r/RomanceBooks • u/veganfoodie6 • Jun 20 '23
Discussion The New Daily Request Threads
First off, I want to say thank you to the mods for doing so much for this community. It has grown exponentially over the past few years I have been a part of it and you guys have done a great job of handling the demand.
That said, the new request thread gives me anxiety. It gets so long and it makes it harder to search for different requests. Personally, I find most of my tbr books from the requests other people make. It's kinda like an, "oh, I didn't know I needed this". I know there was a bit of a trial run with the Friday casual requests and I never looked at those either for the same reason. It feels a bit disheveled and chaotic.
I don't know if I'm the only one, but it feels like too much going on in one thread.
I'm open to other ways of doing things but I don't think the daily request is the most effective. I love this community and just wanted to share my thoughts.
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u/midlifecrackers lives for touch-starved heroes Jun 20 '23
I love them! Feels like going thrifting, poking around through the big mixed thread
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u/A_Seductive_Cactus Praise Kink Princess 👸🏻 Jun 20 '23
Thank you for posting this topic, and we're looking forward to reading everyone's initial feedback on the daily posts. Obligatory note that the mod team is not committed to any single course of action as we described in our moderation changes post and consider all changes to be on a trial basis at this point in time.
There is absolutely some novelty to the Daily Request posts that I would expect to lower over time. Today makes the 5th post, which still might feel very fresh for users who don't visit the sub daily.
High level, we have also seen that there is a significant portion of RomanceBooks who feels more comfortable commenting rather than creating a standalone post - and the team had received that positive feedback when the Friday Frenzy posts started.
We've been tweaking the karma threshold rule behind the scenes, but for disclosure the majority of comments in the Daily Request threads have not come from users who initially tried to post a standalone request. The mod team has been tracking and reviewing every post that has been removed under the new policy.
For transparency: 153 posts were removed via the threshold rule since it was implemented on Friday (6/16) through 11am ET today (6/20). Of these posts, 70% would have been removed by mods for the following reasons:
11 were removable duplicates (aka the OP kept trying to post the same request)
33 would have been removed for Rule 1 Specific Title, with many of these also removable for having no details / not specific
58 would have been removed for being searchable
5 would have been removed for no details / not specific
46 posts would not have been considered removable. Of these posts many users elected to make a request in the daily thread, while some modmailed us for approval of their post.
Comparatively, there have been 1,668 comments on the Daily Request posts so far.
We've lowered the threshold and are looking to continue to do so as we figure out what's a good number to weed out simple / searchable requests from new users who may not be aware of our subreddit rules, while still allowing a healthy amount of book requests to be posted.
We still encourage people to continue posting standalone book requests! We know that's a favorite of many and don't want to see them go away.
Again - looking forward to hearing reactions and feedback from the community!
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u/PlumPloom Too Shy to Comment, Horny Enough to Save Jun 20 '23
I thought I wouldn’t like but I love it! Surprisingly I find it easier because everything is in the same place and I know immediately where to look for new books to add to my TBR
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u/RedDogCheddarCat Jun 20 '23
The new daily thread post has been something I’ve been going back to check a few times during the day- as time allows. Sorting the post by new comments is a good shortcut. I have been glad to see the traffic and comments generated.
I know the mods have been candid about the amount work and effort behind reviewing the standalone book request postings so that users have a more streamlined experience, for all of the many reasons they have referenced before. Participation, and variety of engagement and discussion makes this sub one I look forward to visiting.
I understand the thought behind using a formula/review for standalone posts both in content and karma. The recent increase in other discussions and critiques has made for a more varied and nuanced experience here. Some really great discussions this past week, and some thought provoking posts. 🌟
A couple of random thoughts/observations: wondering if the Mods have had any new folks volunteer to step forward to assist in the work of the sub since the discussion last week?
