At a Crossroads

[DukeNukem 2417]

Right, it's like this: I have no idea if I should keep continuing The V.I.C.I. Diaries on this forum or not.

The last two stories got almost no replies at all, despite my promise to wait a full day or so to let people view the thing and comment. And that's not even getting into what I had to endure while WRITING the last two stories of the series---I lost my entire, 90+ CAW roster in WWE 2K14 due to circumstances beyond my control, I had relatives in hospital, and I nearly had a full-on psychological breakdown because I didn't even know if it was worth it to keep writing.

Since I've posted the last part of "Only Human".....I still don't know if it's worth it.

I'm not saying "stop bumping threads above mine", I'm not saying "just because my stories don't have such and such, that doesn't mean you shouldn't post in the thread", and I'm nto saying it's disrespectful to not reply.

It just really pisses me off to be playing to a silent crowd.

As of today, June 7, 2014, I stand at a crossroads: Either keep the series going on this forum and risk continued ignorance and apathy to my work, which will just end up leading me to cancel The V.I.C.I. Diaries altogether, or move the series to another forum, start fresh, and post what I've done so far there while working on side-projects.

I'm not asking you people to make my choice for me---too many have tried to do that in other aspects of my life.

When the time comes, I'll make the choice myself.

I just want everyone here to know where I currently stand....

....and I'd love to know where all of you stand right now.

[DollSpace]

I think this is one of the stories (like so many of the plots in my head) that have outgrown the board. I don't mean the people who post here are bad writers. Some of you are excellent and I hope you continue writing here, posting your stories for everyone's enjoyment (including mine; I'm not going anywhere). But, as Robotman has said, this is a board that, at its core, features robots mostly in a sexual way, and a lot of my stories, while having teens or so in them, do not belong here because they don't follow guidelines. I want a chance to write those and post them somewhere, and I will. And if there's one I can post here, I will. Like I said, I'm not going anywhere. But I think that this story here is becoming such a huge story arc and he could do a lot more with it given a little more creative freedom, but that's not really what that part of the board is about. The story section of this board is about writing sexy stories about robots. That doesn't mean they have to *have* sex; a lot of people get off on a good malfunction scene or reprogramming, or a discovery (by the android herself or by her boyfriend), so... The easiest part is to change the rules, but that is most likely never going to happen and that's *fine*. This board has brought together thousands of people who have a common interest. Not all post, but many do, and it's great knowing you're not the only one who feels a certain way. The creators of this board should be rightfully proud of themselves, harkening all the way back to the newsgroup days! And there's plenty more life, natural and artificial, left on this board. Some people have just have certain stories that can't be told in the strict age confines (as characters, not sexual personas) and people who are just too shy to speak up and say, "hey, I like this!" so that some of us feel like getting a nice pat on the back. So sure, I'll still be round, and if I can kick myself into writing more, it'll probably go somewhere else, but if you'd like to read it, just ask for the link. Duke, I think the same can be said for at least this story. If you write something else, it may work well on the forum, but who knows. So, if Robotman & co. want to change the rules, great. If not, I hold no ill will towards them and can understand the reasoning perfectly and I will still be around on the forum as your token female robot. (and yes, I really am a girl! grrrr!)

[darkbutflashy]

Of course you should continue. We need more long story arcs, they give the chance to make characters more unique and "loveable". And I like it when this happens.

About commenting, I'd wish some more people would give insightful comments but I don't think this will happen. This isn't a writer's community where we all read each other's stories and nitpick on everything. It's a dozen writers to thousands of readers. You don't even know how much people enjoy your stories and simply *cannot* comment because they refuse to register to a fetish sex community. I took me 5 years to register and 5 more years to start writing myself.

