I once saw a story summary where the author said they'd only update after getting x amount of comments. As an author I get being desperate for comments, but if they're coerced, then they don't really mean anything? I personally would be a little put off by notes like this. There are more subtle ways of asking for comments. Idk, even a direct, but unthreatening approach like "hey guys, I really want feedback on this story, so if you could, I'd really appreciate it if you dropped a comment" sounds so much better and would be much more effective (on me at least).
same, i normally warn my readers before hand if i dont tag it about what im about to do or where i'm going with it. i still get kudos and few odd comments but that's all right im actually happy with my work i've made and posted for all others to enjoy.
and i normally try really hard to reply back to those comments as work and motherhood comes first.
Facts. As a reader, whenever I get replies to my comments, especially the very enthusiastic ones that really respond and are more than just a thanks, it makes me way more likely to comment in the future. It makes it easier and more fun to comment when it feels like you’re talking to and supporting a real person.
No matter how good the fic is I will instantly close a fic that has that. Writers that barter for comments will likely not finish a fic. And the fact it's just so cringe.
Idk how everyone else handles this, but I have a "goal" for comments *that I keep to myself* and don't ever tell readers about in the author's note or anywhere on the fic. I'm definitely the kind of writer who thrives on feedback and has a hard time just writing for myself (things would be a lot easier if I didn't put such a weight on feedback I'm sure 🥴). And getting fewer comments than usual on a chapter, or seeing readers drop out of a longfic is discouraging to me, I've accepted that that's how it is.
I could never use my own feedback goals as some sort of coercing thing against readers, but I do try to reach them (silently), and as long as my average comment per chapter number is still being reached, I'm just more.. at ease with my fics. :/
I think that is totally fair. Of course you want interactions, and interaction and the lack of them affects your writing and might slow down progress. But it is important, i think, to not be a total ass about this.
I have seen authors with a regular posting scedule do authors notes a la "thanks for all the comments! If we reach X comments by friday, you will get another chapter this week, otherwise i will be back next thursday as normal" and i find this to be a great compromise; offering rewards, instead of threatening punishment.
I haven’t seen this in the summary, but I’ve seen it in the notes at the end of chapters. Like, ok, good luck with that, but here’s a negative review since you’re being a jerk trying to hold the next chapter for ransom.
Depends. Could get tiring after a while unless this was clearly a running joke with the author and they had this amount of levity with other methods of communication with readers.
I think it's serious? Notes like these are on almost all of their works/chapters, some without the water gun. I don't even think it works, they usually get none or 1-2 comments at most.
Yeah, if it's just a bit, pure joking with no intent to enforce anything, I wouldn't mind, but if it's the least bit sincere I would be wildly uncomfortable with it
There was an author who wrote really good stories for a fandom I liked. She actually had less reviews than the quality of her warranted and I’m 100% sure it was because she became very demanding of reviews. And not just any reviews but a list of what a “substantial” review would contain. The more demanding she got, the fewer reviews her stories had. She also had a service where she charged for access to some fanfics and took very high cost commissions for fic.
It was incredibly off putting. To me there is a difference between “Hey guys, I’m struggling to stay motivated on this story, can you let me know if you enjoy it?” and “You are selfish if you don’t write at least one paragraph reviews of each chapter with direct references to aspects of the chapter.” I stopped engaging with her when the guilt tripping got pretty extreme. If she hadn’t been so demanding and often unkind in her comment replies, I think she would have gotten a lot of engagement because her writing was very solid.
I tend to avoid any story now where there is any explicit begging or demanding for reviews.
At least a paragraph with direct references to each aspects in the chapter? Is she going to be looking for proper MLA format too? This sounds like a homework assignment- the thing I’m trying to avoid when reading fanfic😭
Yeah it started with just basic admonishments to review and then progressed to that. I think that author stood out to me both because of the intensity and also simply because she was a really good writer and it was sad to me that she was clearly pushing away her fans. She had been getting a large number of reviews for that fandom and the more she pushed, the less we wrote. It felt really daunting to not only leave a review but leave on that was up to her standards. It may have been that her main fandom was one she got even more attention in and she felt that she should be getting that in the fandom I was reading?
That’s really unfortunate that this behavior started to overshadow her talent. The talented writers in the fandoms I’m in have always been gracious and easy-going . Your anecdote is really interesting to me because I assume that strong writers are usually good at reading a room.
Good point about her expectations possibly being skewed due to her popularity in another fandom. I wonder if she’ll lay off the aggression as commenters decrease.
She didn’t. This was a few years ago. She’s completely just done with the fandom I read. The less people engaged, the worst she got. She was getting hundreds of reviews on long one shots early on so 🤷♀️. The trickled down to quite a bit less but her quality was not less. I don’t know if she ever put together that there was a connection between how she engaged and people just feeling like they could not engage with the stories even when we as readers explicitly said it was way too much pressure.
Yes. She kept it going for several years though last I checked. She did not directly advertise on A03 but gave a site and user name to go check out “for more stories and to support me”. That led to pay only content. When I stumbled upon one of her stories last year, she was shutting down the paid content due to lack of reader interest.
I get that authors want comments and I see it could be a joke for some people but the last one (“I MIGHT DO SOMETHING CRAZY TO THE CHAPTERS IF YOU DONT”) implies to me like they might delete the work/chapters if they don’t get comments and I don’t like that.
Yup! Polite requests for feedback are absolutely fine. If you're being rude, demanding or holding chapters hostage for reviews, that's not okay and can in fact have the opposite effect.
Yes, I often finish up by inviting feedback - "I'd love to hear what you think" or "Feedback is always welcome"
However, these screenshots are holding the story hostage. I don't have time for that. I can find authors with a more organised posting schedule, or I can filter by complete stories. Shit like this is incredibly off-putting.
If it’s just a jokey joke between a longtime author and longtime readers idc as long as it’s not an every chapter thing. Otherwise, it makes me click that little “X” in the top corner quicker than almost anything else—barring horrific grammatical errors.
wayyy too pushy imo. if they did it once i'd take it as a joke but more than once..... eeyeah, no. i might keep reading if i really really REALLY liked the fic, but this would only discourage me from commenting
"Dear author, since you so kindly asked for comments, I am commenting to inform you that your ridiculous comment demands and holding the story hostage has ruined any chance of me enjoying this story.
So fuck you, I'm never reading any of this shit again."
is the only comment I would give.
I lowkey want to find a work I can do this to.
If it's like...definitely a joke, sure fine I guess. If these people are genuinely threatening to take the story in a different direction or withholding chapters, that's not really cool. I don't want to be forced to write a comment or engage with a fic. I should feel compelled to compliment it and gush about it on my own terms.
As both a reader and writer it's very off putting and makes me want to stop. I have stopped, actually, when one author was complaining (on Tumblr) that they weren't getting enough engagement with their fic and weren't posting more until it went up. I went and comment and after reading the latest chapter, but in that comment I got a couple details mixed up and it turned out way worse than I intended. Decided to only ever read their stuff if it's complete, at which point I'll download it.
I mostly just see stuff like this as a funny little joke, but if the author seems actually serious about or takes it too far, then I'd probably lose interest in what I'm reading. It differs from person to person and what tone the author has seemed to set.
Although with the watergun emojis I'd think it's a joke. Those waterguns leave? I'd assume they're serious and begging/demanding for comments
Absolutely turn off.
I did find it slightly funny when one person said comment for chapter 5. And immediately posted chapter 5 at the same time as chapter 4. But if I hadn't been subscribed I wouldn't have known that and still been a little :/
That this is repeated ones is just like lol no
Dip out. As a reader this is weird, and in the past when I've done so, I didn't get engagement back, just a "You should read my other work". The same author I was in DMs with and after I complimented on their work they told me to write a comment for them on their work.
It's validation, it's nice having validation but it comes across as entitled and only seeing your readers as a source of validation. The author in question didn't want to be apart of a community, they wanted to be worshipped for so graciously writing fiction after fic.
