What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

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What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

ObserverSeptember 24 Jun 2013 05:35

On any SCP or tale article, what will you look for that will make you click the "+1" button?

For me, it's

1. A good concept. I can forgive a LOT if the article screams "hey, look! I'm original!"
2. Good experiment logs. Yes, yes, I am a sucker for them, since I've always been interested in the real world application of SCPs.
3. Admitting more personal bias, I am more inclined towards Safe SCPs, since, as I mentioned above, I actually prefer "wow, that's interesting" to "holy fuck, that's horrifying" in an article (though I like plenty of the latter as well).
4. Conversely, a Keter SCP has to be very, very good to earn an upvote from me, since it's very hard to pull off "dangerous to all mankind" without veering into overpowered. That, and I always have a nagging "could the Foundation realistically contain this if it existed?" feeling in the back of my mind when reading a Keter.

Last edited on 24 Jun 2013 05:38 by ObserverSeptember Show more

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

Captain Cain 24 Jun 2013 15:18

Visual on catching 106: Agent Expendible, Esquire had to stand in the middle of a doorway, and when 106 came to pocket him, four guys jumped him and threw him in the middle of the massive sphere we use now. Or whatever the current method is.

You should put a format to this thread; it's a really good idea, and if we all do numbered or bulletted lists, it'll be easier to recognize patterns that we should strive to impress upon ourselves and others. Props to you, man.

Last edited on 24 Jun 2013 15:22 by Captain Cain Show more

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

ObserverSeptember 24 Jun 2013 16:48

:) To quote SCP-420-J: "And I said that was an excellent idea, and so we did." :P

As an aside, my favorite Keter SCP is SCP-1968, to give you an idea of what I like in a Keter article.

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

Dr Balthazaar 24 Jun 2013 14:08

I basically just upvote the things that I like, but I am a sucker for ones with a little bit of body horror, or psychological horror.
At the moment, I haven't actually downvoted anything yet, because I haven't found anything that I have actively disliked. The way I see it, it's not necessarily a bad thing if it doesn't interest me, because different things interest different people.

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

toadking07 24 Jun 2013 15:30

Hmmm, can't say I have a very organized strategy when it comes to voting. Has to catch my interest or at least be well put together. Creative ideas, original concepts, good twists, stuff that makes you stop and thank the lord this thing doesn't really exist all help gather upvotes by me.

If I don't really care for an idea, but it's well put together I'll usually just not vote. Downvotes I tend to throw around for articles that aren't LOLFoundation, but have fairly ridiculous aspects to them. Overpowered subjects, something trying too be hard dark and horrifying, or simply silly use of Foundation equipment and personnel all bug me.

"So we've thrown ███ D-Class personnel and █ Mobile Task Forces at this place and all we've found out is that it eats people? Disturbing, but only because of the severe waste of valuable resources and time."

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

Aelanna 24 Jun 2013 15:37

I don't read a lot of tales for various reasons, so I don't exactly have a voting record when it comes to them. SCP articles, on the other hand:

1. It must be mechanically flawless. If it isn't obvious already, I am notorious for being able to pick out even minor mistakes in spelling, grammar, or procedure.
2. It must be plausible from an operational and canonical point of view. This means that the article in question must have properly written, sensible containment procedures that do not contradict established site canon.
   • Before anyone gets up in arms, "there is no canon" is one of the most abused catchphrases on the site. There is canon: things like the S/E/K classification system (despite how useless it is), the Level 1-5 security clearance system (even though it lacks any semblance of granularity required for a real-life security clearance system), the existence of Mobile Task Forces (even though Echo and I tend to shake our heads at how they are portrayed and/or used), and the existence of the O5 Council (even if we can't agree how many people are on it, or whether they're even people).
   • As a corollary, I think this is why I hate LOLFoundation and wacky researchers so much.
3. It must be concise and flow well. If the writing isn't structured well enough to make me want to keep reading, then the best you can do is hope for a no-vote. Consequently, useless filter material such as unnecessary logs kills my reading experience.
4. It must tell a story, even if it's only through vague references or implied back-story.
5. It must leave me thinking. This can be either a sense of wonder, morbid curiosity, or a simple desire to know more about it.
6. It must be unique. There are people who will argue for or against this policy, but if something reminds me strongly enough of another existing SCP that I am compelled to go look it up, then that pretty much kills any chance of an upvote.

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

Captain Cain 24 Jun 2013 15:55

For the sake of what I said above in response to the parent post, I'm gonna do this in a numbered list, since you set a precedent.