[--NightBattery--]

Dear story writters, please don't leave or feel rejected, do your writiing for the white godess that compelled you to write in first place with little or no praise.
do it for your joy, if others get it. cool, if not, well...it is a matter of tastes and styles, you never know who you might be inspiring to create content one day.
try to please no one, but yourselves. for joy. for the sharing of what is inside.
...
hope everything goes ok with your lifestyle duke, unfortunately i forgot my imaginary wallet in my imaginary motorcycle, other wise i'll lend you some imaginary cash...
...
also, if we root to much for any of you, we give pressure and create panic and mental blocks and maybe even contaminate the original thinking by trying to tell you what to do or by making suggestions that make you feel that your ideas are inadequate.
...
oh, and also...when some stories are good...but too erotic, or with something..."tingly"
well..how are we are supposed to praise that? without being subtle about the emotion it gave us?
"hey that was a nice story piece, i masturbated a lot when her head was taken off, you should bring that character again in other stories some day so i can masturbate about it again"
umm. no. i don't think so.

well, that's what i think ._.
here is some comical relief:

******************************************************************************
Welcome to Feelbot Central, Occidental home of feel-o-sexuality
※now with 10% more central europeans※

[Blox_242]

That image is slightly disturbing......

[zerodin]

Duke, your story-writing kung fu is good, but here's the problem.
Alt.sex.fetish.robots
You've got the Alt and you've certainly got the Robots...but sex fetish are nowhere to be found in your stories.
Its a rousing action/adventure series, but to put it in the words of Plato(probably), "I can't fap to this".
People come to a sex fetish site, for well...the sex fetish aspect. Your stories seem completely devoid of that.
Maybe fanfiction.net would be a more fitting venue?

[Spaz]

Duke, your story-writing kung fu is good, but here's the problem.
Alt.sex.fetish.robots
You've got the Alt and you've certainly got the Robots...but sex fetish are nowhere to be found in your stories.
Its a rousing action/adventure series, but to put it in the words of Plato(probably), "I can't fap to this".
People come to a sex fetish site, for well...the sex fetish aspect. Your stories seem completely devoid of that.
Maybe fanfiction.net would be a more fitting venue?

I am afraid I have to agree with that. People come to this site for sex fantasies, not action fantasies.

[Yop]

I think that's also the reason why not many people comment, overall. And I'm in that boat.

[darkbutflashy]

Maybe I misunderstand the whole "fetish" thing, but to my knowledge, it's specific for fetishes your arousal is *not* connected to depictions or descriptions of people bonking each other. Instead, it's directed to the specific fetish. So having female robots in a story is certainly enough to make a lot of people drool about a story. If you need it harder, there's nothing wrong with that but it's not required for triggering the arousal coming from the fetish.

I'm perfectly okay with Duke's writing as I totally like action girls (who doesn't?). And when they are (at least partly) machines, I melt away. Regardless if they are having sex during the story or not. I even say that could be a major turndown to me, as I'm secretly fantasizing to meet her, talk to her, fight at her side and being totally spoofed by her. Something like her and him

[--NightBattery--]

I think action stories with robot girls are welcome here.
i have no problem with some of darxxrex, darkbutflashy,Muzzleruffels and other guys that are TL;DR stories with no explicit sexuallity on them but with a lot of robot uses and abuses like desactivation, remote control, repair or disassemble and stuff.
that's... tingly

[minkwheel]

By any and ALL MEANS....please DO keep writing. I am one of the odd few that posts stuff without much, if any at ALL....FAP-WORTHY CONTENT. I write gags, and finish them off with lots of dots and stuff like that there.... I HAVE been privately messaged on occasion by folks who want my stuff off of the boards because of it being different and not very arousing .... but then again.... like others have said.... WRITE WHAT YOU WANT, GET IT OUT OF YOUR HEAD AND ONTO THE INTERTUBES where those who WANT to, and LOOK FORWARD TO, your written mussings.... may FIND 'em. My stuff isn't everyone's cup of tea, but I still write it to get it out in the open, for my fun, and hopefully, a bit of a change of pace for the others..... there are billions of people in the world, each one has their likes and dislikes... you can't please them all, and I really wouldn't want to try unless there were fat stacks of cash for Buffybot to spread around town. March to your OWN DRUMMER and stay creative. Many of those folks who complain HAVE NEVER WRITTEN A STORY BEFORE.