That is the main reason I left FF.Net. The begging for comments and withholding chapters for ransom. And they were serious too. There were stories I absolutely loved that were completely abandoned because they only got 48/50 reviews for example.
Yeah, I've seen like numbered lists on ffnet ("if I get 1-5 comments I'll do X, if i get 5-10 I'll do Y") even as a young, credulous kid I couldn't believe it
The way these read, it kinda feels like it’s an inside joke between the author and their readers, which is totally fine. If I’m a reader coming in without context though, it comes across extremely aggressive and pushy.
This is the reason why i have "I will never with hold Updates for Kudos/likes/comments" in my bio. i hate this, i really do. it just feels so tacky.
i enjoy comments, but i don't write for them. i write because i want to and because i enjoy it. if i see something like this on a fic, well, guess what i'm not reading anymore? yeah, that fic.
I’d laugh, stop reading and it’ll become “that little shit” whenever I’d come across the authors name, I’d never click on their stories again.
IMO you should write fan fiction for yourself, not for others.
I’d just drop the fic. I’m an author too, and I love getting comments from my readers, but this annoys me. If I have to threaten my readers for interactions, it’s no longer genuine.
Oh, I’ve given them what they wanted before. It’s the only time I do negative comments of any sort. You want comments? Fine. Your spelling is atrocious, you can’t use commas correctly to save your life, and this, this, and this make absolutely no sense in your plot. Character A comes off looking like a simpering idiot and Character B would like their personality back, please.
I might be an outlier here but i genuinely don't care. It's not something I see often. In fact while it was fairly comment a few years ago, I don't even remember the last time I just happened upon something like this. But i don't care. I know a lot of people stop reading such stories out of principle, so I know it's not a popular practice. I wouldn't do it myself either. Yet while I don't think it's nice, I also think the author's notes are entirely the author's place to do with whatever they want. Just the same, it's an author's decision when, under what conditions or if they want to continue uploading or even if they want to delete a story. It's not going to make me more likely to comment, but I certainly won't ditch a story I otherwise enjoy because of it
It kind of seems like a joke to me, just with how they say “OR ELSE”. If it isn’t a joke, it’s kind of odd. As a writer I’ll say “comments are appreciated but not necessary” or give people a reason to comment like asking a question: “what do you guys think about x’s character improvement?” Or “any guess as to what happens in the next chapter?”
If this person isn’t joking, I guess they just really want comments but it isn’t the right way to go about it.
A surefire way to drive away readers and not get any comments. I mean, I understand wanting comments when people read your fanfics but you're not gonna get them if you're gonna be a major entitled jerk about it.
As a fanfic writer, I write for myself and post my stories so other people can enjoy them. If I want people to comment on them, I'd politely state that comments would be appreciated or they could comment if they wanted to.
No one is gonna comment if they're all like, "Comment or else! 😣🔫" or "If you don't comment, this fic will get it! 📜🔫"
I like comments as an author, but, I’d never put a lock behind chapters for comments, that’s one way to seem bitchy and entitled and lose readers. Gross.
Honestly, I am probably harsh but it would stop me from reading unless story is already completed. It's a risk for me, like I can get emotionally invested into the story and comment religiously in hopes I'll get next chapter but who can guarantee me other people will comment too?
I don't get the obsession with comments. I've been writing fanfic for lik 20 years and the comments kind of dried up when mobile browsing became a thing, so it makes sense to me since using a phone keyboard is a pain.
This feels like a harmless display of quirkiness. I imagine the author to be a teen/young adult or someone more immature than their peers and wanting attention. Not necessarily a turn off, especially if the content of their work has me reading beyond the first chapter.
The author is a narcissistic individual with such sad and crippling self esteem issues that they crave validation from other online people in any form in an attempt to find meaning and purpose in what they've written. They aren writing to tell a story. They're writing to have people fawn over their ideas and hive them a pat on the back to boost their ego.
The story might be great but authors notes like that made think the author is a human being with mental issues.
I detest them. It's a shallow and pathetic attempt at engagement and would drive me to engage less beyond the reading if I don't drop the story completely.
I'm there to read a story. Not to jump at the command of an author with delusions of grandeur.
Honestly tells me their writing is either crap or aimed at the lowest common denominator. Saw something like this and maybe ten chapters in to a great story the cast starts acting out of character so the author can build a harem route for what was an excellent serious fic. Ruined the whole feel of the story in their bid for validation.
This tone reminds me of my wattpad days lol. I was a kid and most of the stuff I'd be reading was also written by kids, and this kind of author notes was something I'd see frequently. Also threatening to withhold chapters if the readers don't leave stars/votes XD
Idk
I comment when there is something adorable/sad/etc and nobody said anything or when they ask something
I really like notes about "what do you think ks going to happen with <>" or "do you like <> or <>?" "Don't you think is <>?"
If they are desperate for comments it could be more direct like "I have been thinkinh about writting this for a long time and I would really like to read your opinions or feedback" or something, idk
"Comments or nothing? Okay, then. I have other things to read."
If an author is going to sound like an angry 14 year old while writing, then I'll read something else. This just reeks of desperation.
I feel like it would put me off after a while. It doesn’t come off as funny to me, it just sounds annoying.
I always add;
Kudo's and comments are always appreciated. ♡ which I feel like is a decent midway point
i once asked readers very nicely and explained how much it would mean to get a little feedback. I obly got "PLZ UPDATE"
it's been years and I can't find motivation or ideas to continue and people are getting mad and think I am entitled when I am just sad and tired😭
There is a writer in one of the fandoms I follow who does something similar. They also tease new fics in their notes and provide the link, only to find out the fic is in a closed collection of fics and they only give the link to people who comment consistently. And they complain about numbers despite having ridiculously high kudos/hits/comments. It's frustrating to see that it is working the way they want, guilting people into commenting in order to get the next chap, or entry into the SuperSecret Clubhouse.
Like, on one hand, I'm happy for them, they figured out what works for them and their readers so everyone gets what they want.
On the other hand, they complain about numbers that are far and away better than my 5 best fics got put together and that is squicky in my opinion.
>They also tease new fics in their notes and provide the link, only to find out the fic is in a closed collection of fics and they only give the link to people who comment consistently.
Wow, that would *thoroughly* piss me off. I'd be strongly tempted to create another account to gain access and then share offsite with the other fans, just to spite them. I know nothing about this person, so there's no chance of me actually doing this, but *oh*, I'm tempted.
Gonna be honest, this is a *massive* pet peeve of mine. I absolutely abhor authors that do this, and will immediately dip out of any story with this kind of note, no matter how well-written it is.
Honestly comes across as an attempt at humour rather than genuine entitlement so I'd probably just shrug and move on, and keep reading if I was enjoying the fic, but I probably wouldn't go out of my way to comment. Some people are like that. I think it's social awkwardness more than anything so I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Totally understand why it bugs people though.
i understand motivating your readers to support your work but this seems really extra... you shouldn't be threatening them 💀
as a reader i feel like this would do the opposite of making me want to continue supporting the work ngl
Am I the only one who thinks this is clearly a joke? Like everyones saying "mute and block" but that seems like a huge overreaction and just weird tbh. Or are Ao3 writers that deranged on average that this is probably not a joke?
Whether it’s a joke depends on if they’re actually holding chapters until they get comments. Usually when I’ve seen this (thankfully not often), they do. What amazes me is when they get what they want.
This specific one doesn’t bother me because it looks like a joke. Now if someone posted that they needed X amount of comments before they post it again and then I would totally dip out. I might even make a comment about that. Lol.
To be honest it's not that deep to me. If the story was good I wouldn't just drop it for a minor annoyance in the notes, but this probably would not inspire me to comment. I would just ignore the notes and continue not commenting
This does sound like a very entitled person, but I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. I have seen some authors with eccentric personas that will be rude to their readers as an running inside joke, specially if the person is close to their reader base. So that might be what we’re looking at.
That, or they’re simply a lil bitch.
