Subject: EDQ #1: Interesting Information
Posted by: LadyCaitriona
Date: Mar 09 13
Sorry all! I guess I was supposed to post this yesterday and I didn't realize a date had been announced. Better late than never. :)
Welcome to the first installment of Editors Discussing Quizzes! For our first topic we've decided to delve into the art of crafting your interesting information sections. The goal of these blogs is not to discuss bare minimums and site rules at length--these are available elsewhere on the site--but as a venue for the editors to share the suggestions that we often give to individual authors when they encounter common stumbling blocks. We also invite authors to share their experiences in overcoming some of these obstacles and, of course, we would also welcome your questions and discussions about issues that you've encountered that perhaps we haven't touched upon.
My name is LadyC and I have been writing quizzes on FunTrivia since 2001 and editing almost as long (though with some long breaks when life got too busy for me to pull my weight). I've edited in General, TV, Literature, Movies, and Humanities and currently edit in the latter two categories. Editors from these and other categories will be posting their thoughts as well, because one of the things you'll notice is that there is no universally perfect way of writing an information section, and what works well in one category may not work well in another category, though there are some tips that can be applied more generally. Like:
Tip #1 - The points in your information section should be about things that you find interesting about your question's topic. If you don't think it's interesting, chances are players won't either. For some topics this is going to require an investment of your time to do some research, especially if you're working on a topic that is new to you.
For a long while now we've had Quiz Creation Guidelines in place that specify the minimum length for the information section, but authors often ask what is the ideal length for the information section? That's a tougher one, and a subjective topic on which members (players, authors and editors alike) all have their own opinions. This is going to vary somewhat between categories, but typically I have found that information sections between three (longer) and six (shorter) sentences are generally well-received: they are not so short that curious players feel that there could have been more information given, but not so long that the very size of the paragraph turns people off (on the Internet this is sometimes called "tl;dr" or "too long; didn't read"), so that's a good size to shoot for if you want to go beyond meeting only the minimum requirements. Does that mean that you can't write more than six sentences? Absolutely not! A longer paragraph that's well-written, informative, creative and entertaining will draw readers along, provided that the information is tied together meaningfully (as opposed to, say, six additional random facts thrown haphazardly into an awkwardly-worded paragraph). You might also wonder, will players rate my quiz more poorly if I write too much or too little? They might, as the quiz rating system is completely subjective for each player. Player A might rate your quiz as Excellent because your information sections were so informative, while Player B might rate the same quiz as Poor because your information sections were too long. As I mentioned before, three to six sentences is a good middle ground, but as an author you should write what makes you happy, especially if, like me, you are not overly concerned about how your quiz is rated.
As an editor who has worked in Movies, TV and Literature, I've often found it to be a good approach to picture your audience (the players) as people who have seen the film (etc.), but several years ago and have by now probably forgotten some of the finer plot points. Something that is obvious to you, as the quiz's author, may not necessarily be obvious to the players who take your quiz, and a little bit of background will help to put your question and information in context. Another good question to ask yourself is why? Why did I choose to ask this particular question? Chances are you have a great start to an information section if you explore what it is you liked, or that interested you, enough to include this question in your quiz. For these media categories, this may include a situation that helped further the plot, or actions that served particularly well to develop a character's personality.
For some topics it might be very difficult to find relevant information for each question in your quiz. While some categories might have more strict guidelines about this, in general you are free to give tangential information that is tied meaningfully to your question's topic. For example, one of my questions in a quiz mentioned an interaction the main character had with a fortune-teller, and in my info, after explaining the context of the question, I spoke a little bit about fortune-telling in general. Other times, when authors have found that there weren't many interesting things to say about each individual question, they have written what amounts to one long paragraph about the topic in general and then served it to the player in ten "bite-sized" pieces. If you can think of more quality information to give at a general level than addressing each question individually, then this might be a good route for you to consider for your quiz's info sections.
There is certainly a lot more that can be said about writing information sections, but I think this enough from me at this time. I'd like to open up the floor, so to speak, to my fellow editors to add their thoughts on the topic.
Happy quiz-writing!
