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WannabeWordsmith
6 days ago
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Writius Eroticus
The algorithm is a closely-guarded secret, locked in sprite's liquor cabinet. So, good luck getting to that.
An educated guess, though, is that it probably involves a tally of the number of views/votes/comments over a given time period (hour, day, something?) multiplied by some random numbers selected by the giant hamsters that keep the cogs turning in the fiery pits below the grounds of Lush HQ.
I suspect the phenomenon you see regarding more 'compiness' in the list is because there are a lot of eyes on competition pieces and they garner a lot of votes, views and comments in a short space of time, since most entrants (and the Lush readership at large) read and comment on each other's stories while the competition window is open.
An educated guess, though, is that it probably involves a tally of the number of views/votes/comments over a given time period (hour, day, something?) multiplied by some random numbers selected by the giant hamsters that keep the cogs turning in the fiery pits below the grounds of Lush HQ.
I suspect the phenomenon you see regarding more 'compiness' in the list is because there are a lot of eyes on competition pieces and they garner a lot of votes, views and comments in a short space of time, since most entrants (and the Lush readership at large) read and comment on each other's stories while the competition window is open.
Writius Eroticus
Quote by WiseGinger
Having the top bar in the forum like the one in the site (with the same order of the icons) would be great
It'll be like that in the new site. It's unified.
Writius Eroticus
Here's an example of the top part of a person's profile page with a default banner image. Things are still in flux and there's some stuff to be ironed out below the fold so I'll leave that out for now. But expect it to look kinda like this on desktop:
Writius Eroticus
I've never done it, but that seems like a reasonable approach. Should work.
Writius Eroticus
Paulafox has gone. Comments should disappear on the next sync sweep.
I took the liberty of editing your post, Mysteria, to remove the link to her photos so it's not indexed by search engines, thus perpetuating the spammer's reach. Hope you don't mind.
I took the liberty of editing your post, Mysteria, to remove the link to her photos so it's not indexed by search engines, thus perpetuating the spammer's reach. Hope you don't mind.
Writius Eroticus
My my, thank you so much everyone. Totally unexpected and most welcome. Just doing my job (like, actually!) and passing on what I find to help make our new home the best it can be from the outset. I have a reputation as a beta tester for making software disintegrate in a shower of pixels, which pisses off developers (like me, ironically) who have to fix stuff to work around what I uncover. But, ultimately, I hope it helps make the experience more robust and seamless for everyone.
Really looking forward to the changes coming to Lush and hope I can continue to help as features are gradually rolled out, alongside moderating at Lush HQ.
Thank you all. To the bar!
Really looking forward to the changes coming to Lush and hope I can continue to help as features are gradually rolled out, alongside moderating at Lush HQ.
Thank you all. To the bar!
Writius Eroticus
Quote by Ensorceled
It's so weird, it's "Iean" instead of "lean." I can't even figure out how it did that.
Hehe. Typos are fine to fix, comp or not. Since you mentioned it, I just went in and fixed it for you. Your check is in the post
Writius Eroticus
Quote by seeker4
I have at least two stories on here that were "alternate" comp entries that I didn't use in the comp but still wrote and posted
Yeah, this has happened to me on more than one occasion too. Lots of stories start out as fantastic ideas in my head to fit a competition theme, but when I get them on-screen they lose their sparkle or don't work out how I envisage. So I ice them and start again. Then maybe come back to them months/years later and give them a proper story treatment.
This time around, with the tiny word count, I managed to churn out a few, which was a nice situation to be in. I had intended to extend the others for later publication, but I actually had another crack at the first of them - Chasing Daydreams - which I very very very nearly entered into the comp, and managed to cut more out so it fit in Flash. Woooo.
Writius Eroticus
Quote by seeker4
I knew where my story was going so I just wrote that. Came it at just over 1000, so I started cutting non-essentials like adverbs and rewriting some bits in less verbose ways.
That is my usual approach, almost word for word. And it worked for the 4th attempt, which made it into the comp. The other 3 ideas were like LakeShoreLimited said: too much plot for the tiny word count, so I'm saving those and going to turn them into slightly longer works to give them breathing room.
Writius Eroticus
Ah, yeah, no banner ad yet. Well spotted. Our resident artist is probably busy.
Regardless, there are some great entries on display so far, and they're still coming in fast. This is gonna be a fab contest.
