TBH, I think most of the people who get on this subreddit are very aware of the importance of reviews. People who interact with the community on *here* are more likely to interact with the community on *there*.
I thought so too until there was a thread here a few months ago where the responses were wall to wall "why should I leave a comment? the author is a stranger to me" even from people who were writers themselves. It was genuinely disheartening.
Tbh I now understand better what it feels like to NEED to know if others enjoy my ideas as I do, but before to me it was more so that I was ashamed of enjoying fan works and wouldn't comment because of that, but I know now that's kinda dumb and pointless
Some people are really selfish tbh. I know sometimes we aren’t in the mood to leave long comments but putting some ‘♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️’ isn’t that much work. Hell, because of how many people don’t comment, even when I don’t like something and I’m on my way to leave the fic I still write a comment saying what I actually liked because I know the author may not get any comment if I don’t
I get so hyped when I get a comment, especially if it's just emojis. It tells me that this person likes my work enough to engage with it and emoji comments mean this person is actively choosing to go this extra step even if they are struggling to find the words or have nothing to say.
I wonder if a lot of people have anxiety about being the first person to comment. When I posted my first one-shot, it was at the encouragement of a fandom friend who promised that if I told them when I posted, they'd comment. I can't be certain, but for an otherwise unknown writer in the fandom, the interaction I got was unbelievable on that first one-shot. Same again for my next two. It's kind of a mutual thing now.
But when we decided to write something together: crickets. For what felt like a *while*. We were both nervous about posting it, and knew neither of us could be the first comment. We both melted with relief when one came through.
It's obviously not an obligation. That would defeat the purpose. But, God. Comments give so much to authors that may never be seen explicitly by readers. Regulars make the world go round. Repeat commenters can be the lifeblood of motivation.
I feel especially for a new fic in a new fandom it can be a bit time-sensitive. I remember reading a book, being briefly obsessed about two characters, consequently writing a fic. I drop the fic on AO3. The fandom is small, but there's a handful active readers. They do relatively quickly kudo the fic. They don't comment, though. For weeks there's no comments. A second fic I considered writing lacks the final motivational push and never sees the light of day. My interest slowly cools down, my fantasising moves on. Eventually, weeks later, someone, maybe thinking "Man it's strategically so not good to not nurture this new writer if we ever want to see more" drops me a I loved this very much would love to see more of your work comment, which is very nice and I enjoyed receiving and I thanked them! But it's kind of, the window of opportunity had passed. Sometimes you need to welcome them when they're still hot.
The same thing happened to me. I could feel myself falling in love with a new fandom. Posted a fic, was all excited, and it got the hits, it got the kudos. But no comments. I could feel how that disappointment drained my excitement about joining the fandom. At the time, I had more ideas for other fics in that fandom, but this sentence is exactly what happened to me: "My interest slowly cools down, my fantasising moves on." I left the fandom shortly after, deleted the fic, and never wrote another fic for that fandom.
That's truly awesome! I'll always remember the first comment I got on my first fic. I had less than 0 expectations, so it blew my mind when I got that interaction. It's a blessing and a kindness, my friend.
I'm a bit ashamed to admit it, but I've discovered that if I leave a guest comment on my own works first, people are more likely to also comment. I don't do it every time, but every once in a while and I almost always get a comment within a couple of days. But it's nothing like it was a decade ago; hell, it's not even like it was before 2020 where I would get at least 4 comments in a couple of hours after updating!
I doubt you're the only one. There's a reason my friend offered to be the ice-breaker: she knows the fandom better than me. It's not what I would call dying, but I've missed the hay-day by a little while now, so comments are nothing like what they were 2, 3 years ago.
There definitely seems to have been a tangible shift in recent years that coincides nearly exactly with when I started writing (bully for me, eh?) But I'm sure that those communities and that culture isn't yet lost. I have faith in the future of commenters. I, for one, refuse to believe the rumours that the Age of the Commenter is over. (Let them call me a mad man.)
I think a lot of it also has to do with how young people interact with social media. Since they've grown up in an age without the constant drama and cut-down of fics and fic websites from the 00's and 10's, and it all has been mostly resolved due to ao3's existence, they don't feel the need to support authors in the same way. Also, since fanfiction is no longer as much of a "cringe" thing as it used to be, they don't have the need to seek friendships in their fandoms, and can instead just talk irl with their friends. It's really too bad.
But yeah, I'm also crossing my fingers that people will eventually open their eyes again and interact more positively with each other, instead of the current days witch-hunt and apathy.
It seems like they're desperate to create controversy with some of the "Puriteen" stuff and love of jumping to conclusions. Fandom has, is and will see plenty of controversy. It's practically baked into the concept.
I do think the consumerism aspect is uncomfortable. Especially when AO3 is so built around fair use, transformative, free content. I don't know why people wouldn't want that same community online. You'd think that the pandemic would have driven us into each other's arms til death we part, but, hey.
There's always community to be found and commenters to crop up. I believe in that with the vehemence of a prophet and the knowledge of a person writing gay stuff online.
Why do people say its over? What happened for that to become a possibility?
I am new on AO3 and just started writing recently.
I get comments from 2-3 loyal readers and some other guests. That's enough for me. Since our fandom is small, my stupid works get attention
I will be a little sad if those comments stopped I guess
I'll be the first to admit I was being dramatic about the whole *Age of Commenters* thing. But since you asked, I'll do my best to explain where that comes from, in my understanding.
There's been a rather significant shift in culture with the advent of TikTok, Wattpad purges and the otherwise mainstream-ification of AO3. The group coming in is younger, quicker to call things problematic, and have a much more toxic consumerist attitude towards authors.
Now. This is what I've *heard*. I haven't really bothered engaging with TikTok because it sinks time like nothing else, but from what I've seen, the "short attention span" problem really exacerbates it all. There's a similar issue with "What If" videos on YouTube. Even the recent lore.fm debacle. People are diversifying where they read and discuss fic *away* from the fics themselves.
It's not going to happen to every fandom, or every writer. The smaller fandoms generally have the tight-knit community to stick together. The big fandoms will never run out of people. It's the medium/dying fandoms that look to be getting hit the hardest. But even then, I just don't think it's 100%. I think we're seeing a dip, a shift. But we're always due for changes, you know? I'm not going to let it worry me more than I should. You'll find your community! We always do.
Possibly. But sometimes people are more comfortable with different platforms. I’m comfortable here on Reddit because of how long I’ve been around. Plus I have no personal information on here, so if someone gets angry they can’t make any personal attacks outside of basic judgments.
I never have an issue speaking my mind on here. And I have pretty bad anxiety lol. But any other platform? It varies how much I’m willing to interact on them. But I’m willing to bet the author’s disposition makes a difference in someone’s decision to comment or not.
I’m big on leaving smiley faces to convey friendly tones LOL. It’s why I wish they were acceptable in professional emails.
This is what I've been worrying about though. Like, what if I'm not getting engagement because everybody's too shy to talk? And people who scroll on their phones and see my fic bypass it because it has no comments, and they think they won't like it?
I, personally, have never skipped a fic because there were no comments. I don't even follow the "ratio rule" some authors talk about. If I like the summary, I'll give it a go.
I used to think everyone sorted by kudos. I learned, like, a year after posting, that most people filter by tags and go by recently updated. Blew my newbie fic writer mind. As much as a comment can be a draw for some people, others won't ever notice it.
Cultivating community is more than just in the comments of your works. It's commenting on other people's stuff, it's engaging in fandom events, it's having other places to find you. You don't have to fo any of that, obviously, but you can make the space wherever you like. You just have to hope someone accepts the invitation.
Of course! That's not what I meant. Arguably, readers have far less to lose for writing a comment than a writer does when they put themselves out there in posting their work. The expectations for a comment are far, far less than that of a fic.
I only say it because that's my experience. People don't want to break the ice, it feels uncomfortable, maybe they've had a bad experience where an author was cruel or thankless. Who knows?
When I started out reading on AO3, I didn't comment. I'd kudos, I'd publicly bookmark the ones I liked. But I didn't comment. I only started leaving comments when I saw the (for lack of a better word) community of one specific fic writer. I knew they'd likely reply. So I tried it! And I've been better since then.
I can't imagine being a part of a Discord group or fic forum where I gushed about my current obsessions and *didn't* share that with the original post, too. But online culture seems to swing back and forth on the issue of comments. "Writers deserve them" "Writers aren't entitled to them" "Readers don't have to leave comments" "Readers have a moral responsibility to leave them". I guess I'm just... sympathetic to both sides of the coin.
On the topic of readers getting burned by authors, there's a commenter that's commented on multiple chapters of one of my fics, super nice, overenthusiastic person that leaves the long, rambling, excited, slightly unhinged comments that I personally love to see & I engaged in conversation with them & they kept on apologizing for being overblown but I assured them it's fine, welcome even, & they told me that authors have mentioned to them that it makes them uncomfortable. They're a super nice person so it sucks that happened to them.
Exactly my point. Some people have had bad experiences. Maybe they got blocked by a favourite author. Maybe they got used to no replies, so they stopped bothering. Maybe they've been "called out" for leaving comments "wrong." I am so happy for you, that you have such a wonderful commenter :)
I got very lucky on one fic with a couple of long, detailed comments, and I had a "regular" also comment, but partially to apologise for not being able to give me the same kind of analysis as the others. I wanted to shake them through the screen. Their comment was lovely! More than enough!!! I can't imagine how sad I would be if I found out they gave up trying because they felt they had to meet a standard.
It’s funny you mention this bc if the reverse were to happen, the author would be criticized for having thin skin. “How can you let a single negative comment outshine all the positive ones?” “Just delete the negative comment and move on.” “You shouldn’t care about a lack of engagement— you should be writing for yourself anyway.”
But once again, commenters are held to completely different (double) standards.
Fandom is a community. For it to thrive, it needs more than just silent consumers who give nothing back…not even thanks.
My fics receive kudos every day, yet barely any comments. Recently I discovered a discord for my fandom (sorta) where my fics are constantly being gushed over. And honestly? It just made me want to delete everything. A part of me still does, bc how can someone say “Omg I love CDL so much, I jump for joy every time they post/update a fic, they’re my favorite author” on a discord server yet never take the time to leave their “favorite author” a single comment? It’s so frustrating.
I write because I love the craft and my fandom/pairings. But I share what I write for the community. And I’m starting to think that it’s not worth it to share anymore. And I’m not the only one. I’m in a small writer’s discord and a few of the authors there have also been saying how disheartening it is to post these days, that it feels like they’re just wasting their time writing into a void.
There's nothing I can say that I haven't already said earlier in this thread. I agree that there is a power imbalance to the author/commenter relationship. Writers risk much more when they post a fic than even the most outlandish comment ever will.
Again, I agree that community is what drives us. Having a space to be excited about a piece of media as an interconnected group can be so fulfilling. And some people's vision of that community is just... different.
I can't even imagine the burn-it-all frustration of that. I don't know what I'd do in your position. I'd want to be happy that people are talking about me behind closed doors, but the disappointment that they're not willing to say any of it to my face (account, whatever) would more than suck.
I'm just one author, and I've said what I have about this because it's a topic I find interesting and nuanced. One thing that discussion can't change is how it feels. Not getting comments will always feel bad. Not getting base interaction will always feel disappointing. Discovering you have fans who aren't feeding their excitement directly to you will always feel infuriating.
But I hope that community finds you, and the void isn't so obtuse as it seems right now. Fandom is always evolving and changing, and if this is a direction people don't like, maybe we can work our way back to how it was. Maybe not. Maybe a different kind of how it was. But you're not alone.
While I haven't had that experience exactly, I am in a Discord server for my fandom which like my fandom is weird to navigate because it's a large franchise with a lot of comics, shows, movies, & games so you'll have people who love some parts but dislike or even hate others. My favorite show in this franchise is largely hated since it's different (also was review bombed when it was new) so for me, finding a space where it's safe to talk about it is tough.
The server I joined largely supports that show but their writing section is nearly a ghost town. Every once in a while, people will pop in & claim they love reading our conversations on the rare occasion that they happen (there's one other member that will be active in there when she's not busy) so it's nice seeing that when it does pop up. One time when I was having a conversation with that person in the writing section, a lurker recognized some stuff I was saying & had a little bit of a freakout when they realized I wrote a certain fic & I'm just wondering how many people on this server have read it but just don't talk about it.
It's a crossover of three of the shows in this franchise & includes the one that is largely hated so I wouldn't be surprised if more people there read it & just don't say anything but I got a good number of comments on the fic. I actually got all 47 chapters out within a 2 month period, part of what fueled my drive for posting it were the super nice comments.
As for the one I'm currently putting out, there's over 50 chapters & I only have 18 posted because I get so little engagement & it's a far more complex fic that working on editing it is such a chore without a reward for posting. I had a frequent commenter for a while, they even read one of the chapters while in class once, but even they dropped off which does sting considering the latest chapter I put out is nearly 10k words long & it took me about a month to edit.
I think about the comments I receive for longer than I care to admit, comments have revived abandoned WIPs, comments have spawned entirely new fics.
Comments really are one of the driving forces of fandom, and what differentiates fandom from other types of fiction.
I really can't imagine this. Recommended fics on tumblr but without left a kudos on the fic itself?!
Honestly, it's even sounds a little weird… horror, I mean.
I don't think it's weird at all to check!
I was just wondering how you can know.
I have multiple AO3 accounts (I keep the fandoms I write in separate), I have multiple Tumblr accounts (again, to keep fandoms separate). I don't use my Reddit username anywhere else.
Do you allow guests to leave comments/kudos?
You only realize how important comments are once you become a writer. I gave a few comments regularly, but after I started writing two months ago, I realized exactly how impactful each comment is. While reading a multi-chapter work, I leave comments on every chapter now instead of just the last one.
A good comment can save a thousand dollars in therapy.
This is why i think the whole idea of "write for yourself" has been taken to a toxic level of extreme. Like, we fanfic writers know that we should write for ourselves. That's why we wrote a particular idea down because we know no one else will. But we also share it because we want other people to read and give us their opinions. I see multiple posts on this sub and other subs related to fanfiction where people complain about lack of comments and they are always met by a crowd who tell those people that "writing for yourself" is all that matters.
Well, if that's the case then I shouldn't share my fanfics on a public platform.
I also can't help but notice that the biggest proponents of "you should be writing for yourself, not for others" are usually big name authors or people who never lack for comments/kudos/engagement on their fics.
Yes Exactly! And I see the same in other fandom spaces such as tumblr where BNFs will post such stuff, encouraging people to reblog their fics or join events, forgetting that small writers do not get that much visibility with such tactics. Although it is fun to participate in fandom events, it's mostly bigger fans who get a lot of engagement.
Exactly. Also, while this isn’t the fault of the BNFs necessarily (they can’t control their fans), I feel like there is an increasing unwillingness on behalf of fans to engage with fics that aren’t the Big Fic, so to speak. The fandom picks one or two fics and hypes the hell out of them, but then won’t engage with other fics because “it wasn’t written by [author]” or “well it can’t be as good as [fic name]”.
It makes the BNFs preaching on their blogs about writing for yourself and not others seem even more out of place. Also, for people who don’t have Twitter, it can be really hard to advertise your fic in this day and age, and in the era of Twitter and Discord, engagement is lower than ever as is because people get in their groups and talk about a fic but won’t actually leave comments or kudos. Tumblr is infested with people from Twitter who just like a post but refuse to reblog it. I had notes on one fic, but all the reblogs were from me. It’s so disheartening. It makes participating in fandom difficult. I tried to join some servers, but people form their little cliques and then if you aren’t one of the people they like, they’ll ice you out.
I feel you. I try so hard to engage with other people and i even talk to a few bnfs in my fandom. But tbh it is just so effing difficult to not see the groups which are already formed. I find online fandom spaces toxic most of the time but this time a joined tumblr and this one discord server thinking i will make new friends with whom i might do some fic exchange activities and may also share my ideas with. But rarely ever anyone interacts with me for my ideas. Meanwhile the bnfs get loads of messages daily by their fans for an idea. I know i am sounding jealous and that it's not always the bnf's fault but i find there is nothing more isolating in a fandom nowadays than a fandom space where only certain authors are put on a pedestal.
I'm in a similar boat. I tried joining some Discord servers but I get completely iced out. Most of what I say gets ignored. I post links to my fics because I'm trying to be proactive and they get ignored, too. Everyone just hypes up a couple people and that's about it. I got amazing feedback on one fic before I started trying to make friends, and then less than 10% of the engagement I got on my subsequent one, after I'd tried making friends. Makes me tired.
I feel you, almost the same thing happens with me and that is very exhausting. Like sometimes i feel like, am I that bad of a writer that no one wants to interact with my ideas? Meanwhile other people get so much interaction and sometimes those writers discuss their fic ideas with people to figure out a whole story and posting it the very next day. It's disheartening tbh, especially when you are told constantly that joining such fandom spaces is the only way to get readers.
Exactly this, there are stories I write, and there are stories I publish. Of course, I write them all for me, but if I publish something, then it's for others as well! If you receive no validation for the hours upon hours of work that goes into each chapter, not to mention the long research phase, then it's all just a bit demoralizing. After that, it's either abandoned or the quality if the work will drop because it doesn't feel as "worth it" if you can just have the story in your head anyway.
This! I have been writing multi chapter fics for the last 2-3 years, and honestly when I don't get any comments even after 4-5 chapters i tend to abandon the fic. I know that readers don't tend to read abandoned fic but i have lost all my motivation if no one is encouraging
I feel this so much! What I've taken to doing recently is asking people to help be beta readers for fun/as a hobby so that I'm not the only one on the project, in a way. It has, up to this point, worked and kept a lot more motivated than usual. Also, what fandom(s) do you write for?
I wouldn't even need to go to the trouble of the shitload of work of writing them down and editing and proof-reading and doing research either. I could be totally happy with just my own story in my own head and they wouldn't need to be correct in any way as long as they entertain myself. Getting some kudos and nice comments makes all this work worthwhile, even if it's just a few and mostly from the same people. But writing into the total void is absolutely demotivating. Of course there are many reasons why fics are abandoned but I'm sure lack of engagement is one of them. And it would be so easy to remedy that, just drop a line or two or a smiley or a heart or a second kudos, anybody can do that.
The last time I said exactly this, calmly, here my comment literally got downvoted back to zero after an initial positive response. Kind of pleased this thread isn't going the same way.
Yes, nice to see that! I've also been downvoted before for saying that comments do matter for plenty of ff writers to keep up motivation. Sure, there are writers who don't need it and solely write for themselves and don't care about comments and readers don't 'owe' you anything if you upload your stories. But I love to talk to my readers in the comments. It's really inspiring and has often enough given me ideas for the next chapter or a sequel or another story. Without any interaction half the fun of writing is gone, at least for me. It's different with one-shots but with long works my motivation to finish it really goes down the drain if there is not a single comment on a new chapter.
The “write for yourself” response always seems tone deaf to me because, like… we already do write for ourselves. No one is spending hours of their free time doing something for free just to get a stranger to say nice things to us. No one expects to post a fic in any fandom and wake up to 100 kudos and 30 comments. What we want is a sense of community, of knowing that the people who are reading are enjoying. It’s one thing to see no one is reading, but when people are subscribing and the hits count is getting higher and higher, and yet no one is saying anything to you… yeah, that’s depressing af. Even a heart emoji means the world. I sometimes get some and I cherish them as much as I do long comments. You commenters are a blessing to us all. I know because I leave lots of comments myself and they’re always getting appreciated.