Posted by: LadyCaitriona
Date: Mar 09 13
Sorry all! I guess I was supposed to post this yesterday and I didn't realize a date had been announced. Better late than never. :)
Welcome to the first installment of Editors Discussing Quizzes! For our first topic we've decided to delve into the art of crafting your interesting information sections. The goal of these blogs is not to discuss bare minimums and site rules at length--these are available elsewhere on the site--but as a venue for the editors to share the suggestions that we often give to individual authors when they encounter common stumbling blocks. We also invite authors to share their experiences in overcoming some of these obstacles and, of course, we would also welcome your questions and discussions about issues that you've encountered that perhaps we haven't touched upon.
My name is LadyC and I have been writing quizzes on FunTrivia since 2001 and editing almost as long (though with some long breaks when life got too busy for me to pull my weight). I've edited in General, TV, Literature, Movies, and Humanities and currently edit in the latter two categories. Editors from these and other categories will be posting their thoughts as well, because one of the things you'll notice is that there is no universally perfect way of writing an information section, and what works well in one category may not work well in another category, though there are some tips that can be applied more generally. Like:
Tip #1 - The points in your information section should be about things that you find interesting about your question's topic. If you don't think it's interesting, chances are players won't either. For some topics this is going to require an investment of your time to do some research, especially if you're working on a topic that is new to you.
For a long while now we've had Quiz Creation Guidelines in place that specify the minimum length for the information section, but authors often ask what is the ideal length for the information section? That's a tougher one, and a subjective topic on which members (players, authors and editors alike) all have their own opinions. This is going to vary somewhat between categories, but typically I have found that information sections between three (longer) and six (shorter) sentences are generally well-received: they are not so short that curious players feel that there could have been more information given, but not so long that the very size of the paragraph turns people off (on the Internet this is sometimes called "tl;dr" or "too long; didn't read"), so that's a good size to shoot for if you want to go beyond meeting only the minimum requirements. Does that mean that you can't write more than six sentences? Absolutely not! A longer paragraph that's well-written, informative, creative and entertaining will draw readers along, provided that the information is tied together meaningfully (as opposed to, say, six additional random facts thrown haphazardly into an awkwardly-worded paragraph). You might also wonder, will players rate my quiz more poorly if I write too much or too little? They might, as the quiz rating system is completely subjective for each player. Player A might rate your quiz as Excellent because your information sections were so informative, while Player B might rate the same quiz as Poor because your information sections were too long. As I mentioned before, three to six sentences is a good middle ground, but as an author you should write what makes you happy, especially if, like me, you are not overly concerned about how your quiz is rated.
As an editor who has worked in Movies, TV and Literature, I've often found it to be a good approach to picture your audience (the players) as people who have seen the film (etc.), but several years ago and have by now probably forgotten some of the finer plot points. Something that is obvious to you, as the quiz's author, may not necessarily be obvious to the players who take your quiz, and a little bit of background will help to put your question and information in context. Another good question to ask yourself is why? Why did I choose to ask this particular question? Chances are you have a great start to an information section if you explore what it is you liked, or that interested you, enough to include this question in your quiz. For these media categories, this may include a situation that helped further the plot, or actions that served particularly well to develop a character's personality.
For some topics it might be very difficult to find relevant information for each question in your quiz. While some categories might have more strict guidelines about this, in general you are free to give tangential information that is tied meaningfully to your question's topic. For example, one of my questions in a quiz mentioned an interaction the main character had with a fortune-teller, and in my info, after explaining the context of the question, I spoke a little bit about fortune-telling in general. Other times, when authors have found that there weren't many interesting things to say about each individual question, they have written what amounts to one long paragraph about the topic in general and then served it to the player in ten "bite-sized" pieces. If you can think of more quality information to give at a general level than addressing each question individually, then this might be a good route for you to consider for your quiz's info sections.
There is certainly a lot more that can be said about writing information sections, but I think this enough from me at this time. I'd like to open up the floor, so to speak, to my fellow editors to add their thoughts on the topic.
Happy quiz-writing!
