Subject: Return of Five Question Quizzes
Posted by: bernie73
Date: Aug 11 20
It's been over 15 years since any quizzes with only five questions have been published on FunTrivia. However, I had thought of a specific scenario where a small number of them might make sense.
As I recall, most of the problems that five question quizzes had were unfortunately all too common with all quizzes from the first few years (lack of interesting information, "obnoxious" phrasing, etc.). So, here's the proposal:
Allow a first time quiz writer to have a single five question quiz that is not in one of a certain number of restricted categories (I suggest the Big 4--Movies, Music, Sports, Television, but others might restrict other categories).
Benefit for the quiz writer--A smaller "mental" hurdle to overcome than a 10 question quiz. Having to write fewer questions might lead to better written questions, more II, etc.
Benefit for the editor--A shorter quiz to check over. If the writer has a recurring problem, you are only seeing it five times rather than 10.
Benefit for the player--If you have a reason to want to score 95 points rather than 170 points. Have some decent five question quizzes to balance the not-so-good ones.
Posted by: bernie73
Date: Aug 11 20
It's been over 15 years since any quizzes with only five questions have been published on FunTrivia. However, I had thought of a specific scenario where a small number of them might make sense.
As I recall, most of the problems that five question quizzes had were unfortunately all too common with all quizzes from the first few years (lack of interesting information, "obnoxious" phrasing, etc.). So, here's the proposal:
Allow a first time quiz writer to have a single five question quiz that is not in one of a certain number of restricted categories (I suggest the Big 4--Movies, Music, Sports, Television, but others might restrict other categories).
Benefit for the quiz writer--A smaller "mental" hurdle to overcome than a 10 question quiz. Having to write fewer questions might lead to better written questions, more II, etc.
Benefit for the editor--A shorter quiz to check over. If the writer has a recurring problem, you are only seeing it five times rather than 10.
Benefit for the player--If you have a reason to want to score 95 points rather than 170 points. Have some decent five question quizzes to balance the not-so-good ones.
19 replies. On page 1 of 1 pages. 1
FatherSteve 
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On the other end of the spectrum, is it still possible to write a 25 question quiz? One wonders why or why not? Reply #1. Aug 11 20, 12:18 PM |
WesleyCrusher
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I don't think this is a very viable idea - it would require that we change a lot of the reward structures. The main problem is that a certain kind of authors would want to use these for cheap credit towards badges, so the rewards would have to take that into account, requiring a lot of changes. We'd also likely continue to get low quality entries because lazy authors would gravitate towards this format more, thus drowning out the good 5Q quizzes. What I consider even more important however is that 5 questions is just not much of a treatment of a subject. A quiz should be more than a collection of questions and five questions is just not enough room to do so. If a subject is not worth ten questions, it's probably better to cover it in a few singles or expand the scope a bit. Beginning authors are very much encouraged to start with something less intimidating than a ten question quiz by the way - we recommend (via the intro challenges) that they do a few single questions first! Reply #2. Aug 11 20, 1:03 PM |
| WesleyCrusher
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25 question quizzes are still possible, but few authors do them. There are occasional thematic reasons to write one, but in many cases, you're better off splitting it into a 10 and a 15. Reply #3. Aug 11 20, 1:05 PM |
kyleisalive
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Wes hits the nail on the head for this. I've been somewhat against 5q quizzes since the get-go. I think that the sizing of a quiz doesn't really help with accessibility; if you have issues constructing a single question or a quiz of any size, then those issues don't really erase with the smaller scale. The other concern there is content; a five question quiz would really only be acceptable for a quiz where five items need to be talked about...in which case I have to ask why it can **only** be viable for a shorter quiz...in which case I have to ask if it's even necessary to write that quiz. We already have quiz submissions come in which are on such narrow topics that it can barely fill 2 or 3 questions without getting into impossible minutiae. That doesn't get solved by a 5q quiz; that issue is one of perspective. Like Wes, I worry a little bit about the use of 5q to pad stats or take advantage of the system, but I worry less about that and think more about why the quiz isn't good enough for ten questions in the first place. I don't think it's a case of 'we've always done it this way' and we're inflexible to the change; I think we nulled out the option because it wasn't generating content we were getting good feedback from. The other item to note here is the 10q standard we see across authoring games. Hypothetically, we add 5q as an option. Does it count for a TRIC point? Advancement in AinA? Commissions? Since we've had 10q as the baseline, this immediately makes me think "oh, well then I only need to work half as hard." And while I know there are simple solutions by gatekeeping that (simply saying 'NO 5Q ALLOWED'), but this once again creates road blocks. All of a sudden, you have the Lounge not accepting 5q; they don't work for TRIC; they don't give as many kitchen items; they don't help in Ascension; yada yada yada. 15, 20, and 25 are stylistic options we will almost always work with an author on, and there are good reasons why we don't see all too many. 5q opens a can of worms. Reply #4. Aug 11 20, 2:13 PM |
