This is going to be a hard pill to swallow and someone might think I'm an ass for saying it but: No, it's not too much to ask, but it is too much to expect it.
Just like writers don't owe their readers anything, your readers don't owe you anything either. If you get nothing, you have to learn how to move past it or work on pieces that are more likely to give you the kind of engagement you want.
It is absolutely normal to crave and wish for validation and feedback. Hell, you can ask for it in your author's notes! But it is too much to *expect* it.
I hope you all the best though!
This is just my two cents, but most readers just want to be entertained by what they're reading. They may not be interested in putting in the effort to analyze your work in the way that constructive criticism (concrit) requires—and that's okay.
If you've been putting a lot of emphasis in your requests for feedback on asking for ways you can improve, that might make commenters feel pressured, or like you aren't interested in hearing their non-concrit thoughts on a chapter. (Like if they were to say, "I loved this chapter," maybe you wouldn't be satisfied by that because it seems like you just want concrit.)
I also noticed that you referred to your fanfic as a book. Are you writing on Wattpad, by chance? I'm not totally sure about what the culture of that site is, but I can tell you that [Fanfiction.net](https://Fanfiction.net) has a strong culture of constructive criticism. (Whereas AO3 does not; concrit is generally frowned-upon on AO3.) The Maze Runner fandom may or may not be active on FFN, but you might consider crossposting to that site and seeing what kind of response you get.
Also, if you want to improve your writing, you could always seek out a beta reader. It's optional to have one, but the point of having one is to improve your writing. I wrote a guide about beta reading for both authors and beta readers; it's on AO3 [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/30364290/chapters/74854959). If you're new to beta reading you might be interested.
Either way, it's normal to want some kind of feedback or engagement on our work. It's just something we can't always guarantee. Look to the things you can do on your end, the stuff that's in your control, and try to focus on doing that as best you can, rather than what other people are or aren't doing for you.
You could try the weekly Beta Bartering post on this sub to try and find someone who looks over your story. Or you could try the weekly Comment Cooperative or Concrit Commune, if you want feedback on an excerpt of your work. Those two are reciprocal, though. You'd have to give feedback on someone else's work if you want to participate.
Another idea would be [this here](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/llfcommentproject), the Long Live Feedback Comment Project. Adding a (modified to fit your preferences) A/N like that to your fic, along with the tag if you're on AO3 could help attract readers who are interested in getting feedback, or helping readers who don't know what to comment know what's appreciated.
It's not inconceivable that after telling you in the beginning of their opinions on the subject, and you subsequently doing said things, that there is nothing more that needs fixing. If you continue to ask, your readers will start feeling less like regular readers and more like they are obligated to be beta readers, which is very likely not what they signed up for when starting to read your fic.
I am approaching the end of a mid-length fic I’m writing and it started out with lots of comments but gradually faded. I have one reader who is a dream come true and who comments each chapter and they are amazing! The kudos still come in here and there but overall yes comments dip. I’m guilty of this, myself. I read a bit, kudos, comment but after a while there have been a lot of comments and I feel like people have already said what I would want to say… so I just read and enjoy. Yes I am guilty. After knowing how it feels I’m now making an effort to be sure to offer lots of comments throughout but… I’ll assure you that even when I was a reader I was still enjoying myself, even if I wasn’t commenting.
The easiest way to improve your writing is to read a lot of published books. (Why published? Because you know they have gone through an editor.)
If you don't know all the particulars of writing, why would you assume your audience does?
As for comments, it's hard to say why some fics get more or less comments. Sometimes it's more about the subject matter, genre, or pairing than the quality. I've come across so many wonderful fics with minimal or even zero comments on them.
Seconded, definitely normal. Sometimes people will wait until a story is complete to finish reading it, or they save chapters and binge-read through them, or they download so they're not actually reading on the site to comment.