55 replies. On page 1 of 3 pages. 1 2 3
beergirllaura 
|
Thank you. That was very informative. Reply #1. Mar 09 13, 11:26 PM |
looney_tunes
|
As an editor in Literature, Humanities and Books for Kids, one thing I find useful when writing on a single book, play, etc. is to write your quiz so that the questions go through it in chronological order. This means that you can pick ten questions that are memorable, and your interesting information can take players through the story with you as they go. Without rewriting the entire text, you can describe what has happened since the last question, and why this one is significant. They may enjoy recalling it enough to want to go read or watch it again. If your quiz is about a number of books, poems, stories, musicals, etc. then there is not necessarily a 'sensible' order in which to arrange them in terms of providing meaningful extra information. Just make sure that players get a taste of what each one is about, and why they might want to read or see it again. In a mixed quiz, there will be some questions on a book or play that they haven't yet encountered, and this is your chance to get them excited about doing so when the opportunity arises. As an author, I often write quizzes about subjects on which I am not an expert, especially those I have written for the Bus Ride. I usually start my research by finding the ten interesting facts I want to convey. In other words, the extra information is the reason for each question, and I write the question so as to be able to convey the interesting fact I discovered. The extra information is often the most important part of my quiz as I am writing it. I think that's the years of teaching coming out. Reply #2. Mar 09 13, 11:28 PM |
ASA
|
I tend to only read the interesting information if I get the question wrong, consequently I read a lot of interesting information. Reply #3. Mar 09 13, 11:34 PM |
salami_swami
|
As one who has written over 400 quizzes, I can still say this was really helpful. :D. I'll be using this information in the future for sure. I also write in categories in subjects I do not know. As such, I find my interesting information to be much better. I have to research the topic, and as such I only write what I find to be e most interesting. These type of quizzes are generally most liked by players, because what I write is only what is most relevant and exciting. Reply #4. Mar 10 13, 12:07 AM |
kyleisalive
|
Interesting Information is one of my favourite parts of a quiz as an author and as a player; I'm thrilled to see it's our first discussion topic. Since I started editing (going onto eight years?!) in Video Games, I've stuck by a very particular guideline. This is one I write in my notes to quiz-writers and it's also listed in the Video Game category guidelines: All questions require at least two full sentences of factual info. This info should not simply restate an answer and it should not be personal opinion (or commentary). It's a tall order. I'll be the first to admit it. At the same time however, I will always stand by it-- 99% of the time I will enforce it first and foremost. All of the categories on the site require at least some info but VG requires the highest minimum I believe. Why is this? Well, to be honest, it's because we've had a lot of junk in the past. When I started (and earlier) standards on FunTrivia were not as high as they are now. I far-from-think we have too high a standard, but our quizzes are of a high caliber and I've always believed it's because our info offers something that most sites do not-- an opportunity to learn and to express something new. FunTrivia, on top of being fun and informative, is a great way to flex your writing muscles. The expectation, first and foremost, is to have fun; when you write your info and you have fun doing it, it shows. "But two sentences Kyle? That's preposterous!" Well, let me break it down. Those sentences must be factual-- they need to be about the topic, in other words, and they must be, most importantly, informative. A quiz is a great learning device; even something as simple as a summary of an event in a game can trigger something in the reader that they may have missed during a play-through a decade ago. Games are highly-nostalgic, especially retro games. It always makes me smile to look at a quiz about 'Ocarina of Time' or 'Super Mario World' and read the info. The same can be said for other categories, by all means. These two sentences are a base though; while some authors fulfill the minimum (and are perfectly fine in doing so), what I always suggest is going above and beyond. These two sentences should not simply be you saying 'They're the best, strongest character EVER' and they should not be redundant. If the answer is 'Mario', the info should not read 'The answer is Mario.' If you meet the two sentence requirement, I encourage you to talk about your own experience with the game-- why not?! Your anecdotes can be interesting-- they're just not factual. A general rule of thumb, however, is to be objective with your factual info; there are a lot of topics on FunTrivia that are constantly changing. Games are becoming more interactive and intuitive; some are different for every player. In fact, online games don't come with ratings anymore because each and every person will have a completely different game in their hands. Keep the quiz player in mind-- what do you think they'll find interesting? What would you like to see? Just because you kick butt with Luigi in 'Super Smash Bros.' doesn't mean he's the best character