This was created a few days ago for Terri. She is from the UK, so I wanted to make something for her which would not only make her a gothy slut, but also remove her ethnicity (those were all part of her preferences at one point or another.) The only error I made was after I posted, I realized that I had made a caption very similar to this one for her last time, though at least that one was semi-voluntary. I made reference to that in my comments about the caption, and she was fine with it. My added comment was "I have really given you a shoe fetish, haven't I? Just seems to fit you I think. Maybe next caption, I'll have you stealing shoes instead of asking to borrow them!"
The main reason I wanted to post this caption is to show how making comments can be fun and beneficial to everyone.
There is a bit of "Dee canon" so to speak that I steal shoes from Rachel's closet. It was a joke when I became an admin that I had stolen Rach's "big girl shoes" aka "the boss heels" and all sorts of Haven members have riffed on that general theme.
Steffie posted the first comment, which was:
Hmmm, I could swear I saw Rachel wearin a pair of boots just like that last week. Odd, huh?
After that, Terri posted a comment thanking me for the caption and her being a "shoe hound". Then Petra came by with her little bon mot ..
Watch out Dee, I loaned Terri a pair of bunny slippers and when she returned them there were 8 of 'em rather than just two. I told her to keep the bunnies separated. Who knows what kind of trouble she'll get into with some heeled boots
What Petra did there was to reference the caption posted, and have fun with Terri, the recipient of the caption. She was witty and engaging, and made a connection with her.
Terri ended up replying to Petra with a comment of her own:
Well I liked them so much I had to buy more...or did I? I don't know I kind of zone out in shoe stores. Ooh I saw this cute pair of Mary Janes though...
Now Terri has gotten into the fun. Perhaps she will make a caption for Pea involving bunny slippers, or some sort of shoe thing. Petra might see that Terri mentioned Mary Jane shoes (or the candy with a magical power perhaps?) and see a picture that reminds her of Terri. If they didn't know each other (not sure if they did) perhaps they will look more closely at their work the next time they see something posted. No matter what, it helps to build up the community and make people friendlier with one another.
Most of my Haven friendships were formed out of comments and witty banter in posting to the Haven. There really is no substitute for just chatting and commenting to build relationships. Will you hit it off with everyone? Probably not, but if you find a few like-minded people on your wavelength, you get more invested with the scene, and increase your enjoyment tenfold!
DISCUSSION QUESTION: Do you take the time to read all the comments on a TG caption, or just read the caption and move along? For those who caption, How much do you use comments as a guideline to what worked and what didn't? Do you use peoples comments as a guideline when making captions, or just their preferences?
with any writing, I believe you should invoke a response. If you can invoke someone to comment on a caption, you've achieved part of the goal. I not only want to invoke a response, but a genuine, spontaneous one. It's tough, but I'm often surprised at what does. Things that I don't think work often pull out the most excitement from others. Things that push my own buttons often seem to pass others by.
ReplyDeleteI often read the comments on a caption because it's interesting to see what people say. If I'm commenting, then I try to comment first, then I read comments. It's a rule of mine simply because when I used to write movie reviews I would write it first, THEN read other reviews to see what ideas others found in the same movie.
Oh I definitely incorporate comments by people into captions I make for them. It isn't all the time, but it happens quite often. If someone takes the time to write something thoughtful or funny or sexy or whatever about a caption, it helps me get to know her. The more I know someone, the more I can personalize the caption.
ReplyDeleteI actually find that comments are often a much better indication of someone's likes and dislikes than their preference page. I find that preferences pages for people at the Haven are often lacking. They are done at one point in time, but we all evolve over time, and unless you go back and constantly edit your prefs they are days or weeks or months behind your current state of mind.
I also find that people try to be generic with their prefs. They say things like, "I'll love whatever you make for me," or they'll list out every transformation method in the book and not choose a hair color or a body type or a rating. I did this when I first started at the Haven in the hopes that it would make it easier on people. However as I capped more, I realized that people with more specific preferences were much easier to caption. It is really hard to come up with something original for a "whatever you feel like" preference than it is for a "I like blonds with glasses and stripped leggings who lose control over their body, but are aware of what's going on."
Of course people are embarrassed to put down everything that they really want to see ... or at least I am and I project that onto other people. This is where comments come in as a great help in figuring out what people like. I mean sure you aren't going to find out that Caitlyn loves humiliation by reading one comment, but after reading a few comments you can put the pieces together. People say things in their comments as a spur of the moment thought and that almost always gives a much better insight into who they are than the long thought out prepared preferences page.
Blah blah blah, that was a long drawn out way of saying, "yes I use comments to inform my opinion of people. I like 'em and I read 'em quite often."
Great discussion topic Dee.
I'll admit that I don't read all of the comments. It just depends on my mood when I am browsing. I will say that if I really like the cap I read all of the comments. I've been trying to comment more (not really succeeding at the Haven) and something that helps is reading other comments.
ReplyDeleteI try to use comments as a guideline as to what worked and what didn't. I like it when comments go into at least a little detail as to what they liked. Was it the story? A particular phrase? The picture? That really helps a lot. I'll use those types of comments to help focus future caps all day long.
The ones that I stay away from are the quick fun comments like "Oh I would get down on my knees and blow that guy all day long!". I make those fairly often, even though I may not like the idea of becoming a bimbo. So I try to give commenter a little latitude of playing around. But the more comments I read, the more I get to know the person, and what they like and don't like. That type of personal build up helps a lot!
But while I may use a comment or two as a guide, I use their preferences as a rule. I may take a comment (like the one above) the wrong way, but if their preferences say they only want R rated captions, then I'm not pulling out the hard core image I may have thought to use from one of their comments.
I do agree with Petra that preferences are a little dated just weeks after being posted. I know mine have evolved, and I try to keep them up to date (but I will be stopping by and updating them today!). I'm a little mixed on whether I want to see specifics, or have it open. Having it open can let me play a lot with a caption, but I lack that first spark to get me going. Sometimes I need that spark!
@ Caitlyn
ReplyDeleteI try to post a new little "thing" I've noticed I am into at that present time every few months. People do appreciate that when you can point them in a certain direction. I REALLY appreciate it!
@ Petra
I can't take all the credit. The topic rattled around in my head due to Caitlyn posting a caption based on the comments made in one of her captions. I thought it would be good to revisit commenting, and hopefully tickle some readers into commenting more in blogs and on the Haven.