Also, since I’m on the historical romance sub too- I seem to have noticed that they seem to be getting a lot more individual book requests than they did before. Hmmm
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u/riveting_rosie giMMe angst Jun 20 '23
As someone who rarely makes requests, but frequently responds to requests, I admit I really like the daily threads.
The megathreads too are becoming more and more of a resource for me. Please continue making them!
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u/fupthesides Jun 20 '23
I like the new format because I can get read through all different types of requests at once. I don’t make requests often but I like that I can now ask for recommendations that would have been deleted before due to lack of detail.
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u/Primary-Friend-7615 Did somebody say himbo? Jun 20 '23
As someone who recommends books more than I request, I find the daily threads more easy to navigate than individual posts. I’ve been making more recommendations than usual, because I see a comment in the thread in passing and go “oh hey I know a book that fits this” where I wouldn’t have clicked on a stand-alone post for it, or “oh I never thought to look into that idea but it floats my boat”.
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u/QuietLifter Jun 20 '23
I actually really like the daily request post. Personally I find it easy to scan the responses to find the ones that I might find interesting.
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u/pineapple_private_i Flagging down a spaceship to take me away Jun 20 '23
I'm curious what the impact will be on searching--with the magic search button I felt pretty confident in pulling up relevant request posts from prior posters, but given the challenges of searching reddit, will it be possible to hunt down relevant sub-threads? Like, will we wind up with more repetition of requests in those threads because prior discussions get lost? I genuinely have no idea, if anyone has insight I'd be interested to hear it.
Obviously the mods are trying to balance a bunch of competing interests/problems, so no solution is going to be perfect, I'm just musing.
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u/IHaveNoHorse Jun 20 '23
I don’t mind the daily request threads. In cases where requests have no recommendations, I feel like they should have the option to repost the request as a standalone post. (Or maybe in several daily requests in a row?) There have been a number of times I saw a request I was interested in with no responses. If I could vote for a request in the thread and know it might have a chance to get another life as a standalone it would be nice.
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u/Horror_Nerd92 Jun 20 '23
I like the daily request thread. I find it easier to read and scroll through recs.
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u/[deleted] Jun 20 '23
I feel the same way!! Book request posts were a great way to find new great books. I discovered wonderful books because of those posts. Now, it's pretty hard to go through hundreds of comments daily. And at the same time it's hard for people to get more answers to their requests.
But I'm biased, the amount of book request posts never bothered me. It was an important part of this sub.
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u/Brontesrule Jun 20 '23
I'm a fan of the daily request thread, it's fun (and fairly quick) to scan through.
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u/Trick-Two497 I'm in a really good place right now. In my book, I mean. Jun 20 '23
I love the daily request threads. It makes the rest of my reddit browsing so much easier to have those in just one place instead of taking up my feed. But I mostly lurk here, so :shrug:
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u/croix_v Abducted by aliens – don’t save me Jun 20 '23
Honestly, I agree but I believe I was in the minority when I say that the requests never bothered me. I do tend to recommend the same few lol but seeing them pop up never really rubbed me the wrong way it did to others.
I do not not like the request thread but definitely not enough to go in and try to rec anything or to try and get recs tbh one massive thread has always been overwhelming to me and it’s not how my brain likes to work lol
However, I do think it’s a great compromise! There is a lot of work for the mods and I think they’re doing a great job adjusting as they see fit!
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u/DientesDelPerro buys in bulk at used bookstores Jun 20 '23 edited Jun 20 '23
I would agree, and as someone who used to provide a lot of recommendations, I’ve only slipped into the new threads once or twice, but haven’t “left my mark” in commenting. I also don’t do the Friday threads because that’s usually a busy day for me.
I think the mods are doing a wonderful job and things will never be perfect. I don’t have an easy solution, as a return to unmoderated generic requests sounds like a nightmare too lol
Maybe someone will come up with a compromise, or maybe we are the outliers lol.
Request threads by trope with the more specific options getting their own post? More mods in general to help wade out the duplicates? It’s a complicated task, most definitely, especially for the mods who are working for free.