to everyone else. ;) I guess the message I'm trying to get across here is that the point behind Interesting Information and, more specifically the VG minimum is to enhance the player's experience. Factual, more meaningful info, when peppered with your own flair, can go a long way, especially if you are on the hunt for higher rankings. There is definitely a fine balance and practice does indeed make perfect. There are a lot of times where I'll find my info to feel too short or too long depending on the quiz; there is no set right amount, especially if you're building to suit a style. There is, however, more to be said from honing the ability to use factual info, writing enough of it to keep the player interested, and doing it ten (or however many) times in the template while letting your voice slip in. My other categories (TV, Music, and Entertainment) do not have two-sentence minimums for the most part. I do, however, recommend shooting for at least two sentences for every author submitting with one in each box. I honestly do think it makes for a better quiz. There's nothing more awkward than receiving a top-heavy quiz where the question is longer than the info; it makes me think that they used up everything 'interesting'. Make every topic interesting! You wanted to write a quiz about it; make your reader interested! You're in control. :) -Kyle (Senior FT Editor; Video Games, Television, Music, Entertainment) Reply #5. Mar 10 13, 12:07 AM |
SisterSeagull
|
Like Kyle, I find the 'I.I.' the most interesting part of quiz writing as it's the best way to arouse the interest of the player and to enthuse them about the subject. To my mind, at least! I gave up a long time ago trying to strike the balance between being brief and passing on sufficient additional information. Much of my 'Interesting Information' consists of the sort of things that I'd like to know personally about the subject being covered, and I reason that if I would like to read it, then I expect that others might too. Reply #6. Mar 10 13, 5:17 AM |
Lottie1001
|
There are two things I like in interesting information. Firstly, seeing it broken down into paragraphs if it's more than a few sentences long. Otherwise it definitely falls into LadyC's "tl;dr" category. I think the New Question game is the worst for this. Does the software automatically lump everything into one big chunk? Secondly, it's often interesting to know why the wrong answers were chosen. An explanation of what connection they have with the topic of the quiz can be both informative and useful. Reply #7. Mar 10 13, 8:06 AM |
guitargoddess
|
Just to amend slightly one of Kyle's comments, in TV we do require a minimum of two sentences when it's a mixed TV quiz rather than a quiz about a single show in that show's subcategory. That requirement was already in the guidelines before I started editing so I can't say why it was decided those quizzes MUST have more minimum info but I can say that it's nice when the quizzes that only need minimum one sentence go beyond that bare minimum, especially when it's a topic that's been done to death. For example we have literally hundreds of quizzes about "Friends". Definitely there are many Friends fans out there, me included, who are nit tired of seeing new quizzes on it, but it's nice when Friends quiz number 657 offers a little more interest in terms of II instead of just "Chandler was played by Matthew Perry." I have more comments to offer on this topic and will be back when I'm at a real computer instead of my iPhone :) Reply #8. Mar 10 13, 9:00 AM |
| guitargoddess
|
And to amend my own comment, all-quotes quizzes in TV also require a minimum of two sentences whether it's about one show or multiple (usually one show in the case of quotes). A quotes quiz is one of the most important, I feel anyway, to give context in your interesting info. "Sam said this to Mary" is a good start but needs additional explanation to someone who got it wrong or even guessed right but doesn't remember. When was it said? Why? What was the situation? So this is one of my other points I wanted to make, *read the category guidelines*. Even if you don't consider yourself a new author. Different categories, and as I've just noted, different sections within a single category, can have different requirements for interesting info (and other aspects of the quiz). Even if you've written many quizzes, it's very easy to lose track of the specific requirements for each category. Take two minutes to read the guidelines to remember for sure if Video Games wants two sentences of info, or if Movies doesn't want questions with numerical answers. You should also make a point to read the special instructions for subcategories, not just the few category guidelines found in Author Central. At the top of every quiz template, you'll find a link to read Special Instructions for this category, based on how you've categorized your quiz. For the most part, it usually says "No special instructions" for the most specific subcategory, but it also then lists any special requirements for the higher up subcategory, and the higher up, etc. depending on how many levels of subcategories you've gone through to house your quiz. To go back to "Friends" as an example, you'll see on a "Friends" special instructions a list of questions we no longer accept in "Friends" quizzes. And this is about the only place you'll find that list, so it's a good idea to check that Special Instructions link. Of course it's only helpful if you've properly subcategorized your quiz, so please do