Random followers

[Djmac1031]

Most times, it's pretty easy to figure out why someone "followed" You.

Just posted a new story, and you'll see them "Favorite" and "Follow."

Or perhaps the same but with an older story.

Or you get the Follow back after you've Followed them.

And then there's just those RANDOM follows.

No new Favorites or feedback to clue you in on what story they read to earn the Follow.

I wish there were better ways to communicate with readers here because sometimes I'm just dying to know which story exactly drew them in and why .

Call it my egotistical need to know.

 

[Red_Herring4]

Most times, it's pretty easy to figure out why someone "followed" You.

And then there's just those RANDOM follows.

I hear you. Sometimes, I'm just doing my thing and, for seemingly no reason, I get a bunch of new followers. Some days it's a small group. Other days it's a large group. Like, really large.

I don't want to brag, but I've had WAY more followers than silkstockingslover, HeyAll, or lovecraft68. Combined. I'm talking hundreds of millions of followers.

Then, one day, they all just stop following me. Herring schools are fickle that way.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Most times, it's pretty easy to figure out why someone "followed" You.

Just posted a new story, and you'll see them "Favorite" and "Follow."

Or perhaps the same but with an older story.

Or you get the Follow back after you've Followed them.

And then there's just those RANDOM follows.

No new Favorites or feedback to clue you in on what story they read to earn the Follow.

I wish there were better ways to communicate with readers here because sometimes I'm just dying to know which story exactly drew them in and why .

Call it my egotistical need to know.

Ask them.

Given the lack of comment threading. I often PM someone who has left a nice comment. Not everyone is registered on the forums, but you can always try then contact form on their profile page.

Em

 

[oneagainst]

I'm getting that at the moment... I put out a standalone story in NC and one in IR and there are randoms turning up. I'm not complaining, but it would be sweet to be able to ping them a little personal reply saying thanks without filling your story comments stream up with Author posts. You can interact much better on e.g. wattpad - just so you can show a bit of gratitude that someone took a moment in their day to tell you how you did. PMs are way too clunky.

I try and trace how they found me, but there's no hope of that either... sometimes I see an author in their follow list just above me (e.g. @SamYork with A Place Beyond The Horizon) so there's an obvious progression, or they're a long time favouriter who just decided to make the relationship a little more official with a follow. It would be neat to know which page they were on when they clicked follow, like you can with Google search analysis.

 

[ElectricBlue]

There are two main types of followers. The first, but not necessarily the majority, are those whose Following page (and their Favorite Story page) continues down to one of the seven levels of Hell, and you're left wondering what on earth that's all about, that doesn't make me feel very special.

Then there are those with a much shorter and, one assumes (but with no evidence at all), a much more discerning list, and you think, ahh, that's better. Those lists are usually very good sources for like-minded writers, and stories with a high chance of being of the same ilk as yours.

Then there are the best ones, a minority, where you're either their very first listing, or you're in a very select company of half a dozen or so. Of course, when you go back later, their list might be rapidly descending, but at least you're at the top...

 

[oneagainst]

The golden follow! Joined on today's date and you're the only one on there! High 5!

Followed by the reader who joined in 2016 and you're one of only 8!

And yeah, then right down to the one where Chrome pops up the warning about unresponsive page.