Quizilla's Credibility of Quality
Creative writing stands to be one of the most prominent forces in the literary world. A billion dollar industry exists around the creation of literary fiction. It is mass-produced, mass advertised, and in the end a single story possess the capabilities to circulate between millions of people. For others the possibility of a literary household name is slim to none. For those wishing an audience without dealing with the formality of editors and publishers there is the wonderful world of the Internet and it's accompanying writer's forums.
While Quizilla does not stand as a legitimate "writers forum," it offers an exceptional stage for armature writers. These writers have the ability to post their creations and offer them up, not only for the entertainment of others, but for critique and analysis. If one seeks to write young adult fiction why not offer their story up to other young adults and young adult authors? These readers stand as the judge, jury and executioner for the success of a story. It all just depends on the author and their ability to cater to their audience.
Despite the responsibility the author has to their audience, there is an undermined responsibility the audience holds for their authors. While anyone can post pretty much anything, it is the audience's duty to recognize skill and pass it along into the 'Highest Rated' and 'Most Popular' threads. These lists are the most powerful forces on Quizilla. Highest Rated requires the most interaction, thus drawing a more opinionated crowd. A reader can choose between the ratings of 1 through 5. An average rating is calculated for each post and the highest rated posts are integrated into the Highest Rated List for a period of 24 hours, one week or one month. The Highest Rated list possess the most authority over the Quizilla community and its authors, second only to the Most Popular list which posts the stories with the highest level of hits per 24 hours. If one is lucky enough to make it onto any one of these lists their reputation is set. Making these lists virtually guarantees an immense audience and future acknowledgement for any future posts.
Despite the efficiency of this system, this is where the questionability of quality comes into play. Because Quizilla is an open site there are no limitations on what can be posted. One-word journals to those aggravatingly common 'chain letters' can be found around every corner. Fan Fictions are also abundant, most centered on the life and romances of Harry Potter or any number of Japanese mangas and animes. Vampires, rock stars, and princes in disguise are ruled by themes like rape, rescue, terror and romance. And all of these creations are spawned from the 'creative' imaginations of teenagers. In fact, young adults ranging from 11 to 19 contribute almost the entire content of Quizilla. This fact does not necessarily spur any sort of reassurance in the quality of literary work. Visiting the site and viewing any one of the lists does not offer up any illusion of quality for its visitors. Instead the entire list, and what gets read versus what stays lost to the masses, depends completely on the fantastical daydreaming of it's writers and the hunger for those themes from the readers. Generally, the more incredible and ridiculous the story, the more popular it seems to be. The rules of realism, believability, quality or even consistency are completely ignored. For some it takes a year of education, and in some cases a Ph.D. to earn any sort of reputation or merit. But here, circulating through thousands of people are stories written by inexperienced and undereducated persons, receiving more attention then some skilled writers will ever receive in their entire career. What is the prominent factor in this phenomenon? What draws the line? Why is it that quality and substance rarely see a light in the world of Quizilla?
Many of these questions can be answered by the inexperience these readers and writers possess. Their stories directly reflect their superficial realities and their lack of life experience. Rarely do their plots possess anything deeper then how happy the ending is going to be. Even when one of these authors shoot for a deeper meaning, they rarely reach their goal. More often then not the author falls short and leaves the reader feeling as if they didn't receive the whole story or that the plot line was shallow. Some only seek to showcase their own issues, such as family crisis, their attractiveness to the opposite sex or their craving for a unique quality that will set them apart from the masses. They use fiction to create a sort of alternate reality and the reader is forced along for the ride, not entirely sure what is going on and the reasoning behind anything they read. These stories often possess the most inconsistency and are usually quickly abandoned by the readers.
Thankfully, the most renowned of the popular stories are written by more experienced writers. But there is only so much one can write about with any sort of power behind the words when the author is a sophomore in high school. The subject matter may still posses an air of shallowness, but superior character and plot development manage to appear. The reader is left contemplating, grinning or even flustered over the tales these talents weave. However there are rare cases of promising talent, and these authors are few and far between. Readers are constantly seeking out publish worthy material, but seemingly, only writing prodigies offer any sort of hope.
In the end it all comes down to what the readers want to read, and what the authors
are willing to offer. If an author seeks popularity, they write what is popular. If an
author seeks just to write, whether it possesses quality or not; chances are you are not
going to see it shining in the Quizillian light of it's popularity threads. However, every
so often the popularity threads feature a talent or two. And it's these talents that keep
the more experienced readers coming back time and time again.