[Saya]

I think people have hit the nail on the head, honestly. Really, one of the reasons some people don't comment is because they are looking for more fetishistic content than not. That isn't to say sex, exactly but something in it that appeals to the people here.

That said, I always enjoy your stories, Duke. I don't often comment because, honestly, I rarely have the time to. But you are an excellent writer. I don't think anyone would disagree with that. If you did go, it would be a shame to lose you.

[DukeNukem 2417]

Right, I've read the replies, thought about it, and threw out at least three drafts of what to say in response before today, so....here goes.

Some of you don't comment because The V.I.C.I. Diaries doesn't have the "SF" in "ASFR". That's fine, I respect that; everyone's entitled to their own opinion. With that in mind, the whole reason I started The V.I.C.I. Diaries was to give the forum a sort of break from the norm. Robopron is good, and all, but sometimes you want....a bit more. I don't hold it against anyone for not commenting due to the lack of sex in what I write, but I implore you with every fibre of my being: look beyond that, and you'll find something well and truly fascinating.

Some of you HAVE commented, but haven't been doing so lately. I have no problem with that. I also have no problem, despite past evidence to the contrary, with stories getting bumped above mine.

And now....

....you're probably expecting me to say "I'm still moving The V.I.C.I. Diaries off-forum", aren't you?

Well, under different circumstances, I would.

BUT.....it wouldn't be fair to those who DO comment. Nor would it be fair to those who've followed the serie from its admittedly strange early entries. The Diaries are staying on the forum, and they WILL continue....but don't be surprised to see them "ported" off-site. There are also projects I have in mind set before the Diaries that, due to the rules, can't be posted here----and BEFORE ANYONE decides to make any jumps to conclusions they have no business jumping to, let me say that the only reason those projects would break the rules is because Vicki would be depicted as growing up through the 90s and 2000s, NOT that she would be in any....situations unbecoming of her character. ANYway, back to the series proper: the next entry in the series, "Beast", will be hitting the forum sometime around August or September.

A few more things before I go....someone has asked me to put the entire series so far on Fembot Wiki. The thing is....seeing as how it's not a "full ASFR" series, I don't think it'd do anyone justice, myself included, to add those stories to the Wiki---and that's nothing against you people or this entire genre, believe me. It's just that I have a thing against labels. Also, for anyone who wants to submit plot ideas, character ideas or anything else....my inbox---and indeed, the VICIverse as a whole---is always open.

Right, you've had your say, and I've had mine.

Where we go from here.....will probably be EPIC.

[darkbutflashy]

With that in mind, the whole reason I started The V.I.C.I. Diaries was to give the forum a sort of break from the norm.

I think you are a bit unfair with the other authors as they hardly write all the same stuff. There is a strong bias but that's okay; it's what make of lot of people here tick.

A few more things before I go....someone has asked me to put the entire series so far on Fembot Wiki. The thing is....seeing as how it's not a "full ASFR" series, I don't think it'd do anyone justice, myself included, to add those stories to the Wiki

Ayako is on the wiki - and only on the wiki, so your argument is invalid. The reason you should put the stories on the wiki is you profit from better formatting, in-site categorization (if somebody starts to do that) and the whole bunch of collaboration features coming with a wiki for free.

EDIT: And nobody say formatting is irrelevant. You are transporting content that should touch the heart of the reader, so the formatting is a crucial part of it. Look at poetry books, they can't live without proper formatting.

[DukeNukem 2417]

RIGHT, I've made up my mind about the future of The V.I.C.I. Diaries on Fembot Central: Season 2 will continue.

But it'll be the last season on this forum.

The fact of the matter is, a lot of people seem to just want the Diaries to turn into a standard-issue robosmut series. There's nothing wrong with robosmut, in my opinion---but that was never the point of The V.I.C.I. Diaries. When I started writing, I wanted to take something that had been ignored in its original form, put a new spin on it, improve it with my own ideas and make it not suck.