so! I am not talking about when there are mutliple possible areas your quiz might fit. I mean don't leave your Friends quiz in the Television D-G subcategory, go further to Friends, then go further within Friends if applicable. And to answer Lottie's first question, yes the interesting information in single question quest questions (say that five times fast...) is automatically lumped into one big paragraph, even if you separate the paragraphs on the submit screen. Interesting info for these questions is meant to be fairly short and to the point; there's no hard coded maximum (unlike the question area which will cut you off after a certain number of characters), but I believe the guidelines for single questions says that interesting info should be around 2-4 sentences and that editors may truncate if we feel it's too long. I don't think I ever have, I won't discourage *too much* interesting info as long as it's relevant. Many of my own questions have II longer than four sentences; depends on the question and how much explanation it seemed to need. But yes, the info for these questions is not meant to be multiple paragraphs so it all gets lumped together. -GG, editor Television and Animals Reply #9. Mar 10 13, 9:43 AM |
skunkee
|
I've been editing in Movies for close to ten years now, and in Celebrities for about half that time. One of the things I encourage writers to do is to use the I.I. section to explain and support the answer. Think about someone answering incorrectly and getting a little upset because they are convinced that they are right and you are wrong. Your I.I. should contain enough information to either convince the player that the answer is indeed right, or at least to guide them to the place in the movie where the correct answer can be seen or heard. This just may stop them from sending out one of those pesky incorrect Correction Notes. Simply repeating the answer isn't going to do convince anyone! If the question asks for a character name, then your I.I. should tell us something about that character. For example, in writing about 'Skyfall', I might ask 'Who gave Bond the gun and the radio transmitter?' with the answer being Q. Instead of simply writing 'Q stands for quartermaster as it does in all 'Bond' movies.' as my Interesting Information, I would need to write something about the character. For example, "Meeting Q at the art gallery, Bond is surprised to find how young he is, and expresses a lack of faith in his ability to do the job because he 'still has spots'. Q is confident that he has the requisite skills and does indeed prove his worth later in the film." Expressing your opinion of how funny a movie is or how well someone played the role does not count as Interesting Information, nor does telling everyone that it's your favourite movie. By all means include this information if you want, but you need to include factual information that supports the answer first. Reply #10. Mar 10 13, 10:10 AM |
WesleyCrusher
|
Here's something to ponder for those who are looking at interesting info from an advanced point of view - meant for writers who are looking to get more sunnies and maybe get some quizzes in the top 1000: The two first things you should consider when you plan to write something are: (1) What is my topic and (2) Who is my audience. With a question and the answers already written, you should have a really good idea of your topic, but the audience is where it gets problematic because as a question writer, you inevitably have two different audiences for your interesting info and those two happen to have very different needs. Now you may say "wait a second - my audience is the people who play my quiz, thus all folks who have an interest in the subject (plus then some who play the quiz just because it's come up in a challenge). You're right with that when it comes to questions and answers, but when it comes to the info, you no longer have that one audience and that's because your previously one audience just played your quiz. Each question in your quiz splits your audience for your info into two groups: Those who did know the answer and those who did not. If you go into lots of detail explaining the answer, but do not go beyond it, you cater to the second group, but do nothing for the first one. If your entire info is a corollary or further development of the answer, you make the first group happy but not the second. Ideally, of course, you want to make both of these happy, so your information should contain both - some facts that help a player who had no clue about the answer understand it (and hopefully recall it in the future) and some facts that you would consider a bit more esoteric and news even to someone who knows the subject. Let's try to put both in just two sentences on an example question: ------------------------------------------------- Question: "Which of the following dishes originated in the French region of Alsace?" Answer options: Crepes, Escargots, Raclette, Tarte flambee. Correct answer: Tarte flambee Info: Tarte flambee is a pie based on a thinly rolled bread dough, traditionally topped with onions, lardons and a sauce of creme fraiche. Similar to the Italian pizza, it was traditionally made on the days the households baked bread, either before making the actual bread (to test the oven heat) and after (to use up the remaining dough and have dinner without much additional effort). ------------------------------------------------- If you have never heard of tarte flambee before, you now know its ingredients (information for the player who did not know it) but if you know and love the dish, this paragraph adds something extra about its history and a link to a quite different dish - pizza - which has independently developed out of a similar situation and need. Each of the two sentences alone would make some players happy, but with the combination, you're doing something for everyone. You won't be able to do it with every one of your questions, but if you can, try to ensure that your info makes your quiz a fun learning experience both when scoring 2/10 and 10/10. Reply #11. Mar 10 13, 11:26 AM |
