My Rating Criteria and Expectations

You know, I have tried so many ways of rating. I don't like hurting someone's feelings. However, what is the purpose of Writing.Com? Is it not to tell people how well you LIKE their stuff? I recently tried out www.netflix.com. I think their rating system makes sense. For now, I'm going to try it.

One star -- I hate this item.
Two stars -- I do not like this item.
Three stars -- This item is okay.
Four stars -- I like this item.
Five stars -- I love this item!

Funny thing. I honestly like a large variety of items. I end up rating most of the things I look at at least a four star. I've been too chicken to rate things I didn't like or hated. But am I doing the writer a favor? I have no idea. I still have problems rating something a one or two. But isn't my liking part of the evaluation?

No one has problems rating movies. If you check the reviews, you'll see peoples opinions range from hate to love. And it's the same movie. I wonder what would happen if we slapped a rating on everything we read. Ah well, I can wish, can't I?

Peace. 4/8/04


I do use the criteria within

ID: 544247   (Rated: E) Comment-In-A-Box  My view on and methods of rating items on Writing.Com. by The StoryMistress

as a guideline. Below are more explanations of my idiosyncrasies in rating:

My rating criteria (revised 12/8/2002):

Static Items(non-poetry):

See Static Items(poetry) below for my criteria in rating poetry.

I tend to read most static items randomly, I get bored and look at the sponsored items, the most recently changed items on the public listings, or items in contests I enjoy and/or participate in. I will read a static item if someone asks me to, though I might ignore the request if the person is a perfect stranger and gives me no reason as to why they are asking me. I will, at times, remember to go to the ports of people on my favorites list, or people I consider friends, and read their work.

I have no real objection to any genre or sub-type, with one sub-type exception. I tend to avoid novels for a variety of reasons. I prefer to read longer works lying on the couch, or in another place that is more comfortable than sitting before the computer. I prefer to read completed novels. I find most novels on Writing.Com are works in process. I don't even know if the author will carry the story through, and yes, getting stuck with an unfinished story, bugs me. Lastly, most novels on Writing.Com aren't very good. I have only encountered three novels here that were complete and that I really liked. Admittingly, this is mainly because I do my best to avoid novels.

I will read a novel if it is someone whose work I admire, especially if that person asks me for my opinion as they are going through the revision process.

5.0 - The item has wowed me in some manner or the other, I have started to tear up, to heartily laugh, or just felt, wow. There can be something so clever or the style of the piece is delightful. I can give a five with good conscience if the item merely has a couple of minor errors of spelling or grammar. How can you improve your item to get a five out of me? You probably can't. I am reserving the 5.0 for the best of the best. Most things I read are not going to be 5.0 quality. I don't require something to be on the level of say, James Joyce or Ernest Hemmingway, just so long as I've been impressed in reading the item.

4.5 - The item is solidly good. I'd be more than happy to read the item in any paid-for media. I like it, but it just doesn't have that zing. I might give a 4.5 instead of a 5.0 if there are enough spelling or technical type errors to irritate me. I suppose I could give a 4.5 instead of a 5.0 if I've really been enjoying myself, but there is just something a little off in the story and I can't tell you what.

4.0 - The item is still good, however, it needs corrections of some nature or another. I'll try to point out the corrections. If the item doesn't require corrections, well, I'll rate something a 4.0 if I feel as if I would still enjoy encountering the item in a book, magazine, or newspaper. I suppose that something I rated a 4.0 could be improved to a 4.5 quality, but it would take some revision that I may not necessarily be able to explain. I'll do my best to give my impressions of the item.

3.5 - We're reaching problem areas here. Mostly the problem is that I am bored in some way in reading the item. I don't consider a 3.5 rating a negative rating, either. If I have given a 3.5 rating, I have stuck with the piece long enough to warrant rating it. I won't give a rating for something I haven't read most of the way through. A lot of technical errors can yield a 3.5 rating. Problems in the elements of a short story might yield a 3.5 rating. If an essay is bland and doesn't adequately consider all sides of the question or the most recent research, I might give a 3.5. I will do my best to explain why I rated something a 3.5 and suggest areas for improvement. Can you change a 3.5 item to a 4.0 or higher? Probably, but it will take some hard work in revising.