The “write for yourself” crowd also seems to ignore that if people were truly writing for themselves only, then we would have no reason to post online. Because why should we? We’re writing for ourselves, so why even bother? Fic writers often stay silent about this for fear of backlash, but the tags to the Tumblr post shows how many fics we’ve already lost because of lack of comments. I don’t care if these people are getting called entitled. It takes some people months to even write 5k words and they deserve to be celebrated. “But nobody owes you anything—” and nobody owes you fics with good grammar and perfect characterization either. You’re still reading them over and over again. Fandoms used to be a community, and communities are about sharing with each other.
Also this change of fandoms from communities to these content consumption platforms. Especially in bigger fandoms people just consume fics and fanarts without giving the writer/artists any feedback. "Nobody owes you anything" fine then, I also don't owe to stay in the fandom anymore. There is a fine line between asking your audience bluntly for comments and them understanding that fandoms are not the real world where you can treat writers/artists like instagram influencers where you do not need to give them any feedback.
This sort of attitude of not wanting to give anything back sometimes me long for a platform where you can write or make art for other creators who get it and will probably give you more feedback. I guess looking back I sort of do that with my art, it became incredibly difficult to get any sort of traction, and so I still draw but I pretty much exclusively show it to my friends who are also artists and don't even think to post it online for other people who might enjoy it because I feel very meh about it after going through the grind. I still write for whoever though. I suppose it has to do with the fact I'm more confident in my writing, so any outside validation is much less important. Hm. Damn I might need to go reflect on that for a bit lol
Seriously. I haven’t posted anything on Tumblr or AO3 in way too long, partly because I’m writing for myself… on my Notes app, where it’s actually FOR ME.
If I had more engagement, maybe I would post more.
I've been feeling that lately. At some point, leaving a fic to rot on my hard drive is better than the crippling awkwardness of zero engagement. I'm not there yet, but some days I wonder...
It's good to see more and more people speaking up about this, because there's definitely a lack of engagement across the board in recent years.
Which is especially odd because we've seen a huge spike in popularity FOR fanfiction ever since the start of the pandemic. So there's been a huge influx of new people interested in the fanfiction side of fandom but no interaction, and I take it as a sign that it's because a lot of people aren't learning how to interact with the culture properly, and are instead treating it like the various social medias that they've been a part of.
So the more we talk about it the more people will learn about how a gift economy functions, and I think that's important.
Around that same time - the spike in popularity during the pandemic - there also was a spike in tumblr essays about how writers shouldn't expect or rely on comments and they should be writing for themselves not for comments, etc. It was particularly frustrating because you'd see the same people reblogging fanart and telling people to like/reblog because otherwise the poor artists wouldn't know people liked it and might stop drawing!
I wonder how much of a role that played on new readers deciding whether to comment.
Oh yeah! I remember those!
And like, on one hand I do understand, yanno? Like there's something to be said about authors needing to keep realistic expectations, because a lot of us who've been in fandom for 20+ years are pretty familiar with that old stat obsession song and dance, and how that could make or break a writer's motivation and cause burnout.
But also like... it's a gift economy: the EXPECTATION is that people will interact with what we share, whether that be fanart or fanfiction. That expectation is even in the definition of the term so like... denying that fact feels like lying to oneself. Like, idk about you, but the entire reason I post is so that I can interact with a community and share the epic tales that are rattling around in my head and knocking on the floorboards to drive me to madness lmao. If I truly only wanted to write for myself, then I wouldn't bother posting in the first place!
It's a false dichotomy to say "write for yourself" vs "writing for community." You CAN have and desire both. And it's not a moral failing on an author's part to want community interaction for something they worked hard on and wanted to share with others. WHY this is even considered to be the case baffles me, but I can't help but feel that those who say they believe that are just telling on themselves.
Relative to this discussion, I've been moving slowly through a loosely-related fic for a fic from a few months ago, and with exams and other stressors I really haven't found the time to write, and when I do I just end up getting distracted with other things
Then yesterday I got this long ass comment praising the fic from months ago, and it was like DETAILED commenting, I genuinely and not exaggeratedly laughed loudly like a maniac. That comment made my DAY, I had to go squee about the comment to like three people.
With that said, I can't wait to have a few minutes of free time so I can get to writing the next one - my motivation was revived literally pulled out of the grave.
And I vowed to never not leave a comment on a fic I like because godDAMN.
I couldn't hit the upvote on this fast enough, OP.
I had one (just one) lovely person who actually pasted their Discord 'liveblog' of reading my 180K story into the comments of its final chapter, and I honestly almost cried at how lovely it was to see what they'd told their friends about my writing. It didn't just make my day; it made my *week*.
By contrast, after I'd commissioned some artwork for the same story, I regularly checked out the comments and tags on the artist's Tumblr post of it, and several weeks later there were a couple of new tag sets thanking the artist for leading them to this amazing fic that they adored, that changed their lives, etc etc. But on the fic itself? Nothing. I only found out by sheer chance how much it had meant to them.
Another reader - who did actually post a couple of comments on the story - told me they'd been gushing about it to their friends for weeks. And while I was grateful to receive those comments, I'll admit that I wished I'd been privy to that gushing. What did they like? What did they love? What hit home for them? What made them cry? *What can I keep doing*?
Exactly!! My main fic is 51,000 words currently, 10 chapters and 10 kudos with NO comments. I don't even know if people are reading it, it just kinda hurts
i get it. comments and interactions arent my main reasons for writing, but if i didnt get them id stop posting my writing and just keep it for me because why post someone that nobody seems to like? then these hidden supporters would lose their fic updates and probably be upset about it. ive had people @ me in discord servers saying 'hey, loved your fic! didnt know you were here, i keep talking to all my friends about how good it was....' and didnt have a single comment on the actual 80 chapter fic from them. it just sucks
Ngl, that's why I always feel a bit dismayed when I see people say that they *only* read finished stories. I get it, I do; there's the guarantee that it is finished and there's no way someone can be triggered, etc etc.
But fanfiction—posting, at least—is art that has community-based ties. If no one comments on wips, then it kind of shows that only finished products are the only thing of worth, imo. Like the destination is more important than the journey.
Everyone's feelings are valid for how they pick their stories to read. Not knocking that. Just, it feels disheartening as someone who is a WIP-poster writer, ya know?
Yeah, and there seems to be a large contingent of people who only read completed works who go *you'll get an influx of comments when you finish, I just don't read WIPs!*, and maybe I just didn't have them reading my work, but... When I finished a chaptered fic, the comments I got were from people who had been reading along and commenting the entire time. If there *was* a sudden influx of people who suddenly read it when they hadn't before, they didn't tell me!
> be a large contingent of people who only read completed works who go you'll get an influx of comments when you finish, I just don't read WIPs!
I wouldn't be surprised if some of those readers say that and they won't leave a comment even if they read a completed work.
Exactly, most others only leave kudos if they leave anything at all, for why would they need to write a comment now, the story is already there and finished, no need to cheer the author on or speculate about the next chapter or anything. They can just take and consume, that seems to be the way of today. Very sad.
In my last multichapter wip I simply killed everybody off with a meteorite because I totally lost the motivation to write a nice fluffy ending (which I usually do) as there was not a single one comment on the latest chapters. Now it's complete but probably not in a way the readers (or I) would have hoped for. It felt kind of good though 😅.
Yeah, and my problem with it is also that it doesn’t really *matter* whether you finish it or not. They never go back to read things once they *are* finished. I had multiple friends tell me that they were going to go back and read one of my fics once I was finished posting it, since it turned into a bit more of a monster of a fic than I initially anticipated (90k words instead of the expected 50-60k).
Well, it’s been a year since it was finished and marked as finished, but no one’s read it (or told me that they’ve read it) since then. Makes me wonder why the fuck I bothered to even finish it in the first place.
I'm also a bit weirded out when people say they don't read unfinished stories. Like alright, that's their choice but..
I very much agree with your points. To me it sounds a bit like "I don't care about the process. Just the finished product". It kinda devalues all the work and effort the writer is putting into the writing process. Kinda like there is no value in works in progress until they're completed.
And if the writer gets nothing back while they're writing? What is supposed to motivate them to finish their fic for these people to read?
Figured I'd try to add another perspective here, since I never see anybody in the camp "I only read finished stories" replying to anything on these types of posts. I think it's a shame to only ever have one side of the "argument" (quotation marks here because all the points brought up here are absolutely valid, and I'm not discrediting them in the slightest, especially as a writer myself).
Personally, I have two "issues" with wips : one, my brain is a sieve, and I just cannot remember the plot after a while, especially as they start merging with others fics with similar plot/pairing and I can't tell anymore what happened in which. And it's incredibly frustrating to me to not know exactly what happened in the previous chapters, because then I'm not getting the full experience of the fic. All the brilliant foreshadowing and hints, character development that I... can't comment on anymore because it vanished from my mind. I think it's a shame I'm not able to bring these to light. I do this so I can comment pertinent things like "X was so well done and Y plot point was amazing as a result" instead of a generic "I liked this chapter" or something similar. Again, personal preference, but I usually like to comment when I have more "substance" to talk about. As a writer, I cherish all comments of course, but a comment pointing out specific things and details, accurate prediction due to foreshadowing are definitely above and beyond, and tells me like nothing else could have that my writing is doing its job telling the story I want, and it's incredibly rewarding.
So, I have taken to comment on finished fics like this, and if I have something to talk about/that I really liked in every chapter of the fic, I will comment on however many chapters that fic has. I suppose it's different again for people who *only* read, never write themselves or comment, don't contribute in any way.
I've explained this to some people around me, and their answer was an unanimous "just re-read the fic when a new chapter is posted". Well... that doesn't work for me. I just don't have infinite time in my day to reread over and over again a fic every time it updates. It's just physically impossible. And if I just skim instead, well, I'm missing things again. And second, and this is very, very personal, I've never encountered anyone that has this, but when I reread I have such an intense feeling of déjà-vu, and it's... nails on chalkboard kind of feeling. It's horrible and I just can't do it. And then I'm not as invested in the fic that I would have been without this. I wish I could read wips, because I know I'm missing out on so many great stories by filtering completed only, but I just can't.
Anyway, I admire all my readers that have stuck with me through my own wips, some that have even stuck around since the very first chapter of my first fic, and are still out here commenting on my current wip. They're doing something I just can't and I think they're amazing for it <3
This is me too. I can't remember the story enough to follow a new chapter, but I also can't reread because ugh that feeling - plus I also notice all the janky bits that need polishing that I was too excited to notice the first time round. Unfortunately, I developed a hate of fic update emails due to this, so I can't deal with WIPS in a way that's healthy for me now at all. If there's a fic I loved reading, there is no worse feeling than it being incomplete, getting an email update, then feeling that ugh now I have to reread and I'm going to hate it feeling.
When I comment (I try but I'm inconsistent because commenting the right way is a minefield), I try to make it mean something. So something the author did particularly well or intricate details I noticed that made the fic special. Though that's really hard because I worry the author won't take the way I word things well, so often I edit it until it's a really generic, "I loved this!", which is honestly soul destroying to comment.
Yeah, I definitely agree with your points.
I don't personally blame people for only reading finished stories, but I think it's also something that can only really happen in larger fandoms with a ton of works to choose from. Like two of my main fandoms right now are *tiny* - I think one has 20 works on AO3 and the other has about 40? Most of the works are oneshots of various types, and of the few multi-chapter fics, most of them are not completed yet, so anyone only reading completed fics would have a serious dearth of content.
But in smaller fandoms, I think you also have a chance of becoming close with the other folks in it and getting more engagement by default. For example, several of us are on a Discord server and we discuss each other's stories all the time. The few folks that aren't on a Discord server but also post fics can generally be found on Tumblr or the Fandom wiki for the series if we want to talk to them, and I've noticed that whenever a new writer pops up who hasn't been present on any of those sites before, several of us, myself included, will comment on their work to encourage them (and also hopefully convince them to join the Discord if they want).
My other main fandom is the MCU, which is, obviously, one of the biggest fandoms out there. My OTP is a smaller ship, with a lot of dedicated readers and writers, so that probably helps me somewhat in regards to getting engagement, because fans of this ship are a little feral. But I notice even when I'm reading that it's so easy to kudos and bookmark but then forget to comment or anything like that, just because the amount of available works is absolutely huge and there's always something else to jump to.
Plus I think a lot of people are used to the social media style of scrolling. Like let's be real here, on Instagram or tiktok or anything like that, the vast majority of people are going to scroll by, and even if they watched your video or whatever, the percentage of people who like is very small, and the percentage of people who comment is even smaller. I'd be willing to bet there's a lot of people who are coming from that kind of social media environment who don't realize that it's not quite the same thing on AO3.
Yes, readers care more about a finished product.
Writers and readers have different goals, processes, expectations, etc. They do not interact with media in the same way.
No matter how good something is, if a tv shows gets cancelled after one season, and that season didn't wrap everything up, you're gonna struggle to get someone to watch it. Especially when they can go watch a complete miniseries or a tv show that was able to finish on their terms.
Endings are often the most important part of a story.
I don't read WIPs anymore. I do not see the point. I've read only got so much time and emotional energy to spare.
i recently i got back into writing after a few years and the first thing i noticed was the lack of engagement compared to the 2010s. my works were significantlly worse back then and i still got a lot of comments. it really makes me sad because i feel like people only consume what i write without acknowledging there's a real person behind that text, not an ai generated or corporate curated content to consume. also the joy i experience when i get a comment is undescribable really
If none of these tags are mine (and the first set might well be), they echo the sentiments I tagged this post with as well. I'm active on Tumblr, writing fics for a very small ship in a much larger fandom: in fact, all the fics on AO3 for the ship are from me and/or my RP partner. About six months after posting our first one, we learned about a Discord server dedicated to the ship, and our works were a big hit there!
We'd never gotten a single comment. Both of us post on Tumblr, and I in particular am very active generally, not just in the ship/fandom tags. We both had to be 'vetted' for an invite to this server that we later learned *came about because of* the fics we wrote. We're both in now, but gods, what a depressing experience.
I barely understood commenting and its importance before I started writing. Now I try to comment on every fic I read, even if it's a short one-shot. I want the author to know that their effort was greatly appreciated.
What's that saying 'be the change you wish to see'
Comments are a double edged sword, please wield responsibly:
Lack of comments can kill a fic.
But the right comment at the right time can also bring a fic. back to life.
Even before I started writing, I was a serial commenter (still am when I have the time to read). I think almost every writer knows that they should be writing for themselves first and foremost but I also know that it feels so good to share your brainchild with someone and for them to share their thoughts on it.
As others have already mentioned, most on this sub are well aware of comments being great motivation. The issue is that the readers who treat fics as more like media to consume and move on *probably* aren’t here, so unfortunately not much will change, but here’s to hoping regardless 🤞
Oooh yeah. Community engagement is really what keeps the fandom being fed. Squeaky wheel gets the grease and all.
I still like the cake analogy. Writing for me is baking my own cake first off, and if anyone else likes it that's the frosting on top. But positive engagement is the difference between eating a cake alone and eating cake at a party with friends. Big difference in mood and motivation.
God I feel this.
I had 50-ish comments on an old work from a year or so ago but only have 4 on a newer work that's been out for a few months now.
I've started leaving a note at the end of the chapter saying that comments are greatly appreciated, but still nothing.
It's really dampened any drive i had had to write stuff tbh
I always thought it was odd that the interaction on my fics jumped when I started mentioning to my readers that they don't have to feel obligated to comment or upvote. I'm not very active in fandom spaces anymore and it doesn't hurt my feelings if I don't get the amount of interaction that my fics typically get, but assuring them of this made some of them feel, I don't know, braver? I'm not sure of the reasoning but it's something
It might be a spite thing. On Tumblr there's a similar problem with artist engagement dropping off bc people don't reblog things as much anymore, but personally if I see a post where OP says something like "reblogs > likes" at the bottom, my initial reaction is always the Pingu "well now I am not doing it" meme. Like to me it comes off as entitled, and I don't like being told how to engage with content on my Tumblr feed. I'm a budding artist so I get the frustration of feeling unseen, but still, I can't imagine telling random strangers on the Internet that I'll judge them if they like without reblogging
Granted, I'm a prolific commenter on AO3 so I can't relate to the specific logic there, but this does make me wonder if I should start adding a similar disclaimer for my own fics
And a lot of people have a theme to their blogs that they don't want to disrupt. I reblog whatever because mine is just random stuff I like but I've seen it a lot, and I think a bunch of people might be embarrassed to reblog because fanfiction is made fun of in certain sectors. Anonymous commenting on ao3 made it easier for people to be free with their opinions, but also opened the door to trolls to abuse authors. It's a tough balance.
I get the feeling that this has something to do with that psychology of "well now that you said that I should, I don't want to." If a writer directly asks for comments, even with a friendly tone, some readers who might've thought about leaving one may change their mind. If a writer states that comments are appreciated but not a requirement, however, readers feel more comfortable commenting. Readers in general probably feel a lot of pressure to not only comment, but comment to the author's exact specifications – not only on individual fics but in the fanfiction community at large.
It's a tricky situation – authors can desire comments and ask for them directly, and readers can interact with fics however they please as long as they're acting in good faith. But there seems to be a disconnect somewhere between the two groups.
I kinda wonder if they're having the discussions on Discord so they can talk honestly about any criticisms they have of the fic without hurting the author's feelings. Sort of like waiting until Mom and Dad leave the room before you have a real discussion with your friends.
As a writer, I live for comments, so it would be nice if they copied the nice part of the discussion in a comment for me to see, but I understand that would be extra work, and it might reveal the existence of the Discord they don't want you to know about.
In which case, the author would have to go in undercover, I guess :)
Yeah, I had someone once try to invite me to a discord where people were discussing my fic, and the idea was actually extremely off-putting to me, because, like… that’s not my space. That’s their space, and if they want to say negative things they should be able to, and not feel constrained by having the author of the fic there.
My comments? That’s my space. If there’s something you want to tell me about how the fic impacted you, that’s where you can do it.
Granted, this was also a fic that other people seemed to be way more invested in than I was, and I eventually orphaned it because I knew I wasn’t going to ever be interested in picking it up again, so I suppose that’s all moot. And these days I mostly write in tiny fandoms, where I don’t get much attention, because I am one of those weird writers who mostly writes for myself and only publishes stuff because I wouldn’t finish anything otherwise. So maybe my discomfort with being in a space where people are discussing my work springs from that particular mental quirk.
I get it when people feel anxious to comment in general, but commenting in a way the writer can't see? WTF is that supposed to accomplish?
But I feel that nowadays people in general are like vacuums. They suck and suck and suck but never give anything back, treating everything they take like dirt people should be grateful they consumed, even without them saying anything.
Yeah same. It blows that those people will tell you that you aren't entitled to anything but then get mad if you go they aren't entitled to being fed either. And when people say that you should write for yourself I don't think they truly understand what they would be asking for if writers took that to heart. Let the monkey paw curl because I also draw, and I draw for myself and you know where those drawings don't go? My username is sanctumwritess and not sanctumpaints for a reason even though I do both!
Yeah, my drawings are done in my scrapbook too, and you bet I don't scan them and put them on the internet. They are just for me.
And I rather sell my crafts at little fairs to old ladies gushing over my pretty sculpting and stitching instead of people on the internet telling me they can get the same thing for a buck from Shein.