gracious1
|
Such practical advice here! Loving it! Reply #12. Mar 10 13, 11:33 AM |
agony
|
I'd like to address the issue Kyle raised, that of expressing your passion for the subject, and your personality, while still including enough factual information so that it "counts" as info. The easiest way to do this is to give your facts, and then follow them with your opinion. "Ernest Hemingway won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1954, most specifically for his novel "The Old Man and the Sea". I love Hemingway and enjoyed that book especially." This is perfectly acceptable, but in my opinion it's not the best way to manage this. My experience, both with my own quizzes and with watching the quizzes of others sail up and down the ratings, is that it leads to higher ratings if you can merge the factual and opinionated more seamlessly. This is not something I recommend to new quiz writers who might not be all too sure of just what the difference is between factual info and opinion, or who are not too comfortable with this whole "writing something that will be strictly edited" thing. It's more of an advanced technique for the experienced quiz writer. I'm going to give an example pulled from one of my own recent quizzes. The question was about a minor character in a book series; the info section needs to tell us more about him. "He is described in "The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club"(1928) as "so perfectly the family solicitor as really to have no distinguishing personality at all", but, really, over the course of the series we do feel we get to know this kindly but dry man quite well. I'm especially fond of his Victorian-style travelling cap with flaps to it, as described in "Unnatural Death"(1927) - I understand Sherlock Holmes wore something of the same sort." The first sentence gives us the name of a book the character appears in (if this were the first time this book were mentioned in the quiz, I'd also have included the year it was published), and the book author's description of him - facts. It also notes that he is a "kindly but dry man" - a description of the character that in this case is not too subjective, but part of the way he is often described in the books. It also includes the very subjective opinion that I (and I am assuming you also, as a reader) feel I get to know him quite well over the course of the series. The second sentence gives the fact that he wears a certain kind of hat, gives the title of the book this can be found in, and gives an extra little factoid about Sherlock Holmes. The Holmes bit is totally unnecessary, and I just threw it in because I noted it when I saw a question about Holmes' hat from someone else here, a few weeks ago - it struck me as interesting. I did no research on it, and it would not "count" as a fact if it stood on its own (hence the "I understand" wording) but it makes the info section just a little more juicy. You will note that while this sentence contains two and half facts, it is presented as an opinion - "I'm especially fond of...." This info section gives the impression of me burbling on about a likable character I'm fond of, but it actually tells quite a lot. Personally, I tend to rate quizzes that pull this kind of thing off more highly, and ratings seem to show that I'm not alone in that - many of our highest rated authors have this kind of chatty style. Reply #13. Mar 10 13, 1:22 PM |
| agony
|
I'd also like to emphasize a point Looney_Tunes made - if you haven't got good info, you haven't got a good question. A question about which there simply isn't really anything interesting to say is, by definition, a poor question by FT standards. Rather than trying to drag in only very peripherally related facts, it's much better to just find a different question to ask. Reply #14. Mar 10 13, 1:29 PM |
| guitargoddess
|
Yes, agony's post #14 was something I wanted to mention as well. As in LadyC's original post, sometimes it is difficult to find enough to say about a question, particularly if the quiz topic is very specific. There are certainly situations where struggling a bit for extra info is to be expected, but for *most* topics, I feel the same as agony said. If you can't think of anything extra to say about it, it's not a good question or you haven't done any background research. I can't tell you how many times I've seen info sections in TV quizzes that say "What else is there to say about it?" or "I can't think of anything else to say, sorry". This passes the auto-check of having at least one sentence of interesting info, but it will absolutely not pass the editor check. If you're writing about a TV show that has run for five seasons, and can't think of anything at all to add to the question you asked, you've asked a poor question that probably was not very relevant to the plot or characters of the show. The amount of extra info you can often indicate if your question is too boring or picky, or something of interest. For example