What drives you to delete a comment on your own story?

[StrangeLife]

I never delete anything unless it's clearly spam or somehow violates Literotica's rules.

If a reader is of the opinion that I suck, he should be entitled to let the world and me know. That's what freedom of expression is all about.

 

[Robin_Starveling]

Strange, but most of my comments seem to disappear within the first 48 hours. I never stoop to ad hominem attacks and always stick to honest opinions based on objective criteria, so I’m not sure why this is happening.

I may occasionally remark that they owe me a few IQ points lost through reading, or that a ridiculous opening felt like a fart through the screen, or that a story was 90% dialogue and 90% of it fluff, or that its high score is a sad marker of what humanity has come to. But other than that, I’m usually very supportive and encouraging, so it’s truly unfortunate.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Strange, but most of my comments seem to disappear within the first 48 hours. I never stoop to ad hominem attacks and always stick to honest opinions based on objective criteria, so I’m not sure why this is happening.

Based on your haha comments below, I'd have thought it's fairly obvious why folk delete your comments...

I may occasionally remark that they owe me a few IQ points lost through reading, or that a ridiculous opening felt like a fart through the screen, or that a story was 90% dialogue and 90% of it fluff, or that its high score is a sad marker of what humanity has come to. But other than that, I’m usually very supportive and encouraging, so it’s truly unfortunate.

... especially when they go see your body of work.

Maybe you should try putting yourself out there before you get too critical about amateur writers; you know, walk a mile in their shoes.

 

[M_K_Babalon]

I've never deleted comments, even ones from shitheads. I did delete some from a particular shithead, who figured out where the story was going, and couldn't shut his fingers the fuck up about it.

 

[Robin_Starveling]

Maybe you should try putting yourself out there before you get too critical about amateur writers; you know, walk a mile in their shoes.

That’s very odd logic. Should I paint a canvas before I can look at Van Gogh? Direct a film before watching 12 Angry Men? Produce music before I’m allowed to dance?

The comment section is not just for writers. My critique is as valid as anyone else’s, even if no one likes to hear it.

 

[ElectricBlue]

That’s very odd logic. Should I paint a canvas before I can look at Van Gogh? Direct a film before watching 12 Angry Men? Produce music before I’m allowed to dance?

The comment section is not just for writers. My critique is as valid as anyone else’s, even if no one likes to hear it.

You're slamming people in comments who are amateurs, who haven't asked for a critique, who can't go to your body of work (because you don't have one here) and say, "What would this guy know? Let's see his money where his mouth is."

It's a peculiar thing about writers who do put themselves out there with their stories to be somewhat defensive about what they do, because they've put their heart and soul out there. When someone comes along with silent qualifications and has a go at them, and that same person then expresses surprise when those writers delete their commentary, maybe, just maybe, part of the issue lies with the way those comments have been expressed.

You might think you're doing these people a favour, and yes, your comments might well be accurate, but if they're insensitive and tactless or plain unkind, then you've possibly done more damage than good. That person might well take that criticism to heart and never write again - which happens, often. You, with your objective mind, might think, job done, they were a crap writer anyway, no loss. But that person might have got better, might have become a better writer, might indeed have passed whatever standards you set for us writers, and become a good writer.

This community of people who do write doesn't have a particularly high regard for vigilante commentators (as one of our dear departed participants called them) who don't write. If you had a body of work of your own here, your critique gets a bit more credibility, is all I'm saying - and if you had work of your own here, you would know that.

This is one of those perennial topics here on the AH, this is nothing new, and the contras of the argument are also nothing new.

If you want to be helpful to writers who do want critiques, go to the Feedback Forum and comment on those stories - where authors are asking for commentary.

 

[feel_the_beast]

I had one guy delete ALL my comments on a story series, many complimentary, because I posted a warning that it was incomplete, and likely to remain so, even though the author was still active here. [6 years or so, with no new chapters].
Was I wrong?

 

[ElectricBlue]

I had one guy delete ALL my comments on a story series, many complimentary, because I posted a warning that it was incomplete, and likely to remain so, even though the author was still active here. [6 years or so, with no new chapters].
Was I wrong?

In his mind, obviously.

Usually comments are rare as hens teeth - one in a thousand Views if you're lucky, some writers and some categories get far fewer. As an author, it's safe to say that Lit is generally a very low feedback zone, so the comment relationship isn't always what readers might think it is.

Most writers really do appreciate the comments they do get, and most, I think, would like more. There's a preference for positive commentary obviously (the reward metric), and when the comments are statistically speaking, down in the noise, negative comments get a far higher weighting than they ever should.

It's one of those little power imbalance levellers that authors have, to control the presentation of their stories the best way they can - comments are obviously a sales pitch for a story - by exercising that control the site gives us. In your example, the author probably knows he's got an unfinished story, and doesn't need to be reminded.

