What is the longest one you have written?

My 5 hour trip...18 pages double spaced. I died last night. lol

That was my entry into the world of high end shops.

I am currently finishing my 80 page capstone for my masters degree. That was the fastest I've written 18 pages. (4 hours off and on)

OMG! Was that for Coyle? I've been fortunate to not get anything that requires that much narrative.

I hope you were well paid for it.

My longest was about 130-135 pages, single spaced. I have had several that long. yes, some have been for Coyle, but others not.

Did you have fun though, that is the question...

135 pages?! Wow! Was that trip worth it? lol

Yes, this was Coyle. It was a nice trip. Smooth ride until I was 1/2 way home...then my check engine light came on! Stopped at Autozone on the way, and found out I had low coolant. Filled it up, and went on my way. Now the dealer wants to put a new thermostat in the car...charge lots of money. Ugh. I'm not sure about that one.

I sent in all my checklists, narratives, and receipt for my report. Hoping I don't have too many revisions.

Wish I could have stayed longer and seen all the sights. Maybe next year, or when I go with family.

Actually - I wanted to make sure that I had given correct information - and I did not. I went back and looked and my longest report was 127 pages, and it most definitely was NOT worth it. My second longest was 114 pages and it was totally worth it. Those were both cruises (one was great, one not so much). The next longest (4-5) were all in the 90-100 page range and they were for 5-6 night resort stays.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/11/2013 04:03PM by CAscotch.

I think MickeyB is either more articulate or long-winded than I am...or both. I did a similar 2-week cruise and ended up with 86 pages as my longest narrative. I also know that MickeyB is also a MUCH better typist than I am, so I probably spent more time on my 86 pages than she did on her 114 pages.

I just did a 3-night casino/hotel shop last week that ended up being 45 pages, which is a bit longer than I expected. I normally will have 20-30 pages for a resort shop, and 60-70 for a 1 week cruise. The 2-week cruises are more typing, but you also get another week at sea for the extra 20 or so pages, and the free liquor!

I did a 35 page resort shop for 3 days, plus 35 pictures, pluse two Excel sheets.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/11/2013 04:03PM by CAscotch.

CAscotch Wrote:
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> Do you have to attend all the
> activities? The art auction, bars, bingo, shows,
> etc. and then write about them?

Pretty much, yeah. The schedule is a bit more open than hotels but there is a certain amount of all those things that have to be reported on, as well as the meals, so evenings are usually spent rushing from dinner to a show or visa-versa. I have usually been able to schedule one completely free day per week on the cruises, though.

100 pages of narrative?

No thanks, I'll pay for my own vacation.

Do you guys really think it's worth it, or are you masochists? :-D The narrative I had to do for Coyle wasn't that long, but I've refrained from doing more shops because of the detail. I just don't have the time to put in right now, and to be honest, I don't know if I'd ever be inclined to do something like a resort or cruise!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/11/2013 04:01PM by CAscotch.

CAscotch Wrote:
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> I know it sounds like a lot but you get used to
> them after a while...

For me, there are certain things in life that I could never get used to. Colonoscopies, the scent of cat urine and 100 page narratives would be some of them.

It's not like I live to write long narratives, but I don't find them that painful. I enjoy the process of telling the story, and it's something I'm good at.

I would not write 100 pages for any assignment unless it offered something really great, however. The 2-week cruise in question was worth well over $10,000 so I figure I got a value of $20 per page from it, and it was a life changing experience that I never would have paid for myself, so it's a win/win for me and the MSC.

I am going to concure with Steve - I also do not live to write narratives (albeit, it is true - I am a bit verbose when it comes to writing them); I do them because what I am receiving in return is worth it. I AM a fast typist, and I am not one of those people that agonzies over every word either - especially when you are talking about technical style writing (following an established format, sticking to a certain type of information, little room for creativity - which basically is mystery shop reporting).

I find the cruises to actually have more free time then some of the shorter resorts. Yes, there is 'more' stuff to report on, but not commiserate with the additional days. Since I am one of those OCD types, I worked non-stop during the first half of the cruise so I was caught up and was able to relax during the second half. This meant that I did take half to almost full days off at times. It was not a "true vacation" in any sense, but like Steve's mine was easily worth 10K if not more. If doing a cruise like this means I can take two kick-a$$ vacations every year instead of just one, sign me up.

The one that was NOT worth it to me (which was actually longer in narrative length) was only 7 nights, which meant I had less time. It also was not worth as much (I could have purchased it all on my own for probably $3,000 total including my guest and airfare and transportation). The cruise ports were not interesting either (totally my own fault of course). I will admit that first one I did was more, "OMG it is a cruise and that is like the pinnacle of shopping so I must do it" and I did not really think out if it would be worth it. The second one was much more thought out. I knew what I was getting into and I ran the numbers and felt it was worth it to me.

In sum, I have had amazing travel experiences that were due to mystery shopping. I have gone some places I never thought I woudl go (and seen things I never thought I would see (some good, some not so good) - I hands down think it is worth it a few (or a hundred) pages.

And yes, you do get used to the narratives. Honestly, a 20 page narrative to me would seem short at this point.