How do you measure success?

games4yosoul said:

In regards to feedback on a story, how do you measure it's success?
Rating? (What's a good rating for Lit?)
Views?
Positive comments?

I was curious as to what you all thought of as success. I know ultimately we write for ourselves but how does one know if a story is well recieved?

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You're right, I write for my own satisfaction. A story is successful if it pleases me and accomplishes in my mind what I set out to achieve.

Of course, I do appreciate an audience, and if others indicate they enjoy what I write, that gratifies me, too, but I do not need that affirmation to feel successful.

I do not mind Red-H's.
I do not mind many views.
I do not mind comments, even rants.
I like seeing my backlist receive faves.
But if I like what I wrote, that is enough.

I just finished posting a well-received series. I re-read the highest-rated. I could barely understand it. I'm reminded of James Thruber being told how a reader enjoyed a French translation. He replied, "Yes, my work loses something in the original." Me too.

To measure success, you have to first define what your goal is, otherwise there's nothing that you can consider measurable to start with. What do you want out of the interaction between you and the reader?

Easier said than done, sometimes, I know.

In general, I would try not to get too hung up on views, and votes, and comments, and all that social media crap. I mean, you're going to a little, we all do, but try to keep it in perspective. And certainly try to avoid getting your self-esteem too wrapped up in it.

Personally, if someone reads my work, that's success, at least to some degree. I have successfully communicated with another human being. My words went into their brain. They can't unread it. Hopefully, it made an emotional reaction of some kind. Preferably the one I was trying to get across, but any is better than none. Obviously, I want them to like it, but failing that, I'd rather have them hate my work, than feel nothing about it.

But just the act of getting it out there is some measure of success. I feel a lot of satisfaction just from submitting something.