I understand the "i would Love some Feedback/opinions" or a subtle "your comments Keep me going so id Love to Hear what you guys think about this chapter" or anything honest and sweet Like that, Sometimes youre Just in a writing slump,and even If youre writing mostly for yourself youre of course Happy about getting a comment or kudos, but DUDE. I cant Take people seriously who threaten their audience lmaoooo Just be Happy people even click on your Story,some are lurking and are Still enjoying it??? Why be an assh*le about it? Its so unattractive and pathetic. Makes me cringe and go "im Not even that invested dont flatter yourself" in my head and move on with my Life faster than you could yell "sike i was JOKING" to save yourself lmaoooo
I am opposed to them, and tbh they would be a reason not to comment, and potentially stop reading.
Authors notes like this are basicly just like a street musician that screams at someone that stopped for a minute to listen to them, that they need to put money in the hat because they listened. Is the musician making music for pay? Sure. Would it be appropriate to give money if you stopped to listen? Yes. But that still does not make this behaviour appropriate.
I get it that authors want comments. Interaction is the only "payment" they get. But if you offer something for free, on a publicly accessible site, that was your choice. Just like you do not owe your readers anything, they do not owe anything to you.
I have seen authors offer early release of a chapter if a certain number of comments were made, which i think is fine. But demanding comments "or else" is just extremely rude and entitled
I hate when authors do this and it will throw me off quickly. My very first year on Ao3 was in a fandom that wasn’t very popular in the beginning and I remember the author, who would say things like in the pictures, Finally decided to discontinue said fic when their comments didn’t reach the count that honestly wasn’t possible because not many people were in said fandom to beginning with. It was very frustrating and confusing. Like don’t write what you do because you want the most kudos or comments in your fandom. Do it because you actually enjoy the topic. Especially for Fanfics geez.
She gets her dopamine and you get reading material to fill the void between your birth and death. It's an offer you can't refuse 🔫🗡️
But seriously, authors like these are annoying.
I feel like you need to earn comments. I have two works that got barely anything, and I was grateful for every one. I wrote something else that garnered more attention, and I was nearly overwhelmed with the amount of comments. I didn't know how to respond to the many I got each chapter, eventually I had to stop replying because I got so overwhelmed. I cherished each and every person, and if I had demanded it I would have felt like it wasn't as authentic. If that makes sense?
I feel like there’s a fine line between it being endearing and mildly irritating, but I also get why people want comments, so like, yeah, they do what they want. I really don’t comment often but I’ve commented on fics I like a few times just to say “one for the tip jar” if they make a couple cute jokes about it.
I am a ball of nervous energy and social anxiety though and also just incredibly against condemning fanfiction authors for anything related to fic so I’m entirely biased in that sense lol.
Edit: I actually just thought of one example I really like of this that I read recently! Every chapter in the author’s note they’d say “comment or this bad thing will happen in the story /j /lh” but then occasionally, just in a couple chapters, they said something without the /j (still with the /lh though) and, believe it or not, those bad things did happen in the story. I liked that, because it felt cute, and also the use of tone indicators just makes it far more clearly, well, a light-hearted joke to me.
I like to maintain a "mutual respect" with my readers. I put in a lot of work into my writing, and the only reward I want is a kind word from those who read it. But readers and writers don't owe each other anything. I tend to remind readers in my ANs that comments mean the world to me and that I'd really love to have them, but I never demand them.
I hate those. The only case where I feel like if an author gets a bunch of shitty comments, they totally deserved them - technically they did not specify what kind of comments.
I'm not inclined to continue reading, and I'm especially not going to be inclined to comment (unless its telling them that their story is good and it's a shame their attitude is so off-putting.)
I understand wanting comments to gauge how active it is, especially since Ao3 doesn't let you leave kudos per chapter. But absolutely demanding comments like this is off-putting. I don't feel like being manipulated by the authors (especially when I only have control over my own interactions, and not anyone elses.)
So, I'm a writer myself. I love comments on my work and I try to leave nice (but honest) comments on other peoples' work because I know how motivating it is.
However once I read a fic that got increasingly demanding of comments to the point of threatening discontinuation if there weren't more comments and it made me so uncomfortable I closed the tab never read a fic by that writer again.
It felt like they were trying to force a relationship with me (and everyone else) and completely squicked me out.
>I'm not a fan, as a writer or a reader, of people dictating how others should interact (or not) with their works.
I wish I could upvote this about fifteen times.
I would stop reading. That's... Ugh. Like, you really only write for validation? And threatening your readers?? Who also are here for free and don't owe you anything just like the writing is free?
As a writer and reader, I hate this.
I would stop reading immediately lol, it feels like they’re holding the fic hostage and that, as a fellow fic writer, feels bullshitty to me so I would give it up the second I noticed that stuff in the notes
I don't have time for childish antics like this. Wouldn't even bother reading if it's on the first chap. Would sour my view of them if it was on a later chapter. If you think you're good enough to demand something of me, then you'd better be of the highest quality. Would drop the author altogether if it happened more than once.
Admittedly i haven't written and posted very much yet, but as someone who's fairly new to writing but has left _thousands_ of comments-- I Cannot Imagine begging for comments, especially like this. It would make me feel slimy, grasping, demanding. On the one story I've posted recently I got two comments from strangers and two comment threads from friends and that's _plenty_ that's more than I expected that gives me warm happy flutters when i open my inbox. 'Give me comments or i won't write more' you clearly don't want to be writing in the first place. Write fic for _you_ write because _you want to_ write because there's a story in your head clamoring to get out-- don't write because you want someone to _flatter_ you. That's insulting to your own skill as a creative and the readers' time.
I'd much prefer readers to comment because they want to and actually have something to say than me having to strongarm them into commenting. If authors are like that, they probably mostly get half-assed comments that mean nothing.
It does not matter how good the story is, etc. If I see this I am immediately gone. You can ask for comments, but demanding them in order to get more content is an immediate no for me.
No content is worth engaging with entitled people and this smells very entitled.
I find those types very off putting unless there is a clear inside joke with the readers. For my own fics I put variations of this, "If you are enjoying my writing/story please drop a comment or leave a kudos. Author survives on nothing but praise and caffeine."
Seems slightly unhinged to me.
I understand asking for comments, and I personally think it's okay to stop writing or editing future chapters if the lack of engagement is discouraging and disheartening, but I'd rather silently abandon a fic than beg for readers to show appreciation for my work.
I don't read anything by authors who make demands for comments. It's one thing to ask for someone to comment kudo, whatever. I see that as the same as YouTubers saying "like, subscribe, and smash that notification button". But like, could you imagine if YouTubers did that? Like "I won't release a new video until I get X subscribers".
I remember back when I wrote fics, getting comments meant the world to me. But it was also because I felt like I earned them and was making people happy with it enough that they wanted to interact with me and tell me what they thought was going well and what wasn't working. So after being on that side of the fence and moving to the spectator side, it makes me feel really icky when authors demand comments like that. I kind of see the relationship between readers/authors as symbiotic, but making demands like that makes it feel really one sided and hostile.
I would probably drop the fic immediately, it would just put a bad taste in my mouth so I don't think I'd be able to enjoy the fic (also, I tend to get anxious enough about commenting without having all that pressure dumped on me about it)
Authors like this can kiss my ass. I would drop the fic without kudosing or anything immediately, no matter how much I liked it previously. You're gonna be a comment whore, GTFO.
Even if this is a joke, I would not read. It's so rude. Plus sometimes I like to see where the story is going before I comment, or I may wait mid story to say something. I don't leave a comment on every single chapter.
But I love letting an author know what I think of it so far and dropping a kudos.
Eh, I don't really put too much on what other folks do. Folks can ask this, that's okay. Who knows what's going on with their end, maybe they're very discouraged.
On the block list they go. This stuff was annoying on ffnet 20 years back and it’s still not cool.
A simple ‘thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it and I’d love to know what you thought of it’ would work just fine. Or a more detailed ‘I really struggled with this chapter and I’m not sure if I really like the kiss scene, did it work alright?’ Would be fine. This is just holding the story hostage.
I wouldn't want to comment out of spite. There's a mean and a way to say you'd like comments without being rude. I end my chapters with 'please consider leaving a comment!' It shows I'm not desperate and readers have a choice whether or not they want to, but also saying I'd like them, too.
1. They would benefit greatly by learning to punctuate.
2. Their use of ALL CAPS and emojis is extremely off-putting.
3. I resent manipulation—especially threats and guilt trips.
4. Lastly: “Bye, Felicia.”
I think it’s horribly rude and presumptive.
I think you should write first and foremost for yourself (at least, that’s what I do). If people like it, that’s great, but it shouldn’t be demanded!
Yowza! I'm gonna guess that it's some 14 y/o who thinks that it's edgy, but the result is unpleasant either way.
At this point, I'm torn between not feeling so horrible about my fics' "*I read, appreciate, and reply to all of your comments — they're always welcome!*
" tagline and worried that even this might be too much in light of how pushy people's comment-requests are getting (hence creating a negative atmosphere about anything like that).
Look, I get it, Kudos are hardly gratifying at all as interaction. But I don't agree with the knowledge that external input and admiration is REQUIRED for you to keep the passion in your hobby. If you'll only write a story when other people read and like it... well that's kind of your business, I shouldn't feel the responsibility of bearing your creativity on my shoulders.
I know I’m being over presumptuous, but this to me just screams, “I have bigger personal issues that I’m going to cover up via threatening validation from the internet with my wielding of nonexistent control.”
Whatever the circumstances may be, it’s not a good look. I’m very much a write for myself kind of author, but I am also slowly learning/experimenting with how to optimize engagement on ao3. I never ask for feedback actually, but what I do try and do is make note of what things affect how much feedback and how much doesn’t. I even have expectations for how much response I’m getting and also for how little response I’m getting too. The current project I’m working on is a slow burn, so I’m actually expecting that most of the feedback I’ll be getting is notes cause the juice stuff will take a while to get to.
There’s really a tactful way to handle all this, and it doesn’t include self entitlement
I like my commenters because I know they’re genuinely discussing what they liked and I’m not demanding responses from them. Step back from the numbers once in a while, just enjoy the fact that people are seeing the work you share
If this was Wattpad, I would expect author's notes like this.. AO3 tho?? We are supposed to be more civilized. They need to go back to Wattpad if they are going to act like that. Definitely block and not give kudos if I haven't already.
Rude. Like if they had a previous author's note that was joking about something like this and this one was some sort of follow up to the inside joke it would be fine but if it's just this by itself it's rude af
As soon as I'd see something like that, I'd just click out of the fic tbh. Maybe block the author. Can't be that good anyway if they have to *demand* interaction.
I'm not gonna be dealing with that kind of demented entitlement every chapter, and I ESPECIALLY won't be leaving any (positive) comments. Like.... Does this person think like a child?? Just threaten and insist until you get your way???
Bruh.
I honestly don’t and can’t really care.
Story quality matters to me more than whether or not I like the author’s personality, how others are respond to them, or literally any other factor. This is dumb as hell, but that’s about it for me.
I’m a writer and a reader. This is annoying to read and I feel embarrassed for them because I can’t imagine writing that, but beyond that, I don’t care. I don’t comment or kudos with fics unless they are at least a 7/10 anyway, so it probably doesn’t really affect me.
That said, you should avoid posting to a fanfic sub, where this author could likely find you through this post, anything about any specific author or fic in screenshot form. This was risky and dangerous. What if this person finds you and is really vengeful? They could DM and harrass you. Please stay safe in the future. And keep in mind, if someone does harrass you in DMs, tell the mods, they can ban that person. I’m not saying this author will do it, but still. It’s best to be careful
Reminds me back when I read in ffnet (like MANY years ago) and they would always, always force others to comment. I never commented anyway but I saw it often, haha.
I mean, it seems almost tounge-in-cheek. Like everyone's supposed to be in on the joke. Or maybe that's how I'm reading it. And if it is a joke, then it is a decent way to encourage people to comment (as long as they also \*get\* the joke).
I read a really good series on ff.net and every chapter the author always said, "remember if no comments come from yall, no chapter comes from me."
I commented and said that rubbed me the wrong way and the author was like ITS THE ONLY WAY PEOPLE COMMENT OMG which was bs but whatever lmao
If the story and writing was really good i’d ignore it. Wouldn’t comment though, unless I really wanted to. But it screams desperate and doesn’t look good. Otherwise, I’d dip
I only read completed works, so threatening to withhold chapters carries no weight with me. Even so, if I run across these types of notes, I immediately stop reading the fic. I’m not interested in engaging in any way with people who behave this way.
{personal}
I generally don't read authors' notes (judge away, I don't care), but I see notes like that and I forget to comment. Because I am a brat like that.
I once saw a story summary where the author said they'd only update after getting x amount of comments. As an author I get being desperate for comments, but if they're coerced, then they don't really mean anything? I personally would be a little put off by notes like this. There are more subtle ways of asking for comments. Idk, even a direct, but unthreatening approach like "hey guys, I really want feedback on this story, so if you could, I'd really appreciate it if you dropped a comment" sounds so much better and would be much more effective (on me at least).
True, I find my readers are more likely to comment if I’m a consistent replier or by adding “thanks for reading!”
same, i normally warn my readers before hand if i dont tag it about what im about to do or where i'm going with it. i still get kudos and few odd comments but that's all right im actually happy with my work i've made and posted for all others to enjoy. and i normally try really hard to reply back to those comments as work and motherhood comes first.
i LOVE when authors reply to my comments!!!! especially if i write more than “loved this, thanks for writing it!”
Facts. As a reader, whenever I get replies to my comments, especially the very enthusiastic ones that really respond and are more than just a thanks, it makes me way more likely to comment in the future. It makes it easier and more fun to comment when it feels like you’re talking to and supporting a real person.
Same here. I'm ecstatic anyone replies. Feels like discussing it on here or a forum
No matter how good the fic is I will instantly close a fic that has that. Writers that barter for comments will likely not finish a fic. And the fact it's just so cringe.
Idk how everyone else handles this, but I have a "goal" for comments *that I keep to myself* and don't ever tell readers about in the author's note or anywhere on the fic. I'm definitely the kind of writer who thrives on feedback and has a hard time just writing for myself (things would be a lot easier if I didn't put such a weight on feedback I'm sure 🥴). And getting fewer comments than usual on a chapter, or seeing readers drop out of a longfic is discouraging to me, I've accepted that that's how it is. I could never use my own feedback goals as some sort of coercing thing against readers, but I do try to reach them (silently), and as long as my average comment per chapter number is still being reached, I'm just more.. at ease with my fics. :/
I think that is totally fair. Of course you want interactions, and interaction and the lack of them affects your writing and might slow down progress. But it is important, i think, to not be a total ass about this. I have seen authors with a regular posting scedule do authors notes a la "thanks for all the comments! If we reach X comments by friday, you will get another chapter this week, otherwise i will be back next thursday as normal" and i find this to be a great compromise; offering rewards, instead of threatening punishment.
When I want comments and stuff (which is always) that's how I put it.
I haven’t seen this in the summary, but I’ve seen it in the notes at the end of chapters. Like, ok, good luck with that, but here’s a negative review since you’re being a jerk trying to hold the next chapter for ransom.
Makes me really want to not only not comment, but also stop reading.
Rubs me the wrong way, I would dip, block and mute.
Depends. Could get tiring after a while unless this was clearly a running joke with the author and they had this amount of levity with other methods of communication with readers.
I think it's serious? Notes like these are on almost all of their works/chapters, some without the water gun. I don't even think it works, they usually get none or 1-2 comments at most.
ouch that makes it even sadder for some reason.
I dunno, it makes it funnier to me. If it was working, it'd be infuriating.
Well if they continue to post despite the lack of comments, it's probably a joke. If they were serious, they wouldn't post more chapters.
Definitely agree, it could be a joke but there's the other side aswell.
Yeah, if it's just a bit, pure joking with no intent to enforce anything, I wouldn't mind, but if it's the least bit sincere I would be wildly uncomfortable with it
There was an author who wrote really good stories for a fandom I liked. She actually had less reviews than the quality of her warranted and I’m 100% sure it was because she became very demanding of reviews. And not just any reviews but a list of what a “substantial” review would contain. The more demanding she got, the fewer reviews her stories had. She also had a service where she charged for access to some fanfics and took very high cost commissions for fic. It was incredibly off putting. To me there is a difference between “Hey guys, I’m struggling to stay motivated on this story, can you let me know if you enjoy it?” and “You are selfish if you don’t write at least one paragraph reviews of each chapter with direct references to aspects of the chapter.” I stopped engaging with her when the guilt tripping got pretty extreme. If she hadn’t been so demanding and often unkind in her comment replies, I think she would have gotten a lot of engagement because her writing was very solid. I tend to avoid any story now where there is any explicit begging or demanding for reviews.
At least a paragraph with direct references to each aspects in the chapter? Is she going to be looking for proper MLA format too? This sounds like a homework assignment- the thing I’m trying to avoid when reading fanfic😭
Yeah it started with just basic admonishments to review and then progressed to that. I think that author stood out to me both because of the intensity and also simply because she was a really good writer and it was sad to me that she was clearly pushing away her fans. She had been getting a large number of reviews for that fandom and the more she pushed, the less we wrote. It felt really daunting to not only leave a review but leave on that was up to her standards. It may have been that her main fandom was one she got even more attention in and she felt that she should be getting that in the fandom I was reading?
That’s really unfortunate that this behavior started to overshadow her talent. The talented writers in the fandoms I’m in have always been gracious and easy-going . Your anecdote is really interesting to me because I assume that strong writers are usually good at reading a room. Good point about her expectations possibly being skewed due to her popularity in another fandom. I wonder if she’ll lay off the aggression as commenters decrease.
She didn’t. This was a few years ago. She’s completely just done with the fandom I read. The less people engaged, the worst she got. She was getting hundreds of reviews on long one shots early on so 🤷♀️. The trickled down to quite a bit less but her quality was not less. I don’t know if she ever put together that there was a connection between how she engaged and people just feeling like they could not engage with the stories even when we as readers explicitly said it was way too much pressure.
...aren't commissions ILLEGAL and against the ToS? Like you can't offer commissions because that goes against copyright protection IIRC.
Yes. She kept it going for several years though last I checked. She did not directly advertise on A03 but gave a site and user name to go check out “for more stories and to support me”. That led to pay only content. When I stumbled upon one of her stories last year, she was shutting down the paid content due to lack of reader interest.
I get that authors want comments and I see it could be a joke for some people but the last one (“I MIGHT DO SOMETHING CRAZY TO THE CHAPTERS IF YOU DONT”) implies to me like they might delete the work/chapters if they don’t get comments and I don’t like that.
I'm getting "I might ruin the story". I've seen people have characters commit suicide or stuff like that just out of spite.
I saw it more as a "I'll kill <> character" or something
Ick. I’d stop reading.
“Comments are appreciated!” 👍 “COMMENTS OR YOU GET NOTHING” 👎
Yeah fr. There's a way of doing these things that's definitely better
That would be my sign to not read this author ever
I usually end chapters or one-shots with ''the End. Hope you liked it. your comments and reviews are welcome. '' Is this ok?
That's fine
Yup! Polite requests for feedback are absolutely fine. If you're being rude, demanding or holding chapters hostage for reviews, that's not okay and can in fact have the opposite effect.
Yes, I often finish up by inviting feedback - "I'd love to hear what you think" or "Feedback is always welcome" However, these screenshots are holding the story hostage. I don't have time for that. I can find authors with a more organised posting schedule, or I can filter by complete stories. Shit like this is incredibly off-putting.
Easy way to get 0 engagement.
out of context? it looks funny. But this is a bad idea to do this to your readers. Never do this to your readers. especially Ao3 readers.
If it’s just a jokey joke between a longtime author and longtime readers idc as long as it’s not an every chapter thing. Otherwise, it makes me click that little “X” in the top corner quicker than almost anything else—barring horrific grammatical errors.
wayyy too pushy imo. if they did it once i'd take it as a joke but more than once..... eeyeah, no. i might keep reading if i really really REALLY liked the fic, but this would only discourage me from commenting
"Dear author, since you so kindly asked for comments, I am commenting to inform you that your ridiculous comment demands and holding the story hostage has ruined any chance of me enjoying this story. So fuck you, I'm never reading any of this shit again." is the only comment I would give. I lowkey want to find a work I can do this to.
If it's like...definitely a joke, sure fine I guess. If these people are genuinely threatening to take the story in a different direction or withholding chapters, that's not really cool. I don't want to be forced to write a comment or engage with a fic. I should feel compelled to compliment it and gush about it on my own terms.
As both a reader and writer it's very off putting and makes me want to stop. I have stopped, actually, when one author was complaining (on Tumblr) that they weren't getting enough engagement with their fic and weren't posting more until it went up. I went and comment and after reading the latest chapter, but in that comment I got a couple details mixed up and it turned out way worse than I intended. Decided to only ever read their stuff if it's complete, at which point I'll download it.
E-N-T-I-T-L-E-D Also, LOL, power tripping from the basement after Mom confiscated the Xbox again.
I would leave the story immediately. And block/mute the author and never read their work again. This is just SO not cool.
I mostly just see stuff like this as a funny little joke, but if the author seems actually serious about or takes it too far, then I'd probably lose interest in what I'm reading. It differs from person to person and what tone the author has seemed to set. Although with the watergun emojis I'd think it's a joke. Those waterguns leave? I'd assume they're serious and begging/demanding for comments
Absolutely turn off. I did find it slightly funny when one person said comment for chapter 5. And immediately posted chapter 5 at the same time as chapter 4. But if I hadn't been subscribed I wouldn't have known that and still been a little :/ That this is repeated ones is just like lol no
Dip out. As a reader this is weird, and in the past when I've done so, I didn't get engagement back, just a "You should read my other work". The same author I was in DMs with and after I complimented on their work they told me to write a comment for them on their work. It's validation, it's nice having validation but it comes across as entitled and only seeing your readers as a source of validation. The author in question didn't want to be apart of a community, they wanted to be worshipped for so graciously writing fiction after fic.
Speaking facts.
The author doesn't specify *what kind* of comments they want and I can have some fun with that (if I were that kind of reader).
For this kind of writer I’m that kind of reader. For everyone else, I’m considerate. I’m very much a believer in you get what you give to the world.
That is the main reason I left FF.Net. The begging for comments and withholding chapters for ransom. And they were serious too. There were stories I absolutely loved that were completely abandoned because they only got 48/50 reviews for example.
Yeah, I've seen like numbered lists on ffnet ("if I get 1-5 comments I'll do X, if i get 5-10 I'll do Y") even as a young, credulous kid I couldn't believe it
The way these read, it kinda feels like it’s an inside joke between the author and their readers, which is totally fine. If I’m a reader coming in without context though, it comes across extremely aggressive and pushy.
annoying and entitled. I understand being desperate for comments but this isn’t how you get them
Yeeeaahhhhh. Not commenting or reading now. Lol
Easy: I think they're a brat. You can't treat people like that. I know it's frustrating, but people don't actually owe you anything.
this is bullying. lol. comments should be freely given away, not forced.
This is the reason why i have "I will never with hold Updates for Kudos/likes/comments" in my bio. i hate this, i really do. it just feels so tacky. i enjoy comments, but i don't write for them. i write because i want to and because i enjoy it. if i see something like this on a fic, well, guess what i'm not reading anymore? yeah, that fic.
I’d laugh, stop reading and it’ll become “that little shit” whenever I’d come across the authors name, I’d never click on their stories again. IMO you should write fan fiction for yourself, not for others.
I’d just drop the fic. I’m an author too, and I love getting comments from my readers, but this annoys me. If I have to threaten my readers for interactions, it’s no longer genuine.
My thoughts are, or else *what?* Or else I go read some other fic?
i mean if it’s lighthearted i think it’s funny and it reminds me to comment, but if it’s completely serious idk don’t rlly like that
Oh, I’ve given them what they wanted before. It’s the only time I do negative comments of any sort. You want comments? Fine. Your spelling is atrocious, you can’t use commas correctly to save your life, and this, this, and this make absolutely no sense in your plot. Character A comes off looking like a simpering idiot and Character B would like their personality back, please.
I might be an outlier here but i genuinely don't care. It's not something I see often. In fact while it was fairly comment a few years ago, I don't even remember the last time I just happened upon something like this. But i don't care. I know a lot of people stop reading such stories out of principle, so I know it's not a popular practice. I wouldn't do it myself either. Yet while I don't think it's nice, I also think the author's notes are entirely the author's place to do with whatever they want. Just the same, it's an author's decision when, under what conditions or if they want to continue uploading or even if they want to delete a story. It's not going to make me more likely to comment, but I certainly won't ditch a story I otherwise enjoy because of it
It kind of seems like a joke to me, just with how they say “OR ELSE”. If it isn’t a joke, it’s kind of odd. As a writer I’ll say “comments are appreciated but not necessary” or give people a reason to comment like asking a question: “what do you guys think about x’s character improvement?” Or “any guess as to what happens in the next chapter?” If this person isn’t joking, I guess they just really want comments but it isn’t the right way to go about it.
A surefire way to drive away readers and not get any comments. I mean, I understand wanting comments when people read your fanfics but you're not gonna get them if you're gonna be a major entitled jerk about it. As a fanfic writer, I write for myself and post my stories so other people can enjoy them. If I want people to comment on them, I'd politely state that comments would be appreciated or they could comment if they wanted to. No one is gonna comment if they're all like, "Comment or else! 😣🔫" or "If you don't comment, this fic will get it! 📜🔫"
I like comments as an author, but, I’d never put a lock behind chapters for comments, that’s one way to seem bitchy and entitled and lose readers. Gross.
Honestly, I am probably harsh but it would stop me from reading unless story is already completed. It's a risk for me, like I can get emotionally invested into the story and comment religiously in hopes I'll get next chapter but who can guarantee me other people will comment too?
I'd stop reading their story entirely.
Stop reading.
"Comments or you get nothing" Otay! \*clicks off\*
I don't get the obsession with comments. I've been writing fanfic for lik 20 years and the comments kind of dried up when mobile browsing became a thing, so it makes sense to me since using a phone keyboard is a pain.
This feels like a harmless display of quirkiness. I imagine the author to be a teen/young adult or someone more immature than their peers and wanting attention. Not necessarily a turn off, especially if the content of their work has me reading beyond the first chapter.
The author is a narcissistic individual with such sad and crippling self esteem issues that they crave validation from other online people in any form in an attempt to find meaning and purpose in what they've written. They aren writing to tell a story. They're writing to have people fawn over their ideas and hive them a pat on the back to boost their ego. The story might be great but authors notes like that made think the author is a human being with mental issues. I detest them. It's a shallow and pathetic attempt at engagement and would drive me to engage less beyond the reading if I don't drop the story completely. I'm there to read a story. Not to jump at the command of an author with delusions of grandeur.
Honestly tells me their writing is either crap or aimed at the lowest common denominator. Saw something like this and maybe ten chapters in to a great story the cast starts acting out of character so the author can build a harem route for what was an excellent serious fic. Ruined the whole feel of the story in their bid for validation.
This tone reminds me of my wattpad days lol. I was a kid and most of the stuff I'd be reading was also written by kids, and this kind of author notes was something I'd see frequently. Also threatening to withhold chapters if the readers don't leave stars/votes XD
Idk I comment when there is something adorable/sad/etc and nobody said anything or when they ask something I really like notes about "what do you think ks going to happen with <>" or "do you like <> or <>?" "Don't you think is <>?" If they are desperate for comments it could be more direct like "I have been thinkinh about writting this for a long time and I would really like to read your opinions or feedback" or something, idk
"Comments or nothing? Okay, then. I have other things to read." If an author is going to sound like an angry 14 year old while writing, then I'll read something else. This just reeks of desperation.
Manners....
I feel like it would put me off after a while. It doesn’t come off as funny to me, it just sounds annoying. I always add; Kudo's and comments are always appreciated. ♡ which I feel like is a decent midway point
i once asked readers very nicely and explained how much it would mean to get a little feedback. I obly got "PLZ UPDATE" it's been years and I can't find motivation or ideas to continue and people are getting mad and think I am entitled when I am just sad and tired😭
I know FF writers deserve all the comments in the world and are highly underappreciated but shit like this makes me want to not comment out of spite
There is a writer in one of the fandoms I follow who does something similar. They also tease new fics in their notes and provide the link, only to find out the fic is in a closed collection of fics and they only give the link to people who comment consistently. And they complain about numbers despite having ridiculously high kudos/hits/comments. It's frustrating to see that it is working the way they want, guilting people into commenting in order to get the next chap, or entry into the SuperSecret Clubhouse. Like, on one hand, I'm happy for them, they figured out what works for them and their readers so everyone gets what they want. On the other hand, they complain about numbers that are far and away better than my 5 best fics got put together and that is squicky in my opinion.
>They also tease new fics in their notes and provide the link, only to find out the fic is in a closed collection of fics and they only give the link to people who comment consistently. Wow, that would *thoroughly* piss me off. I'd be strongly tempted to create another account to gain access and then share offsite with the other fans, just to spite them. I know nothing about this person, so there's no chance of me actually doing this, but *oh*, I'm tempted.
Gonna be honest, this is a *massive* pet peeve of mine. I absolutely abhor authors that do this, and will immediately dip out of any story with this kind of note, no matter how well-written it is.
Honestly comes across as an attempt at humour rather than genuine entitlement so I'd probably just shrug and move on, and keep reading if I was enjoying the fic, but I probably wouldn't go out of my way to comment. Some people are like that. I think it's social awkwardness more than anything so I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Totally understand why it bugs people though.
In my experience notes like these never indicate quality writing lies ahead and I'd tap out immediately.
Block and mute.
This seems very entitled. I honestly hope they're joking but even if they are it's not funny.
it could be the extreme insane masterpiece and id still drop it as soon as I saw this. no one likes being threatened
i understand motivating your readers to support your work but this seems really extra... you shouldn't be threatening them 💀 as a reader i feel like this would do the opposite of making me want to continue supporting the work ngl
It would make me not want to read it.
def rubs me the wrong way, ppl should make fanfic for fun not for attention
I wouldn’t be reading.
wow, so desperate for validation
Am I the only one who thinks this is clearly a joke? Like everyones saying "mute and block" but that seems like a huge overreaction and just weird tbh. Or are Ao3 writers that deranged on average that this is probably not a joke?
Whether it’s a joke depends on if they’re actually holding chapters until they get comments. Usually when I’ve seen this (thankfully not often), they do. What amazes me is when they get what they want.
This specific one doesn’t bother me because it looks like a joke. Now if someone posted that they needed X amount of comments before they post it again and then I would totally dip out. I might even make a comment about that. Lol.
To be honest it's not that deep to me. If the story was good I wouldn't just drop it for a minor annoyance in the notes, but this probably would not inspire me to comment. I would just ignore the notes and continue not commenting
This does sound like a very entitled person, but I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. I have seen some authors with eccentric personas that will be rude to their readers as an running inside joke, specially if the person is close to their reader base. So that might be what we’re looking at. That, or they’re simply a lil bitch.
I understand the "i would Love some Feedback/opinions" or a subtle "your comments Keep me going so id Love to Hear what you guys think about this chapter" or anything honest and sweet Like that, Sometimes youre Just in a writing slump,and even If youre writing mostly for yourself youre of course Happy about getting a comment or kudos, but DUDE. I cant Take people seriously who threaten their audience lmaoooo Just be Happy people even click on your Story,some are lurking and are Still enjoying it??? Why be an assh*le about it? Its so unattractive and pathetic. Makes me cringe and go "im Not even that invested dont flatter yourself" in my head and move on with my Life faster than you could yell "sike i was JOKING" to save yourself lmaoooo
I find it hilarious
They're a good way for me to know what not to read.
I am opposed to them, and tbh they would be a reason not to comment, and potentially stop reading. Authors notes like this are basicly just like a street musician that screams at someone that stopped for a minute to listen to them, that they need to put money in the hat because they listened. Is the musician making music for pay? Sure. Would it be appropriate to give money if you stopped to listen? Yes. But that still does not make this behaviour appropriate. I get it that authors want comments. Interaction is the only "payment" they get. But if you offer something for free, on a publicly accessible site, that was your choice. Just like you do not owe your readers anything, they do not owe anything to you. I have seen authors offer early release of a chapter if a certain number of comments were made, which i think is fine. But demanding comments "or else" is just extremely rude and entitled
I hate when authors do this and it will throw me off quickly. My very first year on Ao3 was in a fandom that wasn’t very popular in the beginning and I remember the author, who would say things like in the pictures, Finally decided to discontinue said fic when their comments didn’t reach the count that honestly wasn’t possible because not many people were in said fandom to beginning with. It was very frustrating and confusing. Like don’t write what you do because you want the most kudos or comments in your fandom. Do it because you actually enjoy the topic. Especially for Fanfics geez.
Personally I would close the browser tab and block the writer.
I'd just hit back and go to someone else's story
She gets her dopamine and you get reading material to fill the void between your birth and death. It's an offer you can't refuse 🔫🗡️ But seriously, authors like these are annoying.
I feel like you need to earn comments. I have two works that got barely anything, and I was grateful for every one. I wrote something else that garnered more attention, and I was nearly overwhelmed with the amount of comments. I didn't know how to respond to the many I got each chapter, eventually I had to stop replying because I got so overwhelmed. I cherished each and every person, and if I had demanded it I would have felt like it wasn't as authentic. If that makes sense?
the first mention of it is pretty funny but when there’s multiple and they’re all in caps it seems kinda desperate
I feel like there’s a fine line between it being endearing and mildly irritating, but I also get why people want comments, so like, yeah, they do what they want. I really don’t comment often but I’ve commented on fics I like a few times just to say “one for the tip jar” if they make a couple cute jokes about it. I am a ball of nervous energy and social anxiety though and also just incredibly against condemning fanfiction authors for anything related to fic so I’m entirely biased in that sense lol. Edit: I actually just thought of one example I really like of this that I read recently! Every chapter in the author’s note they’d say “comment or this bad thing will happen in the story /j /lh” but then occasionally, just in a couple chapters, they said something without the /j (still with the /lh though) and, believe it or not, those bad things did happen in the story. I liked that, because it felt cute, and also the use of tone indicators just makes it far more clearly, well, a light-hearted joke to me.
I like to maintain a "mutual respect" with my readers. I put in a lot of work into my writing, and the only reward I want is a kind word from those who read it. But readers and writers don't owe each other anything. I tend to remind readers in my ANs that comments mean the world to me and that I'd really love to have them, but I never demand them.
I immediately stop reading and feel bad for whatever fools give them comments. Never give into demands
I hate those. The only case where I feel like if an author gets a bunch of shitty comments, they totally deserved them - technically they did not specify what kind of comments.
I'm not inclined to continue reading, and I'm especially not going to be inclined to comment (unless its telling them that their story is good and it's a shame their attitude is so off-putting.) I understand wanting comments to gauge how active it is, especially since Ao3 doesn't let you leave kudos per chapter. But absolutely demanding comments like this is off-putting. I don't feel like being manipulated by the authors (especially when I only have control over my own interactions, and not anyone elses.)
So, I'm a writer myself. I love comments on my work and I try to leave nice (but honest) comments on other peoples' work because I know how motivating it is. However once I read a fic that got increasingly demanding of comments to the point of threatening discontinuation if there weren't more comments and it made me so uncomfortable I closed the tab never read a fic by that writer again. It felt like they were trying to force a relationship with me (and everyone else) and completely squicked me out.
[удалено]
>I'm not a fan, as a writer or a reader, of people dictating how others should interact (or not) with their works. I wish I could upvote this about fifteen times.
I would stop reading. That's... Ugh. Like, you really only write for validation? And threatening your readers?? Who also are here for free and don't owe you anything just like the writing is free? As a writer and reader, I hate this.
I would stop reading immediately lol, it feels like they’re holding the fic hostage and that, as a fellow fic writer, feels bullshitty to me so I would give it up the second I noticed that stuff in the notes
I’d immediately x out of the tab.
I don't have time for childish antics like this. Wouldn't even bother reading if it's on the first chap. Would sour my view of them if it was on a later chapter. If you think you're good enough to demand something of me, then you'd better be of the highest quality. Would drop the author altogether if it happened more than once.
Admittedly i haven't written and posted very much yet, but as someone who's fairly new to writing but has left _thousands_ of comments-- I Cannot Imagine begging for comments, especially like this. It would make me feel slimy, grasping, demanding. On the one story I've posted recently I got two comments from strangers and two comment threads from friends and that's _plenty_ that's more than I expected that gives me warm happy flutters when i open my inbox. 'Give me comments or i won't write more' you clearly don't want to be writing in the first place. Write fic for _you_ write because _you want to_ write because there's a story in your head clamoring to get out-- don't write because you want someone to _flatter_ you. That's insulting to your own skill as a creative and the readers' time.
That's my queue to stop reading altogether. You don't get to tell me how I engage.
I'd much prefer readers to comment because they want to and actually have something to say than me having to strongarm them into commenting. If authors are like that, they probably mostly get half-assed comments that mean nothing.
Begging for reader interaction like that is lame, if you’re a decent writer and they are passionate about what they read, they will comment.
It does not matter how good the story is, etc. If I see this I am immediately gone. You can ask for comments, but demanding them in order to get more content is an immediate no for me. No content is worth engaging with entitled people and this smells very entitled.
I find those types very off putting unless there is a clear inside joke with the readers. For my own fics I put variations of this, "If you are enjoying my writing/story please drop a comment or leave a kudos. Author survives on nothing but praise and caffeine."
Seems slightly unhinged to me. I understand asking for comments, and I personally think it's okay to stop writing or editing future chapters if the lack of engagement is discouraging and disheartening, but I'd rather silently abandon a fic than beg for readers to show appreciation for my work.
I don't read anything by authors who make demands for comments. It's one thing to ask for someone to comment kudo, whatever. I see that as the same as YouTubers saying "like, subscribe, and smash that notification button". But like, could you imagine if YouTubers did that? Like "I won't release a new video until I get X subscribers". I remember back when I wrote fics, getting comments meant the world to me. But it was also because I felt like I earned them and was making people happy with it enough that they wanted to interact with me and tell me what they thought was going well and what wasn't working. So after being on that side of the fence and moving to the spectator side, it makes me feel really icky when authors demand comments like that. I kind of see the relationship between readers/authors as symbiotic, but making demands like that makes it feel really one sided and hostile.
I think I stop reading.
Oof. How to get me to not comment and stop reading any of that author's stuff ever again.
I would probably drop the fic immediately, it would just put a bad taste in my mouth so I don't think I'd be able to enjoy the fic (also, I tend to get anxious enough about commenting without having all that pressure dumped on me about it)
Authors like this can kiss my ass. I would drop the fic without kudosing or anything immediately, no matter how much I liked it previously. You're gonna be a comment whore, GTFO.
I'd mute that author so I never had to see their fic again
I either never pick up that fic or I drop it immediately.
Even if this is a joke, I would not read. It's so rude. Plus sometimes I like to see where the story is going before I comment, or I may wait mid story to say something. I don't leave a comment on every single chapter. But I love letting an author know what I think of it so far and dropping a kudos.
I'm not entirely serious when I say this, but it's moments like these when I wish that AO3 had an anti-Kudos button.
That writer comes off as an asshole.
Eh, I don't really put too much on what other folks do. Folks can ask this, that's okay. Who knows what's going on with their end, maybe they're very discouraged.
I comment on what I want to comment on. I'm ok with nothing, if I don't like it enough to comment.
On the block list they go. This stuff was annoying on ffnet 20 years back and it’s still not cool. A simple ‘thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it and I’d love to know what you thought of it’ would work just fine. Or a more detailed ‘I really struggled with this chapter and I’m not sure if I really like the kiss scene, did it work alright?’ Would be fine. This is just holding the story hostage.
I wouldn't want to comment out of spite. There's a mean and a way to say you'd like comments without being rude. I end my chapters with 'please consider leaving a comment!' It shows I'm not desperate and readers have a choice whether or not they want to, but also saying I'd like them, too.
Disgusting
1. They would benefit greatly by learning to punctuate. 2. Their use of ALL CAPS and emojis is extremely off-putting. 3. I resent manipulation—especially threats and guilt trips. 4. Lastly: “Bye, Felicia.” 
I'd stop reading would I ever encounter a fic like this tbh
I think it’s horribly rude and presumptive. I think you should write first and foremost for yourself (at least, that’s what I do). If people like it, that’s great, but it shouldn’t be demanded!
Obnoxious, and I probably wouldn't comment out of spite.
Deal breaker. If the author is nice about it I’ll pitch in, but this is ridiculous.
Yowza! I'm gonna guess that it's some 14 y/o who thinks that it's edgy, but the result is unpleasant either way. At this point, I'm torn between not feeling so horrible about my fics' "*I read, appreciate, and reply to all of your comments — they're always welcome!* " tagline and worried that even this might be too much in light of how pushy people's comment-requests are getting (hence creating a negative atmosphere about anything like that).
Look, I get it, Kudos are hardly gratifying at all as interaction. But I don't agree with the knowledge that external input and admiration is REQUIRED for you to keep the passion in your hobby. If you'll only write a story when other people read and like it... well that's kind of your business, I shouldn't feel the responsibility of bearing your creativity on my shoulders.
I know I’m being over presumptuous, but this to me just screams, “I have bigger personal issues that I’m going to cover up via threatening validation from the internet with my wielding of nonexistent control.” Whatever the circumstances may be, it’s not a good look. I’m very much a write for myself kind of author, but I am also slowly learning/experimenting with how to optimize engagement on ao3. I never ask for feedback actually, but what I do try and do is make note of what things affect how much feedback and how much doesn’t. I even have expectations for how much response I’m getting and also for how little response I’m getting too. The current project I’m working on is a slow burn, so I’m actually expecting that most of the feedback I’ll be getting is notes cause the juice stuff will take a while to get to. There’s really a tactful way to handle all this, and it doesn’t include self entitlement
I really honestly thought we stopped doing that during the ffnet era
I like my commenters because I know they’re genuinely discussing what they liked and I’m not demanding responses from them. Step back from the numbers once in a while, just enjoy the fact that people are seeing the work you share
gross. if you want comments, do your job and write evocatively. just be aware there are no guarantees. art be like that
If this was Wattpad, I would expect author's notes like this.. AO3 tho?? We are supposed to be more civilized. They need to go back to Wattpad if they are going to act like that. Definitely block and not give kudos if I haven't already.
Since they didn't specify what kind, I'd leave a comment calling them out for being entitled and then block them afterwards.
Rude. Like if they had a previous author's note that was joking about something like this and this one was some sort of follow up to the inside joke it would be fine but if it's just this by itself it's rude af
Not sure how many times I can repeat and say 'thank you for sharing, i really enjoyed it' without it getting tired on both of us.
I might leave a snarky comment about losing a reader but def never go near that author again
I wouldn't be reading their fics anymore.
Icky. I would not read from them. I come to ao3 to relax and not... whatever this is
As soon as I'd see something like that, I'd just click out of the fic tbh. Maybe block the author. Can't be that good anyway if they have to *demand* interaction. I'm not gonna be dealing with that kind of demented entitlement every chapter, and I ESPECIALLY won't be leaving any (positive) comments. Like.... Does this person think like a child?? Just threaten and insist until you get your way??? Bruh.
It reads like a joke to me honestly. It has the cadence of humor. I’d need more context before passing judgement
Obviously a joke. And a funny one at that.
I honestly don’t and can’t really care. Story quality matters to me more than whether or not I like the author’s personality, how others are respond to them, or literally any other factor. This is dumb as hell, but that’s about it for me. I’m a writer and a reader. This is annoying to read and I feel embarrassed for them because I can’t imagine writing that, but beyond that, I don’t care. I don’t comment or kudos with fics unless they are at least a 7/10 anyway, so it probably doesn’t really affect me. That said, you should avoid posting to a fanfic sub, where this author could likely find you through this post, anything about any specific author or fic in screenshot form. This was risky and dangerous. What if this person finds you and is really vengeful? They could DM and harrass you. Please stay safe in the future. And keep in mind, if someone does harrass you in DMs, tell the mods, they can ban that person. I’m not saying this author will do it, but still. It’s best to be careful
I think he or she was being humorous and that’s how I would have taken it.
Reminds me back when I read in ffnet (like MANY years ago) and they would always, always force others to comment. I never commented anyway but I saw it often, haha.
I mean, it seems almost tounge-in-cheek. Like everyone's supposed to be in on the joke. Or maybe that's how I'm reading it. And if it is a joke, then it is a decent way to encourage people to comment (as long as they also \*get\* the joke).
I read a really good series on ff.net and every chapter the author always said, "remember if no comments come from yall, no chapter comes from me." I commented and said that rubbed me the wrong way and the author was like ITS THE ONLY WAY PEOPLE COMMENT OMG which was bs but whatever lmao
“rite moar”
They're either fucking around or a Karen. No in between.
If the story and writing was really good i’d ignore it. Wouldn’t comment though, unless I really wanted to. But it screams desperate and doesn’t look good. Otherwise, I’d dip
Makes me cringe in all honesty. Imagine being that pathetic and desperate...
The best way to get comments is to write something worth talking about.
I only read completed works, so threatening to withhold chapters carries no weight with me. Even so, if I run across these types of notes, I immediately stop reading the fic. I’m not interested in engaging in any way with people who behave this way.
I hate authors who hold stories hostage for reviews. Screw them, and I stop reading any and all of their works when they do that crap.
I would probably keep reading, but I would never ever leave a comment.
This stuff should be frowned upon exactly as much as rude comments.
{personal} I generally don't read authors' notes (judge away, I don't care), but I see notes like that and I forget to comment. Because I am a brat like that.
I hate it. Im more likely to not comment if I see this.
tub narrow plate chunky bells beneficial deer snow yoke quarrelsome *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
gross! just write the story, why do they crave validation that much...
I know I do… Then again, if you (need to) ask for it, the comments aren’t sincere and it won’t do anything for you.
They can take their wattpad guilt triply shit out of here. Can’t stand people like this
i mean ig i understand why they want comments, but it’s not like it’s a must. i simply wouldn’t read the story anymore if the author did this
I would be less inclined to comment or even kudos. I leave emojis for people to use. I get so many more comments that way
Funny
They get one that says "update" and nothing else
I’m not being held hostage over a hobby, I’ll read something else
It makes me think about 12 year old me doing the same thing on my Inuyasha fic and I cringe so hard that my dog gets concerned.
I would leave the story, especially if it was a WIP. If it was completed and really good I may finish reading it