There's also an undercurrent of a perceived "reader privilege", where authors object to readers wanting a different story, and the first reaction to a comment is often, fuck you, write your own. I must admit, that's the one thing that bugs me, when comments come in saying that I didn't write what the story they wanted. That's when I facetiously offer them their money back.

 

[OddLove]

At this point, I think I've deleted three comments total. One of them was for expressing hatred towards homosexuality, but I can't remember what the other ones were. They just annoyed me so I just used my godly powers appointed to me by the God's of Lit and poof, I disappeared them off my stories. It feels good tbh.

Most feedback I receive is just requests or ideas for what the reader would like to see. As long as I don't perceive it as sexist or homophobic, I leave it even if I don't agree. I've gotten a few type corrections that were helpful too. Most recently, someone mentioned I was saying "seven in a half" when it's "seven and a half" and that was useful. Cause the way I say it out loud in real life has always been like "something n'a half" so I would've never caught that if they had no pointed it out.

 

[WittyUserName]

TL,DR: why do you delete a comment on one of your stories? What is it about a comment that says 'This needs deleting'?

In the years that I've visited here, I’d never voted or commented until very recently.

My first low-vote-and-comment-explaining-it was to a relatively recent story that just bugged me. The more I thought of the story, the more I hated it. Hated the characters. I'd initially just left nothing, but seeing it again in the story list a few days later, after my festering hatred for the story grew, pushed me to vote/comment.

Another, more recent, story - this story was pretty basic trope, nothing bad, in and of itself, just no great shakes - was only three pages long, but I couldn't get past the typos.

Shock! If a story is poorly-enough written, it erodes my liking (thus, potential vote) for the story.

As I've freely admitted since I created this account, I get wordy (see: this post), and my comments follow that philosophy - these weren't two-word, drive-by comments.

There were several times the writer used the wrong words in places (still noted in other remaining comments), but his personal bete noire seemed to be your/you’re.

Typos happen. I get it. We all do it. Done it plenty of times myself. In some cases, it can get so bad that I can't not remark upon it.

I posted a rather negative comment (but left no vote, this time) on it. A few days later, I checked the comments on the story (after the sometimes-snarky follow-up comments regarding my first-ever comment, elsewhere, I like to see if anyone refers to it – it’s entirely possible that I may be a masochist) and my comment was gone.

On the first page of this particular story, your/you’re was used, IIRC, eighteen times. Twelve of which (I suppose it might only have been eleven) were the wrong choice. For me, shit like that is like stepping on a Lego fucking LEGO® element in the middle of the night. It doesn’t matter that I might be heading for the bathroom, I stop to bitch and moan loudly about it right there.

I still have the account activity notification that I’d commented on the story, so I didn’t figure that I’d imagined that I’d done so.

I haven’t felt any burning need to delete any of the (fairly few) comments left on my own stuff. Even the guy telling me I needed to learn how to craft a basic sentence.

Why do you guys delete comments (if you have)? Some can be unhinged rants and ought to go, but what crosses that line for you?

Ironically, that first comment I made, where I trashed the characters, is still up. The author never commented upon it, other than a tepid, passive dismissal in one of his own later comments, but it's still there.

P.S.
I wish that I'd saved a copy of the comment. While it wasn't any Literary Award Winner, I really did enjoy writing something along the lines of 'One time is an accident, twice is a coincidence, twelve times is enemy action.'

I've never deleted a comment. I came close once when someone commented that the story was boring. That wasn't the reason I was gonna delete it. I was going to remove it because it commented on a Chapter 00 cast of characters for a series. It says at the beginning it's for reference because a lot of characters are mentioned only a couple of times. The fool read it as if it were a story. Decided to leave it because it was funny.

 

[DeMont]

TL,DR: why do you delete a comment on one of your stories? What is it about a comment that says 'This needs deleting'?

In the years that I've visited here, I’d never voted or commented until very recently.

My first low-vote-and-comment-explaining-it was to a relatively recent story that just bugged me. The more I thought of the story, the more I hated it. Hated the characters. I'd initially just left nothing, but seeing it again in the story list a few days later, after my festering hatred for the story grew, pushed me to vote/comment.

Another, more recent, story - this story was pretty basic trope, nothing bad, in and of itself, just no great shakes - was only three pages long, but I couldn't get past the typos.

Shock! If a story is poorly-enough written, it erodes my liking (thus, potential vote) for the story.

As I've freely admitted since I created this account, I get wordy (see: this post), and my comments follow that philosophy - these weren't two-word, drive-by comments.

There were several times the writer used the wrong words in places (still noted in other remaining comments), but his personal bete noire seemed to be your/you’re.

Typos happen. I get it. We all do it. Done it plenty of times myself. In some cases, it can get so bad that I can't not remark upon it.

I posted a rather negative comment (but left no vote, this time) on it. A few days later, I checked the comments on the story (after the sometimes-snarky follow-up comments regarding my first-ever comment, elsewhere, I like to see if anyone refers to it – it’s entirely possible that I may be a masochist) and my comment was gone.

On the first page of this particular story, your/you’re was used, IIRC, eighteen times. Twelve of which (I suppose it might only have been eleven) were the wrong choice. For me, shit like that is like stepping on a Lego fucking LEGO® element in the middle of the night. It doesn’t matter that I might be heading for the bathroom, I stop to bitch and moan loudly about it right there.

I still have the account activity notification that I’d commented on the story, so I didn’t figure that I’d imagined that I’d done so.

I haven’t felt any burning need to delete any of the (fairly few) comments left on my own stuff. Even the guy telling me I needed to learn how to craft a basic sentence.

Why do you guys delete comments (if you have)? Some can be unhinged rants and ought to go, but what crosses that line for you?

Ironically, that first comment I made, where I trashed the characters, is still up. The author never commented upon it, other than a tepid, passive dismissal in one of his own later comments, but it's still there.

P.S.
I wish that I'd saved a copy of the comment. While it wasn't any Literary Award Winner, I really did enjoy writing something along the lines of 'One time is an accident, twice is a coincidence, twelve times is enemy action.'

@designatedvictim,
I will delete pure "hate speech" comments that have no rhyme, reason or saving grace in as far as useful suggestions for improvement.
I will delete comments such as, one I received that simply read, "WTF?" - strong indicator that the commentator had completely missed the point of the entire story.
I will keep comments that, though they may not be purely positive, contain some explanation/reasonable explanation/ useful suggestion for improvements.

A simple formula that I find works well and does not leave me pondering inane "bluster".
Deeply respectful,
D

 

[MelanieShaman]

I think I've deleted maybe two comments... I can't remember what one of them was, but the other was a person telling me what I got wrong about sexual function with trans women. Which made me laugh, because I'm a trans woman, and I wrote that stuff from firsthand experience. Lol

So, yeah, even stuff I think is a little too critical, I usually leave alone.

 

[stickygirl]

I have a transphobic comment to one of mine, but since the story included phobes yelling abuse from the football stands, I actually welcomed it. The dude made my point far better than a thousand words of mine.
I’m quite proud of my battle scar!

 

[Robin_Starveling]

You're slamming people in comments who are amateurs, who haven't asked for a critique, who can't go to your body of work (because you don't have one here) and say, "What would this guy know? Let's see his money where his mouth is."

It's a peculiar thing about writers who do put themselves out there with their stories to be somewhat defensive about what they do, because they've put their heart and soul out there. When someone comes along with silent qualifications and has a go at them, and that same person then expresses surprise when those writers delete their commentary, maybe, just maybe, part of the issue lies with the way those comments have been expressed.

You might think you're doing these people a favour, and yes, your comments might well be accurate, but if they're insensitive and tactless or plain unkind, then you've possibly done more damage than good. That person might well take that criticism to heart and never write again - which happens, often. You, with your objective mind, might think, job done, they were a crap writer anyway, no loss. But that person might have got better, might have become a better writer, might indeed have passed whatever standards you set for us writers, and become a good writer.

This community of people who do write doesn't have a particularly high regard for vigilante commentators (as one of our dear departed participants called them) who don't write. If you had a body of work of your own here, your critique gets a bit more credibility, is all I'm saying - and if you had work of your own here, you would know that.

This is one of those perennial topics here on the AH, this is nothing new, and the contras of the argument are also nothing new.

If you want to be helpful to writers who do want critiques, go to the Feedback Forum and comment on those stories - where authors are asking for commentary.

What a pretentious, preachy rattle. Strip away the veil of righteous words, and it’s nothing more than an attempted Bolshevik silencing in the name of the “community.”

Some talented writers may improve with practice, but the rest are little more than natural-born spammers, too dense to absorb any critique. I don’t comment because I expect change—I know it’s hopeless. I comment just to vent after wasting time reading.

Only one in a thousand can sense true greatness; one in a million can grasp and share it; one in a billion can create it. The rest fall back on a “True Scotsman” to reassure themselves it doesn’t exist.

 

[OddLove]

What a pretentious, preachy rattle. Strip away the veil of righteous words, and it’s nothing more than an attempted Bolshevik silencing in the name of the “community.”

Some talented writers may improve with practice, but the rest are little more than natural-born spammers, too dense to absorb any critique. I don’t comment because I expect change—I know it’s hopeless. I comment just to vent after wasting time reading.

Only one in a thousand can sense true greatness; one in a million can grasp and share it; one in a billion can create it. The rest fall back on a “True Scotsman” to reassure themselves it doesn’t exist.

You're getting exactly what you want out of reading those 'wastes of time'