bernie73
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These are all good points. I just wanted to clarify. 1. The five question quiz would be a one-time deal. Would it be possible for it to be a special template that an editor would need to open for that potential new author? 2. I don't think that five question quizzes would lack issues, but that particular tic might be less irritating to an editor across five questions than across ten. Reply #5. Aug 11 20, 6:01 PM |
| kyleisalive
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The way I look at those types of tics is as an opportunity to learn. If a correction is sent back about an issue that recurs throughout a quiz, then it's the type of thing I likely want to drive home so that we can work out the kinks for proceeding quizzes. A full quiz gives me an opportunity to reinforce these guidelines and choices; a shorter quiz doesn't give as much of a window for some of these. Reply #6. Aug 11 20, 6:26 PM |
| FatherSteve
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"15, 20, and 25 are stylistic options we will almost always work with an author on, and there are good reasons why we don't see all too many." This prompted me to go back and sort through all of my quizzes on-line to see how many were of which sort. Almost all of them are 10-question quizzes. About a score are 15. I'm surprised that there are NO 20- nor 25-question quizzes. I think I proposed a 25-question quiz back when the Earth's crust was still cooling, and an editor talked me out of it, turning it instead into three 10-question quizzes by writing a few more questions. Reply #7. Aug 11 20, 6:35 PM |
| kyleisalive
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I typically only do 15q quizzes when forced for a challenge (Sprint, maybe?) or when the content necessitates it (ie. splitting up of TV show episodes or similar). I can't remember my last 20q or 25q quiz. Generally I avoid playing them as well. Reply #8. Aug 11 20, 6:51 PM |
CmdrK
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"Generally I avoid playing them as well." Good point, seems like most current players don't like the longer quizzes, especially the 25 question ones. There are a few instances when a quiz of that length can be justified (by the author) but it's often like someone doing a Part 1 and a Part 2 of a subject. Part 2 usually suffers from lack of solid subject matter; so do the last several questions of a long quiz. Reply #9. Aug 11 20, 7:42 PM |
looney_tunes
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Most of my 20Q quizzes are around the categories in format, and we have 20 FT categories. There was one on Best of Times/Worst of Times, which used 10 pairs of events. I think I wrote one 25Q quiz, because my daughter and I were constructing a convoluted Whodunnit quiz. But it was a long time ago. In recent years I almost always go for 10 questions - unless I simply can't be happy with cutting my list of question ideas for the topic back that far. But a 15 Q quiz is only the result when I give up on the struggle to get it down to a satisfying 10 - or an evil taskmaster has specified 15! Reply #10. Aug 11 20, 10:21 PM |
1nn1
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I think when 5q quizzes were no longer permitted I thought that was a good thing. Still do. For all the reasons listed above. 10Q is the standard and I believe it works well. Trying to get things down to 10 is difficult but it makes a stronger quiz - Along the lines of, "If I had more time, I would write a shorter letter". Apart from any specific requirements for a 15 q quiz, I have not written too many perhaps 5/250+. Invariably in these cases there was a valid reason for stretching a quiz so far. I have written one 20q quiz and that was very recently when each question represented one category of FT. It rated well because of said theme. Another forum where they seem to work is the Mixed General category. In my team we have a zoom meeting once a week and transform the zoom questions into a more FT friendly format . We have written 14 of these - I think all but one rated so far have sunnies - which to me indicates, there is a need forsame 25q: Pass. Only justified in challenges when the QM is cruel or if you are doing an alphabetics A-Z quiz. M2CW Reply #11. Aug 12 20, 3:23 AM |
LadyNym
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I have never written a quiz with more than 10 questions, and - unless I have a very good reason to do so - am not planning to in the near future :D. The 10-question format suits me very well, and I've never been tempted to add more questions. However, longer quizzes have their usefulness for players. I get the "play a 20-question quiz and get at least 18/20 correct" challenge relatively often, and when I need to get a certain number of questions (or points) to complete a Difficult daily challenge, longer quizzes come in very handy. Reply #12. Aug 12 20, 5:52 AM |