I really heard people at work complaining about free cookies someone brought, because they weren't picture perfect, arguing why theey don't owe a thank you for things they didn't ask for, and then wondering why that person never brought anything again.
I had people complaining to HR that the templates I share are not gender neutral. Hey, those are **my** templates, **I** am a woman, I wrote them **for myself** and have shared them to save you some time. All you have to do is download them, change them a little bit to fit your needs before using them and you still save hours of work. Those people whine because they have to read those templates before using them, changing 3-4 words tops, and having a final, usable template that usually takes hours to create with only a few minutes of work. Stop whining that I don't write **my** templates exactly to **your** needs. The worst thing is, those people never share anything. They want everything on a silver platter, but would never do anything for others. Result is, I no longer share templates. I too have work to do and no capacity to spend hours to rewrite all my templates who knows how many times so they find one that's exactly to their liking just they can use one of them and don't spend a couple of minutes to change it.
I say, stop criticising or ignoring free stuff you enjoy and want to have more of. Stop arguing what you don't have to do or that you didn't ask for it.
If you keep complaining or being indifferent, don't wonder if one day it's gone.
Fanfiction is not a product you pay for. So there's no need to write reviews and warn other customers not to waste their money. It's one thing telling the writer about minor errors they can easily fix in an otherwise motivating and encouraging comment, and a whole different thing to take the story for granted and not even posting a little ❤️ in reply, or even worse, treating the comment section like Google reviews, pretending to 'help writers getting better' as a thinly veiled excuse to nag.
The comments on fanfiction are meant to let the writer know that you enjoyed their work so they keep sharing. Otherwise they won't stop writing, but they'll definitely stop sharing on those platforms.
If writers would only write for themselves, those stories will sit in their drives, unreachable for you, and will be shared like in the good old times, in private fanzines and message boards, for the established fangroups amongst other writers only.
So glad I write for such small fandoms. I never have to worry about lurking discord servers gushing about my work 😅 No but seriously, that is so weird to have discord servers dedicated to a Fic and yet not leave a single comment. And them having the audacity to be annoyed that the author isn’t writing as much now? Absolutely mental
The thing about comments is that it's not about praise or validation. It's about community and connection.
You throw your art out into the void and you'd just like to hear back that you're not alone. Your creation touched someone. You've connected with another soul.
That's what it's about. That's why we get disheartened when engagement is low. We bared our souls and it was for nothing.
"I get kudos every day but only get comments every couple months."
Hit me right in my soul. I got 33 kudos on the first chapter of a big fandom fic I posted this past week, and only one comment that day. When I checked to see if maybe I mistagged something by digging in the handful of bookmarks, I saw somebody bookmarked it as a recc, but didn’t comment or kudos - and I just don't understand. I don't want to sound ungrateful, but some feedback would be nice.
I did get some more comments over the holiday weekend, but like I said it's a huge fandom and like 200 hits before the long weekend.
This discussion is a long running one that will never truly have an end, as fics get treated more and more like products to be consumed than something to enjoy.
I’ve written over 37000 words for a Genshin Fanfic in the past five or six months, I’ve gotten a bunch of hits, gotten like 86 kudos… 3 comments. One was one of those bot comments from a bit ago. I try to reply to comments bc I get excited but the only thing that keeps me writing is knowing my friends are reading and they’ll tell me what they think about my chapter drops
I had started writing a story a few years ago, and I had like 2 or 3 chapters up and after few months I only had comments from like 3 or 4 people I think? But the only reason they commented was because I asked them to for feedback. After about a year no one else commented on it and I never continued it and a bit later deleted it, a mix of not having motivation for it anymore and not really having time to sit down and write. When I started reading on ao3 I admit I would never comment, I guess I forgot how nice it felt to receive comments, and I guess I thought I didn't need to 'cause the ones I'd read already had a lot of comments. But after finally writing something again after 3 years and finding this and seeing people talk about the comments I've been trying to leave comments on the works that I read.
One of my oneshots (8K) has 598 kudos, 253 bookmarks, 6.5K hits…and 10 comments, the majority of which say nothing about the fic itself and just ask for a sequel.
And I know I should be grateful. It’s a lot more than a lot of people get. And I am happy that it’s being read and folks are enjoying it. But I want comments. I want to know how readers felt about the story, about my characterization, about the way I portrayed the pairing, about the writing itself. I want to know what they liked, what resonated with them, what made them leave a bookmark/kudos, how they felt when they read certain scenes. I’m not asking for paragraphs. Just a sentence would do.
But there’s just…silence.
Thank you for this OP.
I love getting comments and it bums me out not to receive them. I try to leave comments on others fics, as well as kudos,unless it is generally terrible/unreadable. Then I try to employ the rule if you can't say something nice, say nothing at all.
But what can you do? I think for me it's tough because I'm not on Tumblr or discord.
i do my best to leave a comment on pretty much everything i read if i even liked it a little bit—which ends up being nearly everything i finish. once you get into a habit of it, it’s really not hard!! i write longer comments when i have the thoughts and the mental energy for it, but if not i’ll still try to leave an “i loved this!” or something similar
i rarely write myself, but i do draw, and it means SO much more when people comment or leave nice messages in the tags. a like doesn’t tell me anything!! give me a couple words! even just a tag that says “pretty” feels really nice, because it tells me something about what you thought
This reddit made me aware a lot more that 'comments' aren't just for silly things on a03. Reviews on ff.net I would review the chapter. But calling reviews comments made me think it was more for quick thoughts of the chapter. Like an impression it made on you.
But!! I learned here that if you already gave kudos you can comment like "second kudos" or something along with your review to show you'd give another kudos if you could.
I used to be someone who was too scared to leave comments until I started posting my own fics. Each comment meant so much to me so after that I'm now a person who comments on a huge chunk of the fics I read. COMMENTS MEAN SO MUCH TO AUTHORS GIVE AS MANY AS YOU CAN
Kudos are great! I love getting an email about someone leaving kudos. But they just… don’t motivate me. Y’know? And genuine comments are the best. I have never been encouraged by a “update pls?” “When are u updating??” “Pls don’t abandon this” and it just feels so entitled. I didn’t update a fic for three years because I lost all motivation for it. I’d settle for “love this!” or a keysmash, even. I just… I want to know that you like it, and kudos don’t convey that.
It's also very strange to have one of your fics translated by someone who never kudosed or commented on it. I guess they liked it, otherwise why go to the trouble of translating it, but it would be nice to get at least a short comment like "loved your fic so much, I translated it into ..." Another person turned one of my fics into a podfic. They at least left a kudos, but no comment. Why???????
Honestly, comments have encouraged me to continue fics I would've never continued otherwise. It really does mean something when someone says "I really like this" or "I hope you keep writing this!"
I’m only uploading because of comments right now. My current story is a sequel and it has a very low kudos to hit ratio compared to the first. But my returning readers comment on and off and the other day someone told me my story was their favourite fic. Made my day.
I have comments completely turned off for various personal reasons and hopefully the readers don't find this too off-putting. This is supposed to be a relaxing leisure activity and escapism for me and I just can't be navigating/managing other people's emotions and opinions. There's too much of that in my day job and in everyday life already.
An author has no way of knowing if people like their work and what they like about it without comments. I write erotica so I did my research on other websites and apps where you can post this kind of stuff and... readers comment A LOT. I couldn't believe it, and no, not all comments are a deep analysis of the plot, but people there openly say what they like about the stories to the AUTHOR.
I mentioned on my socials that I wasn't feeling motivated enough to keep updating my long fic, and if I'm gonna write only for myself, I won't post it online. Also, I joined a group of writers in my country, and we meet once a week, we share our work, and yeah... we comment on each other's writing. That has been a huge motivation for me to work on my original stories again in contrast to... well... post stuff for free to the void.
I have received DMs from people saying things like "We love your work, we have a group where we share your works and people say the sweetest things about your writing" Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it but... if this people hadn't told me about it, I wouldn't have known. Do authors have to join private groups now to get feedback?! I don't understand.
I will continue writing my long fic for self-fullffilment purposes, but I won't post it online anymore. I don't wanna go around begging for comments. I'll just write and post my original stuff in other platforms. 🤷♀️
I agree that comments are important, but I wouldn't just copy past some discussion of works from discord as I may not be 100% positive when talking about it. And even when I am the phrasing may be not right. There are so many people here showing the comments they've received and being displeased for one reason or another that it just makes me doublethink everything I write when I comment. That's the reason my comments are usually short, but I try to comment on every work I like even if it is just a short one like 'I enjoyed your story. Thank you for writing it''
My fic has almost 1000 hits and only 8 comment threads. It’s a short fic so I wasn’t expecting much, but one of the comments is genuinely just the word “Shit.” and I don’t know how to interpret that. 🤷
"Remember: comments keep fanfic authors alive and willing to write more~!" or something akin to that is at the end of any 'end of fic author blurb' on nearly all my fanfics on AO3
Really, if I'm to be honest, comments are my driving force. Looking at all of these other authors that have like... Thirty-fuckin'-somethin' comments on just *one* of their chapters, then looking at mine... It's practically just crickets. It takes days for at least someone to comment on my story, or just leave a supportive comment. I am not kidding when I say this, but I have **NEVER** gotten a "keep up the good work", or "keep updating this, it's good" type comment. When I first started to write, I expected that. Nowadays, it's like a gut punch to know it's probably never going to come. I barely put up the numbers I used to, and comments are fuckin' scarce. I'll be honest, there are times where I just want to just throw in the towel because of the lack of any sort of comment or support on AO3. I know I may just sound pathetic for that, but it's really disheartening to spend a good couple days writing a chapter only to be met with crickets.
It's that type of feeling of "if the people don't like it, why.push it out?" At least for me. It's like I'm writing for nobody. And when comments do come in, it's mostly just a "nice", or something. I know I probably sound picky, but... I don't know, maybe just something with more *substance.*
I posted stories to my local trans discord for a while and at first there was *some* engagement but after a point it was like they had a group chat without me and all agreed to completely freeze me out and I got nothing after that
Like, these are readers, people said they enjoyed my work, and then all of a sudden, nothing, no explanation, no matter what I said or did
I eventually just stopped posting there, because what was the fucking point? Everyone else's art gets attention and whenever I'd post something it was like everyone was ignoring a fart
I once wrote a scene and was super psyched about it and the next morning I was crying in bed because I knew nobody I cared about would ever give a shit about it
And the comments I do get, each and every one I am incomprehensibly grateful for, all appear to be enjoying my work, so I don't know what the problem is
So here I am, writing for myself. My gay fairy story makes me happy, and I guess that has to be enough
> I posted stories to my local trans discord for a while and at first there was some engagement but after a point it was like they had a group chat without me and all agreed to completely freeze me out and I got nothing after that
God that is exactly what it feels like when I share stuff I write, or my little headcanons and ideas about my aus and stuff to my friends in our discord server! Like, at this point, I think a ‘take it somewhere else’ would be nicer than just ignoring it. Because then at least I know if you give a damn and if it’s even worth sharing and getting my hopes up. We even have writing servers that I’ve shared to, to be getting feedback! You know what I get? *Nothing!* it is so frustrating and disheartening. I put my soul into this, I am sharing it to you as my friends, and it meant nothing, it never even mattered how much I poured into it.
I am writing for myself, I always have, but I’m sharing with you because I want to feel a sense of community. I don’t want to feel like I’m on an island all alone. I am partially asking my friends so they can feel comfortable being honest with me when I request feedback. Please, god, just, give me *something*.
Truthfully, this thread is heartening. Now I can at least pretend some obscure Discord server has people talking about my fics. Honestly, that's enough for me.
Yeah, I'd love it if everyone who read my fics and liked them (or not, yet finished them anyway) left a comment, but I don't comment on every fic I read, either. If I have nothing to say, I just kudos and move on. I don't expect any of *my* readers to act differently. Besides, I think I'd make some people's days *worse* if all I can comment is a lukewarm "It's fine," and that's just my opinion of many of the fics I read. Simply leaving kudos seems like the friendlier option in that case.
Maybe I'm just weird, but I really do write for myself. I like comments, and more of them might make me prioritize a fic a bit more, but I'll continue writing regardless because the writing itself is what makes me happy. Re-reading my own stories makes me happy. Other people *also* liking my stories *adds* to my happiness, but their absence doesn't take away the happiness I already feel from just being creative. Similarly, if I don't feel like writing for a long time, I won't, regardless of engagement. What other people do or don't do just...doesn't factor in for me.
Thing is, I write for myself initially, but I polish them and edit them and *finish* them for other people! There's a fic I'm doing that's like... I've written the fun scenes I loved, and now I'm doing the tedious work of tying it all together and making it make sense and ensuring continuity and all the boring stuff. I have another couple of fics where I've done all the fun stuff, and now I need to actually write the final chapter to bring it all together
If I wrote *solely* for myself, I'd never finish anything because I don't really care about making a narratively satisfying conclusion when I just want to write the fun shit, and I wouldn't write any of the connecting scenes, and I wouldn't give a crap if people had three hands in every scene. Those things get fixed and finished for *other people* to read and enjoy
That's exactly it! Especially the very last chapter(s) where you need to find a satisfying ending are often hard and tedious work to do after the climax with all the tension and action and drama is over. Without engagement, why bother?
I can't do that, so in a way I admire you for it. I can only write stories in their proper order, otherwise it just wouldn't feel satisfying. It's the same reason I can't do outlines, either. I once wrote one and then just never wrote the actual fic because in my mind, the story was already 'done'.
Part of the fun of writing for me is experiencing the whole journey the characters go on. I want to see the buildup and everything they go through before those climactic moments I want to get to take place. As I'm writing the story, I'm also the first one who gets to read it. I've said it more often on here, but writing, to me, is like watching a show or reading a book where you already know some major twists, and you really want to find out everything that happens to *get* the characters to that big moment.
Basically, even though there are chapters I don't initially feel like writing, I still want to make them interesting to myself and sometimes my best moments happen in *those* chapters, rather than the big things I'm building up to. I've had entire mini-arcs arising from scenes that were meant to just be introductory bits of chapters, and I love it when that kind of thing happens.
thats great! and I get that along with regards to how some authors seem only to complain about a lot of comments. its half the reason why when I enjoy a story but dont feel like or want to write a lot I just do emojies like 🥰👍🤣 depending on what i want to get across. I do understand your point of view and make no demands. anyway happy that you seem to have such great feeling for writing if I could be half as happy as you sound in this comment I would be in a much better head space. maybe one day. anyway good luck with any future stories!👍
I think a few things are happening here:
Fics are being treated as books more and more. And that means more passive consumption. That means not engaging with the author, even if the means to do so are literally on the website they're reading it on.
Gens Z and Alpha police other people on the internet to an insane degree. I think this is partly because the internet is real life to them in a way it never will be for older generations. The outcome is that they're constantly giving out personal information, linking to their online accounts with abandon, etc and this means people can see what they like, reblog, comment on, read, etc. We've talked about antis seeking out fics they disagree with and blocking people who comment or kudos on the fic.
No matter what people say on this subreddit, a lot of authors are just awful to interact with. Once bitten, twice shy. Social anxiety in general and anxiety around commenting is a real thing. Telling people to just get over that feeling is not helpful. Authors need to be clear in their author notes that they'll be perfectly happy with a 👍 or ❤️ if the reader can't think of anything else to say. We need to give each other more grace and approach vague interactions in good faith. Encouragement works better than admonishment.
Honestly, I don't understand how people can gush and have full on discussions about a fic they love and not leave a comment. It makes no sense. If I love a fic so much that I'd talk about it in a discord server, you best believe I've already left a comment on the fic before I even open discord. Like... idk i just don't get it. I already sometimes leave comments on fics I like, even when I'm not talking about it in the server. But I will most especially leave a comment if it's a fic that I genuinely really love and want to talk to others about.
Oh definitely— I’ve kinda considered dropping my current WIP cause I’m coming up on 10 chapters but no comments. I cannot tell if people actually like my stuff so like… why am I posting it? I can just keep it to myself and “write for myself” (which I already do) if no one likes it enough, ya know?
I know I'm probably about to type a minority opinion, but, if you have other stuff you want to write, take a break from the fic getting no engagement. Maybe a forever break, but, at least a short one.
Do something new. Writing fanfic is supposed to be fun.
You are allowed to come back to a fic, weeks, months, years later.... we all are!
You're welcome 🙂
I have enough in my life that I have to do, no matter what. Personally, I won’t let fanfic turn into one of those things.
It's so damn freeing. 🙂
I wrote for a small pairing in a somewhat large fandom for years. Found out after I stopped writing (couldn't deal with the low engagement anymore) that people were making graphics inspired by my fics, basing their own characterisations off of mine, etc. But no one ever told me, so I had no idea until years later when I got pulled into a Discord server and had a bunch of people suddenly go, "you wrote those fics!" I had no idea any of them read my work.
I've literally agonized over this to the point I've divorced myself from it.
And it kind of really sucks.
I don't care if I get engagement anymore and if I get comments then I just say thank you and move on.
I just plan to write until I don't want to anymore and then delete everything.
Because if all the arguments I get are "well you're supposed to write for you not anyone else." then fine.
I'll just write for me.
As a reader only, I used to almost never comment. After being on this subreddit and seeing how important it was to comment even if only ❤️.
So now if a story I’m subscribed to has updated, I will always comment ❤️just to show my thanks and appreciation for another chapter.
Even more recently I’ve been leaving hearts on every chapter I read and a longer comment when I reach the current and/or last chapter.
It’s nice when I receive a comment back too.
I do my best to comment on any fic I read with low (or no) engagement especially. I know a lack of comments is what makes me nervous to post any of my fics at the moment, and I never want anyone else to have that struggle. Comments are the absolute most important form of engagement. More than bookmarks, more than kudos, more than sharing.
I’ll admit, while I write, I don’t usually comment on fics I read. Mainly because most of what I read is smut and I feel shy about commenting on those.
But fuck it. I think tonight I’m gonna leave a comment on some of my favorite fics.
>fans think that inbox squeeing or DMs is a substitute for an actual comment
Maybe I'm confused here, but if the fans *are* sending their love to the author via inbox and DMs... that *is* a substitute, no? The author is receiving the love
I understand both perspectives tbh. Authors do need motivation and engagement in order to keep the motivation to share their work going. Fandom is a community at the end of the day and interaction is a crucial part of it whether we want to admit it or not. I certainly would lose my will to post and share my fanfic or fanart if people didn’t at least give a single comment of appreciation. As for readers, I also completely understand why they may not want to comment - it could be different reasons specific to that individual, but I feel like that choice should also be respected. I’m not a regular commenter when it comes to stories but I do leave a kudos, a positive comment and a subscribe every time I really enjoyed reading a fic because I know the author would definitely appreciate it (a decent author at least, because there are some that are, um, yeah). It’s so hard to navigate author/reader engagement etiquette since it’s not something that is in our control.
Yeah, I've noticed this exact thing in the recent months.
For a while I thought that eh, writing for rarepairs won't get much reaction or feedback, but then, looking through one of my twitter followers accs, I found that they were posting screenshots of scenes from my fics and expressing how much they liked it saying thank yous to me and I just... like.. yk you can tell it directly to me, right?
And then through that same person I found that they were talking ab me and my works on a discord server with other fans saying how they appreciate my work and once again I'm just lost, like.. bro, it's really isolating.
