[ SECRET POST #3317 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #3317 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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05.
[D.Gray-man - Miranda Lotto]


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06.
[The Thick of It]


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07.
[Golden Kamui]


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08.
(The Lost Boys)


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09.
[Marble Hornets/troyhasacamera]


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11.
[@midnight with Chris Hardwick]



















Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 037 secrets from Secret Submission Post #474.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[fscom]

10. http://i.imgur.com/dewCvlE.png

Transcript by OP

[fscom]

Before I comment on a fic, I always check if the author replies to the comments. If they do, I make sure to leave a comment. If they don't, I won't bother commenting. (I will still leave kudos if I like the fic, of course.)

S!B: Yes, I know this is petty, especially when so many author (me included) are desperate for comments. But I consider it basic manners to reply, even with a simple "thank you!"

[(Anonymous)]

I always reply to comments then delete my reply after a couple of days, because I like to thank people for commenting but I don't like to inflate the comment count.

[(Anonymous)]

That's incredibly petty, you dickhead.

[blitzwing]

Some authors get a lot of comments though. Like, it would take waaaay too long to respond to them all. Then some authors are shy, or just too busy.

Like I would post fic when I didn't have the internet, and I would have to take a trip just to do that. There was no way I could keep up with comments.

[(Anonymous)]

I don't see anything wrong with that, honestly. I also don't know why people act like readers are obligated to respond to fic in the first place.

[(Anonymous)]

Hm. I reply if there's something to reply to. Like, if they mention a specific part or something that they like and I have some sort of BTS thing to say. Otherwise I just assume people know authors are grateful for praise. Just saying "thank you!" to every comment does seem like artificial comment inflation.

[(Anonymous)]

very slightly related: I reply to all the comments I get so the commenter knows I saw it & appreciated it, but I'm always worried this just makes me seem desperate or something. :/ I don't like adding to my comment base bc I don't actually get that many but I also don't want to make my commenters feel ignored?

[slashgirl]

As a writer, is this supposed to bother me? Because it doesn't. I'm fine with people commenting or not, leaving kudos or not. Is it nice to get them? Of course. But I place no expectations on the reader.

[diet_poison]

I don't think this is really unreasonable? Especially since comments take effort and nobody is entitled to them. It's nice to leave one but I understand being more inclined to leave one if you think it will be acknowledged.

I don't really do that, but then, I don't comment on most fics I read - usually only the ones I really like.

[(Anonymous)]

Just as there is no "must" when writing fic, there shouldn't be any for commenting. If you want to comment: do, if you don't: don't. Why make up rules when there needn't be any?

[(Anonymous)]

I always reply to comments, and always mentally divide the number of comments on other fics by two. If I have a quick look at their comments and see they're not replying, I don't comment, just kudos.

[(Anonymous)]

Same.
I used to love commenting because it was a chance to interact with the author and although I know not all comments lead to a conversation, some minimum acknowledgement makes a big difference.

Without even a one-word reply it's impossible to know if they even read the comments they get, so I just send kudos to let them know I enjoyed the fic and move on.

[(Anonymous)]

Authors that reply to every single comment with a 'thank' are annoying as fuck.

[(Anonymous)]

I'm much more likely to comment if the author replies to comments, but sometimes I leave a comment anyway. I just wonder if the author even reads them, and suspect that I'm yelling into a void.

[(Anonymous)]

I understand that, but it's a difficult balance for me as author.

sometimes I don't agree with a comment because they over-praise my fic, sometimes it feels like bragging when I "agree" that it's that good, and obviously you shouldn't engage haters...

basically I only answer if they ask a question, comment the content in a neutral way I can relate to, or when it's a very new fic.

I usually only get 4-8 comments per fic

[(Anonymous)]

So I reply to literally all of them. If it's a generic "Wowie I liked this" I'll shoot them something along the lines of "thanks glad you liked it" if it's a little more detailed "I really liked the part where ____, the fact you included _____" or even some concrit they usually get much longer replies.

[(Anonymous)]

I tend to reply to comments (although sometimes it can be a few weeks later since I so rarely check the email address I have associated with AO3), but I can understand authors who don't. Unlike in LJ where it felt like comments to a story were a good place for a discussion or to get to know people, I don't get that same sense of comments being crucial to community building on AO3 or tumblr.

[(Anonymous)]

I get so nervous when replying to people I don't usually do it :c I just always feel like giving short "thank you!" comments is gonna be viewed as spamming their inbox or something.

[(Anonymous)]

That is petty.

I don't always reply for several reasons.

1) I don't always have a stable internet connection and I get too many comments to respond to. I figure my readers will appreciate an update more than they would a silly response from me. My updates ARE my thank you's. And I always leave a note at the beginning of each chapter thanking everyone for commenting, leaving kudos, etc.

1b) I'm busy as fuck. Sometimes I just don't have the time to reply to every single comment I receive as I get a lot of them. The time I spend replying could be better spent writing/revising/editing/publishing/etc.

2) Sometimes I get too overwhelmed. I love getting comments so, so much, but I'm a very anxious person and I get easily flustered. Sometimes it takes me a long time to work up the nerve to actually respond. (Basically, I don't take compliments well--in IRL I will blush like crazy and splutter and flail. I do the same thing with compliments given online).

3) I go through periods where I hate my writing with a passion and sometimes it's all I can do to update. As much as getting comments means to me, when I feel that way I can't bring myself to reply because I feel like I'm not "worthy."


OP, there are lots of reasons why some authors don't respond, none of which you should be concerned with. The only thing of importance is that YOU enjoyed the story that THEY worked their ass off to share with you. I don't understand why anything else should matter.

[(Anonymous)]

Wow it's interesting to see all these different opinions on reviews and replies.

I like leaving reviews. I like replying. I don't care if it "artificially inflates" the comments. Sometimes it's nice to discuss the meta, and I like doing that with an engaged reader.

But the rest of you... seems like this is another case of "can't win 'em all". Some of you will like my stories and the way I interact. Some of you won't.

[(Anonymous)]

That's interesting. I never reply to comments on AO3 because it's such a cheap way to pad the comment count. Plus I like to go back and reread the comments and I hate seeing my avatar popping up to say "Thank you!" over and over again. Because, really, what else is there to say other than a variation of "Thanks for reading"?

[ketita]

I feel the same as a lot of people here. If it's a comment with little content, that all I can say is "thanks!", I usually won't respond - unless it's very long, in which case I will reply.

On multichapter fics I try to respond each time, because I feel like I develop more of a relationship with my readers. Same with someone who comments on several of my fics, I'll usually strike up a conversation with them.

I get where you're coming from, though.

[(Anonymous)]

You sound like one of those horrible grannies who keep writing to Miss Manners and pearl-clutching about getting a phone call of thanks instead of a hand written thank you note.

You should comment for the same reason you give a gift-- you want to make the recipient happy. If you're only reviewing so that the author will pay attention to you, don't bother.

[feotakahari]

I reply to comments sometimes, but I always got the impression it was considered tacky to do so. The author puts out the story, and then the readers discuss the story, and the readers revolt if the author has any part in the discussion. (Honestly, I consider this kind of dumb, but then I also consider it dumb when people say J.K. Rowling shouldn't talk about her stories.)