JanIQ
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I've made several quizzes of 20 or 25 questions, but those were all crafted some years ago. Now most of my quizzes are the standard 10 questions. There has also been talk of quizzes of really unusual formats: 11 questions, 12 questions, maybe even 17 questions. These quirky formats need not be opened unless there are very good reasons to do so (for instance one question about each soccer player of the winning team who wa active in the final of a Wrodl Championship). Reply #13. Aug 12 20, 10:50 AM |
| WesleyCrusher
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I believe that using odd-number formats from 11 to 26 (and maybe for slightly below 10, such as 8 or 9) can yield some outstanding quizzes IF the theme warrants it AND the author actually knows what they are doing. Having a 12Q quiz with one question about each song of a 12-track album probably beats a 10 or 15Q on that same album in thematic density and style. A 22Q quiz about the Major Arcana in Tarot is one I would really want to write given the opportunity - I would neither want to leave out two nor add in three filler questions, so as it stands, that quiz will never happen. But every single use of an odd-number format would need to be justified and approved in advance - you should never be able to write one just for the "I've done it" factor - you need to have a really good reason to do so because that's the only way these will actually add to the quality of the site. I have personally used the 20 and 25 question format several times for special quizzes - one was for a Halloween game (and that one really wanted 21, so I had to insert a twist to even make it fit), and one was for an Advent Calendar finale. So basically those fit the same standard as my criteria for odd numbers - I really wanted to do something special. Normally, I write 10 and 15 is the occasional exception for when I can't quite get to a two-parter but have enough good ideas to make it 15. Reply #14. Aug 12 20, 2:32 PM |
agony
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I've written a few 25 Q quizzes just because I wanted to, and had a lot of material. I kinda like the "Well, we've really been on a journey together, haven't we!" feeling of a very long quiz. I wouldn't really rule out any length - if it works with the quiz. And that's the part that I suspect would be the stumbling block if we allowed 5 Q quizzes again - people thinking "Oh, this will be easy!" rather than "This is the right length for this particular subject". Reply #15. Aug 14 20, 7:40 PM |
| 1nn1
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I have been thinking about this a lot. I believe there is a place for the 5Q quiz but only one. And that is in mixed quizzes where you are not trying to encapsulate a story in just 5 questions. I really don't like taking those older type 5q quizzes as many of then have no II. On top of the abbreviated question number, you feel empty handed when it's all over in a few seconds. Perhaps and there is a lot of ifs and buts in what is to follow. We could have a short term project (ie a set end date) where experienced authors get to write 5Q quizzes to displace those older ones with no II. Correspondingly they would only receive 1000 points and two kitchen ingredients per abridged quiz. Just a thought Reply #16. Aug 15 20, 4:25 AM |
| WesleyCrusher
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I disagree - General / Mixed is possibly the worst place for 5Q on the entire site. If you have only five questions, just submit them as singles. I'd rather see such questions featured more in the Quick Questions or an extension of the Mash system so that players could have any number of quick 5Q "give me anything" plays. The one category I might see 5Q to work is Brain Teasers - some logic puzzles could work well (especially the "what pet does the owner of the yellow house" kind) with just five questions - no need to copy down the entire solution grid after playing. Reply #17. Aug 16 20, 7:35 AM |
spanishliz
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Speaking as an editor in Brain Teasers, I'd hate to see a five question quiz in the queue. In fact, I'm totally against their return in any area. Reply #18. Aug 16 20, 8:54 AM |
| FatherSteve
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Perhaps there should be a 26-question option, for those who want to do some sort of one-question-per-letter-of-the-alphabet thing. Or a 12-question option, for those who want to do something based on the months of the year, the zodiac or Jesus' apostles. Or a 17-question option, should someone wish to write a quiz for each of the rare-earth elements. Or an 8-question option, should the Muse provoke a quiz about the 8-spoked Dharmacakra in Buddhism, or the musical octave, or the vegetables in V8 juice. Or maybe we should be happy and grateful for what we've got. [And work around the rest.] Reply #19. Aug 16 20, 12:14 PM |
19 replies. On page 1 of 1 pages. 1
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