1. I've gotta be interested, like everyone else. Like, just a little bit, and then I will actively look for things to appreciate about the article, since, like Dr Balthazaar said, different things interest different people. But I can't go I'm reading, I'm reading, my eyes are glossing over, nothing is going BANG, and now I'm actually uncomfortable reading this, it's so un-/dis-engaging. The author has to run the ball a little, and I will try to recognize the initiative taken, or reserve my vote. If it's SO uninspiring as to make me uncomfortable, I'll downvote, although I usually reserve this for work that's exceptionally poor.
2. Unnecessary format screws or non-sequiturism. This, if not redeemed by something, will warrant a downvote. It comes off as presumptious and nearly disrespectful, although I think it usually stems from newbiness, and I've been on, and am barely out of, that side of the spectrum myself, so I'm cautious with tyrades against error (this applies to everything, really). It can usually be quickly and easily remedied, but as it's a major edit, it needs to be done by the author. That's probably for the best, anyways. Learning experience.
3. Grammar and spelling. This is, unfortunately, a dying skill that should be universally possessed. I think one of the things I appreciate about the wiki is that it's a holdout of the intelligentsia, and grammar is strictly enforced. That said, it kills an article for me when there's even a single error. It's like being kicked in the kidneys, and I'm thinking 'Don't they know? They should know, that that, that there, that isn't right.' I reserve the least patience for this, since it's completely technical, and I have a personal affinity for it. It's completely subjective, but if there's more than three errors of this caliber, I would probably downvote (although, since most established authors are good about it, there's usually way more reason to downvote than a there/their/they're/thare error).

I suppose I could make minor edits as far as three goes, but I try to refrain from that… I think it's a mental block from a few newb-mistakes that I made early on in my membership. Roget curtailed it with a PM, but I have an underlying feeling of Don't push your luck.

Last edited on 24 Jun 2013 16:06 by Captain Cain Show more

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

Vincent_Redgrave 24 Jun 2013 16:36

Seconding everything Aelanna said as far as articles go (though I'm a bit more lenient on the minor spelling/grammar error front, since those are easy fixes), with the addition that I like seeing skips that take one minor issue and run it into the ground. "For want of a nail" is my favorite trope, and I love seeing it used well. I also want to feel an emotion that permeates the article, and sticks with me afterwards, and I am a sucker for anything to do with mythology.

But as far as tales, I want to see a few things

1. Interesting, mostly realistic characters.
2. Plausible plots.
3. Good narrative flow and written intelligently and mechanically soundly.
4. Appeals to obscurity. I get tired of reading about the same skips and researchers over and over and over.
5. "easter eggs" or little in-jokes and references to other things. Handled cleverly, I love them.
6. Leave me feeling some sort of emotion that sticks with me well after I read the story.

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

RhettSarlin 24 Jun 2013 17:37

Good ideas with at least decent execution. Preferably unique, or at least a unique take on a subject. Articles that leave me wanting to know more about them, wanting to see them in person (or terrified of the idea of seeing them in person).

The worst thing to do is to make me either not care about the object to where reading about it is a chore, or to make me annoyed with it due to sucking on whatever level. Those earn downvotes.

Good ideas that catch my imagination are the best thing though, because in my opinion it's always possible to fix bad execution as long as it's not god-awful. But a well executed bad idea still sucks unless you change the idea to something good.

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

HammerMaiden 24 Jun 2013 17:57

• You need to know the language in which you are writing. Whether or not you lexify newly vernaculated utterables. Whether or not you break what rules there be. The writing of someone intentionally breaking the rules can be spotted easily so long as the writer knows what rules they're breaking and why. I need you to demonstrate that knowledge.
• I need to understand what is happening via the text alone. Finding out in the discussion will only sway me if I can go back and find it in the text. In big-boy publishing, you're not lurking in the closet waiting to spring out upon your audience and explain the nuances of whatever anomaly you're trying to describe. It must be in the work.
• You need to make me care about it. I need to feel something other than "that is definitely not the way the world works." This is my way of saying that your SCiP needs a story that reaches past the page, but is implied and alive on the page.
• The work must also be mechanically sound, by which I mean that formatting-screws have to be (extremely) well justified, and the clinical tone of the piece must be maintained throughout.
• If you break the character of a GoI or PoI as well established in other articles, you will not succeed with me. If you realize that character in a well-constructed way, kudos are forthcoming.
• Your work must add value to the SCP Foundation, its image, and its culture.
• Your work must be consistent with itself.

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

AdminBright 24 Jun 2013 17:59

It's just gotta be good.

---

Admin, SCP Wiki

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

RhettSarlin 25 Jun 2013 03:14

It's so easy, gosh. Dunno why anybody has problems with this!

Re: What does it take to earn an upvote from you?

Wogglebug 25 Jun 2013 04:01

I vote based firstly on whether there are any errors, and then whether I like the idea as it is executed. I've seen some ideas I've really hated executed really well, and the opposite. Also, if I find the writing and pacing dull enough that I don't actually make it to the end of an article, it usually reflects negatively on my judgement. As for things I like, I tend to enjoy the sort that provide especially outlandish scenarios and locations, and things that expand or add depth to the world-build of the setting as a whole.

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