Comment answers

Reminder to self: Try to reply more to comments on my stories.
Don't feel bad, beth, I'm a mere 864 comments away from the 1000 club!

Another thing you can do, beth, is actually suggest titles--along the lines of "if you liked this, you also might like...." This is especially true if it seems like the reader was looking for a specific genre or orientation. Amazon does this. If you click on a book, it gives you 20 pages of similar books.

Apart from in my very earliest days here, when my attitude was perhaps characterised by a degree of arrogance, I have (I think) responded to every comment I've received. As others have said: it's only good manners, it requires little effort, it can open up interesting conversations/connections, and (as beth says) it is more likely than not to attract that reader to read more of one's efforts. I believe my responsiveness has definitely played a part in how generously readers have continued to comment.

However, it is also true that a largish majority of the comments I get, (and perhaps you too?), come from fellow authors ( Hi, folks! And thanks!) who know first hand how important the feedback is to one's motivation to write more - especially perhaps in the earlier days of our writing careers. Many of our more experienced colleagues, I know, have transcended this vanity, or insecurity, and are motivated to write solely by the pleasure of the act itself. Maybe one day ... !

Maybe some have however I have not, and if any one wants to continue motivating me to write more please feel free to comment on any of my stories as much as you want.

I just noticed something startling. There are pop-up messages in my archive that I had never seen before, i.e., they never "popped up". So if you think maybe an author hasn't responded to your comment, check your messages---it might be there.

And re islandcarol's comment---if someone took the time to comment on EACH PART of a multipart series, I'd be damn sure to thank that person.

I'll check. Thanks!