3.0 - A 3.0 is not much different than a 3.5, except I'm having a more difficult time finding the positive. I have been bored. Once again, I'll try to give suggestions for improvement.

2.5 - Now we are getting into extensive problem areas. I rarely stick with an item long enough to give it a 2.5. I have rated a few items a 2.5, mainly because I have tried to read the piece and been frustrated because the author has given me no indication the piece is unfinished. I've been frustrated because there appears to be very little attention to technical details. I can give a 2.5 with good conscience if the item has multiple errors in both technical matters and following any standards of writing a good short story/essay, or whatever they are writing. I'll try to give suggestions for improvements, but mostly I just wonder why in the world someone even bothered posting this item.

2.0 - Similar to 2.5, except even worse. I don't think I've given a 2.0.

1.5 - I'm not sure what would bring an item down to the 1.5 level for me. I have used 1.5 as an attention-getting advice if I can't even read an item because the author hasn't put blank lines between paragraphs. How can I evaluate something I can't even read? I do tell the person I will give another rating, after they put separation lines. Each time I've given a lower rating for the readability issue and the person has emailed me back that they desire another review, I have given them a higher rating. I might use 1.5 as an attention-getting device for other blatant errors in fact that are easily corrected. I thought of a situation where I might give a 1.5. The item in question follows the style of a basically illiterate broadsheet. There is little organization or logic in the item. The item contains many spelling errors with a multitude of capitalized words to emphasize its bigoted viewpoint. More often than not, this kind of writing is very clearly hateful in outlook.

1.0 - My criteria for giving a 1.0 is similar to the criteria for giving a 1.5. I could use the rating as an attention getting device. I could also give this rating if the item in question has no coherent form -- it is random gibberize. If the item is clearly labeled as experimental and for some reason, I find it amusing or clever, I could even end up rating something like this a 5.0 for its entertainment value.


Static item(poetry): I evaluate poetry similar to non-poetry with the following exceptions. I also tend to avoid most poetry.

5.0 - I give very few 5.0s to poetry items. To get a 5.0 from me for an item of poetry requires a definite wow reaction. I reserve 5.0s for poems I consider world class and that I would love to encounter outside of Writing.Com. Any 5.0 poems are poems I would love to keep in my own personal library to read and reread.

4.5 - Still an excellent poem, but not world class.

4.0 - The poem has enough elements of cleverness, format, or imagery to impress me.

3.5 - I do not enjoy most poetry I encounter on Writing.Com. I find most poems neither particularly good nor particularly bad. Most poems will either get a 3.5 or a 3.0 from me. I am not insulting the author of the poem with these ratings. I know what I enjoy. Can a poet rewrite a poem and get a higher rating? Possibly, if they improve their imagery, their parallelism, or their structure.

3.0 - Similar to a 3.5, except I haven't found any elements that are particularly clever or emotion evoking to me. Again, I repeat, I have not given any insult to the poet in giving this rating. I do try to point out ways to improve. I also make it a point to say that the poem is not a bad poem.

2.5 - Now we are getting into problem areas such as spelling or carelessness. I suppose I could give a 2.5 rating if the item doesn't follow the standards of its poetical poem and has nothing else in it to redeem it.

2.0 - I'm not exactly sure why I would rate a poem a 2.0.

1.5 - I might use a 1.5 as an attention getting device to get the poet to make an easy correction in defining their poetical form. In other words, don't say the poem is a sonnet, when it is a pantoum. Once the definition is corrected, I will go back and re-rate.

1.0 - Similar to the 1.5. I might use it as an attention getting device to have some blatant, but easily corrected error, fixed.


