Final Thoughts

[tygati]

First, an apology. I don't normally let things get to me... heck, I don't normally notice that there are lurkers, much less mind them. So I am sorry I let one incident upset me so much. :( You all are wonderful and I love you all dearly for sticking with me and enjoying my stories, as silly and pointless as they are. ^^;

Secondly, my thoughts on comments, from both a writer and a reader's point of view.

There is no such thing as a useless comment. I get a kick out of 'incoherent' comments, because they mean I did something right to reduce my readers to mindless squeeing. One of my favorite short comments is one Nikery left, that went something along the lines of: "GUH! Wait, I can write more... no, no I really can't. GUH." ^____^ Still makes me smile.

Just because someone already said what you were going to say does not make your opinion any less important. If more than one person liked a particular thing about a story, it lets me know that I'm on the right track there and a similar situation would probably be equally well-liked in future stories. :)

Have a favorite line or scene? Quote it! It gives me lots of warm fuzzies when a reader particularly likes a scene that I'm fond of. Plus, it lets me squee with you. ^___^ I'm very dorky that way.

Really, even a totally pointless, inane comment lets me know that the time I spent writing it was worth it to someone. And it's great encouragement. More on this later.

As for you lurkers... *waves madly* I don't bite! Really! And trust me when I say that whatever stupid comment you think you'd make, I've done worse, and will do worse. Being an idiot seems to be part of my life. ^__^ So really, nothing you say will ever be dumber than what I have or will do. I walk into doors (open and closed) and fall over from a standing position. >.>; Yeah. ^^; Remember nikerymksherea's Nikkai? She based him off of me. *sheepish grin*

Also, Lurkers = new opinions. After a while a writer learns what her 'regular' readers like and sometimes tailors things to suit. New opinions mean an opportunity for a writer to grow and challenge herself with more diverse stories. All opinions are valuable. They may not always be acted upon, but they're still valuable information.

Confidence. We have none. Zero. This comic I was linked to summarizes pretty well. We are our own worst enemies. The first hour or three from when a story is first posted until the first comment arrives are always the worst, because you sit there biting your nails going "It sucks, it sucks, it sucks, they're going to hate it, I should never have posted it..." There's this terrible insecurity involved with putting your heart on paper, so you fret horribly over whether people think that this thing you love dearly is crap or not.

People are very fragile, and we of the creative persuasion always seem to think the worst of ourselves. Though a person may not comment on a wonderful story because they think they have nothing worth saying, to an author, the thought process goes something like this: Nobody commented = nobody read it (OR) nobody liked it = ZOMG I SUCK I WILL NEVER WRITE AGAIN!!! *SOB*

No, really. We're rather pathetic that way. And amazingly insecure. I'd post snippits of conversation between myself and maderr in which we're trying to convince each other we don't suck, but she'd probably kill me. ^^; Suffice to say it happens with every single story we write. In M's case, every single chapter. >.>;

Finally, my thoughts as a Reader. Always, always, when I read something I try to leave a comment. Not just because it's polite, but because of a certain way of thinking I have that's always served me rather well in the past. It goes like this:

Comment Thought Process: Author writes pretty story. I read pretty story. Want more pretty story. Gush and squee and profuse undying love to Author. Author will write more story! Yay! Victory! ^^;

And nine times out of ten, it works. I don't really care if I make an idiot out of myself in the process. If it nets me more story, all's good. ;)

*hugs and cookies to you all*

Comments

[tmelange.livejournal.com]

>>omgomgicantbelieveipostedthis

LOL, don't worry! We don't bite!

I understand everything you are saying, and I do know that a lot of people are shy, even when the interaction is only over the internet. In fact, I give a pass to the truly shy people who find it hard to express themselves in writing. I'm most annoyed with the middle 60% who read and have no real hang up that prevents them from commenting...other than they're lazy. The people who claim that they're too *busy* to comment...but they're not too busy to read. LOL

I'm one of those people who believes in that old adage that if you go into a restaurant, you never order an amount of food that would tap out your wallet so that you can't leave a tip. Always, I think people should order with the tip in mind, or in our situation, read with the knowledge that you have to have time on the back end to comment -- or else don't read.

But, I'm glad you commented here. Trust me, even an innocuous comment to a writer, something like:

"I just read this! It was great! Thanks for writing!"

...will make their day and ensure that you get that next chapter or sequel sooner. That's just a fact.

Nice talking to you!

[tygati.livejournal.com]

*lol* Stalking my journal, are you T? *snugs* Thanks. ;)