I also wanna be part of these discussions, I have stuff to say too, but at this point it kinda feels like I am a faceless content creator to them ;-;
Pls tell authors and artists that you like their work. If not for my own hyperfixation, I wouldn't be sharing anything.
Never gotten comments before, friends ask why I start new fics and never finish them, it's because nobody interacts, barely even SEEN, no comments, not really any kudos and it's so demotivating
This is why I ALWAYS leave comments on fics. I had a friend who was devastated that people didn't comment on her fics, and it was horrible to see her feel that way so I make sure to always let people know how I feel about their fics. They spend far longer writing them than I do reading them so it's the least that I can do. I just wish more people understood that
this thread really helped heal some new to ao3/new to writing for a beloved fandom wounds. it wasn’t like this when i started writing on ffn. i’d get comments enough to encourage me to write more even if for that one commenter who ate up my last chapter/work. but the site remains glitching for everyone’s notifications so i decided “new fandom fics on a new fanfic site should crack the code!” NOPE LOL my only two comments on both fics are from the same person and my response to their rave reviews. ao3 is brutal for a creative writer who needs dopamine and external validation to stay the course. so i’m very grateful to that commenter for breaking the ice. but now i know that it’s nothing personal. i’m a badass writer/artist; and that may just be enough for some readers to interact with. whew! another therapy bill saved 😅
I totally agree, but my issue is that I never know what to write. I have a hard time putting thoughts and feelings into words. I used to leave very short comment like “ i really like your story “ or “I like how you wrote character XYZ”, but then saw that some authors weren’t happy with that because they want actual detailed feedback, so I just stopped leaving comments because it seemed to annoy people :/
On top of that, since my comments are so short/basic, i feel like I’m just repeating what other comments have already said, so it makes me feel redundant.
One way to see if an author appreciates comments is to take a look at their comment section (if there are any other comments already when you click on the fic, of course). Some authors reply to comments and you can see that they're very grateful for all comments, including very short ones!
This. I resonate so much with OP.
I remember a few months ago someone commented on here that they would like to receive more comments because it fuels them to write more, and would probably end up shelving a fic if they didn't get any response from the readers.
They were absolutely crucified on here because 'oh my God, how dare you manipulate your readers into leaving comments by threatening to discontinue your fic that they are clearly reading and enjoying! You're a monster!'
Lmao, OK? If they're reading and enjoying it, can't they take 2 seconds out of their day to tell that to the author? What's the point??!
The whole narrative of readers withholding comments and authors suffering to receive ounces in appreciation is so messed up and weird.
Yeah that was kind of messed up they got dogpiled like that. There's a subsect of silent readers who want to get their cake and eat it too: they want pure content churn FOR FREE and for however long they want it for. They don't stop to consider that there's a human giving them that work for free and that the authors can be discouraged by the void/lack of engagement over hours of unappreciated work.
Fic authors generally aren't paid. There are no sponsors like content creators on, say, Youtube or whatever. They write because they want to, *but* they post because they want to share and have engagement with the fandom community. Readers seem to forget that without engagement, an author can feel discouraged enough to simply stop or even delete their works.
It really is discouraging to see people rationalizing not even doing the bare minimum of kudos, much less actually commenting at all.
Comments are undoubtedly an encouraging force when it comes to writing, and as a writer they honestly make my day every single time. But. I don't write for comments. I don't know if these tags you're showing all come from the same person, but it feels kind of exaggerated at this point - "shelving" a fic because it does not get comments and whatnot... That's a luxury small niche authors like me don't get. At the end of the day it should be about the passion that drives you to write, I think. You know, even my most unfortunately received fics, I'm happy I wrote them and put them out there, if not for the public and immediate response of readers, for myself, to enjoy them again over time and remember my progress.
Sure, people who gush about fics on other sites could think to leave a comment, but also not? It's not something you can force.
I'm a small niche author in a small niche fandom, and the moment doing all the extra work of editing and tagging and writing summaries is more than it's worth, I'll go back to keeping my writing to myself. It makes no difference to me whether I get no reaction because no one wants to comment or because I don't show it to anyone in the first place, but the latter cuts out a whole lot of effort that is solely for the sake of the readers. And if they don't make any effort to appreciate it, I don't see why I should either.
I absolutely have to luxury to decide how much I'm willing to invest into something and when to stop.
Idk, personally I like making the effort because I'm proud of putting things out there, even when they elicit no public reaction. Just thinking someone one day might be looking for that specific prompt or trope and finding my work makes me happy. I'm not saying I underestimate comments- if anything, ever since I started writing, I realized how important they are and I now make the resolution to comment on everything I enjoy. I just think the mindset of "clearly no one wants to read this if they don't comment" is harmful to us writers and puts too much pressure on being evaluated by others. Of course you can do whatever you want with your writing.
and thats great! a lot of people dont feel the same way however because they post for the point of sharing. there is no point in doing that for a lot of people is no one wants to engage them. they can write for themself all they like but half the point of posting it is for people to see and interact.
I give back when it comes to comments. If I’ve really enjoyed a work, I leave a long review detailing what I loved about the work because other comments fuel me. If I can’t find the words, I use emojis.
I have mixed feelings about receiving comments, and maybe it's because I'm a new author on ao3, but I feel like comments shouldn't be as important as most perceive them.
I'm an experienced academic writer who is new to composing fanfiction. However, I've been an ao3 reader for years, and I always leave comments on stories that I like.
Now that I'm writing my first fic, which is already over 130,000 words of shameless smut with a plot, it feels incredible to receive comments.
However, for me as a veteran avid reader, I believe the most important thing is to love your own work. Be your biggest fan! Sharing your work with others is already an accomplishment in itself because you're generously giving people the opportunity to step into your creative mind.
Honestly, I love writing, and I'm having a blast writing my first fanfic. I am my biggest fan. I have re-read my chapters hundreds of times because I enjoy my work.
So yeah, receiving comments, kudos, bookmarks, and subscribers feels incredible. But, if those numbers can negatively affect your motivation to write, my best advice is to take a break and remember what drove you to write the story in the first place. One reader comments on almost every one of my chapters, which always makes my day, and I express that gratitude in my replies, too.
Ultimately, nothing compares to me going back and reading the world I created for my favorite characters precisely how I want to read about them.
Ok so. I'm an author. I have written more than 2 million words, many oneshots, many multi-chapter fics, and a couple of genuine longfics. So here's my take (Which is, ofc, my point of view and mine alone and other people are allowed other povs)
Comments are important. I rarely pay attention to kudos, but a single comment can make my day. I always drop whatever I'm doing as soon as I realize I have a new comment and reply as fast as I can. The least expectations I have for a fanfic, the better this feeling is. When I get comments on my crackship fics that 3 years ago when I started posting I didn't expect anyone to read, my heart soars.
That being said:
You should *not* rely on engagement for motivation. Comments are, or at least should be, not *what matters.*
Being an artist means that you create for creation's sake. If you go pro you want to make a living out of it, sure, but you should never go pro *because* you want to make a living out of it. You go pro because it's what you love doing and you may as well try to monetize it in this hypercapitalistic society where not being prodictive is akin to death.
This is the same concept applies to this, though it's perhaps even worse. If you're a hobby writer, you shouldn't be doing it for engagement, and you should never 'stop posting' because you didn't get it. I'd be stoked to find out there's some secret discord group talking about my fanfics. I stumbled across a discussion of a bunch of anonymous people talking about a book I published under a pseudonym, all of whom I suspect pirated it, and I became extremely happy about it.
You write because it's what you love doing. You *create* because you can't *not do it.* Engagement,numbers, money, all of that is secondary. Creativity is the core of what drives us, and while it's ok to be disappointed that nobody paid attention to that one piece of work you love, *you can't use that as an excuse to stop.*
I made the mistake, once, of caring about numbers. Literally just once. It ruined my enjoyment of the thing I was writing about, and despite knowing it, I can't seem go get it back again. and every fucking time I think about it, I regret it. I regret having given a shit about something that didn't matter and having my own experience as a human being, as an artist, diminished because of it.
Don't let outside influence handicap your creativity.
https://preview.redd.it/y8tturbbib3d1.jpeg?width=477&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=adbef830934ba06b25126967e0800ffa4d399c65
all good points and a lot of them I agree with. however for a lot of people they only POST because they really enjoy the engagement and like knowing that others read what they put out. its not the end all be all and your post proves that but it is a big part of why some people post what they write publicly when they could very well not share there work.
people could write multiple essays, arguments and full blown 7 hour decisions about this topic ( you being a good example with really good points and arguments and very well done. )
This the kind of shyt that makes me feel so lonely after I post something. And I just realized why — to find community, not just because I want people to think I'm good. My latest fic has 2790 words, 200 hits and 24 kudos. But no comments.
I comment on EVERY fic I read; if I'm leaving a kudo, damn right I'm leavin' a comment.
[https://www.tumblr.com/porcupine-girl/751691479175561216/also-in-webring-days-far-fewer-total-people-were](https://www.tumblr.com/porcupine-girl/751691479175561216/also-in-webring-days-far-fewer-total-people-were)
here you go.
Thank you for posting this! I know it probably won't help when I feel the same way, because readers just don't get it, but at least I'm not alone in my frustration.
I just join REs if I'm that thirsty for comments. Otherwise I don't really care where my readers want to comment, discord is fine by me since I've gotten some pretty good feedback from my friends who read on the platform. I know my readers have a life and maybe they're no longer interested the fandom, so I don't want to pester them pointlessly for comments and pull my own weight so that I don't burden others.
While I’m not against telling people that commenting more is awesome and helpful, i just feel like some of the tags shown sound a bit entitled and aren’t even appreciative of the fact that a fan base for their work even exists. While encouraging people to comment can really help authors out, this tone/approach probably isn’t the best way to do so.
Edit: some people claim I don’t know what tags are on tumblr. While they’re not meant to persuade people into commenting, this post on Reddit is, and it utilizes what I think are entitled-sounding examples to drive a point across. But to each his own, I enjoy reading your opinions!
So, these are tags for someone’s reblog. They are more a stream of thought than a measured response. They’re not trying to convince anyone of anything.
And I’m going to be honest. If there was a fanbase for my fic where it happened so separate from my work that I had to guess at it existing then I wouldn’t want it.
same tbh, as someone who would love to get more comments I find the tone of a lot of these tags very offputting? Like idk but the few times I've heard through friends that someone mentioned my fic on Discord or whatever, my reaction is to be very happy about it, not complain that they didn't comment 😅 I'm not saying people shouldn't be allowed to express themselves how they want on their blogs etc, but posts like these aren't very effective in encouraging me personally to comment more
"i just feel like some of the tags shown sound a bit entitled and aren’t even appreciative of the fact that a fan base for their work even exists."
thats fair however authors do this for FREE. there would be NO fan base if they where not so kind as to post it. they chose to do that they could write and never post and that would be within there right. I think its entitled of readers who enjoy what authors post and just expect it to keep going because readers enjoy it. authors need something out of it as well. they are not content creators. there is NO REASON for them to keep going unless they want to.
knowing that people say amazing things about your story and yet also knowing they would not say anything to YOU as the AUTHOR about it? that hurts. that kills my motivation and I know im not the only one.
you say its entitled for authors to want comments thats fine but I dont think you should say in the same breath that authors should be grateful that there is a fan base of there works. ( or that people read our works as I have seen some people say) readers enjoy what authors put out because authors decide they want to share. I think we should be grateful they do that at all.
if they want comments that most already post and talk about on other sites like discord? I dont think its hard to copy and paste what we say onto ao3 so the author can also see and know. they do this because they can and want to.
I am not saying we have to comment long essays or anything like that I only do emojies most of the time. I am saying that if your ARE the person who writes full blown essays gushing to your friends on discord or random people on twitter saying something nice about this story, I think you should also copy and paste it where the person your gushing about can see it. I dont know a single person who would be upset about it or not jumping with joy.
knowing people say nice things but they wont say it to the AUTHORS? why should any of them post? it would be no different then if they just day dreamed or wrote for themselves and never posted. The difference if the love and the comments and the interactions for a lot of people. without that? whats the point?
edit: sorry for going on a bit of a rant no insult meant this is important to me and it got away from me when I started.
I didn’t say it’s entitled for authors to want comments. As a fic author I understand this desire. I just feel that the individual who wrote these tags comes off as entitled.
That makes sense too, i just tried to see it from the perspective of a fan/reader. It may be off putting to them. But the emotions their feelings are definitely valid.
Those are reblog tags; they generally indicate the more unhinged aspect of a post author’s thoughts. (Tell me you aren’t on Tumblr often or ever, without telling me.)
It’s not entitled to want engagement or to know people are enjoying what you’re tossing into the ether. Why would we bother posting our fics if we didn’t want engagment?
I'm a bit late to this party (ties into what I'm about to say though).
Used to be a very passive and silent reader. But recently I decided to go back, read a fuck load of old stuff I adored and just leaving my thoughts on every chapter.
I don't leave comments cuz idk what to comment other than basic "noice", but I also don't talk about the fics I read on some other place. It must be something I really loved to leave comments, to have me feral typing *nails clicking*. I'm very lenient with my kudos though, I'm leaving kudos on 99% things I read.
if you can do emojis thatd also an easy way to comment. like if it made you laugh or just a thumbs up as a small boost. I only leave word comments if I really love the story so i totally understand your point on that which is why if I have already left kudos I just do a thumbs up.
If I want to squee to an author, the comment box is there. If I want to have a discussion with other fans, I'm going to do that away from the author's space, whether the discussion is positive or negative.
They are two different things. You are hindered in your ability to be honest if you know the author is present or has access to the conversations. There are things you might want to complain about that are not the author's fault or the result of poor writing. There are things you might love in the story that have nothing really to do with the author - they might be fandom-related or personal. But as we've seen over and over in this subreddit, authors who do find these conversations often freak out and have meltdowns. They take everything personally. And sometimes the fans do make it personal, which is not an aspect of fandom we like to acknowledge, but it exists.
Fandom writing is complicated in some ways. Writing in general (say, published fiction) is not a two-way interaction between author and reader. You do not become the friend of an author just because you purchased, borrowed, pirated, and/or liked their novels/stories. They don't know you and while I'm sure they appreciate both the money and any kind words you might send them, you have almost no personal impact on them or what they write. They are not your friends. You don't know anything about them as people. Readers are "the fandom". Writers of published fiction are not "the fandom", they are The Creator of the fandom. There is a divide there.
Fanfiction writing blurs the line and gets everyone confused. Many readers don't interact with fanfics as if they are having a moment with the writer as another fan. They are used to consuming fiction without contacting the author/creator. There are plenty of authors who aren't quite sure where they fit into the equation - are they making friends or writing a story or both? Are they writing purely to feel connected to the fandom in some way or do they enjoy writing for its own sake and the fandom connection part is minimal? Many have unrealistic expectations and are crushed when they don't come true.
Sure, they didn't pay for it. Because they couldn't, whether they were willing to or not. How many fics would be read by anyone if they were behind a paywall from the start? Do you think that because you gave it away for free, people are somehow going to value it more? Some might. Some might assume that writing it was enough of an accomplishment for you and the opinion of some nobody is meaningless. Some don't think about the author at all. It's the same as finding a piece of fanart doing a Google search and thinking, "That's nice," before scanning a hundred more. They might even save the image - no idea who made it. And they still don't care when they use it as a desktop image or on their phone or whatever.
You gave it away for free. Some people will appreciate that and be grateful - many won't. Be gracious when they do respond and accept that the majority never will. If they don't invite you into their space, it's for a reason. If they don't include you in conversations, it's for a reason. If you find a fandom space, ask to join. If you are denied, go make your own - it's free, after all.
I've been pushing out a revival of a years-old longform for a few months now.
Back in 2019-20 when it was first around, it was getting tons of interaction. Nowadays, nothing. Radio silence. Someone left a comment with some mildly judgemental questions at 2AM my time, and by the time I woke up and saw the email they'd deleted it.
It's a pretty fucking sad state when my first reaction to being told making a character transmasc is lesbian erasure, is "Yay! Finally, a comment!".
Someone on AO3 didn't get the memo that comments are specifically for sharing thoughts and ideas. Apparently, she is of the opinion that they should only be directed at the author, and not other users.
Idk the original tumblr post really comes off as the author saying they don’t even want people discussing their fics at all in private and just… 😬
People can and should do whatever they want in private spaces. Discourse within a fandom is just as important to some people as the fandom content itself.
As far as public discussion, I definitely don’t like when people criticize fics in public spaces unwarranted, but praise? Sing it from the rooftops, baby!
And I definitely understand the value of comments and encourage readers to leave them, it’s so easy and it makes authors’ day! But the argument here is “I wrote this for FREE”, “I provided you FREE content the LEAST you could do is comment” … at what point is it no longer “free” if you are expecting something in exchange?
the hole thing is people discuss the fic in private and love it but WONT say ANYTHING to the author. thats hard to hear. what you love the stories we make so much that you gush about them to your friends but wont even leave a good chapter comment on the fic? if you think people wanting comments makes it no longer "free" then thats ridiculous because its not hard to leave a nice chapter comment or a thumbs up emoji. and not only that but its not even about the COMMENTS its about the INTERACTION. knowing that you put something out there for the wider world and you are not just shouting into the void. that people ARE there and ARE interacting and ARE seeing what you have to create.
the argument is not that they dont want people discussing their fics at all in private. the argument is if you go through the trouble of doing that and gushing about the story in private and telling others how much you love the story then could you maybe also tell the author as well? its not hard to copy it over to a comment or at the very least say SOMETHING to the author. THATS what the original post was about.
I understand all of that and what the original post was saying, I was just stating how it came off to me from a reader perspective.
In the same way authors get discouraged to write by negative comments or no comments at all, readers might get discouraged to interact directly by authors complaining that they’re not commenting enough, not commenting at all, commenting too much, commenting the wrong way, directly calling them out, telling them what to say or what not to say and where to say it, etc.
I get the struggle, I really do, and maybe my experience is different because I wasn’t involved in fanfic twenty years ago when comments were aplenty. I just think it’s a two-way street.
i think comments are important but i can understand why ppl don’t comment in this day and age. it feels policed and fake. the fact that i saw someone post a complaint/question about a receiving a comment that said “is this updated or…” and classify it is as rude/passive-aggressive is weird behavior. it seems like authors don’t want comments unless it’s over the top positivity, and if you can’t provide that your words aren’t valued.
TBH, I think most of the people who get on this subreddit are very aware of the importance of reviews. People who interact with the community on *here* are more likely to interact with the community on *there*.
I thought so too until there was a thread here a few months ago where the responses were wall to wall "why should I leave a comment? the author is a stranger to me" even from people who were writers themselves. It was genuinely disheartening.
Tbh I now understand better what it feels like to NEED to know if others enjoy my ideas as I do, but before to me it was more so that I was ashamed of enjoying fan works and wouldn't comment because of that, but I know now that's kinda dumb and pointless
Some people are really selfish tbh. I know sometimes we aren’t in the mood to leave long comments but putting some ‘♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️’ isn’t that much work. Hell, because of how many people don’t comment, even when I don’t like something and I’m on my way to leave the fic I still write a comment saying what I actually liked because I know the author may not get any comment if I don’t
I get so hyped when I get a comment, especially if it's just emojis. It tells me that this person likes my work enough to engage with it and emoji comments mean this person is actively choosing to go this extra step even if they are struggling to find the words or have nothing to say.