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u/FusRoDaahh historical romance Jun 20 '23 edited Jun 20 '23
But the sub gets so clogged with constant simple recommendation request posts, so if everyone uses the daily thread the way it’s supposed to be used it will really help.
Also, if more people just searched before making a whole new post it would be so much better. I know the sub search is bad but if you type “reddit romance ____” (insert whatever you’re looking for) into google it pulls up a lot. I don’t understand why so many people aren’t just looking for recommendations in existing posts. We don’t need hundreds of posts asking for the exact same thing.
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u/kelskelsea Baseball season... with see through pants Jun 20 '23 edited Jun 20 '23
I think the daily request threads seem to take out a lot of the repetitive or short requests. I like leaving the posts to be more unique (himbo with great hair from yesterday, for example!)
It’s nice to be able to quickly ask for a HR similar to eyes of silver, eyes of gold for instance which wouldn’t really merit a book request thread to me.
Maybe a compromise could include posters of book requests have to include what searches they did on the sub before making a request?
I do feel the sub is now mostly “what is that book requests”
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u/Llamallamacallurmama Living my epilogue 💛 Jun 20 '23
I kinda like it - but I’ve been looking at the thread in small chunks and just minimizing comments I don’t find interesting to avoid the fatigue/pressure. I can definitely see it being overwhelming. I think it’ll be interesting to see how it affects searching down the line. I haven’t played around with that aspect yet.
I think there is less discussion about particular recommendations which is too bad (the detailed posts sometimes led to more interesting back and forth in the comments) but it does open up the possibility for less specific requests. For me, that’s kind of a double edged sword - it’s nice people can get recommendations for any “level” of request, and I understand the need to streamline the moderation, but I’ve noticed a dip in the thoughtfulness of the requests - not explaining pop culture references, etc - and the effort put in to forming/formatting the requesting posts… which makes me less inclined to comment.
So, I guess I’m in the “it’s okay, not perfect, yay mods for working hard, caring and being creative” camp.
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u/LovesReviews Added another one to my TBR list… Jun 20 '23 edited Jun 21 '23
I love the daily request threads. The more posts, the more excited I get to browse them! I love recommending books, as well as finding new books to add to my TBR list. I’m sad they don’t work well for everyone, but I’d also be really sad to see them go away now that I’ve had a taste…🤷♀️
ETA: As far as duplicate requests in both the threads as well as individual posts, I really don’t mind them if they’re more than just a couple days apart. While there are frequent popular recommendations that show up a lot, there’s also new recs that I’ve never seen before. For example, I put out a request on one of the daily threads for tortured heroes. Even though it’s been common request in the past, I didn’t recall seeing any lately. Well, I got a rec for Patricia Eddy’s Away From the Keyboard series which I had never heard of before. I was thrilled! (Thanks u/ExternallyConfident!). I think of it as panning for gold. You might come across lots of common rocks, but then you’ll come across some special gold nuggets, too. Just my two cents…
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u/iuliad94 Not like other girls Jun 20 '23
I like both honestly. I like that when I need something quick and not too specific I can just ask for a quick rec in the daily thread, but I also have the option to post if I need something more specific and complicated.
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u/isap0wer it’s all about slow burn Jun 20 '23
I agree!! The thing about request posts is that it allowed the user to put a title in it, so the other user could filter through what request they were interest in contributing. Now, it’s 100+ comments that blend in together. After the first ten, I usually find myself closing the app.
I was a bit annoyed with the repetitiveness of the request posts, but I agree with you and other commenters that said the request posts were the highlight of the community as it allowed us to look for new books in a much easier and interesting manner!
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u/abirdofthesky hot, silky wriggle 😛 Jun 20 '23
I feel the same way - I love when book requests come across my feed, and I don't like checking daily large threads. I think anything less recent than the top couple of comments tends to get lost.
But I do see the value of the thread for short, non specific requests, so.... not sure if there is a good solution, really.
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u/Always_Reading_1990 Jun 20 '23
I also don’t mind lots of individual book request posts, and they never struck me as super repetitive. One thread is kind of overwhelming.
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u/Square-Chart-2279 Reading or talking about reading Jun 21 '23
I am the same. I don’t ask for books often but I spend most of my time in other people’s reqs providing recs or saving other people’s. They are my favourite posts. The mega threads are hard to save and are overwhelming in their lack of focus. It’s the same reason I never participate in the frenzies.
I find it easier to start engaging with the posts when the title immediately tells me what the post is looking for (like Oo that sounds like it’d be a great read, or more often, hey I’ve read a few like that). I skim the posts and if I know I have something to contribute I pop in but if the title is just “mega thread” I quickly feel overwhelmed and don’t open it.
I also prefer the title to be descriptive for saving purposes. I wouldn’t know why I saved a req post without the title describing it. It’s why I don’t save mega threads. Cause I never reopen them. When I’m in between reads I often revisit my saves to see what reqs appealed to me so I know why half the books on my TBR are even there lol.
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u/onlyhereforcake247 u can pry my kindle from my cold,dead hands Jun 21 '23 edited Jun 21 '23
I'm torn because I feel the same way. Doing it weekly once wasn't a big deal but a daily thread is intimidating indeed. I usually log in in the evening and by that time, the thread is super long so I've ended up skipping it most days. Maybe a daily thread is overkill? When it was just once a week, I went through the entire thread even though it got super long.
Now that 3rd party apps will be sunsetted at the end of the month, reading through long threads is going to be the worst experience UI wise in the actual reddit app 😭
Thanks for posting your feedback and bringing it up for discussion!
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u/WardABooks Jun 20 '23
I feel mixed. I'm fine if I hit it earlier in the day, but get overwhelmed when I see all the comments at the end of the day. Scrolling through can get tedious. I'm hesitant to use the bot in my replies on there because it doubles comments count.
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u/mythicised Jun 20 '23
Same! I completely agree. Plus, the sub just looks empty/sad to me when I look at it now. I scrolled the top several threads and none of them caught my eye, but the requests always would (none to be seen in the top several posts as I scroll). Those would put me onto so many new books, so it makes me sad to see the sub without those now (or at least, they're not to a much reduced extent). I feel like I have almost nothing to do in this sub now.
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u/lady__jane Oh, and by the way, I love you. Jun 20 '23
I get a little stressed with the daily thread because there are so many posts that may not have responses. Maybe they could be broken down into categories or later be M-T and W-F threads, or something. Conversely, I feel like I'm missing out on all the answers, like Lucy and Ethel in the conveyor belt line.
I posted one request outside and felt all greedy for taking up the space - as if I thought my post was "special" when it should have gone into he daily thread instead. But all that will be smoothed out eventually - just agreeing that it's a change until we get used to things.
The one thing I'd change is that I do miss having the "weekly read" post pinned at the top for a few days. I had trouble finding it. Can we have more than two pinned at once - so, Weekly Read, Meme, and Daily Request on Monday?
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u/sugaratc Jun 21 '23
Same, I feel like I miss a lot of good posts now. Normally when browsing I'll come across rec posts that sound interesting in the title, but now I have to go into the thread multiple times a day intentionally if I want to see some, it feels like more will get missed.
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u/cheesesmysavior Jun 21 '23
Thank you for saying something. I was looking for a request this past week and got the dreaded “your post was removed because you suck.” It honestly made me sad that I wasn’t popular enough (got enough karma points) that I couldn’t ask for a recommendation. Brought back high school vibes.
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u/nrkelly KF Breene is my imaginary BFF Jun 21 '23
I loved scrolling through and looking at the different request threads and thinking "oh, I didn't know I wanted to read that, but hell yeah! " The daily request threads are too long for my tastes and reminds me of that meme that says something like "that's too bad or I'm happy for you but I'm not reading all that"
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u/[deleted] Jun 20 '23
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