[ SECRET POST #4974 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #4974 ⌋

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


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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 25 secrets from Secret Submission Post #712.
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

Question to all you writers out there!

[(Anonymous)]

So-! Like, asking for a friend here but, uh, what happens when you have a very avid reader who leaves long and detailed reviews, but they suddenly hit a trigger and goes a little mental (but try to like, idk, hide it? by like, for example, comment normally but cut out all that triggered them and their reaction, but still acknowledge they've hit something they haven't dealt with in their lifetime and sound totally unhinged anyways?? Y'know just in as a for instance sort of scenario?...) right after you've responded to their past comments in a kind and favourable way, only for them to unleash this sort of shit on you??

Like- totally a hypothetical situation here, totally! But, if y'know if you can hypothesize any suitable possible possibility where such a reviewer can come back from and not seem so completely insane from therein?

Just a random question I had???

Re: Question to all you writers out there!

[(Anonymous)]

That sounds like it rattled your friend, hypothetically. These things can come out of nowhere and be hard to deal with. I haven't been in this particular situation but I think we all have, at some point, come across a comment we didn't know how to handle, whether it be a genuine breakdown or a troll who got to us. You'll find a solution, I'm sure of it; stay calm and take your time, and it will come to you.

Now, tell me if understood this right. They found a trigger and didn't handle it like they usually handle stuff in their comments; instead, they acknowledge that they were triggered about this thing while otherwise trying to act normal by making the rest of the comment business as usual, though they didn't quite manage and sound "unhinged".

Imo, that's a very mature way to go about it on their part. If they sound a bit unhinged, well, can't help the emotions blending through, but they tried.

I would respond by acknowledging their reaction to the trigger, show empathy, and end on a positive note. Just two or three sentences.
And then I'd move on. I'd graciously overlook the unhingedness of the rest of the comment. They were trying to act normal, so the nicest thing to do, imo, is to play along and act normal back by responding like I usually do.

Unless they explicitly ask for it, don't offer advice. In my experience, it can so easily come across condescending, and you sound a bit overwhelmed and I get the impression that you're unsure about how to do help her work through it anyway. So I think it's best to just not try to play therapist, it sounds to me like it has a high chance of ending badly. Maybe, depending on how close we were and whether you feel up to it, offer to talk about it more. Then you can take your clue from the commenter.

Re: Question to all you writers out there!

[(Anonymous)]

ayrt

It's a slow build murder mystery/case!fic fanfiction, so there is a lot of focus on death and how the characters deal with that. Their first comment was in part responding to the frustration another reader was having by adding their own psycho-analysis defending the main character by subtly relating it to how they reacted to the death of an old friend, meanwhile speculating with their own theories as to what happened and why.
They seemed to follow the sort of comment structure where they made notes, or actively wrote what they were thinking as they read.

It was only until they got to the funeral scene that they lost it. Characters were introduced which shook up the plot some, but they didn't really comment any differently until the characters moved to the scene to where the bodies were being buried.
They literally left a TMI warning before going into how badly the chapter affected them. Apparently they weren't aware of not having any memory of attending their grandfathers burial and how they've never realized that their trauma ran that deep, and while the chapter allowed them to understand what they hadn't accepted yet... it only got worse from there, like big time.

The very next chapter they actually apologized for the mess of a review they left in the last chapter. They continued on as usual, but there's a sort of edge to it now that they didn't have before. It doesn't help that they've been leaving introspective reviews about what happened, connected that to themselves in their breakdown, and are still struggling on the same line of commentary.


I didn't actually expect a reply, let alone such a well though out and understandable one. I can't even tell you how grateful I am right now. I think you're right in every category, tbh!
I'll continue as is, try to maintain a level of consistency so they don't feel they need to acknowledge the breakdown if they don't want to. Thank you again for the advice, it definitely lifts a weight of my shoulders! <3

Re: Question to all you writers out there!

[(Anonymous)]

You're very welcome! <3

Re: Question to all you writers out there!

[(Anonymous)]

DA Oooooh yikes anon. Well I have had fics that shook me before but I didn't lay it all out as a psychological analysis of myself for the author. Christ.

Sounds like the commenter is of the tumblr generation where they believe their psychological hang ups are everyone else's responsibility. I would just keep being nice but be really guarded. Wowza.