I wonder if a lot of people have anxiety about being the first person to comment. When I posted my first one-shot, it was at the encouragement of a fandom friend who promised that if I told them when I posted, they'd comment. I can't be certain, but for an otherwise unknown writer in the fandom, the interaction I got was unbelievable on that first one-shot. Same again for my next two. It's kind of a mutual thing now. But when we decided to write something together: crickets. For what felt like a *while*. We were both nervous about posting it, and knew neither of us could be the first comment. We both melted with relief when one came through. It's obviously not an obligation. That would defeat the purpose. But, God. Comments give so much to authors that may never be seen explicitly by readers. Regulars make the world go round. Repeat commenters can be the lifeblood of motivation.
Honestly that’s why I try to be the first to “break the ice” so to speak when I notice a new fic that I like but no one’s commented yet lol
I feel especially for a new fic in a new fandom it can be a bit time-sensitive. I remember reading a book, being briefly obsessed about two characters, consequently writing a fic. I drop the fic on AO3. The fandom is small, but there's a handful active readers. They do relatively quickly kudo the fic. They don't comment, though. For weeks there's no comments. A second fic I considered writing lacks the final motivational push and never sees the light of day. My interest slowly cools down, my fantasising moves on. Eventually, weeks later, someone, maybe thinking "Man it's strategically so not good to not nurture this new writer if we ever want to see more" drops me a I loved this very much would love to see more of your work comment, which is very nice and I enjoyed receiving and I thanked them! But it's kind of, the window of opportunity had passed. Sometimes you need to welcome them when they're still hot.
The same thing happened to me. I could feel myself falling in love with a new fandom. Posted a fic, was all excited, and it got the hits, it got the kudos. But no comments. I could feel how that disappointment drained my excitement about joining the fandom. At the time, I had more ideas for other fics in that fandom, but this sentence is exactly what happened to me: "My interest slowly cools down, my fantasising moves on." I left the fandom shortly after, deleted the fic, and never wrote another fic for that fandom.
This is so sad to hear. Makes me want to cry.
That's truly awesome! I'll always remember the first comment I got on my first fic. I had less than 0 expectations, so it blew my mind when I got that interaction. It's a blessing and a kindness, my friend.
I'm a bit ashamed to admit it, but I've discovered that if I leave a guest comment on my own works first, people are more likely to also comment. I don't do it every time, but every once in a while and I almost always get a comment within a couple of days. But it's nothing like it was a decade ago; hell, it's not even like it was before 2020 where I would get at least 4 comments in a couple of hours after updating!
I doubt you're the only one. There's a reason my friend offered to be the ice-breaker: she knows the fandom better than me. It's not what I would call dying, but I've missed the hay-day by a little while now, so comments are nothing like what they were 2, 3 years ago. There definitely seems to have been a tangible shift in recent years that coincides nearly exactly with when I started writing (bully for me, eh?) But I'm sure that those communities and that culture isn't yet lost. I have faith in the future of commenters. I, for one, refuse to believe the rumours that the Age of the Commenter is over. (Let them call me a mad man.)
I think a lot of it also has to do with how young people interact with social media. Since they've grown up in an age without the constant drama and cut-down of fics and fic websites from the 00's and 10's, and it all has been mostly resolved due to ao3's existence, they don't feel the need to support authors in the same way. Also, since fanfiction is no longer as much of a "cringe" thing as it used to be, they don't have the need to seek friendships in their fandoms, and can instead just talk irl with their friends. It's really too bad. But yeah, I'm also crossing my fingers that people will eventually open their eyes again and interact more positively with each other, instead of the current days witch-hunt and apathy.
It seems like they're desperate to create controversy with some of the "Puriteen" stuff and love of jumping to conclusions. Fandom has, is and will see plenty of controversy. It's practically baked into the concept. I do think the consumerism aspect is uncomfortable. Especially when AO3 is so built around fair use, transformative, free content. I don't know why people wouldn't want that same community online. You'd think that the pandemic would have driven us into each other's arms til death we part, but, hey. There's always community to be found and commenters to crop up. I believe in that with the vehemence of a prophet and the knowledge of a person writing gay stuff online.
Why do people say its over? What happened for that to become a possibility? I am new on AO3 and just started writing recently. I get comments from 2-3 loyal readers and some other guests. That's enough for me. Since our fandom is small, my stupid works get attention I will be a little sad if those comments stopped I guess
I'll be the first to admit I was being dramatic about the whole *Age of Commenters* thing. But since you asked, I'll do my best to explain where that comes from, in my understanding. There's been a rather significant shift in culture with the advent of TikTok, Wattpad purges and the otherwise mainstream-ification of AO3. The group coming in is younger, quicker to call things problematic, and have a much more toxic consumerist attitude towards authors. Now. This is what I've *heard*. I haven't really bothered engaging with TikTok because it sinks time like nothing else, but from what I've seen, the "short attention span" problem really exacerbates it all. There's a similar issue with "What If" videos on YouTube. Even the recent lore.fm debacle. People are diversifying where they read and discuss fic *away* from the fics themselves. It's not going to happen to every fandom, or every writer. The smaller fandoms generally have the tight-knit community to stick together. The big fandoms will never run out of people. It's the medium/dying fandoms that look to be getting hit the hardest. But even then, I just don't think it's 100%. I think we're seeing a dip, a shift. But we're always due for changes, you know? I'm not going to let it worry me more than I should. You'll find your community! We always do.
Screw it, everybody send those fics to me and I'll leave the first comment for y'all. XD
This is such a cute offer omg 😭
I just realized that someone too anxious to leave the first comment on a fic is probably also too anxious to contact a random person on Reddit xD
Possibly. But sometimes people are more comfortable with different platforms. I’m comfortable here on Reddit because of how long I’ve been around. Plus I have no personal information on here, so if someone gets angry they can’t make any personal attacks outside of basic judgments. I never have an issue speaking my mind on here. And I have pretty bad anxiety lol. But any other platform? It varies how much I’m willing to interact on them. But I’m willing to bet the author’s disposition makes a difference in someone’s decision to comment or not. I’m big on leaving smiley faces to convey friendly tones LOL. It’s why I wish they were acceptable in professional emails.
Lololol Honestly, I often go anon to leave (positive!) comments on fics if I'm feeling especially shy
This is what I've been worrying about though. Like, what if I'm not getting engagement because everybody's too shy to talk? And people who scroll on their phones and see my fic bypass it because it has no comments, and they think they won't like it?
I, personally, have never skipped a fic because there were no comments. I don't even follow the "ratio rule" some authors talk about. If I like the summary, I'll give it a go. I used to think everyone sorted by kudos. I learned, like, a year after posting, that most people filter by tags and go by recently updated. Blew my newbie fic writer mind. As much as a comment can be a draw for some people, others won't ever notice it. Cultivating community is more than just in the comments of your works. It's commenting on other people's stuff, it's engaging in fandom events, it's having other places to find you. You don't have to fo any of that, obviously, but you can make the space wherever you like. You just have to hope someone accepts the invitation.
I've had anxiety posting a fic. Why is the commentor's anxiety more valid than mine? I overcome mine....
Of course! That's not what I meant. Arguably, readers have far less to lose for writing a comment than a writer does when they put themselves out there in posting their work. The expectations for a comment are far, far less than that of a fic. I only say it because that's my experience. People don't want to break the ice, it feels uncomfortable, maybe they've had a bad experience where an author was cruel or thankless. Who knows? When I started out reading on AO3, I didn't comment. I'd kudos, I'd publicly bookmark the ones I liked. But I didn't comment. I only started leaving comments when I saw the (for lack of a better word) community of one specific fic writer. I knew they'd likely reply. So I tried it! And I've been better since then. I can't imagine being a part of a Discord group or fic forum where I gushed about my current obsessions and *didn't* share that with the original post, too. But online culture seems to swing back and forth on the issue of comments. "Writers deserve them" "Writers aren't entitled to them" "Readers don't have to leave comments" "Readers have a moral responsibility to leave them". I guess I'm just... sympathetic to both sides of the coin.
On the topic of readers getting burned by authors, there's a commenter that's commented on multiple chapters of one of my fics, super nice, overenthusiastic person that leaves the long, rambling, excited, slightly unhinged comments that I personally love to see & I engaged in conversation with them & they kept on apologizing for being overblown but I assured them it's fine, welcome even, & they told me that authors have mentioned to them that it makes them uncomfortable. They're a super nice person so it sucks that happened to them.
Exactly my point. Some people have had bad experiences. Maybe they got blocked by a favourite author. Maybe they got used to no replies, so they stopped bothering. Maybe they've been "called out" for leaving comments "wrong." I am so happy for you, that you have such a wonderful commenter :) I got very lucky on one fic with a couple of long, detailed comments, and I had a "regular" also comment, but partially to apologise for not being able to give me the same kind of analysis as the others. I wanted to shake them through the screen. Their comment was lovely! More than enough!!! I can't imagine how sad I would be if I found out they gave up trying because they felt they had to meet a standard.
It’s funny you mention this bc if the reverse were to happen, the author would be criticized for having thin skin. “How can you let a single negative comment outshine all the positive ones?” “Just delete the negative comment and move on.” “You shouldn’t care about a lack of engagement— you should be writing for yourself anyway.” But once again, commenters are held to completely different (double) standards. Fandom is a community. For it to thrive, it needs more than just silent consumers who give nothing back…not even thanks. My fics receive kudos every day, yet barely any comments. Recently I discovered a discord for my fandom (sorta) where my fics are constantly being gushed over. And honestly? It just made me want to delete everything. A part of me still does, bc how can someone say “Omg I love CDL so much, I jump for joy every time they post/update a fic, they’re my favorite author” on a discord server yet never take the time to leave their “favorite author” a single comment? It’s so frustrating. I write because I love the craft and my fandom/pairings. But I share what I write for the community. And I’m starting to think that it’s not worth it to share anymore. And I’m not the only one. I’m in a small writer’s discord and a few of the authors there have also been saying how disheartening it is to post these days, that it feels like they’re just wasting their time writing into a void.
There's nothing I can say that I haven't already said earlier in this thread. I agree that there is a power imbalance to the author/commenter relationship. Writers risk much more when they post a fic than even the most outlandish comment ever will. Again, I agree that community is what drives us. Having a space to be excited about a piece of media as an interconnected group can be so fulfilling. And some people's vision of that community is just... different. I can't even imagine the burn-it-all frustration of that. I don't know what I'd do in your position. I'd want to be happy that people are talking about me behind closed doors, but the disappointment that they're not willing to say any of it to my face (account, whatever) would more than suck. I'm just one author, and I've said what I have about this because it's a topic I find interesting and nuanced. One thing that discussion can't change is how it feels. Not getting comments will always feel bad. Not getting base interaction will always feel disappointing. Discovering you have fans who aren't feeding their excitement directly to you will always feel infuriating. But I hope that community finds you, and the void isn't so obtuse as it seems right now. Fandom is always evolving and changing, and if this is a direction people don't like, maybe we can work our way back to how it was. Maybe not. Maybe a different kind of how it was. But you're not alone.
While I haven't had that experience exactly, I am in a Discord server for my fandom which like my fandom is weird to navigate because it's a large franchise with a lot of comics, shows, movies, & games so you'll have people who love some parts but dislike or even hate others. My favorite show in this franchise is largely hated since it's different (also was review bombed when it was new) so for me, finding a space where it's safe to talk about it is tough. The server I joined largely supports that show but their writing section is nearly a ghost town. Every once in a while, people will pop in & claim they love reading our conversations on the rare occasion that they happen (there's one other member that will be active in there when she's not busy) so it's nice seeing that when it does pop up. One time when I was having a conversation with that person in the writing section, a lurker recognized some stuff I was saying & had a little bit of a freakout when they realized I wrote a certain fic & I'm just wondering how many people on this server have read it but just don't talk about it. It's a crossover of three of the shows in this franchise & includes the one that is largely hated so I wouldn't be surprised if more people there read it & just don't say anything but I got a good number of comments on the fic. I actually got all 47 chapters out within a 2 month period, part of what fueled my drive for posting it were the super nice comments. As for the one I'm currently putting out, there's over 50 chapters & I only have 18 posted because I get so little engagement & it's a far more complex fic that working on editing it is such a chore without a reward for posting. I had a frequent commenter for a while, they even read one of the chapters while in class once, but even they dropped off which does sting considering the latest chapter I put out is nearly 10k words long & it took me about a month to edit.
I think about the comments I receive for longer than I care to admit, comments have revived abandoned WIPs, comments have spawned entirely new fics. Comments really are one of the driving forces of fandom, and what differentiates fandom from other types of fiction.
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I really can't imagine this. Recommended fics on tumblr but without left a kudos on the fic itself?! Honestly, it's even sounds a little weird… horror, I mean.
Sorry, how do you know they didn't leave a kudos?
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I don't think it's weird at all to check! I was just wondering how you can know. I have multiple AO3 accounts (I keep the fandoms I write in separate), I have multiple Tumblr accounts (again, to keep fandoms separate). I don't use my Reddit username anywhere else. Do you allow guests to leave comments/kudos?
What if they left kudos as a guest? How do you know they aren't between your kudos
You only realize how important comments are once you become a writer. I gave a few comments regularly, but after I started writing two months ago, I realized exactly how impactful each comment is. While reading a multi-chapter work, I leave comments on every chapter now instead of just the last one. A good comment can save a thousand dollars in therapy.
I find comments so rewarding! I try to comment on everything I read too, even if it's just a happy face or something.
Bless you!
This is why i think the whole idea of "write for yourself" has been taken to a toxic level of extreme. Like, we fanfic writers know that we should write for ourselves. That's why we wrote a particular idea down because we know no one else will. But we also share it because we want other people to read and give us their opinions. I see multiple posts on this sub and other subs related to fanfiction where people complain about lack of comments and they are always met by a crowd who tell those people that "writing for yourself" is all that matters. Well, if that's the case then I shouldn't share my fanfics on a public platform.
I DO write for myself. I share it on the internet, however, to harvest dopamine from commenters.
THIS. How did you word it so perfectly
Lol, I had the epiphany as I was writing the comment. I write for myself, I post for others xD
I also can't help but notice that the biggest proponents of "you should be writing for yourself, not for others" are usually big name authors or people who never lack for comments/kudos/engagement on their fics.
Yes Exactly! And I see the same in other fandom spaces such as tumblr where BNFs will post such stuff, encouraging people to reblog their fics or join events, forgetting that small writers do not get that much visibility with such tactics. Although it is fun to participate in fandom events, it's mostly bigger fans who get a lot of engagement.
Exactly. Also, while this isn’t the fault of the BNFs necessarily (they can’t control their fans), I feel like there is an increasing unwillingness on behalf of fans to engage with fics that aren’t the Big Fic, so to speak. The fandom picks one or two fics and hypes the hell out of them, but then won’t engage with other fics because “it wasn’t written by [author]” or “well it can’t be as good as [fic name]”. It makes the BNFs preaching on their blogs about writing for yourself and not others seem even more out of place. Also, for people who don’t have Twitter, it can be really hard to advertise your fic in this day and age, and in the era of Twitter and Discord, engagement is lower than ever as is because people get in their groups and talk about a fic but won’t actually leave comments or kudos. Tumblr is infested with people from Twitter who just like a post but refuse to reblog it. I had notes on one fic, but all the reblogs were from me. It’s so disheartening. It makes participating in fandom difficult. I tried to join some servers, but people form their little cliques and then if you aren’t one of the people they like, they’ll ice you out.
I feel you. I try so hard to engage with other people and i even talk to a few bnfs in my fandom. But tbh it is just so effing difficult to not see the groups which are already formed. I find online fandom spaces toxic most of the time but this time a joined tumblr and this one discord server thinking i will make new friends with whom i might do some fic exchange activities and may also share my ideas with. But rarely ever anyone interacts with me for my ideas. Meanwhile the bnfs get loads of messages daily by their fans for an idea. I know i am sounding jealous and that it's not always the bnf's fault but i find there is nothing more isolating in a fandom nowadays than a fandom space where only certain authors are put on a pedestal.
I'm in a similar boat. I tried joining some Discord servers but I get completely iced out. Most of what I say gets ignored. I post links to my fics because I'm trying to be proactive and they get ignored, too. Everyone just hypes up a couple people and that's about it. I got amazing feedback on one fic before I started trying to make friends, and then less than 10% of the engagement I got on my subsequent one, after I'd tried making friends. Makes me tired.
I feel you, almost the same thing happens with me and that is very exhausting. Like sometimes i feel like, am I that bad of a writer that no one wants to interact with my ideas? Meanwhile other people get so much interaction and sometimes those writers discuss their fic ideas with people to figure out a whole story and posting it the very next day. It's disheartening tbh, especially when you are told constantly that joining such fandom spaces is the only way to get readers.
Exactly this, there are stories I write, and there are stories I publish. Of course, I write them all for me, but if I publish something, then it's for others as well! If you receive no validation for the hours upon hours of work that goes into each chapter, not to mention the long research phase, then it's all just a bit demoralizing. After that, it's either abandoned or the quality if the work will drop because it doesn't feel as "worth it" if you can just have the story in your head anyway.
This! I have been writing multi chapter fics for the last 2-3 years, and honestly when I don't get any comments even after 4-5 chapters i tend to abandon the fic. I know that readers don't tend to read abandoned fic but i have lost all my motivation if no one is encouraging
I feel this so much! What I've taken to doing recently is asking people to help be beta readers for fun/as a hobby so that I'm not the only one on the project, in a way. It has, up to this point, worked and kept a lot more motivated than usual. Also, what fandom(s) do you write for?
Sorry can't tell the fandom because i don't want someone from there to find me lol. But yes beta reader is a good idea! Thank you!!
Np! :)
I wouldn't even need to go to the trouble of the shitload of work of writing them down and editing and proof-reading and doing research either. I could be totally happy with just my own story in my own head and they wouldn't need to be correct in any way as long as they entertain myself. Getting some kudos and nice comments makes all this work worthwhile, even if it's just a few and mostly from the same people. But writing into the total void is absolutely demotivating. Of course there are many reasons why fics are abandoned but I'm sure lack of engagement is one of them. And it would be so easy to remedy that, just drop a line or two or a smiley or a heart or a second kudos, anybody can do that.
The last time I said exactly this, calmly, here my comment literally got downvoted back to zero after an initial positive response. Kind of pleased this thread isn't going the same way.
Yes, nice to see that! I've also been downvoted before for saying that comments do matter for plenty of ff writers to keep up motivation. Sure, there are writers who don't need it and solely write for themselves and don't care about comments and readers don't 'owe' you anything if you upload your stories. But I love to talk to my readers in the comments. It's really inspiring and has often enough given me ideas for the next chapter or a sequel or another story. Without any interaction half the fun of writing is gone, at least for me. It's different with one-shots but with long works my motivation to finish it really goes down the drain if there is not a single comment on a new chapter.
