stories.

[THEBIRD]

Archived Stories
Currently none...

Archived Reviews
Currently none...

[THEBIRD]

[Here in case there's a max out of characters in first Archive post.]

[THEBIRD]

To-Do List
Currently nothing...

[THEBIRD]

Extra Edit Post.

Could most likely be used for Rewards or something.

[Macawmoses]

You underestimate reviews, you really do. I have been the head of a reviews site, and trust me, to say it only needs one read through is definitely an understatement. Secondly, you can put a set criterion on how to grade reviews, you just can't. For instance, I recently critiqued a review that didn't have that great of grammar, but the absolutely fantastic presentation made it a stellar review. You also need to view things from two sides; that of the consumer, and that of the industry. I think you would be wise to take note of this. Oh, and expect a pm soon.

[THEBIRD]

You underestimate reviews, you really do. I have been the head of a reviews site, and trust me, to say it only needs one read through is definitely an understatement. By that, I meant that it's not going to change the second time through, so the people who critique it would give the same score as last time. In that sense, it only needs to be done once. Secondly, you can put a set criterion on how to grade reviews, you just can't. I'm assuming you meant "can't" for that first "can" :P. For instance, I recently critiqued a review that didn't have that great of grammar, but the absolutely fantastic presentation made it a stellar review. Then everything else would most likely be a perfect score, the grammar would most likely be a 3/5, perhaps? Grammar is there because it makes a difference to me. And just because grammar is bad, it doesn't mean the whole thing will be bad. It's just one part of the whole thing. You also need to view things from two sides; that of the consumer, and that of the industry. I think you would be wise to take note of this. Oh, and expect a pm soon. Thanks :)

*bolded*