After writing three stories I felt were otherwise fine but didn't fit the competition theme, I decided the fourth was good enough to meet the criteria. So, I've thrown "Plumbing Her Depths" in if anyone's interested. I may release the other three stories over the next few weeks if I spend a little time tarting them up or expanding them a little. Or not. 'Cos I'm like that.
Keep the entries rolling in. If you're on the fence about entering, jump off and do it.
Regardless, there are some great entries on display so far, and they're still coming in fast. This is gonna be a fab contest.
After writing three stories I felt were otherwise fine but didn't fit the competition theme, I decided the fourth was good enough to meet the criteria. So, I've thrown "Plumbing Her Depths" in if anyone's interested. I may release the other three stories over the next few weeks if I spend a little time tarting them up or expanding them a little. Or not. 'Cos I'm like that.
Keep the entries rolling in. If you're on the fence about entering, jump off and do it.
Writius Eroticus
Just pick whichever you feel is the main thrust (fnar) of your story.
There are some categories that have more traffic than others so if it's views you're after, choose one of those. And for any terms that your story also represents, use "appropriate tags" so readers have the maximum chance of finding stories that may interest them.
There are some categories that have more traffic than others so if it's views you're after, choose one of those. And for any terms that your story also represents, use "appropriate tags" so readers have the maximum chance of finding stories that may interest them.
Writius Eroticus
I've not written in horror yet but have tried in some of the lesser-visited categories such as SciFi and Fantasy, Supernatural, and Monster sex. Despite how good I think the stories are, none of them received anything close to the number of views and votes as other categories, nor as high as stories that contained the tag 'anal'! Might just be because I'm an average storyteller. Or that the majority of people are here for the instant gratification rather then the cerebral long haul.
The number of views and votes doesn't detract from my enjoyment bringing the stories to life, and those readers that took the plunge and commented seemed to appreciate the effort.
The number of views and votes doesn't detract from my enjoyment bringing the stories to life, and those readers that took the plunge and commented seemed to appreciate the effort.
Writius Eroticus
It's been nearly a day, but I think it's just about sinking in. This is incredible news; totally unexpected given the stiff competition and inventive takes on the theme. I think I read almost all of them this time and was very impressed.
Thank you to Nicola and the judging panel/shortlister for your time and commitment to the competition process. Thanks also to everyone who read, commented and voted on the stories. And congratulations to all entrants and fellow podium finishers. Lush competitions really bring out people's creativity and I'm proud to be part of them.
Drinks are on me. Woooohoo! 
Or will that get messy?
Thank you to Nicola and the judging panel/shortlister for your time and commitment to the competition process. Thanks also to everyone who read, commented and voted on the stories. And congratulations to all entrants and fellow podium finishers. Lush competitions really bring out people's creativity and I'm proud to be part of them.
Drinks are on me. Woooohoo!
Or will that get messy? 
Writius Eroticus
Continuing my shouts into this echo chamber, I've entered the "Proud and Kinky" competition with my girl-on-girl bondage and flogger play. There is, of course, nothing much straight about these two when it comes to the way events unfold.
Anyone who reads "The Gift of Leather" please let me know what you thought of it. And also, while you're there, please dip your toe in the work of some of my fellow entrants because there are some corking stories in the running and at less than 2500 words each, the time zips by.
Anyone who reads "The Gift of Leather" please let me know what you thought of it. And also, while you're there, please dip your toe in the work of some of my fellow entrants because there are some corking stories in the running and at less than 2500 words each, the time zips by.
Writius Eroticus
Hadn't considered changing the font size/face for editing. That's a neat idea, thanks for sharing. Part of the reason things get missed is because the brain is tricked into skipping words, and this is especially true due to familiarity with word order and position.
Otherwise, yeah, all the good advice above. Reading aloud, even muttering under your breath as you read, is a fab way to figure out if sentences are too long or don't flow, or need commas for pauses. Or require a tweak/rewrite.
My biggest problem when writing is not carrying on from where I left off, but going back to the beginning to reread, and I end up editing some of it, work my way to the part I stopped at last time, and run out of steam.
Otherwise, yeah, all the good advice above. Reading aloud, even muttering under your breath as you read, is a fab way to figure out if sentences are too long or don't flow, or need commas for pauses. Or require a tweak/rewrite.
My biggest problem when writing is not carrying on from where I left off, but going back to the beginning to reread, and I end up editing some of it, work my way to the part I stopped at last time, and run out of steam.
