Young Writers Society

The first month of 2019 has come to a close. With it, we've seen an explosion of incredible new stories over in the storybook section of the site. But we're always down for more people joining in on the storybooking fun, so us over in the Storybook Crew have a few questions for you to help us figure out how to make the storybook section even more enjoyable than it already is. Even if you don't take part in roleplays, storybooks or DTWH threads, we'd like you to answer some of the questions below.

Answer as many as you'd like, and be as open with your answers as you can be - every bit of information will help! The italicized questions are for everyone. The red questions are for people who don't write in the storybook section, and the green questions are for people who do. Feel free to delete any questions that you don't answer or don't pertain to you.

Here's what we'd like to hear from you about:

Do you do anything in storybook section of the site?

Do you know what each section of the storybook tab does? (Those sections are Storybooks, Archived Storybooks, The Double-Trouble Writing Huddle, Roleplay Realm, General Storybook Discussion and Specific Storybook Discussion.)

What intimidates you most about the storybook section?

If you have participated in any of the sections before, why did you stop?

Do you write storybooks, roleplays and/or DTWH threads? Why do you write for what you put?

Why don't you write for the other ones?

How did you find your first storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread?

Have you ever been the driving writer (or creator) of a storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? If you haven't, why?

Have you heard of the Storybook Club? If you have, why or why haven't you joined it?

What do you like the most about your writing form(s) of choice? What do you like the least?

What do you dislike about the storybook section as a whole?

What do you like about the storybook section as a whole?

What suggestions do you have for the storybook section?

Is there anything that wasn't covered in the previous questions that you want to tell us? If there is, what is it?





Thank you for helping us out with this survey!

Do you do anything in storybook section of the site? I roleplay and then try to do Storybooks. The latter doesn't always work out but I try.

Do you know what each section of the storybook tab does? (Those sections are Storybooks, Archived Storybooks, The Double-Trouble Writing Huddle, Roleplay Realm, General Storybook Discussion and Specific Storybook Discussion.) Not all, but some.

What intimidates you most about the storybook section? everything

If you have participated in any of the sections before, why did you stop? life. Probably.

Do you write storybooks, roleplays and/or DTWH threads? Why do you write for what you put? i write in rps and then attempt to for sbs. I write because i wanna, and i don't need more reason than that.

Why don't you write for the other ones? uhhhh, to scary?

How did you find your first storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? Sae said "hey join us" and i was like "ight"

Have you ever been the driving writer (or creator) of a storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? If you haven't, why? I run Axcel - The World but like it has it's on days and it's off days. Currently, its in it's off month.

Have you heard of the Storybook Club? If you have, why or why haven't you joined it? Haven't heard of it, I'm probably scared of it

What do you like the most about your writing form(s) of choice? What do you like the least? uhhhhhhhhhh yes

What do you dislike about the storybook section as a whole? Scary

What do you like about the storybook section as a whole? Some really cool people are around here

Is there anything that wasn't covered in the previous questions that you want to tell us? If there is, what is it? if a mod is reading this, you're doin' great.

Do you do anything in storybook section of the site?

I do!

Do you know what each section of the storybook tab does? (Those sections are Storybooks, Archived Storybooks, The Double-Trouble Writing Huddle, Roleplay Realm, General Storybook Discussion and Specific Storybook Discussion.)

I do for this one, too.

Do you write storybooks, roleplays and/or DTWH threads? Why do you write for what you put?

I write for all of them! I enjoy writing for storybooks because they're like writing for a novel, only with other people. Roleplays are fun for the character interactions and the relatively little planning I need to do, and I love DTWH threads for being able to have characters from roleplays grow closer.

Why don't you write for the other ones?

N/A

How did you find your first storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread?

I don't remember exactly how I found it, but I think I was just scrolling through the site and stumbled on the storybook section.

Have you ever been the driving writer (or creator) of a storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? If you haven't, why?

I've been the writer behind many threads for

Have you heard of the Storybook Club? If you have, why or why haven't you joined it?

I'm the one who made it, so, yes I've heard of it. I made it because I thought it would be cool to build a tighter community of storybookers on YWS.