Forums: If I really have fun and enjoy the forum for more than a few days, I'll give it a five. If something bugs me about the forum, but I still lurk or participate in it, I could give it a 4.5. If the irritation is even greater, I could give the forum a 4.0. I can't see giving the forum anything less than a 4.0, because it hasn't held enough interest in it to stick around. I consider forums more entertainment and social value and don't see much point in suggesting improvements. Forums are an either/or item for me. I either enjoy and stick with them and rate, or I don't rate.

In-and-Outs: Same as forums. If I have fun, it gets that 5.0, 4.5, or 4.0.

Images: I don't usually pay attention to images. However, if I encounter an image that is original artwork and it especially impresses me, I might stop and give it a 5.0, 4.5, or 4.0, depending on the exact level of skill in the drawing. I'm probably not going to stick around to rate lower than a 4.0.

Polls and Surveys: Same as In-and-Outs and Forums. If a poll particularly thrills me, I could give it a 5.0. I could give a poll or survey a 4.5 or 4.0 if I had fun, but experienced a little bit of irritation with it, or did think they could have been worded slightly better. I rarely rate polls or surveys. Again, I see these as entertainment value and usually not in need of suggestions for improvement. If I have some comment I wish to exchange with the author, I'll rate and remark. I suppose if something really bugged me about the poll and survey and I thought the author could benefit from my remark, I could rate the poll or survey a 3.5 or 3.0.

Campfires and interactives: I rarely read or participate in a campfires or interactives. If I have a lot of fun with either, I would probably end up rating it a five. I suppose if I still had fun with the campfire or interactive, but had some problems in reading it, such as errors or it's too long, etc., I could rate it a 4.5 or 4.0. I see campfires and interactives created for entertainment value and it isn't necessarily to suggest improvements.

Madlibs and Word Searches: I rarely look at madlibs or word searches and don't recall ever rating one.

CNotes: CNotes would be similar to Images. I rarely look at them and have never sent one. I might remember to rate it a 5.0, 4.5, or 4.0 if I particularly enjoyed it.

Book Reviews: I don't usually look at Book Reviews. If I took the time to rate, I would rate it similar to Static Items(non-poetry).

Journals:I don't believe in rating journals. Sure, some journals are going to be better than others and there will be 5.0 journals and probably 1.0 journals. However, I believe journals are for the benefit of the author. If the author chooses to leave the journal public and I choose to read it, I see no point in giving a rating. The fact that I continue to read reveals that I find some merit in reading. I don't read journals on Writing.Com, having burnt out on reading them at another online journal site. One exception is when the journal form is used to hold a fictional story or poetry. Then I will rate the journal by my prose or poetry criteria.


My expectations:

Most of the things that really irritate me are documented in "What To Do To Not Get Read and Rated" . A lot of the things that bug me will result in me not even reading the item, much less sticking with it to rate and review. Also add to my list, items that are incomplete and the author hasn't warned me.

I admit to a certain amount of emotional bias in rating items. Since a lot of my rating process is still influenced by emotion, I just may end up rating a .5 higher if I like the person I'm rating. My liking for them is helping me in the total way I feel about the item. I'm not going to apologize too much for this. For example, I am going to enjoy a poem from one of my children more than from a stranger child, no matter the actual quality. I dislike very few people and thus, do not recall giving a lower rating because of dislike. In fact, some people I don't like very much, I still think they write well.

My mood may influence my rating by a half point. If I'm feeling good, I may rate something .5 higher. If I am grumpy or in a more analytical mood, I may rate a .5 lower. Even though I try not to let my agreement with the subject matter of an item influence me, it does. I could even end up rating a whole point higher or lower based on agreement. However, I have encountered items that I highly disagreed with and still thought them very well written.

I wish I could do a better job of quantifying the criteria I used in rating. I'll see about studying some of the critera used in evaluating writing ability in such school tests as FCAT. In the end I am one of the people that help inflate the total ratings here at Writing.Com because I don't enjoy giving ratings below 3.0. I'm not here to cause hurt feelings. Also, items that poor I just don't feel like messing with at all. The sooner I can get away from them, the better off I feel.