Writius Eroticus
I wasn't going to enter but had a burst of inspiration and decided to give "The Gift of Leather".
There are some superb entries in the comp and I urge anyone who hasn't checked them out to do so. Up until I submitted mine I'd only read 1. Now I've read all but a tiny handful, and I'll get to those as soon as I can.
There's still time to get your stories in and reach the requisite 10 votes before the deadline so if you're on the fence about entering, now's your chance.
There are some superb entries in the comp and I urge anyone who hasn't checked them out to do so. Up until I submitted mine I'd only read 1. Now I've read all but a tiny handful, and I'll get to those as soon as I can.
There's still time to get your stories in and reach the requisite 10 votes before the deadline so if you're on the fence about entering, now's your chance.
Writius Eroticus
Quote by LucaByDesign
Have you shot creative footage, are a filmmaker as well as a writer?
I've only penned shorts and a screenplay so far. Never actually got as far as shooting the footage. On my list.
Been involved with a few film/TV projects by other people, though. Fun!
Writius Eroticus
My wife has produced this on occasion and I'm not sure the exact combination of circumstances under which it happens. It's fucking delicious and so, so sexy.
Writius Eroticus
Since the Microfiction category is often squirreled away from mainstream eyes, I figured I ought to pimp my tiny 100-word foray into rope play. "Fantastic Breasts And Where To Bind Them" is where it's at.
Writius Eroticus
It varies by category to some degree, but for me as a reader I like to know why people are doing what they do rather than just being a series of dismembered body parts jigging and gushing. And as a writer I like to build a little intrigue.
While the ratio of sex-to-story (as in actual sex acts vs character development/backstory/setup/payoff) might be low in some of mine, I do like to knit both aspects with sexual tension. So there's this undercurrent of desire that runs through the piece as it builds (e.g. in "The Edge Of Control" or "Fate Into Doubt Won't Go"). After all, this is an erotic story site so if there wasn't any compelling reason to read through a few thousand words of sexless setup for 10-25% actual bonking, people would go elsewhere.
Flash is different. There's so little to play with that there's no time to build. That need has to be present from the first paragraph ("Scrabble") or even first line ("Former Good Girl") and all the story has to fit around it.
tl;dr I prefer a larger chunk of story to actual sex. Too much of tab-P-goes-in-slot-V becomes fatiguing. But in those story segments, I expect a lot of sexiness to keep me reading.
While the ratio of sex-to-story (as in actual sex acts vs character development/backstory/setup/payoff) might be low in some of mine, I do like to knit both aspects with sexual tension. So there's this undercurrent of desire that runs through the piece as it builds (e.g. in "The Edge Of Control" or "Fate Into Doubt Won't Go"). After all, this is an erotic story site so if there wasn't any compelling reason to read through a few thousand words of sexless setup for 10-25% actual bonking, people would go elsewhere.
Flash is different. There's so little to play with that there's no time to build. That need has to be present from the first paragraph ("Scrabble") or even first line ("Former Good Girl") and all the story has to fit around it.
tl;dr I prefer a larger chunk of story to actual sex. Too much of tab-P-goes-in-slot-V becomes fatiguing. But in those story segments, I expect a lot of sexiness to keep me reading.
Writius Eroticus
Quote by seeker4
Making names that sound strange and foreign without making the text unreadable.
This.
Niomi is a great character name. As you say, nicely nameish without being too obscure.
Writius Eroticus
@LakeShoreLimited and seeker4. True. If it's used well and is totally left field like that, and feeds the story with intrigue then why the hell not! But if it's just thrown in as a name because the author picked one at random and it doesn't fit the character and their backstory, then it can be momentarily jarring for a reader.
For fantasy and sci-fi, I sometimes find authors go too far the other way to call their characters unpronounceable or obscure things (or bad spellings of conventional names) to push the idea that it's an alternative reality. If I'm reading and can't figure out if the object being referred to is a person or place, I tend to switch off.
*snore*
For fantasy and sci-fi, I sometimes find authors go too far the other way to call their characters unpronounceable or obscure things (or bad spellings of conventional names) to push the idea that it's an alternative reality. If I'm reading and can't figure out if the object being referred to is a person or place, I tend to switch off.
"Join me at Imtrudbula's for the gathering," commanded Ryhphe. "Anillavre and the Pleviobs will be there to witness the ascension of Garaabz."
*snore*
Writius Eroticus
It matters to me, both as reader and writer. If I read a story about a wild hellcat with nipple piercings and a penchant for anal sex in public, it seems incongruous to discover she's called Edna. Not that old names associated with grandmas can't come back in vogue - they do - but a well-chosen name can add to a character's gravitas and finish off the mental imagery.
I do what Ensorceled says, mainly. Pick a name that seems to fit and run with it. Sometimes it sticks, other times Find n' Replace is my friend. And other times, the name defines the story, like in my Flash piece "Holy Trinity".
I do what Ensorceled says, mainly. Pick a name that seems to fit and run with it. Sometimes it sticks, other times Find n' Replace is my friend. And other times, the name defines the story, like in my Flash piece "Holy Trinity".
Writius Eroticus
Quote by Liz
My next job is to play around with Wireshark
Hardcore! I tried packet sniffing when I was trying to reverse engineer a WiFi extender that was EOL'd by the company and needed a web portal for configuration that they shut off. Hope you have more luck than I did.
It really does sound as if they've deliberately nobbled VoIP on that model doesn't it? Annoying.
Writius Eroticus
I love short films. And this one's a cracker, thank you for sharing it. Wow.
It's also here:
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x80jndp
and here:
https://vimeo.com/272934760
for those who don't want to fill Google's ad coffers.
I've written a couple of shorts that I've sadly never had the balls to shoot. Maybe I should...
It's also here:
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x80jndp
and here:
https://vimeo.com/272934760
for those who don't want to fill Google's ad coffers.
I've written a couple of shorts that I've sadly never had the balls to shoot. Maybe I should...
Writius Eroticus
Weird indeed. You seem to have troubleshot (troubleshooted?) everything I'd have tried.
The only possible reasons I can think of for a network-enabled device on DHCP being inaccessible is because the router is supplying an IP address to either the phone or your PC that are on different subnets/VLANs. Quite why a router would do that out of the box is unclear but maybe it sees the two devices as different classifications and 'conveniently' subnets them for you?
Bottom line as you know: if your VoIP phone and PC are assigned the same subnet it should be pingable and web-accessible on port 80.
Random long shots, none of which I expect to bear fruit:
* Does the phone config software work over port 80 or a custom port? Can the web interface port be changed? I guess if you can't access it, then that's going to be tough!
* Is that port being blocked for whatever reason by your PC's local firewall? (the Windows firewall is a pain in the arse in this regard. Sometimes it even swallows pings for no reason).
* Is the gateway IP on the phone being overridden somehow? Perhaps it's still picking up the old gateway IP from the previous router (or it's been set at some point) and the lease on the new one isn't being released/renewed properly.
* Can you directly connect your PC to the phone in any way using a crossover cable and static IPs? At least that should allow you to get at it. If that works, try using the MAC Binding feature of the router to temporarily deliver the same pair of static IPs to both devices. If it works on static IPs then there's some crazy DHCP issue at play.
I notice that the 'Vac' model of that router has dedicated VoIP functionality so all I can think of is that they're doing some device-level filtering in the 'ac' model to convince you to use their own VoIP provisioning. Sneaky if so.
The only possible reasons I can think of for a network-enabled device on DHCP being inaccessible is because the router is supplying an IP address to either the phone or your PC that are on different subnets/VLANs. Quite why a router would do that out of the box is unclear but maybe it sees the two devices as different classifications and 'conveniently' subnets them for you?
Bottom line as you know: if your VoIP phone and PC are assigned the same subnet it should be pingable and web-accessible on port 80.
Random long shots, none of which I expect to bear fruit:
* Does the phone config software work over port 80 or a custom port? Can the web interface port be changed? I guess if you can't access it, then that's going to be tough!
* Is that port being blocked for whatever reason by your PC's local firewall? (the Windows firewall is a pain in the arse in this regard. Sometimes it even swallows pings for no reason).
* Is the gateway IP on the phone being overridden somehow? Perhaps it's still picking up the old gateway IP from the previous router (or it's been set at some point) and the lease on the new one isn't being released/renewed properly.
* Can you directly connect your PC to the phone in any way using a crossover cable and static IPs? At least that should allow you to get at it. If that works, try using the MAC Binding feature of the router to temporarily deliver the same pair of static IPs to both devices. If it works on static IPs then there's some crazy DHCP issue at play.