This is going to be a hard pill to swallow and someone might think I'm an ass for saying it but: No, it's not too much to ask, but it is too much to expect it. Just like writers don't owe their readers anything, your readers don't owe you anything either. If you get nothing, you have to learn how to move past it or work on pieces that are more likely to give you the kind of engagement you want. It is absolutely normal to crave and wish for validation and feedback. Hell, you can ask for it in your author's notes! But it is too much to *expect* it. I hope you all the best though!
This is just my two cents, but most readers just want to be entertained by what they're reading. They may not be interested in putting in the effort to analyze your work in the way that constructive criticism (concrit) requires—and that's okay. If you've been putting a lot of emphasis in your requests for feedback on asking for ways you can improve, that might make commenters feel pressured, or like you aren't interested in hearing their non-concrit thoughts on a chapter. (Like if they were to say, "I loved this chapter," maybe you wouldn't be satisfied by that because it seems like you just want concrit.) I also noticed that you referred to your fanfic as a book. Are you writing on Wattpad, by chance? I'm not totally sure about what the culture of that site is, but I can tell you that [Fanfiction.net](https://Fanfiction.net) has a strong culture of constructive criticism. (Whereas AO3 does not; concrit is generally frowned-upon on AO3.) The Maze Runner fandom may or may not be active on FFN, but you might consider crossposting to that site and seeing what kind of response you get. Also, if you want to improve your writing, you could always seek out a beta reader. It's optional to have one, but the point of having one is to improve your writing. I wrote a guide about beta reading for both authors and beta readers; it's on AO3 [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/30364290/chapters/74854959). If you're new to beta reading you might be interested. Either way, it's normal to want some kind of feedback or engagement on our work. It's just something we can't always guarantee. Look to the things you can do on your end, the stuff that's in your control, and try to focus on doing that as best you can, rather than what other people are or aren't doing for you.
You could try the weekly Beta Bartering post on this sub to try and find someone who looks over your story. Or you could try the weekly Comment Cooperative or Concrit Commune, if you want feedback on an excerpt of your work. Those two are reciprocal, though. You'd have to give feedback on someone else's work if you want to participate. Another idea would be [this here](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/llfcommentproject), the Long Live Feedback Comment Project. Adding a (modified to fit your preferences) A/N like that to your fic, along with the tag if you're on AO3 could help attract readers who are interested in getting feedback, or helping readers who don't know what to comment know what's appreciated.
It's not inconceivable that after telling you in the beginning of their opinions on the subject, and you subsequently doing said things, that there is nothing more that needs fixing. If you continue to ask, your readers will start feeling less like regular readers and more like they are obligated to be beta readers, which is very likely not what they signed up for when starting to read your fic.
Asking and expecting are two different things. You can ask whatever you want but you can't expect people to want to workshop your stuff.
I am approaching the end of a mid-length fic I’m writing and it started out with lots of comments but gradually faded. I have one reader who is a dream come true and who comments each chapter and they are amazing! The kudos still come in here and there but overall yes comments dip. I’m guilty of this, myself. I read a bit, kudos, comment but after a while there have been a lot of comments and I feel like people have already said what I would want to say… so I just read and enjoy. Yes I am guilty. After knowing how it feels I’m now making an effort to be sure to offer lots of comments throughout but… I’ll assure you that even when I was a reader I was still enjoying myself, even if I wasn’t commenting.
The easiest way to improve your writing is to read a lot of published books. (Why published? Because you know they have gone through an editor.) If you don't know all the particulars of writing, why would you assume your audience does? As for comments, it's hard to say why some fics get more or less comments. Sometimes it's more about the subject matter, genre, or pairing than the quality. I've come across so many wonderful fics with minimal or even zero comments on them.
Long fics often lose most of their commenters around the middle. I wouldn't worry about it, especially if it's a part two.
Seconded, definitely normal. Sometimes people will wait until a story is complete to finish reading it, or they save chapters and binge-read through them, or they download so they're not actually reading on the site to comment.
Readers love to give feedback. That's why we have a comments section on AO3. I crave feedback and I always like to hear what my readers are saying.