What is it that makes a thread successful?
What are the characteristics of a good, well thought, and long thread?
And most important of all, how does one avoid writing a thread that will inevitably cause the general disgust of the populus?
From what I’ve seen…
GQ: A question that hasn’t been hashed out in detail in recent weeks and that is asking for facts, not opinions. Seems to help a lot if it’s something that only a small percentage of people would be “in the know.” GQ threads don’t get that long once the OP has been reasonably well answered.
GD: Something that can be interpreted a number of ways. Though facts and statistics can change some opinions, some things have a high emotional content. Helps if it’s something currently “in the news,” but old questions sometimes get the most arguments.
Cafe: Star Trek, LOTR, Firefly. Always long. Often interesting to hear about little known insider stuff. Also great for any entertainment issue, even some things that my seem better suited for GD or MPSIMS. Facts or opinions, doesn’t matter.
IMHO: Sometimes very similar to GD, but without facts getting in the way. Also good for “faves” type questions.
MPSIMS: Requires a bit of wit usually. Or a good sense of the macabre. Here is where a “creative” person can really shine. To get long threads, don’t be overly concerned about anything but style. The most fun for me, btw.
The Pit: Just get mad. Or, have an outrageous opinion. Use alot of colorful metaphors. Or, on a serious note, have a real beef with someone, either on the Boards or in your real life.
To avoid causing general disgust, just don’t be stupid. If you do choose to be stupid, be creatively stupid.
I’m still new here, but that’s my take on it all…