What do you like the most about your writing form(s) of choice? What do you like the least?

I love writing with other people, but hate having to plan things. The spontaneous writer in me cries out in anguish every time I realize I need to actually flesh out a decent plan, and I suspect it's why my storybooks never have been completed.

What do you dislike about the storybook section as a whole?

How I can't save character profiles while I'm working on them.

What do you like about the storybook section as a whole?

I just really love writing fun, unique stories with other people. <3

What suggestions do you have for the storybook section?

N/A

Is there anything that wasn't covered in the previous questions that you want to tell us? If there is, what is it?

N/A

Do you do anything in storybook section of the site? I've done a couple of Storybooks and been a part of a really fun DTWH thread.

Do you know what each section of the storybook tab does? (Those sections are Storybooks, Archived Storybooks, The Double-Trouble Writing Huddle, Roleplay Realm, General Storybook Discussion and Specific Storybook Discussion.) I'm pretty sure I know what everything is for - archived is for inactive SBs, DTWH is for a duo-person thread thingy, and RPs are like a shorter version of SBs.

What intimidates you most about the storybook section? I think what intimidates me the most is that I don't have much experience in being in SBs that continue for a long time, and I feel very unprepared to some users on here who are always engaged in a few SBs at a time.

If you have participated in any of the sections before, why did you stop? Time reasons, really. I don't want to fill out a really sweet CP when I know I might not have the time to really write nice posts for the storybook in general.

Do you write storybooks, roleplays and/or DTWH threads? Why do you write for what you put? I pretty much just do storybooks - I like that they're a lot closer to a novel format, and do enjoy being able to try to really insert a character into this world. I did a fun DTWH thread with @Featherstone as well.

Why don't you write for the other ones? Well, roleplays have always seemed a mysterious beast for me, and I don't feel like I have quite enough time for a thread that could have many posts to go through in a span of a few hours.

How did you find your first storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? I had just kind of joined YWS and was kind of floating through different storybooks, until I found The Queen's Curse. Looking back over this cracks me up because there are a few people I chat with somewhat regularly that came from all the way back then.

Have you ever been the driving writer (or creator) of a storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? If you haven't, why? I have been the creator of a couple of storybooks but I don't think I really ended up starting any of them (whoops.)

Have you heard of the Storybook Club? If you have, why or why haven't you joined it? I have! I very much like the idea of the club, but I don't know how much time I'll have with things, so I haven't joined yet.

What do you like the most about your writing form(s) of choice? What do you like the least? I do like that some SBs end up having certain structures to write in, like using third person or something to keep the story aligned - it's a lot of fun to experiment with different characters and feel out how you want to write them. One bad thing is when people get busy and can't get to writing (meaning me) and then the SB could end up dying out and getting archived.

What do you dislike about the storybook section as a whole? I think the rare issue can come from users not knowing what to do in a SB and people not paying attention to the given rules/going to like the main page and understanding what's supposed to happen.

What do you like about the storybook section as a whole? I like pretty much everything! Working together with other users, being able to revive old SBs if the creator feels like they have more time - everything is a lot of fun.

What suggestions do you have for the storybook section? Nothing really!

Is there anything that wasn't covered in the previous questions that you want to tell us? If there is, what is it? N/A

Do you do anything in storybook section of the site?

Do you know what each section of the storybook tab does? (Those sections are Storybooks, Archived Storybooks, The Double-Trouble Writing Huddle, Roleplay Realm, General Storybook Discussion and Specific Storybook Discussion.)

Yep, I've been around the SB section awhile.

What intimidates you most about the storybook section?
An SB is a big commitment, so it feels worse to watch an SB die than an RP. So I to be careful choosing what SBs I join. I try to think ahead and predict if I will still be interested in it in a month or so, I try to predict how dedicated the other players will be... There's a lot of guesswork involved.

If you have participated in any of the sections before, why did you stop?
I have breaks sometimes if I've been overwhelmed, especially if the threads I was in have gone quiet anyway. Though at the moment I'm in about five RPs, and two(?) SBs, and am trying to post in at least two every three days or so. It varies a lot.

Do you write storybooks, roleplays and/or DTWH threads? Why do you write for what you put?
I do write in some, because it's fun, I might be incapable of writing in long term projects without collaborators to keep me motivated, and it's good practice. Really good practice.

Why don't you write for the other ones?
Because they don't fit my interests, or because I am already in too many things at the time.

How did you find your first storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread?
Don't remember. I prolly just skimmed through some, and liked the descriptions on them.

Have you ever been the driving writer (or creator) of a storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? If you haven't, why?
I haven't yet, but I mean to when I am in less things, and I've finished perfecting the setting. Which I've been letting sit on the backburner for now because too many things.


Have you heard of the Storybook Club? If you have, why or why haven't you joined it?
Are clubs actually useful nowadays? Idk, I feel like I don't need it. I'm already in two discord YWS RP communities, I feel like joining the club would just be redundant for me. Also I joined one of the RP clubs once, woke up to hundreds of notifications, and unsubscribed immediately. I want to only get notifs for RPs I am in, not ALL of them.


What do you like the most about your writing form(s) of choice? What do you like the least?
I like writing with other people, it gets me excited, makes me come up with ideas faster, and better. Working around them can get awkward sometimes though.
Like conversations can read like

Character one: *large block of internal monologue, followed by one line of dialogue

Character two: *short line of dialogue, followed by a larger block of internal monologue, followed by a one more line of dialogue*

Character one: *let's see how many alternatives to the word 'said' I can fit in one paragraph*

But yanno. Comes with the style of RP. It can be worked around fine. It's not a big deal.

What do you dislike about the storybook section as a whole?
Lots of half-baked SBs that the creator pushed out out of haste or just a whim, with a pretty but vague premise, a vague or nonexistent plot, barely a setting to speak of.
Then few or no people join them, and they waste away.
I feel like a lot of these might have a chance if the creator just took the time to properly brainstorm what specific challenges and activities their story/setting/mechanics have to offer.

Though I have seen several really well thought out SBs with interesting settings and mechanics fall to the wayside due to not enough interest or waning activity.

At this point I'm reluctant to join SBs that don't already have people I know in them.
It can still happen, but I'm a lot more discerning these days.

What do you like about the storybook section as a whole?
The currents change. If I am completely uninterested in all the SBs out in one month, at least one premise I like will be out be the next or second next one. So yay variety.
Like, trends happen, but there's always a few oddballs in each season.


What suggestions do you have for the storybook section?
I don't really know. All the problems I can think of aren't due to the site design (which I like, it works fine), but the culture and the people, and I suppose I could maybe write a few articles or forum threads, see where that goes.

Is there anything that wasn't covered in the previous questions that you want to tell us? If there is, what is it?

Nope :p

Do you do anything in storybook section of the site?

Not as much as I used to. I've been hibernating a lot, kinda like Godzilla.

Do you know what each section of the storybook tab does? (Those sections are Storybooks, Archived Storybooks, The Double-Trouble Writing Huddle, Roleplay Realm, General Storybook Discussion and Specific Storybook Discussion.)

Yes.

What intimidates you most about the storybook section?

The storybook section is intimidated by me! It trembles at the emergence of my magnificence from years of slumber!! MWAHAHAHA!!

Although, there's a lot of weird tags and colors that are a bit intimidating...

If you have participated in any of the sections before, why did you stop?

I got busy with work and video games, so that kinda ate into my writing time. Sounds bad doesn't it?

But I think I was also kind of turned off by what was being written. A lot of the storybooks just seemed to be fan-fictions, which was just as uncreative as it gets. Then when you do write your own storybook, people just show up with the same characters all the time.

Do you write storybooks, roleplays and/or DTWH threads? Why do you write for what you put?

I always enjoyed storybooks as a sort of creative exercise. There was a lot of fun in just coming up with crazy plot ideas and seeing how the other writers reacted to it.

Why don't you write for the other ones?

I think the roleplay one wasn't around when I was last active. As for DTWH, it's really hard to find someone to partner up with. It's not just a matter of finding people that want to write, but people you want to write with.

How did you find your first storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread?

I think I may have helped introduce Storybook RPG's to YWS. My first one was on a completely different writing site. @Snoink remembers.

Have you ever been the driving writer (or creator) of a storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? If you haven't, why?

Oh yes! It's a lot of fun, but it requires a ton of time to manage it!

Have you heard of the Storybook Club? If you have, why or why haven't you joined it?

Nope! Subscribed.

What do you like the most about your writing form(s) of choice? What do you like the least?

They're too constricting and I feel like they lock you into a character, rather than letting you create things on the fly.

What do you dislike about the storybook section as a whole?

Sometimes it gets a bit too cliquey. Over time people kind of turn into snobs about the entire thing and I'm no exception.

What do you like about the storybook section as a whole?

There is so little pressure to it. You can use it to just get some writing practice, flesh out a character, try out an idea, see what works and what doesn't. It's genuinely enjoyable, whereas writing a story makes you so self-conscious all the time.

What suggestions do you have for the storybook section?

It feels like we've had the same structure forever and a lot of it was just put together on the fly. What would be interesting is if someone would sit down and think about whether there is a better way to go about this that we hadn't thought of while we were patching it all together.

Is there anything that wasn't covered in the previous questions that you want to tell us? If there is, what is it?

I think a lot of storybooks are formatted to be roughly corresponding to the written word, which is cool. But this is the age of the internet, I think it makes sense that we have storybooks that can have memes embedded in the storybook, links to maps or creatures. I think those elements are not used enough honestly.

Storybooks is just storytelling and it's time to think about how it can be rebuilt to be better!

Do you do anything in storybook section of the site?

Yes. But, I forgot the name of the stories. I shouldn't have forgotten it, hmm? Both of them are in the Roleplay Realm. I dunno if that counts, though.

Do you know what each section of the storybook tab does? (Those sections are Storybooks, Archived Storybooks, The Double-Trouble Writing Huddle, Roleplay Realm, General Storybook Discussion and Specific Storybook Discussion.)

I would've if I looked into it. But, I'll check it out soon! So, my answer is: No.

What intimidates you most about the storybook section?

What would? Nothing! Lol. Nothing intimidates me.

If you have participated in any of the sections before, why did you stop?

I stopped for a little while because I had writers block, but thankfully, it's gone now. So, I didn't get back to my sections yet, because, I have a thousand and one other things to do at home; clean, help with laundry, study, prepare tests, work, help sisters with homework, etc. I sadly, couldn't get back to my section.

Do you write storybooks, roleplays and/or DTWH threads? Why do you write for what you put?

First things first: What in the world is DTWH?

Anyways, I didn't start a roleplay or a storybook but I am currently writing in them.

Why don't you write for the other ones?

If ya mean other storybooks, then... It's usually too violent or it's over my age. Or, it sounds complicated. Or, it's closed. Or, it just doesn't sound appealing enough to me.

How did you find your first storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread?

Again, I have no clue what this DTWH is. I found it by clicking on 'Storybooks' then, clicking on 'Roleplay Realm'.

Have you ever been the driving writer (or creator) of a storybook/roleplay/DTWH thread? If you haven't, why?

No, because I am 1,000,000% sure I'll mess up or forget about it.

Have you heard of the Storybook Club? If you have, why or why haven't you joined it?

No... But it sounds interesting! But if I have, I probably forgot about it.

What do you like the most about your writing form(s) of choice? What do you like the least?

I dunno.

What do you dislike about the storybook section as a whole?

That, when I want to join a storybook and I find out it's closed or isn't for my age, or it's too violent. Just hate it when that happens!

What do you like about the storybook section as a whole?

How everyone's so welcoming. I love it. <3

What suggestions do you have for the storybook section?

Nothing. It's perfect the way it is.

Is there anything that wasn't covered in the previous questions that you want to tell us? If there is, what is it?

These were a lot of questions. My fingers got a good work out after typing the answers. Lol. Just kidding. Oh, and I love how colorful the section is, with all the tags and stuff.