Message Board Topic For 4/21

[Comsie]

Ocassionally, when you put your heart and soul into a story, time, energy, blood, sweat, and tears...just trying to make it something amazing that other people will love and appreciate...you get....'nothing'. No comments, no interest, no feedback...nada.

 

One of the most discouraging events for any author is to have readers look over their work and not even write to say that they 'hated' it Silence is a curse. It's Kryptonite to any form of creativity, no matter how much we try to ignore it. And it can be painful for a lot of people to experience. Especially when they're expecting something more to 'happen' with their offering.

 

How should someone 'deal' with this kind of silence? Should an author take repeated silence to mean that their work is no good? Or not good 'enough'? (It can be a pretty powerfu hint) Should an author inore it and continue to write, just hoping and praying that SOMEBODY out there is paying attention, and is just too shy to write? Should an author post pleas and comments asking directly for feedback from people reading, in an attempt to 'MAKE' them say something, good or bad? How badly does someone take silence, and how should they handle it? Let us know!

[Benji]

Ocassionally, when you put your heart and soul into a story, time, energy, blood, sweat, and tears...just trying to make it something amazing that other people will love and appreciate...you get....'nothing'. No comments, no interest, no feedback...nada.

 

One of the most discouraging events for any author is to have readers look over their work and not even write to say that they 'hated' it Silence is a curse. It's Kryptonite to any form of creativity, no matter how much we try to ignore it. And it can be painful for a lot of people to experience. Especially when they're expecting something more to 'happen' with their offering.

 

How should someone 'deal' with this kind of silence? Should an author take repeated silence to mean that their work is no good? Or not good 'enough'? (It can be a pretty powerfu hint) Should an author inore it and continue to write, just hoping and praying that SOMEBODY out there is paying attention, and is just too shy to write? Should an author post pleas and comments asking directly for feedback from people reading, in an attempt to 'MAKE' them say something, good or bad? How badly does someone take silence, and how should they handle it? Let us know!

 

 

........I think it would be rude not to acknowledge the writings you authors put forth, I know I respond.

P.S. Sent PM

[steph]

I can't answer from the perspective of an author, but I'm one of those shy readers who rarely comments on something that I've read online. I'm starting to get better at it. Partially, it's because I feel like 'I loved your story' is a hollow message that has to be backed up with whys. And if I do say anything negative, it usually comes out pretty harsh, so I just keep quiet instead. My first foray into leaving comments online was on AFF where I saw authors giving kudos to reviewers and answering questions at the beginning of every chapter, and I decided I wanted my 'name' up there with everyone else. I know it's hard for the busy author, but if you can make your reviewers feel special by writing them specifically, I think it helps to encourage more comments. You tend to be good about that, Comsie! Personally, I wish your stories were organized a little differently, so the new reader could find completed stories and genres more easily.

[JamesSavik]

In my "real life", I'm a special sort of tekkie called a systems administrator. For instance, when your software manual has hit the wall, it usually tells you to consult your systems administrator. I'm the guy you call when the computer caca has hit the fan.

 

Lots of people call me on the worst day of their life. Their hard drive has died and so has their masters thesis. They've lost a file that's critical to their career/continued employment/world peace. They've run over their laptop and want to get it fixed before their boss finds out.

 

I'm a soft spoken person that usually has the patience of Job but after twenty years of this, I'm ready to kill, kill, kill... Oh sorry.

 

Suffice it to say that in some cases, silence is golden.

[Comsie]

I would much rather have the criticism than the silence. I might cringe at it at first, but then I go back and try to make the next one better than ever. I can burn criticism like fuel (sometimes. I have my moods, hehehe). And compliments? That's like super charged ROCKET fuel!

 

Whenever I post something, I always start worrying about it. From the second I press the send button, until the first few emails or message board posts come in. And when there's silence, I can literally stress myself out for DAYS! It's a weird habit of mine, I guess. Part of my routine, I guess. But when something I write doesn't get much attention, it usually goes back into hiding in my files somewhere until I think I can re-tool it and make it better. So if there's zero feedback, I'll stop working on it and go back to other stories that people are waiting on.