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Hello everyone,
After much deliberation, we are about to introduce official moderation on Talkback. As many of you will know, we've previously tried to leave discussions up to you as much as possible, and for the most part, everything has run smoothly, but as the site, and number of users, have grown, that has become less practical.
We will mostly just be ensuring threads do not drift off topic, and attempting to minimise disruption, but as ever, contact us if you think a thread or comment needs attention.
Happy talkbacking!
Webbo
Comments
Happy new year and good luck with the moderating
Lolli
As I said, I'll give it a month.
We have to accept that parts of Talkback are open to the world and there are rules to conform to consequently, and I doubt that it will be a case of 'whinging' with 'blown out of proportion complaints' as you fear.
Thanks for letting us know Webbo.
Yes we do drift off soetimes, but if it drifts too far a member will usually bring it back.
It's a bit of a minefield however you look at it. All I can say is good luck to the mods! (Having been a moderator on a fan site I know it's not an easy job).
My concern is that no information has been given on who is going to moderate the forum, or on how moderation is going to work here. If it's going to take the form of the odd interruption from a relatively faceless tech-guy, then no, I don't think that's a good idea.
I've recently been made a moderator on Absolute Write, which is huge and very broad in its scope. It's a complex and difficult skill to learn, and I'm in awe of the more experienced moderators there, who do a very good job (often so delicately no one who isn't a mod is aware of what's happening). I suspect that good moderating could take this board several steps further and make it far better: but bad moderating could kill it.
I suppose it depends what you come here for. I guess if I was coming for showing my writing, having it discussed/critiqued, or reading a lot of information about writing in topics rather like a book, I would be disappointed.
However if you have something to ask here it virtually always gets answered very constructively by a variety of opinion whether the thread goes off topic or not.
Personally I come here as a writer to talk to other writers.. it's lonely business and you need to talk to people who understand word-play and the sort of issues you are faced with, even if it is only loneliness.
I find that anyone stepping out of line is corrected mostly quite mildly by other TBers, with only the occasional ruckus. What I do find is that questions asked of you Webbo don't get attended to very quickly... is that because you are doing a lot of other things?
Liz - I'm afraid we are all busy with a whole range of other activities from running Writers' News and Writing Magazine to maintaining websites for the rest of the Warners Group but hopefully we'll be more approachable now. It was traditionally the policy that we didn't join in discussions on Talkback, but the time is right for us to become more involved.
It's something we'll get used to slowly, so that Talkback can be a better forum for everyone.
TB has lost too many good members because of nastiness, and that's why I spend more time over at AW these days.
[quote=Baggy Books]My main concern is that by ensuring we don't go off-topic, we risk not developing conversations and subjects which are still of interest. [/quote]
Over on AW if an interesting conversation arises, it will be split off onto a different thread.
Oh righto. See you on the naughty thread, laters. :)
AbsoluteWrite is a benchmark site, and hopefully we can achieve something similar with a UK focus.
I appreciate Talkback - often as light relief but also as a great source of help and information. I'd be sad if it changed too much.
It also won't be just me - there will be at least three of us at any given stage.
In which case I don't mind. I communicate mainly via whispered discussions and if they are moderated then I'd leave altogether. It's like being at school.
I'm okay with it, since I hardly contribute any more since there's nothing really worth contributing to.
Good, cos happy smiley people are what's needed around here STF. :)
Thank you.
A timely intervention.
I, for one, was beginning to get a tad peeved with certain comments, but held back as I respect too many fellow writers on here. I really appreciate Talkback and, as I've said before, it's been my equivalent of a writers' group and a catalyst for the exciting writing journey I've embarked upon - which is why I often promote this forum on both my blogs.
Regards,
Col
Good post Col.
AW has two mantras:
1. Respect your fellow writer.
2. Own your words.
Two ethics that should be adopted here.
Have you got a link for Absolute Write, Stirling? Not that I'm clearing off, but I'd like to take a look.
[quote=Pixie J King]I hardly contribute any more since there's nothing really worth contributing to. [/quote]
PJK, come on now, you can't make a comment like that without adding what sort of threads you would like to see and contribute to. Over to you...
I'm in favour of moderating if it makes things better. Thread integrity, for example, and I didn't enjoy the little spat recently over the One Word Challenge.
Well, I can actually. I chose not to say what ones since I don't want to start the whole debate again. But ones I can actually get my teeth into, see if my English lessons are actually working or not, and that I actually do deserve the grade I got. And more on writing too. But as I said, I'm not getting into that argument, since I get shouted down on. I'll just stick to posting when I want to post. When something interests me.
Put up a thread or two on exactly what you want to, and you'll find support from the right people, I'm sure.
And what, let them sink without a trace like previous member's attempts have?
As I said, I refuse to relight the debate again.
I don't want to start a spat or continue the one that emerged in the OWC rules and queries, but it should be recognised that some writing sites where stories are posted do contain a basic warning- as this lets potential readers know that there could be content included at some time that they may not like. Everyone is different. It isn't about censorship it is about respect for other readers or writers.
I personally would welcome the Moderators view on this matter so that we can all continue to contribute to the OWC without restriction.
http://absolutewrite.com/forums/index.php
If you do decide to become a member, I know you will fit right in!
Too much internet and too much tennis :D
The 'feel' and interest of the members will change hour by hour, week by week... threads which drop like a stone one day may be a hive of activity the next, or maybe the next month or whatever.
Sadly this will mean that a single member may find what they are interested in not the topic of the moment, but it will not always be the way.
It's so easy to feel left out or not attended to on a forum, but I have come to realise that it isn't like that at all, it's not personal, it's just the mechanics of the thing.
It probably puts some people off posting to discover their serious question has been 'answered' by half a page of jokes and chats that don't relate to the original post, or that their post is lost beneath dozens of fun posts. They might think their comments were unwelcome or not of interest. Maybe that's partly what Pixie means about being shouted down?
St Force - I intend to be most severe with those threads![/sarcasm] Those are yours to do with as you please, and we're not here to spoil anybody's fun, but as some others have suggested, perhaps we'll try to keep serious questions slightly more serious than they have been in the past. Dwight's phrase "thread integrity" is at the front of my mind.
Ha! Those are two of "my" boards at Absolute Write. I'm glad you like them.
[quote=LizB]Steps further towards what HPRW? [/quote]
With all due respect to the people who both run and participate in this forum, it's not seen as particularly cutting-edge by the people I know in the publishing business. It's too small, and (compared to sites like Absolute Write, Write Words and Zoetrope) relatively unsophisticated in its content.
I know of several writers (a few who are big names) who won't even read this forum because they've seen so much bad advice dished out here, and so much bickering and rudeness. AW and WW don't have that problem because people know that the moderators won't allow it; and both of those places have literary agents, editors and prizewinning writers as ordinary, every-day members. They have a high standard of publishing knowledge, and a high level of expertise, which I've not seen here.
As I said before, good moderation by a team of people who know about publishing might well improve that. Bad moderation won't help anything.
;)
Will you be having a spring clean around here soon then? Only I'm intending 2010 to be my best writing year, not 2009.
Also, where that banner pops up at the top of the page, directly below it should be a set of links, "Discussions", "Categories", etc. Can everyone else see those links? It seems the banner is obscuring them on my screen