The question asked by probably all new writers is “How can I tell if readers like what I write?” The answer to that question is complicated because it depends on several things like genre, how many stories the author has had published, and how long those stories have been on the site.
There are three measurements that an author on Noveltrove can use to determine if readers like their stories or if the author is just writing for personal pleasure. Those measures are the number of reads, the number of “votes”, and the number of comments. Most of us have spent some time looking at those numbers every day, at least for the first few stories. Understanding what those measures really mean requires an understanding of what people like to read and how they select what they read.
Probably the most misleading method of interpreting those measures is for the author to compare his or her numbers with the numbers of the most popular authors on Noveltrove. This is because the top eighteen authors have had stories published on the site for from two to six years. Time on the site is a big contributor to the number of reads because of two things - those authors have had time to develop a following of readers, and new readers will tend to read the most popular authors first.
Another misleading method is to look at the number of votes and comments an author has received. As I stated in another forum post, very few readers leave votes and comments. That’s true for any erotic story site, and just as with the number of reads, the longer a story in on the site, the more probable it will be read and the more probable someone will leave a vote and a comment.
The number of reads can be valuable if an author compares his or her reads per story with the number of reads for stories by other authors published within the same time frame. In other words, if the author has been writing for a year, he or she could compare his reads per story with the same measure for other authors who have been writing for the same period of time.
If we look at the top twenty authors on Noveltrove who have been members for two years or less and have written at least two stories, we can get some ideas about our relative success. The “reads” are listed below.
Most stories per author – 21
Average stories per author – 9
Fewest stories per author – 2
Most reads per story – 10237
Average reads per story – 3085
Fewest reads per story - 381
We can assume that there is something unusual about the high and low number of reads, so if we look at the stories without those numbers, we have a better picture of what to expect from our own writing.
Most stories per author – 19
Average stories per author – 9
Fewest stories per author – 2
Most reads per story - 7516
Average reads per story – 2837
Fewest reads per story - 836
There is a relationship between the number of stories and the number of reads, but it’s not absolute. The highest number of reads is for an author with only 3 stories. The author with 19 stories has 2668 reads per story, but the author with just two stories has 2773 reads per story. Why does an author with only 3 stories have so many reads and why does an author with only 2 stories have closer to the average number of reads per story and higher than the author with 19?
The answer has a lot to do with the skills of the author, but probably has as much to do with genre in which the author writes. Readers tend to read according to their sexual orientation and what they enjoy inside that orientation. According to gaytravel.com, about 4.5% of the US population currently identify as LGBT, so even a very well written story about an LGBT relationship won’t attract the number of readers that an average story about a heterosexual relationship will.
Stories with a lesbian theme will do a little better because more women identify as bisexual than lesbian and there is somewhat of a mystique about lesbians among straight men, but will still not attract the majority of readers. Stories with heterosexual BDSM content will appeal to more readers, but genres like Romance, First Time, and Straight will still garner more readers.
So, how do you judge how you’re doing and how can you improve?
If you want to make comparisons for reads, votes, and comments, compare your numbers with other authors who write in the same genre and over the same period of time. Comparing to the numbers of all Noveltrove authors is comparing apricots to porcupines. Just because you can’t seem to get two thousand reads each for your gay stories doesn’t mean you aren’t succeeding as an author. It just means your audience is smaller. There’s nothing wrong with writing for a smaller audience as long as you understand you won’t get as many reads as someone writing in a more popular genre.
The first and foremost way to improve your numbers is to keep writing. No matter how well you write, if you write only a couple stories and then stop, not enough readers will have seen your work and start looking for your next story. If a reader reads one of your stories and enjoys it, he or she will look for other stories you have published. The more stories you have on the site, the more reads, votes, and comments you’ll receive, because you’ll develop a following of readers who like what you write and how you write it. This also has a “snowball” effect. It is likely at least some readers talk to other readers on social media, and word will get around.
Second is to be a fanatic about things like spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure. It is important to note here that a “read” only indicates someone clicked on your story. It doesn’t mean they read the whole thing. If your story is difficult to read, the reader will just click the back button and go on to something else. You don’t have to write like a professional author, but your story should be easy to read.
Third, reply to each and every comment you get. People who do leave comments want to know their opinion was heard. If you ignore the comments, that same reader will probably decide you aren’t worth the trouble of more reads. The next reader will probably also read any comments on the story, and if you haven’t replied, will likely come to the same conclusion.
Fourth - this is also about genre. It’s not advisable to try to “cover all the bases” with one story. Yes, you can write a story about a fifty year old, white, transexual, dominant woman who has a first time BDSM experience that results in sex with an eighteen year old, black, submissive, gay man who likes to wear women’s underwear, but you’ll probably cause most readers to read the teaser, frown, and go on to another story.
So, have fun and be realistic about what those numbers are really telling you. Over time, those numbers will improve as long as you keep writing.