asking "What was the pattern on Mary's on "TV Show"?" Let's say the answer is flowers. If you can't come up with anything extra to say about this other than "You see the couch in many episodes", it's not a very good question. It's an irrelevant background detail. However, if the info section accompanying that question is more like "When Mary bought the couch in the first season episode "Mary's New Couch", she and her husband had a big, loud argument in the store about how he didn't like the flower pattern. Eventually Mary won the argument and the flower-patterned couch came home with them.", then we know that the couch was actually a focal point of at least one episode and the flower pattern is not just something in the background, the characters were actually talking about the pattern. In this case, it's not such a poor question. Reply #15. Mar 10 13, 1:45 PM |
| guitargoddess
|
And one last thought, on the "didn't do your background research" part - I hate to see info sections in submitted quizzes that say something like "I can't remember when this quote was said, but it was definitely Bill who said it". Not acceptable. Either you do a little research and find out, or ask a question that you do remember. Reply #16. Mar 10 13, 1:47 PM |
triviaking162
|
Thanks for this everyone! I only have 1 sunnied quiz with 1 or two borderlines (out of 33) but I hope to get more in the future. I've tried to incorporate these ideas in my new lounge quiz. Hopefully it does well when it goes online :) Reply #17. Mar 10 13, 2:37 PM |
CellarDoor
|
I'd like to expand a bit on the issue of minimum length for info sections. As several of my colleagues have mentioned, the "minimum" requirements vary from category to category, though every category now requires at least one sentence. Most of the time, though, substance is more important than a particular number of sentence-ending punctuation marks. A compact info section ("St. Joan, executed as a heretic in 1431, wasn't declared a saint until 1920.") may contain the same information as a more expanded one ("Joan was a saint. She died in 1431. This was her sentence for heresy. In 1920, she was declared to be a saint.") Either of these would be acceptable in my categories; it's a matter of the style in which you feel most comfortable writing. Specific category requirements do affect the minimum length and complexity of your info section, whether you're giving a quick summary of a movie plot or the book and chapter where a Bible story can be found. Usually, we've put these extra requirements into place after observing what kinds of questions tend to do well, and what kinds tend to receive lots of correction notes. The guidelines are there to help! Editor, Religion and Sci/Tech Reply #18. Mar 10 13, 2:59 PM |
| CellarDoor
|
WesleyCrusher makes an excellent point about the twin audiences for any info section: the group who got your question wrong (and thus need the answer explained), and the group who got your question right (and thus might like to see a deeper explanation or an interesting sidebar). In some questions, there's a third audience: perhaps one of the incorrect answers was very similar to the right one, or perhaps that incorrect answer represents a common misconception. For example, suppose I ask about the color of slippers that Dorothy Gale wears in the book "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." The correct answer is silver, but I bet that a lot of players will be fooled by the incorrect answer "red". They would appreciate it if I included a note addressing that mistake in the info section: "In L. Frank Baum's original book, Dorothy receives a magic pair of silver slippers from the late and unlamented Wicked Witch of the East; they complement the golden cap she later takes from the Wicked Witch of the West. The makers of the famous 1939 MGM movie, wanting to take full advantage of their Technicolor cinematography, changed the silver to rubies." Here I've got a brief explanation of the silver slippers and how they appear in the story, for those who are completely lost. I acknowledge the fact that many "Oz" fans instantly think of ruby slippers, and explain why that is. And then, for people who've always been able to keep track of the book versus the movie, I throw in another tidbit expanding on why Baum might have chosen silver in the novel. Each of these three facts is something that anybody might find interesting, but each of them is particularly targeted at a different subset of players. The "tricked by an almost-right answer" target audience is, in my view, especially important in logic puzzles, math questions, brain teasers, etc. It can be very frustrating to make a small mistake, see the right answer, and not be able to see where you've gone wrong. Editor, Religion and Sci/Tech Reply #19. Mar 10 13, 3:14 PM |
| agony
|
A certain amount of editorial judgement comes into this, too. I ask authors to aim for two or three sentences, but my absolute minimum is one fact. If every question only has one fact in the info section, that quiz will be sent back for more work. But if nine questions have good solid info, and one of them only has one fact, I let that quiz go online, if that's the only problem. Other editors might not. If you dislike having quizzes sent back, and would rather the whole process take less time, you'll do better to aim higher than the absolute minimum. It saves time in the long run, and gets you higher ratings. Reply #20. Mar 10 13, 3:14 PM |
55 replies. On page 1 of 3 pages. 1 2 3
Legal / Conditions of Use
|
|
: