User blog comment:Tiololo/For All You Pasta Critics/@comment-25941663-20151228001645

For me, the quality of a story is determined by the following: originality, creepiness, atmosphere, emotional impact and character development (in no particular order).

A story doesn't need all of the above to be perfect though. It depends on the story, really. I've seen stories with great character development, that are original and creepy, but in the end they fall flat because the plot needed something different.

So, it all has to do with the identity of the story and how the factors I mentioned above fit in with that identity. There's no accurate formula to determine whether a story is good or not. If a story is good, you'll know it.

If you are the judge of a contest, you'll know give or take the identity of the entries, so it will be easier to find which story is the best.

A little note on grammar. Grammar doesn't add to the quality of a story, but it can ruin one. At least for me.