Yet, in spite of this, it seems that more people here just want robosmut as opposed to what I'm writing.

I'm not complaining, I'm not being bitter or vindictive, and I'm not going to start yelling at everyone here for being hypocrites or whatever. I'm just going to say this: Everyone who's commented on the series thus far, and offered plot/character ideas, I thank you. To everyone who's read without commenting, I thank you as well (though I would've appreciated your comments). Season 2 of the Diaries still has 18 stories to go, and all of them will be posted here.

After that, though....the series leaves the forum.

I'm not doing this to "punish" anyone or to be a vindictive little sod. I'm doing this because someone in this very thread mentioned that The V.I.C.I. Diaries has "outgrown" this forum---and that's almost exactly the sentiment I have. Hell, even Doctor Who needed almost two decades to get back on its feet.....

...and hopefully, Vicki Lawson can find her place at whichever forum accepts her and the Diaries.

NOTE: I'm not moving to fanfiction.net for the time being; I want to get the full "VICIVerse" going, then port the entire thing to fanfiction.net when the time comes.

[DollSpace]

Yay! We get more VICIVerse stories!

[DukeNukem 2417]

......is it too late to say "bump"?

After rereading the entire thread, going over each post and thinking of my own opinions (and, for some reason, wondering who's going to win in the upcoming DEATH BATTLE episode featuring Godzilla vs. Gamera---my mind takes some weird turns, people)....

Vicki, and whatever she does from this point forward, will stay on the forum.

No more "this is the last season on FBC", no more "it's not pure robosmut", no more EXCUSES. I'm not going to pull a FOX and cancel the series just because of low (or no) comments...because something tells me that if I did, Vicki would find a way to get through the multiverse to good old Earth Prime and slap me upside the head for even THINKING about it.

"Beast" drops in September, and the follow-up shortly after.

Also, I may or may not be working on a few side-projects to sort of....broaden my range, as it were. Some may be side-stories of the VICIverse, some won't be....you'll just have to wait and see.

Hell, some may involve time travel, blue boxes and sonic screwdrivers...

Who knows, eh? WHO knows?

Long in a short: I'm not going anywhere, and neither is Vicki.

Thanks for your time.

[LongTimeLurker]

Glad to hear it Duke!

[darkbutflashy]

Nice to hear.

[Spaz]

Well, after a very long wait, The V.I.C.I. Diaries have finally been uploaded to the wiki...all 21 stories. An exhausting, yet satisfying endeavor.

http://www.fembotwiki.com/index.php?tit ... I._Diaries

Also, a bit of nitpicking since I am a San Jose native. If you ever use our airport again, it's official name is "Mineta San Jose International Airport". It's named after Norman Mineta, one of our former mayors and a prominent U.S. politician.

[DukeNukem 2417]

UPDATE TIME!

For those of you who eagerly awaited "The V.I.C.I. Diaries: Beast" last month (or the month before).....sorry. I got sidetracekd, and when I get sidetracked, it's less of "wow, I have all of this other stuff to do" and more of "holy crap, how did I lose 3 weeks without adding some more to 'Beast'?!"

.....so, there's that.

BUT, the good news is that I am, in fact, still writing it. The story will more than likely top 70 pages in Word, and be up in time for either Thanksgiving or Christmas (or, failing the latter, it WILL be up on Boxing Day. I hope). I've been working on a massive Doctor Who project for another forum over the last few months, and after writing chapters for SIX of the Doctors, I think I can safely say that my Whovian creativity is well and truly re-energized....so it'll be high time for me to get back to the VICIverse, as it were. And speaking of the 'verse, expect world-building within "Beast". Hopefully, enough to bring forth questions about a few hitherto-unnoticed loose threads from Season 1.

So, yeah, Vicki Lawson is still functioning---she's just been taking a break for the last two (going on three) months....

....all the better for her to recharge those backup power cells and be ready for her return.

ALSO: MASSIVE thanks to Spaz for porting the series thus far to the Wiki.