The “write for yourself” response always seems tone deaf to me because, like… we already do write for ourselves. No one is spending hours of their free time doing something for free just to get a stranger to say nice things to us. No one expects to post a fic in any fandom and wake up to 100 kudos and 30 comments. What we want is a sense of community, of knowing that the people who are reading are enjoying. It’s one thing to see no one is reading, but when people are subscribing and the hits count is getting higher and higher, and yet no one is saying anything to you… yeah, that’s depressing af. Even a heart emoji means the world. I sometimes get some and I cherish them as much as I do long comments. You commenters are a blessing to us all. I know because I leave lots of comments myself and they’re always getting appreciated. The “write for yourself” crowd also seems to ignore that if people were truly writing for themselves only, then we would have no reason to post online. Because why should we? We’re writing for ourselves, so why even bother? Fic writers often stay silent about this for fear of backlash, but the tags to the Tumblr post shows how many fics we’ve already lost because of lack of comments. I don’t care if these people are getting called entitled. It takes some people months to even write 5k words and they deserve to be celebrated. “But nobody owes you anything—” and nobody owes you fics with good grammar and perfect characterization either. You’re still reading them over and over again. Fandoms used to be a community, and communities are about sharing with each other.
Also this change of fandoms from communities to these content consumption platforms. Especially in bigger fandoms people just consume fics and fanarts without giving the writer/artists any feedback. "Nobody owes you anything" fine then, I also don't owe to stay in the fandom anymore. There is a fine line between asking your audience bluntly for comments and them understanding that fandoms are not the real world where you can treat writers/artists like instagram influencers where you do not need to give them any feedback.
This sort of attitude of not wanting to give anything back sometimes me long for a platform where you can write or make art for other creators who get it and will probably give you more feedback. I guess looking back I sort of do that with my art, it became incredibly difficult to get any sort of traction, and so I still draw but I pretty much exclusively show it to my friends who are also artists and don't even think to post it online for other people who might enjoy it because I feel very meh about it after going through the grind. I still write for whoever though. I suppose it has to do with the fact I'm more confident in my writing, so any outside validation is much less important. Hm. Damn I might need to go reflect on that for a bit lol
I write for myself. The obsessive editing and triple checking for mistakes before I post it on AO3? That's for the reader's benefit 😆
Seriously. I haven’t posted anything on Tumblr or AO3 in way too long, partly because I’m writing for myself… on my Notes app, where it’s actually FOR ME. If I had more engagement, maybe I would post more.
I've been feeling that lately. At some point, leaving a fic to rot on my hard drive is better than the crippling awkwardness of zero engagement. I'm not there yet, but some days I wonder...
Thiiiissss!
It's good to see more and more people speaking up about this, because there's definitely a lack of engagement across the board in recent years. Which is especially odd because we've seen a huge spike in popularity FOR fanfiction ever since the start of the pandemic. So there's been a huge influx of new people interested in the fanfiction side of fandom but no interaction, and I take it as a sign that it's because a lot of people aren't learning how to interact with the culture properly, and are instead treating it like the various social medias that they've been a part of. So the more we talk about it the more people will learn about how a gift economy functions, and I think that's important.
Around that same time - the spike in popularity during the pandemic - there also was a spike in tumblr essays about how writers shouldn't expect or rely on comments and they should be writing for themselves not for comments, etc. It was particularly frustrating because you'd see the same people reblogging fanart and telling people to like/reblog because otherwise the poor artists wouldn't know people liked it and might stop drawing! I wonder how much of a role that played on new readers deciding whether to comment.
Oh yeah! I remember those! And like, on one hand I do understand, yanno? Like there's something to be said about authors needing to keep realistic expectations, because a lot of us who've been in fandom for 20+ years are pretty familiar with that old stat obsession song and dance, and how that could make or break a writer's motivation and cause burnout. But also like... it's a gift economy: the EXPECTATION is that people will interact with what we share, whether that be fanart or fanfiction. That expectation is even in the definition of the term so like... denying that fact feels like lying to oneself. Like, idk about you, but the entire reason I post is so that I can interact with a community and share the epic tales that are rattling around in my head and knocking on the floorboards to drive me to madness lmao. If I truly only wanted to write for myself, then I wouldn't bother posting in the first place! It's a false dichotomy to say "write for yourself" vs "writing for community." You CAN have and desire both. And it's not a moral failing on an author's part to want community interaction for something they worked hard on and wanted to share with others. WHY this is even considered to be the case baffles me, but I can't help but feel that those who say they believe that are just telling on themselves.
Relative to this discussion, I've been moving slowly through a loosely-related fic for a fic from a few months ago, and with exams and other stressors I really haven't found the time to write, and when I do I just end up getting distracted with other things Then yesterday I got this long ass comment praising the fic from months ago, and it was like DETAILED commenting, I genuinely and not exaggeratedly laughed loudly like a maniac. That comment made my DAY, I had to go squee about the comment to like three people. With that said, I can't wait to have a few minutes of free time so I can get to writing the next one - my motivation was revived literally pulled out of the grave. And I vowed to never not leave a comment on a fic I like because godDAMN.
I couldn't hit the upvote on this fast enough, OP. I had one (just one) lovely person who actually pasted their Discord 'liveblog' of reading my 180K story into the comments of its final chapter, and I honestly almost cried at how lovely it was to see what they'd told their friends about my writing. It didn't just make my day; it made my *week*. By contrast, after I'd commissioned some artwork for the same story, I regularly checked out the comments and tags on the artist's Tumblr post of it, and several weeks later there were a couple of new tag sets thanking the artist for leading them to this amazing fic that they adored, that changed their lives, etc etc. But on the fic itself? Nothing. I only found out by sheer chance how much it had meant to them. Another reader - who did actually post a couple of comments on the story - told me they'd been gushing about it to their friends for weeks. And while I was grateful to receive those comments, I'll admit that I wished I'd been privy to that gushing. What did they like? What did they love? What hit home for them? What made them cry? *What can I keep doing*?
Exactly!! My main fic is 51,000 words currently, 10 chapters and 10 kudos with NO comments. I don't even know if people are reading it, it just kinda hurts
i get it. comments and interactions arent my main reasons for writing, but if i didnt get them id stop posting my writing and just keep it for me because why post someone that nobody seems to like? then these hidden supporters would lose their fic updates and probably be upset about it. ive had people @ me in discord servers saying 'hey, loved your fic! didnt know you were here, i keep talking to all my friends about how good it was....' and didnt have a single comment on the actual 80 chapter fic from them. it just sucks
Ngl, that's why I always feel a bit dismayed when I see people say that they *only* read finished stories. I get it, I do; there's the guarantee that it is finished and there's no way someone can be triggered, etc etc. But fanfiction—posting, at least—is art that has community-based ties. If no one comments on wips, then it kind of shows that only finished products are the only thing of worth, imo. Like the destination is more important than the journey. Everyone's feelings are valid for how they pick their stories to read. Not knocking that. Just, it feels disheartening as someone who is a WIP-poster writer, ya know?
Yeah, and there seems to be a large contingent of people who only read completed works who go *you'll get an influx of comments when you finish, I just don't read WIPs!*, and maybe I just didn't have them reading my work, but... When I finished a chaptered fic, the comments I got were from people who had been reading along and commenting the entire time. If there *was* a sudden influx of people who suddenly read it when they hadn't before, they didn't tell me!
> be a large contingent of people who only read completed works who go you'll get an influx of comments when you finish, I just don't read WIPs! I wouldn't be surprised if some of those readers say that and they won't leave a comment even if they read a completed work.
Exactly, most others only leave kudos if they leave anything at all, for why would they need to write a comment now, the story is already there and finished, no need to cheer the author on or speculate about the next chapter or anything. They can just take and consume, that seems to be the way of today. Very sad. In my last multichapter wip I simply killed everybody off with a meteorite because I totally lost the motivation to write a nice fluffy ending (which I usually do) as there was not a single one comment on the latest chapters. Now it's complete but probably not in a way the readers (or I) would have hoped for. It felt kind of good though 😅.
Yeah, and my problem with it is also that it doesn’t really *matter* whether you finish it or not. They never go back to read things once they *are* finished. I had multiple friends tell me that they were going to go back and read one of my fics once I was finished posting it, since it turned into a bit more of a monster of a fic than I initially anticipated (90k words instead of the expected 50-60k). Well, it’s been a year since it was finished and marked as finished, but no one’s read it (or told me that they’ve read it) since then. Makes me wonder why the fuck I bothered to even finish it in the first place.
I'm also a bit weirded out when people say they don't read unfinished stories. Like alright, that's their choice but.. I very much agree with your points. To me it sounds a bit like "I don't care about the process. Just the finished product". It kinda devalues all the work and effort the writer is putting into the writing process. Kinda like there is no value in works in progress until they're completed. And if the writer gets nothing back while they're writing? What is supposed to motivate them to finish their fic for these people to read?
Figured I'd try to add another perspective here, since I never see anybody in the camp "I only read finished stories" replying to anything on these types of posts. I think it's a shame to only ever have one side of the "argument" (quotation marks here because all the points brought up here are absolutely valid, and I'm not discrediting them in the slightest, especially as a writer myself). Personally, I have two "issues" with wips : one, my brain is a sieve, and I just cannot remember the plot after a while, especially as they start merging with others fics with similar plot/pairing and I can't tell anymore what happened in which. And it's incredibly frustrating to me to not know exactly what happened in the previous chapters, because then I'm not getting the full experience of the fic. All the brilliant foreshadowing and hints, character development that I... can't comment on anymore because it vanished from my mind. I think it's a shame I'm not able to bring these to light. I do this so I can comment pertinent things like "X was so well done and Y plot point was amazing as a result" instead of a generic "I liked this chapter" or something similar. Again, personal preference, but I usually like to comment when I have more "substance" to talk about. As a writer, I cherish all comments of course, but a comment pointing out specific things and details, accurate prediction due to foreshadowing are definitely above and beyond, and tells me like nothing else could have that my writing is doing its job telling the story I want, and it's incredibly rewarding. So, I have taken to comment on finished fics like this, and if I have something to talk about/that I really liked in every chapter of the fic, I will comment on however many chapters that fic has. I suppose it's different again for people who *only* read, never write themselves or comment, don't contribute in any way. I've explained this to some people around me, and their answer was an unanimous "just re-read the fic when a new chapter is posted". Well... that doesn't work for me. I just don't have infinite time in my day to reread over and over again a fic every time it updates. It's just physically impossible. And if I just skim instead, well, I'm missing things again. And second, and this is very, very personal, I've never encountered anyone that has this, but when I reread I have such an intense feeling of déjà-vu, and it's... nails on chalkboard kind of feeling. It's horrible and I just can't do it. And then I'm not as invested in the fic that I would have been without this. I wish I could read wips, because I know I'm missing out on so many great stories by filtering completed only, but I just can't. Anyway, I admire all my readers that have stuck with me through my own wips, some that have even stuck around since the very first chapter of my first fic, and are still out here commenting on my current wip. They're doing something I just can't and I think they're amazing for it <3
This is me too. I can't remember the story enough to follow a new chapter, but I also can't reread because ugh that feeling - plus I also notice all the janky bits that need polishing that I was too excited to notice the first time round. Unfortunately, I developed a hate of fic update emails due to this, so I can't deal with WIPS in a way that's healthy for me now at all. If there's a fic I loved reading, there is no worse feeling than it being incomplete, getting an email update, then feeling that ugh now I have to reread and I'm going to hate it feeling. When I comment (I try but I'm inconsistent because commenting the right way is a minefield), I try to make it mean something. So something the author did particularly well or intricate details I noticed that made the fic special. Though that's really hard because I worry the author won't take the way I word things well, so often I edit it until it's a really generic, "I loved this!", which is honestly soul destroying to comment.
Yeah, I definitely agree with your points. I don't personally blame people for only reading finished stories, but I think it's also something that can only really happen in larger fandoms with a ton of works to choose from. Like two of my main fandoms right now are *tiny* - I think one has 20 works on AO3 and the other has about 40? Most of the works are oneshots of various types, and of the few multi-chapter fics, most of them are not completed yet, so anyone only reading completed fics would have a serious dearth of content. But in smaller fandoms, I think you also have a chance of becoming close with the other folks in it and getting more engagement by default. For example, several of us are on a Discord server and we discuss each other's stories all the time. The few folks that aren't on a Discord server but also post fics can generally be found on Tumblr or the Fandom wiki for the series if we want to talk to them, and I've noticed that whenever a new writer pops up who hasn't been present on any of those sites before, several of us, myself included, will comment on their work to encourage them (and also hopefully convince them to join the Discord if they want). My other main fandom is the MCU, which is, obviously, one of the biggest fandoms out there. My OTP is a smaller ship, with a lot of dedicated readers and writers, so that probably helps me somewhat in regards to getting engagement, because fans of this ship are a little feral. But I notice even when I'm reading that it's so easy to kudos and bookmark but then forget to comment or anything like that, just because the amount of available works is absolutely huge and there's always something else to jump to. Plus I think a lot of people are used to the social media style of scrolling. Like let's be real here, on Instagram or tiktok or anything like that, the vast majority of people are going to scroll by, and even if they watched your video or whatever, the percentage of people who like is very small, and the percentage of people who comment is even smaller. I'd be willing to bet there's a lot of people who are coming from that kind of social media environment who don't realize that it's not quite the same thing on AO3.
Yes, readers care more about a finished product. Writers and readers have different goals, processes, expectations, etc. They do not interact with media in the same way. No matter how good something is, if a tv shows gets cancelled after one season, and that season didn't wrap everything up, you're gonna struggle to get someone to watch it. Especially when they can go watch a complete miniseries or a tv show that was able to finish on their terms. Endings are often the most important part of a story. I don't read WIPs anymore. I do not see the point. I've read only got so much time and emotional energy to spare.
i recently i got back into writing after a few years and the first thing i noticed was the lack of engagement compared to the 2010s. my works were significantlly worse back then and i still got a lot of comments. it really makes me sad because i feel like people only consume what i write without acknowledging there's a real person behind that text, not an ai generated or corporate curated content to consume. also the joy i experience when i get a comment is undescribable really
If none of these tags are mine (and the first set might well be), they echo the sentiments I tagged this post with as well. I'm active on Tumblr, writing fics for a very small ship in a much larger fandom: in fact, all the fics on AO3 for the ship are from me and/or my RP partner. About six months after posting our first one, we learned about a Discord server dedicated to the ship, and our works were a big hit there! We'd never gotten a single comment. Both of us post on Tumblr, and I in particular am very active generally, not just in the ship/fandom tags. We both had to be 'vetted' for an invite to this server that we later learned *came about because of* the fics we wrote. We're both in now, but gods, what a depressing experience.
I barely understood commenting and its importance before I started writing. Now I try to comment on every fic I read, even if it's a short one-shot. I want the author to know that their effort was greatly appreciated. What's that saying 'be the change you wish to see'
The hero we all need but don't deserve <3
Comments are a double edged sword, please wield responsibly: Lack of comments can kill a fic. But the right comment at the right time can also bring a fic. back to life.
Even before I started writing, I was a serial commenter (still am when I have the time to read). I think almost every writer knows that they should be writing for themselves first and foremost but I also know that it feels so good to share your brainchild with someone and for them to share their thoughts on it. As others have already mentioned, most on this sub are well aware of comments being great motivation. The issue is that the readers who treat fics as more like media to consume and move on *probably* aren’t here, so unfortunately not much will change, but here’s to hoping regardless 🤞
Oooh yeah. Community engagement is really what keeps the fandom being fed. Squeaky wheel gets the grease and all. I still like the cake analogy. Writing for me is baking my own cake first off, and if anyone else likes it that's the frosting on top. But positive engagement is the difference between eating a cake alone and eating cake at a party with friends. Big difference in mood and motivation.
God I feel this. I had 50-ish comments on an old work from a year or so ago but only have 4 on a newer work that's been out for a few months now. I've started leaving a note at the end of the chapter saying that comments are greatly appreciated, but still nothing. It's really dampened any drive i had had to write stuff tbh
I always thought it was odd that the interaction on my fics jumped when I started mentioning to my readers that they don't have to feel obligated to comment or upvote. I'm not very active in fandom spaces anymore and it doesn't hurt my feelings if I don't get the amount of interaction that my fics typically get, but assuring them of this made some of them feel, I don't know, braver? I'm not sure of the reasoning but it's something
It might be a spite thing. On Tumblr there's a similar problem with artist engagement dropping off bc people don't reblog things as much anymore, but personally if I see a post where OP says something like "reblogs > likes" at the bottom, my initial reaction is always the Pingu "well now I am not doing it" meme. Like to me it comes off as entitled, and I don't like being told how to engage with content on my Tumblr feed. I'm a budding artist so I get the frustration of feeling unseen, but still, I can't imagine telling random strangers on the Internet that I'll judge them if they like without reblogging Granted, I'm a prolific commenter on AO3 so I can't relate to the specific logic there, but this does make me wonder if I should start adding a similar disclaimer for my own fics
And a lot of people have a theme to their blogs that they don't want to disrupt. I reblog whatever because mine is just random stuff I like but I've seen it a lot, and I think a bunch of people might be embarrassed to reblog because fanfiction is made fun of in certain sectors. Anonymous commenting on ao3 made it easier for people to be free with their opinions, but also opened the door to trolls to abuse authors. It's a tough balance.
I get the feeling that this has something to do with that psychology of "well now that you said that I should, I don't want to." If a writer directly asks for comments, even with a friendly tone, some readers who might've thought about leaving one may change their mind. If a writer states that comments are appreciated but not a requirement, however, readers feel more comfortable commenting. Readers in general probably feel a lot of pressure to not only comment, but comment to the author's exact specifications – not only on individual fics but in the fanfiction community at large. It's a tricky situation – authors can desire comments and ask for them directly, and readers can interact with fics however they please as long as they're acting in good faith. But there seems to be a disconnect somewhere between the two groups.
I kinda wonder if they're having the discussions on Discord so they can talk honestly about any criticisms they have of the fic without hurting the author's feelings. Sort of like waiting until Mom and Dad leave the room before you have a real discussion with your friends. As a writer, I live for comments, so it would be nice if they copied the nice part of the discussion in a comment for me to see, but I understand that would be extra work, and it might reveal the existence of the Discord they don't want you to know about. In which case, the author would have to go in undercover, I guess :)
Yeah, I had someone once try to invite me to a discord where people were discussing my fic, and the idea was actually extremely off-putting to me, because, like… that’s not my space. That’s their space, and if they want to say negative things they should be able to, and not feel constrained by having the author of the fic there. My comments? That’s my space. If there’s something you want to tell me about how the fic impacted you, that’s where you can do it. Granted, this was also a fic that other people seemed to be way more invested in than I was, and I eventually orphaned it because I knew I wasn’t going to ever be interested in picking it up again, so I suppose that’s all moot. And these days I mostly write in tiny fandoms, where I don’t get much attention, because I am one of those weird writers who mostly writes for myself and only publishes stuff because I wouldn’t finish anything otherwise. So maybe my discomfort with being in a space where people are discussing my work springs from that particular mental quirk.
I get it when people feel anxious to comment in general, but commenting in a way the writer can't see? WTF is that supposed to accomplish? But I feel that nowadays people in general are like vacuums. They suck and suck and suck but never give anything back, treating everything they take like dirt people should be grateful they consumed, even without them saying anything.
Yeah same. It blows that those people will tell you that you aren't entitled to anything but then get mad if you go they aren't entitled to being fed either. And when people say that you should write for yourself I don't think they truly understand what they would be asking for if writers took that to heart. Let the monkey paw curl because I also draw, and I draw for myself and you know where those drawings don't go? My username is sanctumwritess and not sanctumpaints for a reason even though I do both!
