I have opinions which I cannot express through some of your polls, so I will answer a few here. Hope that is okay with you.
Something in the middle. Custom backgrounds and overlays are great, but when there are ten overlays per scene it gets frustrating and it slows down the pace of the story even on modern devices. (That pink “loading” screen…)
Also, some authors mistake the overuse of overlays as “good directing”. There is a difference between being good with overlays and being a good director.
For the sake of diversity and realism, I would say both. Some characters can be very open and expressive while others may keep their feelings to themselves or simply sigh, look at you sadly, or be very subtle… just like real people.
I voted for more the merrier only because I love exploring characters. But if all the characters are bland, then one is enough.
Something in the middle, actually. There are certain factors that should be planned very carefully, especially if the plot is complex or too “long”, but as a person who regularly changes her mind, I do not think a very detailed outline is a good idea. You never know.
Sound and music are a must for me… but not every scene has to have music. I like music when it is well used. If not, I would rather read a silent story.
Regarding the number of mc and whether the mc likes to express their expression or just do but not tell, there really isn’t a set preference for me. Depending on what’s your story about and the character’s personality, whichever style you prefer is fine. Although if you want to include several PoV, I recommend waiting for a bit before switching to another character —meaning a different scene or episode altogether, as to not confuse the readers and make it seem like you’re actually playing as that character.
I chose for the planned one that I do not plan I just write as I go along which is true when I’m writing my comedy stories. For any other genre, I would definitely plan before writing
I do not advise you to release the first episode alone. Last time I checked, it is against the guidelines to have only one episode. I mean, not many people are aware of this and you probably would be safe, but just so know.
@Ensignia maybe you should ask Tyler. There is a chance I have misunderstood how this works; I have never been the most reliable source of information, but when in doubt…
I do agree that the guidelines are quite loose on their requirements though.
I’ve found that the guidelines are quite loose in terms of their requirements. While the guidelines state that it must be 3 episodes long, it does not state that stories without three or more workable episodes will be taken down. Furthermore I have seen that several authors (I won’t name them in case episode decides to remove the stories,) have gotten around this requirement by making two “shell episodes” which basically go round in a loop.
I'm bad at explaining but this is what I mean by "shell episodes."
The episode is basically a black screen which tells the reader something like “this story is being continued.” or something similar. This prevents readers from losing their passes, and also means that the author can upload one or two chapters instead of 3 to begin with.
I would then bulk these shell episodes out with scenes from the first episode, although the reader wouldn’t be able to see this.
I have seen authors do this before with no consequence, so I am wondering if it is possible to release just the one episode to get feedback, and also give myself time to write the next?
I may possibly release two episodes and leave the third one as a shell episode, which I think is less likely to draw attention for not having 3 full episodes. This would also give readers more of a taste of the story, meaning they’re more likely to come back.
Good impressions are much needed for me.
I’ll exit the story if I find it repetitive or just horribly done. If I don’t exit, I just play it to see how bad it is. I’m sure none of you would want anyone to read your stories for that reason, though