trobadora: Feedback? Again? - I'm very tired of large sections of fandom treating lurkers as if they needed to delurk ASAP or else they're evil. Lurking is a natural mode for many people. I lurk in a lot of places/fandoms myself. This is nothing to be guilty about. -
cupidsbow: There's something about comments -- a comedy of mannersI still love to get comments from readers. But I no longer need a magic wand to appear from the sky and tap me on the forehead and magically dub me "Worthy of Holding the Sacred Pen of Authorship."
I used to need that. I didn't know that's what I needed, but I can see it as clearly as anything now. Comments and hits were as close as I could get to that magical approbation -- if only I got enough, I'd be a real writer!
gabrielleabelle: On Lurkers: We're performers and the lurkers are the audience. We're performing fandom and in watching us, the lurkers become a part of that fandom. Without them, were just some crazy loonies out on the street contorting ourselves for our own amusement. With them, we become recognized as contributors to something greater.
They don't have to say a damn word to do so. Because they're busy or don't have anything to say or don't feel comfortable speaking English or they just don't want to. And yet, because of them, what we're doing here in fandom ripples out and touches many more people than we can immediately perceive.
schmevil: feedback: make it fun and easy - The bottom line is, you have offered your writing for free on the internet, where people from within and without fandom can access it. Some readers are familiar with the rules of feedback in fandom, and some aren't. Some readers are determined lurkers. You want something in return for your efforts, but you can't force people to give you feedback. Your options are: a) begging; b) pressuring; c) being welcoming; d) making things fun and easy. Put yourself in the shoes of a reader who only infrequently comments. Which of these would most likely get you to comment? -
executrix: Meta: Rest Cures, Religion, and PILLS - If a character's religious beliefs (including examining beliefs and gaining or losing faith) are important to a story, I'd be inclined to say that that belongs in the Summary and not in the tags--e.g., "Booth thinks about what to give up for Lent" or "Mulder and Scully have different reactions to their discussion with an imam about the possible whereabouts of a Muslim suspect." -
ignaz: Two things about comments and hits - I typically click on a story multiple times. I open it in a new window. I usually don't find time to read it right then, so I'll bookmark it for later. Often I'll open it up at a later time--sometimes from a different location, because I have a laptop--and then find that I STILL don't have time to read it. Lather, rinse, repeat. -
wintercreek: with that your heart like a tent peg pounded toward the earth's core. - After a while, maybe, it stops mattering quite so much what the hit count, the comment count, the bookmark count are. You make the thing because you love the thing, and you want others to love what you have made. That's human, that's understandable. Just don't forget that you made the thing out of love in the first place. -
colls [in vidding]: Vidding, the creative process - So, how do you get your perfect song and vid idea from inside your head and onto our screens? Like me, do you have vague visions of it in your head and simply dive into clipping and editing? Or do you have a more methodical approach? -
sistermagpie: Fanfic I avoid - Tl;dr, the simple way to say it is it's like those fanfics where you start to read and you quickly realize something like: Oh god, Harry's a little angel who's too good for this world and the only person he can really feel safe with is...Snape. Or: Oh, Scully's responsible for all Mulder's successes and now she's betraying him with Krycek and he deserves it. Iow, fics where you have to share the same itch, grudge or disinterest for something the author has or else. -
jimhines: Strong Women Characters - I've found that as soon as the writer tries to define a particular type of character -- "This shall be the black character" or "This will be the smart character" or "This will be the strong female character," then it fails. The character becomes one-dimensional, defined by that label and a (usually) shallow and stereotypical understanding of how to portray it. -
dharma_slut: the most random question of all - to my non-christian friends;What, if anything, do you find interesting about the Christian worldview? What would be interesting in the context of fic? -
coppertone: they will live again in freedom - Religious characters exist, and sticking our fingers in our ears and dismissing their faith so that they're more palatable to us is, dude. It sucks. It's absolutely shitty, in a community that prides itself on being so broad-minded. -
jest: I'm reading a post about commenting etiquette because job hunting sucks... - The thing about these conversations is that they always make me feel SO mean, because the truth is, I find 99% of fanfiction to be bland and unengaging. I'm hardly going to comment to tell people this. I mean, most of us are amateurs, of course our attempts at creating stories don't amount to staggering genius. I'm good with that. I don't need a thousand "I love this" comments to make the endeavor worthwhile. -
lian: on commenting - Social space and atmosphere: it matters! and it will absolutely influence who comments on your story. Don't discount it -- speaking up as a stranger at a party: NOT EASY. -
furiosity: *ragesplode* - Dear readers, you don't owe the writers in fandom a motherfucking thing, except, you know, not to be a total douche to them for no reason. Not leaving a comment on a story you read is not, in fact, tantamount to being a total douche. -
rodo: Wow, has it really been two months ... - 1) My feelings about a story are almost never as simple as "I loved this!". And if they are, it generally takes me at least a few days to sort them out anyway. And then I forget to comment. Not to mention that I have huge social anxiety problems, so even a three word sentence takes a lot of spoons out of me. And it takes way more than three seconds. It takes minutes. -