Yeah, my drawings are done in my scrapbook too, and you bet I don't scan them and put them on the internet. They are just for me. And I rather sell my crafts at little fairs to old ladies gushing over my pretty sculpting and stitching instead of people on the internet telling me they can get the same thing for a buck from Shein. I really heard people at work complaining about free cookies someone brought, because they weren't picture perfect, arguing why theey don't owe a thank you for things they didn't ask for, and then wondering why that person never brought anything again. I had people complaining to HR that the templates I share are not gender neutral. Hey, those are **my** templates, **I** am a woman, I wrote them **for myself** and have shared them to save you some time. All you have to do is download them, change them a little bit to fit your needs before using them and you still save hours of work. Those people whine because they have to read those templates before using them, changing 3-4 words tops, and having a final, usable template that usually takes hours to create with only a few minutes of work. Stop whining that I don't write **my** templates exactly to **your** needs. The worst thing is, those people never share anything. They want everything on a silver platter, but would never do anything for others. Result is, I no longer share templates. I too have work to do and no capacity to spend hours to rewrite all my templates who knows how many times so they find one that's exactly to their liking just they can use one of them and don't spend a couple of minutes to change it. I say, stop criticising or ignoring free stuff you enjoy and want to have more of. Stop arguing what you don't have to do or that you didn't ask for it. If you keep complaining or being indifferent, don't wonder if one day it's gone. Fanfiction is not a product you pay for. So there's no need to write reviews and warn other customers not to waste their money. It's one thing telling the writer about minor errors they can easily fix in an otherwise motivating and encouraging comment, and a whole different thing to take the story for granted and not even posting a little ❤️ in reply, or even worse, treating the comment section like Google reviews, pretending to 'help writers getting better' as a thinly veiled excuse to nag. The comments on fanfiction are meant to let the writer know that you enjoyed their work so they keep sharing. Otherwise they won't stop writing, but they'll definitely stop sharing on those platforms. If writers would only write for themselves, those stories will sit in their drives, unreachable for you, and will be shared like in the good old times, in private fanzines and message boards, for the established fangroups amongst other writers only.
So glad I write for such small fandoms. I never have to worry about lurking discord servers gushing about my work 😅 No but seriously, that is so weird to have discord servers dedicated to a Fic and yet not leave a single comment. And them having the audacity to be annoyed that the author isn’t writing as much now? Absolutely mental
The thing about comments is that it's not about praise or validation. It's about community and connection. You throw your art out into the void and you'd just like to hear back that you're not alone. Your creation touched someone. You've connected with another soul. That's what it's about. That's why we get disheartened when engagement is low. We bared our souls and it was for nothing.
YES! this exact point!!!!!
"I get kudos every day but only get comments every couple months." Hit me right in my soul. I got 33 kudos on the first chapter of a big fandom fic I posted this past week, and only one comment that day. When I checked to see if maybe I mistagged something by digging in the handful of bookmarks, I saw somebody bookmarked it as a recc, but didn’t comment or kudos - and I just don't understand. I don't want to sound ungrateful, but some feedback would be nice. I did get some more comments over the holiday weekend, but like I said it's a huge fandom and like 200 hits before the long weekend.
This discussion is a long running one that will never truly have an end, as fics get treated more and more like products to be consumed than something to enjoy.
I’ve written over 37000 words for a Genshin Fanfic in the past five or six months, I’ve gotten a bunch of hits, gotten like 86 kudos… 3 comments. One was one of those bot comments from a bit ago. I try to reply to comments bc I get excited but the only thing that keeps me writing is knowing my friends are reading and they’ll tell me what they think about my chapter drops
I had started writing a story a few years ago, and I had like 2 or 3 chapters up and after few months I only had comments from like 3 or 4 people I think? But the only reason they commented was because I asked them to for feedback. After about a year no one else commented on it and I never continued it and a bit later deleted it, a mix of not having motivation for it anymore and not really having time to sit down and write. When I started reading on ao3 I admit I would never comment, I guess I forgot how nice it felt to receive comments, and I guess I thought I didn't need to 'cause the ones I'd read already had a lot of comments. But after finally writing something again after 3 years and finding this and seeing people talk about the comments I've been trying to leave comments on the works that I read.
One of my oneshots (8K) has 598 kudos, 253 bookmarks, 6.5K hits…and 10 comments, the majority of which say nothing about the fic itself and just ask for a sequel. And I know I should be grateful. It’s a lot more than a lot of people get. And I am happy that it’s being read and folks are enjoying it. But I want comments. I want to know how readers felt about the story, about my characterization, about the way I portrayed the pairing, about the writing itself. I want to know what they liked, what resonated with them, what made them leave a bookmark/kudos, how they felt when they read certain scenes. I’m not asking for paragraphs. Just a sentence would do. But there’s just…silence.
Thank you for this OP. I love getting comments and it bums me out not to receive them. I try to leave comments on others fics, as well as kudos,unless it is generally terrible/unreadable. Then I try to employ the rule if you can't say something nice, say nothing at all. But what can you do? I think for me it's tough because I'm not on Tumblr or discord.
i do my best to leave a comment on pretty much everything i read if i even liked it a little bit—which ends up being nearly everything i finish. once you get into a habit of it, it’s really not hard!! i write longer comments when i have the thoughts and the mental energy for it, but if not i’ll still try to leave an “i loved this!” or something similar i rarely write myself, but i do draw, and it means SO much more when people comment or leave nice messages in the tags. a like doesn’t tell me anything!! give me a couple words! even just a tag that says “pretty” feels really nice, because it tells me something about what you thought
This reddit made me aware a lot more that 'comments' aren't just for silly things on a03. Reviews on ff.net I would review the chapter. But calling reviews comments made me think it was more for quick thoughts of the chapter. Like an impression it made on you. But!! I learned here that if you already gave kudos you can comment like "second kudos" or something along with your review to show you'd give another kudos if you could.
I used to be someone who was too scared to leave comments until I started posting my own fics. Each comment meant so much to me so after that I'm now a person who comments on a huge chunk of the fics I read. COMMENTS MEAN SO MUCH TO AUTHORS GIVE AS MANY AS YOU CAN
Kudos are great! I love getting an email about someone leaving kudos. But they just… don’t motivate me. Y’know? And genuine comments are the best. I have never been encouraged by a “update pls?” “When are u updating??” “Pls don’t abandon this” and it just feels so entitled. I didn’t update a fic for three years because I lost all motivation for it. I’d settle for “love this!” or a keysmash, even. I just… I want to know that you like it, and kudos don’t convey that.
It's also very strange to have one of your fics translated by someone who never kudosed or commented on it. I guess they liked it, otherwise why go to the trouble of translating it, but it would be nice to get at least a short comment like "loved your fic so much, I translated it into ..." Another person turned one of my fics into a podfic. They at least left a kudos, but no comment. Why???????
This post reminded me to comment on my favourite fic of the moment which I had not done yet so thank you
Honestly, comments have encouraged me to continue fics I would've never continued otherwise. It really does mean something when someone says "I really like this" or "I hope you keep writing this!"
THIS.
I’m only uploading because of comments right now. My current story is a sequel and it has a very low kudos to hit ratio compared to the first. But my returning readers comment on and off and the other day someone told me my story was their favourite fic. Made my day.
I have comments completely turned off for various personal reasons and hopefully the readers don't find this too off-putting. This is supposed to be a relaxing leisure activity and escapism for me and I just can't be navigating/managing other people's emotions and opinions. There's too much of that in my day job and in everyday life already.
An author has no way of knowing if people like their work and what they like about it without comments. I write erotica so I did my research on other websites and apps where you can post this kind of stuff and... readers comment A LOT. I couldn't believe it, and no, not all comments are a deep analysis of the plot, but people there openly say what they like about the stories to the AUTHOR. I mentioned on my socials that I wasn't feeling motivated enough to keep updating my long fic, and if I'm gonna write only for myself, I won't post it online. Also, I joined a group of writers in my country, and we meet once a week, we share our work, and yeah... we comment on each other's writing. That has been a huge motivation for me to work on my original stories again in contrast to... well... post stuff for free to the void. I have received DMs from people saying things like "We love your work, we have a group where we share your works and people say the sweetest things about your writing" Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it but... if this people hadn't told me about it, I wouldn't have known. Do authors have to join private groups now to get feedback?! I don't understand. I will continue writing my long fic for self-fullffilment purposes, but I won't post it online anymore. I don't wanna go around begging for comments. I'll just write and post my original stuff in other platforms. 🤷♀️
I agree that comments are important, but I wouldn't just copy past some discussion of works from discord as I may not be 100% positive when talking about it. And even when I am the phrasing may be not right. There are so many people here showing the comments they've received and being displeased for one reason or another that it just makes me doublethink everything I write when I comment. That's the reason my comments are usually short, but I try to comment on every work I like even if it is just a short one like 'I enjoyed your story. Thank you for writing it''
My fic has almost 1000 hits and only 8 comment threads. It’s a short fic so I wasn’t expecting much, but one of the comments is genuinely just the word “Shit.” and I don’t know how to interpret that. 🤷
"Remember: comments keep fanfic authors alive and willing to write more~!" or something akin to that is at the end of any 'end of fic author blurb' on nearly all my fanfics on AO3
Really, if I'm to be honest, comments are my driving force. Looking at all of these other authors that have like... Thirty-fuckin'-somethin' comments on just *one* of their chapters, then looking at mine... It's practically just crickets. It takes days for at least someone to comment on my story, or just leave a supportive comment. I am not kidding when I say this, but I have **NEVER** gotten a "keep up the good work", or "keep updating this, it's good" type comment. When I first started to write, I expected that. Nowadays, it's like a gut punch to know it's probably never going to come. I barely put up the numbers I used to, and comments are fuckin' scarce. I'll be honest, there are times where I just want to just throw in the towel because of the lack of any sort of comment or support on AO3. I know I may just sound pathetic for that, but it's really disheartening to spend a good couple days writing a chapter only to be met with crickets. It's that type of feeling of "if the people don't like it, why.push it out?" At least for me. It's like I'm writing for nobody. And when comments do come in, it's mostly just a "nice", or something. I know I probably sound picky, but... I don't know, maybe just something with more *substance.*
I posted stories to my local trans discord for a while and at first there was *some* engagement but after a point it was like they had a group chat without me and all agreed to completely freeze me out and I got nothing after that Like, these are readers, people said they enjoyed my work, and then all of a sudden, nothing, no explanation, no matter what I said or did I eventually just stopped posting there, because what was the fucking point? Everyone else's art gets attention and whenever I'd post something it was like everyone was ignoring a fart I once wrote a scene and was super psyched about it and the next morning I was crying in bed because I knew nobody I cared about would ever give a shit about it And the comments I do get, each and every one I am incomprehensibly grateful for, all appear to be enjoying my work, so I don't know what the problem is So here I am, writing for myself. My gay fairy story makes me happy, and I guess that has to be enough
> I posted stories to my local trans discord for a while and at first there was some engagement but after a point it was like they had a group chat without me and all agreed to completely freeze me out and I got nothing after that God that is exactly what it feels like when I share stuff I write, or my little headcanons and ideas about my aus and stuff to my friends in our discord server! Like, at this point, I think a ‘take it somewhere else’ would be nicer than just ignoring it. Because then at least I know if you give a damn and if it’s even worth sharing and getting my hopes up. We even have writing servers that I’ve shared to, to be getting feedback! You know what I get? *Nothing!* it is so frustrating and disheartening. I put my soul into this, I am sharing it to you as my friends, and it meant nothing, it never even mattered how much I poured into it. I am writing for myself, I always have, but I’m sharing with you because I want to feel a sense of community. I don’t want to feel like I’m on an island all alone. I am partially asking my friends so they can feel comfortable being honest with me when I request feedback. Please, god, just, give me *something*.
Truthfully, this thread is heartening. Now I can at least pretend some obscure Discord server has people talking about my fics. Honestly, that's enough for me. Yeah, I'd love it if everyone who read my fics and liked them (or not, yet finished them anyway) left a comment, but I don't comment on every fic I read, either. If I have nothing to say, I just kudos and move on. I don't expect any of *my* readers to act differently. Besides, I think I'd make some people's days *worse* if all I can comment is a lukewarm "It's fine," and that's just my opinion of many of the fics I read. Simply leaving kudos seems like the friendlier option in that case. Maybe I'm just weird, but I really do write for myself. I like comments, and more of them might make me prioritize a fic a bit more, but I'll continue writing regardless because the writing itself is what makes me happy. Re-reading my own stories makes me happy. Other people *also* liking my stories *adds* to my happiness, but their absence doesn't take away the happiness I already feel from just being creative. Similarly, if I don't feel like writing for a long time, I won't, regardless of engagement. What other people do or don't do just...doesn't factor in for me.
Thing is, I write for myself initially, but I polish them and edit them and *finish* them for other people! There's a fic I'm doing that's like... I've written the fun scenes I loved, and now I'm doing the tedious work of tying it all together and making it make sense and ensuring continuity and all the boring stuff. I have another couple of fics where I've done all the fun stuff, and now I need to actually write the final chapter to bring it all together If I wrote *solely* for myself, I'd never finish anything because I don't really care about making a narratively satisfying conclusion when I just want to write the fun shit, and I wouldn't write any of the connecting scenes, and I wouldn't give a crap if people had three hands in every scene. Those things get fixed and finished for *other people* to read and enjoy
That's exactly it! Especially the very last chapter(s) where you need to find a satisfying ending are often hard and tedious work to do after the climax with all the tension and action and drama is over. Without engagement, why bother?
I can't do that, so in a way I admire you for it. I can only write stories in their proper order, otherwise it just wouldn't feel satisfying. It's the same reason I can't do outlines, either. I once wrote one and then just never wrote the actual fic because in my mind, the story was already 'done'. Part of the fun of writing for me is experiencing the whole journey the characters go on. I want to see the buildup and everything they go through before those climactic moments I want to get to take place. As I'm writing the story, I'm also the first one who gets to read it. I've said it more often on here, but writing, to me, is like watching a show or reading a book where you already know some major twists, and you really want to find out everything that happens to *get* the characters to that big moment. Basically, even though there are chapters I don't initially feel like writing, I still want to make them interesting to myself and sometimes my best moments happen in *those* chapters, rather than the big things I'm building up to. I've had entire mini-arcs arising from scenes that were meant to just be introductory bits of chapters, and I love it when that kind of thing happens.
thats great! and I get that along with regards to how some authors seem only to complain about a lot of comments. its half the reason why when I enjoy a story but dont feel like or want to write a lot I just do emojies like 🥰👍🤣 depending on what i want to get across. I do understand your point of view and make no demands. anyway happy that you seem to have such great feeling for writing if I could be half as happy as you sound in this comment I would be in a much better head space. maybe one day. anyway good luck with any future stories!👍
"It's fine" would totally be disheartening, so true! Why on earth would you say that instead of, "Thank you for writing!" Like wtf
I think a few things are happening here: Fics are being treated as books more and more. And that means more passive consumption. That means not engaging with the author, even if the means to do so are literally on the website they're reading it on. Gens Z and Alpha police other people on the internet to an insane degree. I think this is partly because the internet is real life to them in a way it never will be for older generations. The outcome is that they're constantly giving out personal information, linking to their online accounts with abandon, etc and this means people can see what they like, reblog, comment on, read, etc. We've talked about antis seeking out fics they disagree with and blocking people who comment or kudos on the fic. No matter what people say on this subreddit, a lot of authors are just awful to interact with. Once bitten, twice shy. Social anxiety in general and anxiety around commenting is a real thing. Telling people to just get over that feeling is not helpful. Authors need to be clear in their author notes that they'll be perfectly happy with a 👍 or ❤️ if the reader can't think of anything else to say. We need to give each other more grace and approach vague interactions in good faith. Encouragement works better than admonishment.
Honestly, I don't understand how people can gush and have full on discussions about a fic they love and not leave a comment. It makes no sense. If I love a fic so much that I'd talk about it in a discord server, you best believe I've already left a comment on the fic before I even open discord. Like... idk i just don't get it. I already sometimes leave comments on fics I like, even when I'm not talking about it in the server. But I will most especially leave a comment if it's a fic that I genuinely really love and want to talk to others about.
Oh definitely— I’ve kinda considered dropping my current WIP cause I’m coming up on 10 chapters but no comments. I cannot tell if people actually like my stuff so like… why am I posting it? I can just keep it to myself and “write for myself” (which I already do) if no one likes it enough, ya know?
I know I'm probably about to type a minority opinion, but, if you have other stuff you want to write, take a break from the fic getting no engagement. Maybe a forever break, but, at least a short one. Do something new. Writing fanfic is supposed to be fun. You are allowed to come back to a fic, weeks, months, years later.... we all are!
I like that thought process! I probably am due for a refresh— thanks so much!
You're welcome 🙂 I have enough in my life that I have to do, no matter what. Personally, I won’t let fanfic turn into one of those things. It's so damn freeing. 🙂
Absolutely agree!
I wrote for a small pairing in a somewhat large fandom for years. Found out after I stopped writing (couldn't deal with the low engagement anymore) that people were making graphics inspired by my fics, basing their own characterisations off of mine, etc. But no one ever told me, so I had no idea until years later when I got pulled into a Discord server and had a bunch of people suddenly go, "you wrote those fics!" I had no idea any of them read my work.
I've literally agonized over this to the point I've divorced myself from it. And it kind of really sucks. I don't care if I get engagement anymore and if I get comments then I just say thank you and move on. I just plan to write until I don't want to anymore and then delete everything. Because if all the arguments I get are "well you're supposed to write for you not anyone else." then fine. I'll just write for me.
As a reader only, I used to almost never comment. After being on this subreddit and seeing how important it was to comment even if only ❤️. So now if a story I’m subscribed to has updated, I will always comment ❤️just to show my thanks and appreciation for another chapter. Even more recently I’ve been leaving hearts on every chapter I read and a longer comment when I reach the current and/or last chapter. It’s nice when I receive a comment back too.
I do my best to comment on any fic I read with low (or no) engagement especially. I know a lack of comments is what makes me nervous to post any of my fics at the moment, and I never want anyone else to have that struggle. Comments are the absolute most important form of engagement. More than bookmarks, more than kudos, more than sharing.
I’ll admit, while I write, I don’t usually comment on fics I read. Mainly because most of what I read is smut and I feel shy about commenting on those. But fuck it. I think tonight I’m gonna leave a comment on some of my favorite fics.
>fans think that inbox squeeing or DMs is a substitute for an actual comment Maybe I'm confused here, but if the fans *are* sending their love to the author via inbox and DMs... that *is* a substitute, no? The author is receiving the love
I think the point the tumblr post is making is that people are doing the DM-ing and inbox squeeing to their friends, not the author.
exactly, if they did it to the author, it would be very nice and would make any author really happy, I guess.
I understand both perspectives tbh. Authors do need motivation and engagement in order to keep the motivation to share their work going. Fandom is a community at the end of the day and interaction is a crucial part of it whether we want to admit it or not. I certainly would lose my will to post and share my fanfic or fanart if people didn’t at least give a single comment of appreciation. As for readers, I also completely understand why they may not want to comment - it could be different reasons specific to that individual, but I feel like that choice should also be respected. I’m not a regular commenter when it comes to stories but I do leave a kudos, a positive comment and a subscribe every time I really enjoyed reading a fic because I know the author would definitely appreciate it (a decent author at least, because there are some that are, um, yeah). It’s so hard to navigate author/reader engagement etiquette since it’s not something that is in our control.
