Comments on Stories

DKerr8047

Virgin
Joined
Nov 19, 2017
Posts
7
I’m new to this website and have recently published my first story, an experience that I have enjoyed very much. What has surprised me is the lack of comments, not only on my story, but on others’ stories as well. I would have expected more verbal traffic, especially on those stories which have had several hundred views.
 
That's the way it is here. This is a readers' site, not an author's critique site. Readers are given the full latitude to read and enjoy (or not) and leave without any commitment to commenting or voting. They aren't required to think of the need to connect with the writers as writers would like them to. Just the way it is here.
 
There's probably a couple of reasons why the comment numbers are so low.

One is that the writer's expectations are high without considering that Real Life reading traffic doesn't comment much. Yes, there are sites like Goodreads where people leave comments and Amazon allows for feedback commentary, but for the most part Real Life reader reviews and comments aren't very frequent. So the commentary here on Lit is probably on par if not actually above the norm.

I think another is that the content of the stories here is somewhat "shameful" for most readers. They don't want to admit they LIKE this stuff so they try to minimize being tracked by family and ad-bots as much as possible. This means they read but don't comment even if they liked a story.
 
Most readers don't write themselves. I think many don't realise how motivating even a short comment can be.
 
I’m new to this website and have recently published my first story, an experience that I have enjoyed very much. What has surprised me is the lack of comments, not only on my story, but on others’ stories as well. I would have expected more verbal traffic, especially on those stories which have had several hundred views.

First of all, congrats on finishing your first story and having it published here! :)

Lit's a fickle beast. You can roughly expect one vote for every 100 or so views your story gets, and around one comment for every thousand. There are some who score hundreds or even thousands of votes within the first week, but they tend to be well-established authors with lots of followers. You'll need a reputation if you want those kinds of numbers.

Another thing that drives comments is the subject matter of your story. Sections with large numbers of readers (Loving Wives, Incest/Taboo) will be all too happy to tell you what they liked and (if posting in Loving Wives) what they didn't. Depending on the category you published, there may not be a lot of readers, so the views may come slow and steady.

Also, every other story in the category is your competition, as it were, and you're a new writer with no history. Writing well enough to get a score in the 4's will encourage more people's eyes to wander your way. Stories with lower averages tend to get overlooked. Some people here don't read anything that scores under a 4.5. They're weird, but whatever. :)

Use the forum to advertise your story. Put a link to your author page in your signature here. Turn on private messages (they're off by default). Post a link to the story itself in the New Story Advertisements thread here. If you've got the guts, start a thread for feedback here on your piece (explain the category, how long it is, and any other oddities, because lots of us are picky on what we'll read and don't like surprises). :)

Anyway, best of luck, welcome to an exciting, scary new world, and whatever you do, don't let the feedback or lack thereof get you down. Set your goal on making your next story even better than the last one, and you'll build your own audience. :)
 
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