Another poll about voting…

There are two stories nominated (among others, more likely ): ABC and XYZ. You liked XYZ the most, but, according to rumors, feedback given etc., ABC is more likely to win. Which one would you vote?

If you think this is your own private decision, you can just answer the post and not post any replies.

Thank you,
AnnaBtG. (just curious)

This doesn't make sense to me, Anna. If I liked XYZ most, why on earth would I vote for ABC??


Wendy

IMO, there are some reasons someone would do that for, and that's why I'm posting this poll.

Some people, i.e., might think that 'I don't need to spend my votes in vain for a story that's not going to win.'

Or maybe 'what will my fellows think if I'm the only one who voted for XYZ?'

Or even 'well... on a second thought, maybe ABC is better, after all... since so many people say so...'

Or who knows what.

The thing is, I've seen it happening (not in Kerths) and I even did it once. (Don't ask why; I was young and silly )

AnnaBtG. (curious to see other people's opinions)

I don't really get this poll, where's the option of 'I have my own thoughts and want to vote for what I think is best because I am an individual and don't need others to tell me what to vote for.'

Seriously, you should have an option for 'nothing influences my vote, I spend all year reading the fics and place them in my probable nomination piles based on how well I liked what I read.'

Well, if you tweak the question slightly, it might seem more familiar -- would someone vote for ABC because that's the story all the "cool" people are talking about? Would that make someone feel pressured to go along with the group, or feel intimidated that their own opinion was a stupid one?

I hope not. I don't know of anyone who would let that stuff sway their vote, although there may be a few people out there... that's one of the reasons we have a secret ballot. No one knows who you voted for unless you tell them.

Personally, I vote for the story that I think is best written and that best fits the category. Now, if there are two equally great stories in one category (XYZ and TUV <g> ), I consider a few secondary factors -- can I vote for one or both of them in another category somewhere? Like, if XYZ is only in this category, while TUV is also nominated in a few others, I'd probably vote for XYZ here. Is one of them written by an author who's already won a few Kerths, while the other one's written by a newbie/no Kerth author? I might well decide to vote for the newbie's story. Keep in mind, all this is only if I think both these stories are equally wonderful.

Yes, I know, I'm probably overthinking the whole thing

Overall, I vote for the stories that impressed me most, no matter what anyone else is saying about them.

PJ

Somehow it's not terribly surprising that all the votes are for favorite story instead of the "popular" story.

Of course, I've never been one to give in to peer pressure of any kind.

Neither have I, Roger.

We had a mock election in my HS, to mirror the real presidential election. I was one of TWO people (out of about 100) who voted for one of the the candidates. And I (unlike whoever the other person was) loudly and publicly admitted to it.

I would vote for XYZ of course no matter what others might say

sunshine

Oh, gosh. XYZ every time! I do tend to 'overthink' as much as Pam though. <G> There are always too many stories that I loved in a year and too few slots to nominate them in. So I do a bit of fiddling around to get as many of the ones I enjoyed and think are deserving of a nomination in as I possibly can.

I wouldn't let popular opinion or anyone else influence which story I voted for, at any point.

Well...other than what the pin tells me to do, of course.


LabRat

You have talking jewelry, Labby?

LOL, Rivka. I have a pin. It comes out each year around Kerth time and has become somewhat infamous all on its own.

Generally, I complain that there are too many great stories to choose from, so out comes the pin and a list and where the pin lands...

Well, actually, so far I've never had to use it. But I keep it handy each year, just in case.

LabRat

Labby is a HP character! Which one was it who chose his classes by jabbing with his wand at the list of choices?

I think it was Neville...

AnnaBtG. (checking 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'...)

P.S.: Oops, no. It was Dean (<G>) Thomas.

I vote for the story which I think is best according to the category it's been nominated in. No clever tactics, no voting for friends, no voting for the stories I think are good even if they don't fit the category, no nothing. I'm so dull.

Yvonne

Well, is this the first poll we've done where everyone agrees? 100% ...oh my

as of right now anyway

It's good that we agree in this.

AnnaBtG. (not implying anything more than what I said)

I'm definitely an XYZ kind of person. Believe me, going with something that's "cool" or is more likely to be noticed has not started in my life yet, nor do I plan it to.

I would also vote for XYZ.

However, what has prompted me to post a reply is actually something that Pam said:

Pam, I know that you said that this might only be a consideration if both stories were equally wonderful, and I realise that this may be the most minor detail in making your decision. And I'm sure that you would do this with the best of intentions, to provide encouragement. Nonetheless, I have to say that this leaves a somewhat nasty taste in the back of my throat.

Why? Simple. I am a no-Kerth author. I've been nominated, but I have yet to win. And if, by some miracle, I win one day, I would like to think that it was purely because I wrote a story that people liked, not because some kind of 'pity me' element entered into the decision-making process. To know that that might be influencing voters just serves to feed into my already flourishing nest of insecurities!

Message: this no Kerth winner doesn't want people to vote for her stories because she is a no Kerth winner. She wants people to vote for them because they deserve the vote. No other reason.

Ach, well. Given my past performances, I'm sure the debate is entirely academic anyway.

Chris (stepping off her soap box, and with profound apologies to Pam who, she knows, made a very innocent comment!)

Sorry, Chris, didn't mean to step on your toes! If it'll make you feel any better, I could promise never to vote for you! Unless, of course, you write more really good stories

Seriously, I admit I hadn't thought of it that way. I just like to "spread the wealth" where possible. Plus I've already won multiple Kerths, and while I won't lie and say I don't want any more of them, I do tend to feel it should be someone else's turn up on stage. And, IMO, there are excellent authors in FOLCdom who haven't quite made it up there yet, for various reasons.

Several years ago, two stories I loved made the ballot, in two categories each. But they were the same two categories, and they both fit both categories very well. I haven't seen vote tallies, so I could be totally imagining this, but I think it's very possible that those two stories split their votes. If half the readers voted for a story in Category A, and the other half vote in Category B, then in each case it's only got half as many votes as it might otherwise have gotten, and a totally terrific story might miss out on winning. Or, again, maybe I'm totally overthinking things.

Anyway, I'm probably the only person who uses such a torturous process, so I'm not gonna make much of an impact anyway

PJ