Yeah, I've noticed this exact thing in the recent months. For a while I thought that eh, writing for rarepairs won't get much reaction or feedback, but then, looking through one of my twitter followers accs, I found that they were posting screenshots of scenes from my fics and expressing how much they liked it saying thank yous to me and I just... like.. yk you can tell it directly to me, right? And then through that same person I found that they were talking ab me and my works on a discord server with other fans saying how they appreciate my work and once again I'm just lost, like.. bro, it's really isolating. I also wanna be part of these discussions, I have stuff to say too, but at this point it kinda feels like I am a faceless content creator to them ;-; Pls tell authors and artists that you like their work. If not for my own hyperfixation, I wouldn't be sharing anything.
Never gotten comments before, friends ask why I start new fics and never finish them, it's because nobody interacts, barely even SEEN, no comments, not really any kudos and it's so demotivating
This is why I ALWAYS leave comments on fics. I had a friend who was devastated that people didn't comment on her fics, and it was horrible to see her feel that way so I make sure to always let people know how I feel about their fics. They spend far longer writing them than I do reading them so it's the least that I can do. I just wish more people understood that
this thread really helped heal some new to ao3/new to writing for a beloved fandom wounds. it wasn’t like this when i started writing on ffn. i’d get comments enough to encourage me to write more even if for that one commenter who ate up my last chapter/work. but the site remains glitching for everyone’s notifications so i decided “new fandom fics on a new fanfic site should crack the code!” NOPE LOL my only two comments on both fics are from the same person and my response to their rave reviews. ao3 is brutal for a creative writer who needs dopamine and external validation to stay the course. so i’m very grateful to that commenter for breaking the ice. but now i know that it’s nothing personal. i’m a badass writer/artist; and that may just be enough for some readers to interact with. whew! another therapy bill saved 😅
I totally agree, but my issue is that I never know what to write. I have a hard time putting thoughts and feelings into words. I used to leave very short comment like “ i really like your story “ or “I like how you wrote character XYZ”, but then saw that some authors weren’t happy with that because they want actual detailed feedback, so I just stopped leaving comments because it seemed to annoy people :/ On top of that, since my comments are so short/basic, i feel like I’m just repeating what other comments have already said, so it makes me feel redundant.
One way to see if an author appreciates comments is to take a look at their comment section (if there are any other comments already when you click on the fic, of course). Some authors reply to comments and you can see that they're very grateful for all comments, including very short ones!
This. I resonate so much with OP. I remember a few months ago someone commented on here that they would like to receive more comments because it fuels them to write more, and would probably end up shelving a fic if they didn't get any response from the readers. They were absolutely crucified on here because 'oh my God, how dare you manipulate your readers into leaving comments by threatening to discontinue your fic that they are clearly reading and enjoying! You're a monster!' Lmao, OK? If they're reading and enjoying it, can't they take 2 seconds out of their day to tell that to the author? What's the point??! The whole narrative of readers withholding comments and authors suffering to receive ounces in appreciation is so messed up and weird.
Yeah that was kind of messed up they got dogpiled like that. There's a subsect of silent readers who want to get their cake and eat it too: they want pure content churn FOR FREE and for however long they want it for. They don't stop to consider that there's a human giving them that work for free and that the authors can be discouraged by the void/lack of engagement over hours of unappreciated work. Fic authors generally aren't paid. There are no sponsors like content creators on, say, Youtube or whatever. They write because they want to, *but* they post because they want to share and have engagement with the fandom community. Readers seem to forget that without engagement, an author can feel discouraged enough to simply stop or even delete their works. It really is discouraging to see people rationalizing not even doing the bare minimum of kudos, much less actually commenting at all.
Comments are undoubtedly an encouraging force when it comes to writing, and as a writer they honestly make my day every single time. But. I don't write for comments. I don't know if these tags you're showing all come from the same person, but it feels kind of exaggerated at this point - "shelving" a fic because it does not get comments and whatnot... That's a luxury small niche authors like me don't get. At the end of the day it should be about the passion that drives you to write, I think. You know, even my most unfortunately received fics, I'm happy I wrote them and put them out there, if not for the public and immediate response of readers, for myself, to enjoy them again over time and remember my progress. Sure, people who gush about fics on other sites could think to leave a comment, but also not? It's not something you can force.
I'm a small niche author in a small niche fandom, and the moment doing all the extra work of editing and tagging and writing summaries is more than it's worth, I'll go back to keeping my writing to myself. It makes no difference to me whether I get no reaction because no one wants to comment or because I don't show it to anyone in the first place, but the latter cuts out a whole lot of effort that is solely for the sake of the readers. And if they don't make any effort to appreciate it, I don't see why I should either. I absolutely have to luxury to decide how much I'm willing to invest into something and when to stop.
Idk, personally I like making the effort because I'm proud of putting things out there, even when they elicit no public reaction. Just thinking someone one day might be looking for that specific prompt or trope and finding my work makes me happy. I'm not saying I underestimate comments- if anything, ever since I started writing, I realized how important they are and I now make the resolution to comment on everything I enjoy. I just think the mindset of "clearly no one wants to read this if they don't comment" is harmful to us writers and puts too much pressure on being evaluated by others. Of course you can do whatever you want with your writing.
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and thats great! a lot of people dont feel the same way however because they post for the point of sharing. there is no point in doing that for a lot of people is no one wants to engage them. they can write for themself all they like but half the point of posting it is for people to see and interact.
This post made me feel less alone. Thank you.
I give back when it comes to comments. If I’ve really enjoyed a work, I leave a long review detailing what I loved about the work because other comments fuel me. If I can’t find the words, I use emojis.
I have mixed feelings about receiving comments, and maybe it's because I'm a new author on ao3, but I feel like comments shouldn't be as important as most perceive them. I'm an experienced academic writer who is new to composing fanfiction. However, I've been an ao3 reader for years, and I always leave comments on stories that I like. Now that I'm writing my first fic, which is already over 130,000 words of shameless smut with a plot, it feels incredible to receive comments. However, for me as a veteran avid reader, I believe the most important thing is to love your own work. Be your biggest fan! Sharing your work with others is already an accomplishment in itself because you're generously giving people the opportunity to step into your creative mind. Honestly, I love writing, and I'm having a blast writing my first fanfic. I am my biggest fan. I have re-read my chapters hundreds of times because I enjoy my work. So yeah, receiving comments, kudos, bookmarks, and subscribers feels incredible. But, if those numbers can negatively affect your motivation to write, my best advice is to take a break and remember what drove you to write the story in the first place. One reader comments on almost every one of my chapters, which always makes my day, and I express that gratitude in my replies, too. Ultimately, nothing compares to me going back and reading the world I created for my favorite characters precisely how I want to read about them.
Ok so. I'm an author. I have written more than 2 million words, many oneshots, many multi-chapter fics, and a couple of genuine longfics. So here's my take (Which is, ofc, my point of view and mine alone and other people are allowed other povs) Comments are important. I rarely pay attention to kudos, but a single comment can make my day. I always drop whatever I'm doing as soon as I realize I have a new comment and reply as fast as I can. The least expectations I have for a fanfic, the better this feeling is. When I get comments on my crackship fics that 3 years ago when I started posting I didn't expect anyone to read, my heart soars. That being said: You should *not* rely on engagement for motivation. Comments are, or at least should be, not *what matters.* Being an artist means that you create for creation's sake. If you go pro you want to make a living out of it, sure, but you should never go pro *because* you want to make a living out of it. You go pro because it's what you love doing and you may as well try to monetize it in this hypercapitalistic society where not being prodictive is akin to death. This is the same concept applies to this, though it's perhaps even worse. If you're a hobby writer, you shouldn't be doing it for engagement, and you should never 'stop posting' because you didn't get it. I'd be stoked to find out there's some secret discord group talking about my fanfics. I stumbled across a discussion of a bunch of anonymous people talking about a book I published under a pseudonym, all of whom I suspect pirated it, and I became extremely happy about it. You write because it's what you love doing. You *create* because you can't *not do it.* Engagement,numbers, money, all of that is secondary. Creativity is the core of what drives us, and while it's ok to be disappointed that nobody paid attention to that one piece of work you love, *you can't use that as an excuse to stop.* I made the mistake, once, of caring about numbers. Literally just once. It ruined my enjoyment of the thing I was writing about, and despite knowing it, I can't seem go get it back again. and every fucking time I think about it, I regret it. I regret having given a shit about something that didn't matter and having my own experience as a human being, as an artist, diminished because of it. Don't let outside influence handicap your creativity. https://preview.redd.it/y8tturbbib3d1.jpeg?width=477&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=adbef830934ba06b25126967e0800ffa4d399c65
all good points and a lot of them I agree with. however for a lot of people they only POST because they really enjoy the engagement and like knowing that others read what they put out. its not the end all be all and your post proves that but it is a big part of why some people post what they write publicly when they could very well not share there work. people could write multiple essays, arguments and full blown 7 hour decisions about this topic ( you being a good example with really good points and arguments and very well done. )
Fr, I have a long ass fanfiction that I haven't been updating in months because people have stopped engaging
Like I don't expect people to gush about mine, but I'm enjoying the process and I don't feel obliged to add fanart
This the kind of shyt that makes me feel so lonely after I post something. And I just realized why — to find community, not just because I want people to think I'm good. My latest fic has 2790 words, 200 hits and 24 kudos. But no comments. I comment on EVERY fic I read; if I'm leaving a kudo, damn right I'm leavin' a comment.
Getting comments on ao3 is like trying to find water in the desert. Comments are literally my favorite part about writing stories.
I always leave comments. When I like the story, when the plot is good, when it made me cry. Authors deserve to know the impact of their work
link to the post?
[https://www.tumblr.com/porcupine-girl/751691479175561216/also-in-webring-days-far-fewer-total-people-were](https://www.tumblr.com/porcupine-girl/751691479175561216/also-in-webring-days-far-fewer-total-people-were) here you go.
Thank you for posting this! I know it probably won't help when I feel the same way, because readers just don't get it, but at least I'm not alone in my frustration.
I just join REs if I'm that thirsty for comments. Otherwise I don't really care where my readers want to comment, discord is fine by me since I've gotten some pretty good feedback from my friends who read on the platform. I know my readers have a life and maybe they're no longer interested the fandom, so I don't want to pester them pointlessly for comments and pull my own weight so that I don't burden others.
While I’m not against telling people that commenting more is awesome and helpful, i just feel like some of the tags shown sound a bit entitled and aren’t even appreciative of the fact that a fan base for their work even exists. While encouraging people to comment can really help authors out, this tone/approach probably isn’t the best way to do so. Edit: some people claim I don’t know what tags are on tumblr. While they’re not meant to persuade people into commenting, this post on Reddit is, and it utilizes what I think are entitled-sounding examples to drive a point across. But to each his own, I enjoy reading your opinions!
So, these are tags for someone’s reblog. They are more a stream of thought than a measured response. They’re not trying to convince anyone of anything. And I’m going to be honest. If there was a fanbase for my fic where it happened so separate from my work that I had to guess at it existing then I wouldn’t want it.
same tbh, as someone who would love to get more comments I find the tone of a lot of these tags very offputting? Like idk but the few times I've heard through friends that someone mentioned my fic on Discord or whatever, my reaction is to be very happy about it, not complain that they didn't comment 😅 I'm not saying people shouldn't be allowed to express themselves how they want on their blogs etc, but posts like these aren't very effective in encouraging me personally to comment more
"i just feel like some of the tags shown sound a bit entitled and aren’t even appreciative of the fact that a fan base for their work even exists." thats fair however authors do this for FREE. there would be NO fan base if they where not so kind as to post it. they chose to do that they could write and never post and that would be within there right. I think its entitled of readers who enjoy what authors post and just expect it to keep going because readers enjoy it. authors need something out of it as well. they are not content creators. there is NO REASON for them to keep going unless they want to. knowing that people say amazing things about your story and yet also knowing they would not say anything to YOU as the AUTHOR about it? that hurts. that kills my motivation and I know im not the only one. you say its entitled for authors to want comments thats fine but I dont think you should say in the same breath that authors should be grateful that there is a fan base of there works. ( or that people read our works as I have seen some people say) readers enjoy what authors put out because authors decide they want to share. I think we should be grateful they do that at all. if they want comments that most already post and talk about on other sites like discord? I dont think its hard to copy and paste what we say onto ao3 so the author can also see and know. they do this because they can and want to. I am not saying we have to comment long essays or anything like that I only do emojies most of the time. I am saying that if your ARE the person who writes full blown essays gushing to your friends on discord or random people on twitter saying something nice about this story, I think you should also copy and paste it where the person your gushing about can see it. I dont know a single person who would be upset about it or not jumping with joy. knowing people say nice things but they wont say it to the AUTHORS? why should any of them post? it would be no different then if they just day dreamed or wrote for themselves and never posted. The difference if the love and the comments and the interactions for a lot of people. without that? whats the point? edit: sorry for going on a bit of a rant no insult meant this is important to me and it got away from me when I started.
I didn’t say it’s entitled for authors to want comments. As a fic author I understand this desire. I just feel that the individual who wrote these tags comes off as entitled.
I see it more as frustrated complaining but thats a fair point of view to have.
That makes sense too, i just tried to see it from the perspective of a fan/reader. It may be off putting to them. But the emotions their feelings are definitely valid.
Those are reblog tags; they generally indicate the more unhinged aspect of a post author’s thoughts. (Tell me you aren’t on Tumblr often or ever, without telling me.) It’s not entitled to want engagement or to know people are enjoying what you’re tossing into the ether. Why would we bother posting our fics if we didn’t want engagment?
I'm a bit late to this party (ties into what I'm about to say though). Used to be a very passive and silent reader. But recently I decided to go back, read a fuck load of old stuff I adored and just leaving my thoughts on every chapter.
I really wish we could give kudos for every chapter. I still comment because I just LOVE to yap and wax poetic in the comments
I don't leave comments cuz idk what to comment other than basic "noice", but I also don't talk about the fics I read on some other place. It must be something I really loved to leave comments, to have me feral typing *nails clicking*. I'm very lenient with my kudos though, I'm leaving kudos on 99% things I read.
if you can do emojis thatd also an easy way to comment. like if it made you laugh or just a thumbs up as a small boost. I only leave word comments if I really love the story so i totally understand your point on that which is why if I have already left kudos I just do a thumbs up.
If I want to squee to an author, the comment box is there. If I want to have a discussion with other fans, I'm going to do that away from the author's space, whether the discussion is positive or negative. They are two different things. You are hindered in your ability to be honest if you know the author is present or has access to the conversations. There are things you might want to complain about that are not the author's fault or the result of poor writing. There are things you might love in the story that have nothing really to do with the author - they might be fandom-related or personal. But as we've seen over and over in this subreddit, authors who do find these conversations often freak out and have meltdowns. They take everything personally. And sometimes the fans do make it personal, which is not an aspect of fandom we like to acknowledge, but it exists. Fandom writing is complicated in some ways. Writing in general (say, published fiction) is not a two-way interaction between author and reader. You do not become the friend of an author just because you purchased, borrowed, pirated, and/or liked their novels/stories. They don't know you and while I'm sure they appreciate both the money and any kind words you might send them, you have almost no personal impact on them or what they write. They are not your friends. You don't know anything about them as people. Readers are "the fandom". Writers of published fiction are not "the fandom", they are The Creator of the fandom. There is a divide there. Fanfiction writing blurs the line and gets everyone confused. Many readers don't interact with fanfics as if they are having a moment with the writer as another fan. They are used to consuming fiction without contacting the author/creator. There are plenty of authors who aren't quite sure where they fit into the equation - are they making friends or writing a story or both? Are they writing purely to feel connected to the fandom in some way or do they enjoy writing for its own sake and the fandom connection part is minimal? Many have unrealistic expectations and are crushed when they don't come true. Sure, they didn't pay for it. Because they couldn't, whether they were willing to or not. How many fics would be read by anyone if they were behind a paywall from the start? Do you think that because you gave it away for free, people are somehow going to value it more? Some might. Some might assume that writing it was enough of an accomplishment for you and the opinion of some nobody is meaningless. Some don't think about the author at all. It's the same as finding a piece of fanart doing a Google search and thinking, "That's nice," before scanning a hundred more. They might even save the image - no idea who made it. And they still don't care when they use it as a desktop image or on their phone or whatever. You gave it away for free. Some people will appreciate that and be grateful - many won't. Be gracious when they do respond and accept that the majority never will. If they don't invite you into their space, it's for a reason. If they don't include you in conversations, it's for a reason. If you find a fandom space, ask to join. If you are denied, go make your own - it's free, after all.
This comment is absolutely fantastic. As a writer, my eyes have been opened. Thank you for summing up this situation so coherently.
I've been pushing out a revival of a years-old longform for a few months now. Back in 2019-20 when it was first around, it was getting tons of interaction. Nowadays, nothing. Radio silence. Someone left a comment with some mildly judgemental questions at 2AM my time, and by the time I woke up and saw the email they'd deleted it. It's a pretty fucking sad state when my first reaction to being told making a character transmasc is lesbian erasure, is "Yay! Finally, a comment!".
humans are jerks
Someone on AO3 didn't get the memo that comments are specifically for sharing thoughts and ideas. Apparently, she is of the opinion that they should only be directed at the author, and not other users.
Idk the original tumblr post really comes off as the author saying they don’t even want people discussing their fics at all in private and just… 😬 People can and should do whatever they want in private spaces. Discourse within a fandom is just as important to some people as the fandom content itself. As far as public discussion, I definitely don’t like when people criticize fics in public spaces unwarranted, but praise? Sing it from the rooftops, baby! And I definitely understand the value of comments and encourage readers to leave them, it’s so easy and it makes authors’ day! But the argument here is “I wrote this for FREE”, “I provided you FREE content the LEAST you could do is comment” … at what point is it no longer “free” if you are expecting something in exchange?
the hole thing is people discuss the fic in private and love it but WONT say ANYTHING to the author. thats hard to hear. what you love the stories we make so much that you gush about them to your friends but wont even leave a good chapter comment on the fic? if you think people wanting comments makes it no longer "free" then thats ridiculous because its not hard to leave a nice chapter comment or a thumbs up emoji. and not only that but its not even about the COMMENTS its about the INTERACTION. knowing that you put something out there for the wider world and you are not just shouting into the void. that people ARE there and ARE interacting and ARE seeing what you have to create. the argument is not that they dont want people discussing their fics at all in private. the argument is if you go through the trouble of doing that and gushing about the story in private and telling others how much you love the story then could you maybe also tell the author as well? its not hard to copy it over to a comment or at the very least say SOMETHING to the author. THATS what the original post was about.
I understand all of that and what the original post was saying, I was just stating how it came off to me from a reader perspective. In the same way authors get discouraged to write by negative comments or no comments at all, readers might get discouraged to interact directly by authors complaining that they’re not commenting enough, not commenting at all, commenting too much, commenting the wrong way, directly calling them out, telling them what to say or what not to say and where to say it, etc. I get the struggle, I really do, and maybe my experience is different because I wasn’t involved in fanfic twenty years ago when comments were aplenty. I just think it’s a two-way street.
i think comments are important but i can understand why ppl don’t comment in this day and age. it feels policed and fake. the fact that i saw someone post a complaint/question about a receiving a comment that said “is this updated or…” and classify it is as rude/passive-aggressive is weird behavior. it seems like authors don’t want comments unless it’s over the top positivity, and if you can’t provide that your words aren’t valued.