I notice that the 'Vac' model of that router has dedicated VoIP functionality so all I can think of is that they're doing some device-level filtering in the 'ac' model to convince you to use their own VoIP provisioning. Sneaky if so.
Writius Eroticus
Yes, Luca! Very much so. King's horror is a great example of storytelling done well. I prefer when the characters and their motives drive the action.
This isn't necessarily a case of "one or the other": character then action, or action then character. As you say, you don't have to start at the beginning and spell everything out to help readers care for a character. Skilled storytellers can lead with action and interweave backstory.
I approach writing with a movie-esque air and prefer a non-linear structure. There's no intrinsic requirement for once upon a time... or my neighbour was 5'8" with a great set of tits first before the sex. Some of the best movies start in the middle, or two-thirds of the way through and then fill in the gaps or jump around.
Reservoir Dogs is one: viewers are thrown into the action fairly early on, and then the situation of events leading to the heist and its aftermath unfolds around it.
American Beauty starts at the very end so you _know_ what's going to happen and then watch the train wreck unfold as you learn more about the characters.
In my view, character and action are very much intertwined and are not exclusively partitioned into setup (backstory) and payoff (sex, in our case). Sometimes it's great to learn as a character does - as utterchaos says, first-person present tense helps in this endeavour. Other times, a story can be told first-person present then flash back. I do this a lot.
The needs of the story and the desire to tell it a particular way drive whether it's presented as a linear continuum or non-linear sequence, as in-fill to the action/drama. And this structure then drives how much is delivered to readers up-front vs how much is drip-fed throughout the action.
This isn't necessarily a case of "one or the other": character then action, or action then character. As you say, you don't have to start at the beginning and spell everything out to help readers care for a character. Skilled storytellers can lead with action and interweave backstory.
I approach writing with a movie-esque air and prefer a non-linear structure. There's no intrinsic requirement for once upon a time... or my neighbour was 5'8" with a great set of tits first before the sex. Some of the best movies start in the middle, or two-thirds of the way through and then fill in the gaps or jump around.
Reservoir Dogs is one: viewers are thrown into the action fairly early on, and then the situation of events leading to the heist and its aftermath unfolds around it.
American Beauty starts at the very end so you _know_ what's going to happen and then watch the train wreck unfold as you learn more about the characters.
In my view, character and action are very much intertwined and are not exclusively partitioned into setup (backstory) and payoff (sex, in our case). Sometimes it's great to learn as a character does - as utterchaos says, first-person present tense helps in this endeavour. Other times, a story can be told first-person present then flash back. I do this a lot.
The needs of the story and the desire to tell it a particular way drive whether it's presented as a linear continuum or non-linear sequence, as in-fill to the action/drama. And this structure then drives how much is delivered to readers up-front vs how much is drip-fed throughout the action.
Writius Eroticus
Don't run with scissors.
Don't operate a shredder drunk.
Beware that 87.4% of statistics are made up on the spot.
If nobody comes from the future to stop you from taking action, it must be a good decision.
Don't operate a shredder drunk.
Beware that 87.4% of statistics are made up on the spot.
If nobody comes from the future to stop you from taking action, it must be a good decision.
Writius Eroticus
Absolutely. Exposition is the devil's tool and I always cringe when I go back to stories I've written and find it. Which is (annoyingly) quite frequent. I'm getting better at all-but eradicating it. Not there yet.
What I meant by character-driven is that the guy doesn't just walk up to someone and whip his cock out and the girl gushes. Sex ensues.
I prefer there to be a good reason for that act. The story might start there but by the end you have a solid understanding of why it happened by revealing their motives during the storytelling. Especially during Flash stories you don't have time or word count for exposition. You throw readers into a moment and explore it. But for me, that moment needs to come from somewhere off the page rather than just be "sex for the sake of it because it's an erotic act".
If that makes any sense at all.
What I meant by character-driven is that the guy doesn't just walk up to someone and whip his cock out and the girl gushes. Sex ensues.
I prefer there to be a good reason for that act. The story might start there but by the end you have a solid understanding of why it happened by revealing their motives during the storytelling. Especially during Flash stories you don't have time or word count for exposition. You throw readers into a moment and explore it. But for me, that moment needs to come from somewhere off the page rather than just be "sex for the sake of it because it's an erotic act".
If that makes any sense at all.