Bad Comments

I started writing a comment on David G.'s "Little Maggie Baker" and found myself writing a rant that I've started to write here before. My rant wasn't about his story, but about some of the comments on his story. Because I didn't want to hijack his comments section, I decided to post the bulk of my frustration with some of these bad comments here instead. Here's what I didn't post there.

~*~

Some of these comments are self-righteous, arrogant, and inappropriate.

There is a place for literary criticism on the merit of telling a particular kind of story. Does a story about kids engaging a mutual interest in spanking need to be told? Does it add to the artistic repertoire of humanity? Is it of a nature that is actually harmful to society? If that's the comment, then make that comment. The wishy-washy wording of this criticism reeks of blustery self-exoneration.

"In real life, the events it depicts would be troubling because of the potential things that could go wrong somewhere along the line." This is a vague statement. What might happen that would be wrong? Be specific. Furthermore, if something in the story were to "go wrong", so what? A story where things could go wrong is a story with tension, with conflict, and that's a sign of a good story.

"But in the realm of fantasy..." It's arrogant to tell an author that his/her story is all right because it isn't real. Do you think the author doesn't know his/her story is fiction? This too reads like the commenter is excusing themselves for having read and enjoyed a story that made them uncomfortable to enjoy. Even if it's not self-excusing, it's nonsensical. That's like telling Stephen King that it's all right for him to have written about an abused girl murdering her classmates because it was in the realm of fantasy. He knows already. We all know.

"Not sure I am happy with the ages of the participants." What? Are you truly uncertain of your feelings? If it made you uncomfortable and you feel the need to say so, say so. If you think the story is detrimental to society, then say so. If, however, you're excusing yourself for being unsure of liking the story, don't blame the author.

No one is forced to read a story they're uncomfortable with, so why have some of these readers decided to read a story all the way through and then comment on their discomfort? It's one thing to not like the story, to consider it poorly written or cliché, but if a reader who finds a story is discomforting should read something else. Blaming the author for your discomfort is inappropriate.

For most of us, spanking is linked to sex. I think that's the crux here. Some are uncomfortable reading about children spanking each other because they're linking it to children having sex. Two things. One, this story had nothing to do with children having sex. Two, children, though don't fully understand it, are often interested in sex and their bodies in general. If that is what's making you feel uncomfortable about this story, or stories like this, don't blame it on the author. Don't make the author feel like he/she has written an inappropriate story.

~*~

I'm less fired up about it now than when I wrote it. Even so, it bugs me that some readers have chosen to comment on an author's work in order to vent their own insecurities.

Am I in the minority? Are others okay with this kind of commenting? Have I misinterpreted? Is my frustration misplaced? I'm curious to know what you all think.

-LK

Sorry but in my opinion viewers can say what they chose to say and no one has any right to say those comments are right or wrong, especially if one is not the author. Many stories about young children attract comments with people uncomfortable with the age of the characters. It happened here and it will happen again. Every author who writes stories about young children knows and accepts it.

I write my comments (which you have not quoted above) based on how I feel about the story at the time. If any author does not like my comment I have offered to remove them or to no longer comment on those particular stories, and guess what? No author has ever wanted me to quit commenting. I say how I feel honestly, just as I am sure many of the commentors mentioned above did as well

The thing about this particular story was ...it was from a new author on site and I am sure many of those commenting would not have read it at all if they had known the possible content. Many of us tend to read the first story of any new authors and comment to encourage the new contributor.

To get to the point, let the author speak for themselves and the rest of us mind our own business.

CS

This post disturbs me. Comments are encouraged here. I think it is counterproductive to critique the comments. If people feel that they cannot express their honest reaction to a story without having their remarks publicly criticized, I fear the result could be less commenting instead of more.

Naturally, warm and fuzzy supportive comments are great, but the ones that express a reader's honest opinion, even their reservations about a story, are valuable too, maybe even more than the pats on the back.

This is all fiction. Everyone knows that, and I think we need to lighten up.

I am one of the authors on this site too. Generally speaking i will take what comments I can get. Some people simply are not able to clearly articulate what it is they like or dislike about a story and why. I take that into account and try to thank each commenter for their comments. Most of the time I even succeed!
when I make my own comments, i do like to go into at least some detail about what it is that i like or dislike about a given story or story element. I must admit that those are also the kinds of comments I like best on my own stories but again I will take what I can get. I would have to say that your frustration was misplaced.

I, too, feel that comments of all kinds should be encouraged, especially constructive ones. Non constructive or even critical comments are less conducive to the author but that's the chance you take. Sometimes people will point out things you never even thought of, which may or may not be helpful, but any legitimate criticism is just that, legitimate.

As another commenter on this story (not one of those listed above) I think you are over reacting, Lawrence. People have a right to express their feelings about any offering on this site, and I don't think it helps to decry their efforts.

Abusive and ignorant comments are one thing, and there is no place for that, but none of the comments fell under that category. CS for example is quite critical about some of my stories, but his comments are sincere and I respect him for them.

It is surely far better that people say what they feel rather than just simply say; "Good Story".

I couldn't agree more. If people don't feel able to express an honest opinion, all comments lose their value.

When you put your work out there you open the door for comments--and you get all kinds. Sometimes people miss the point and don't get it. Or they focus on the wrong thing. Or they have a bias that comes through. When they say so in a comment that just means that maybe you didn't do your job as well as you thought you did. It's something you just have to accept and move forward. But rather than knock someone's comments I'd say bring them all on. And with the pop-up message feature the author can always initiate a dialog with the commenter that is private and maybe learn something.

I don't think that there are bad comments.

If something I've written strikes an emotion cord, then it strikes an emotion cord. I'd prefer it to be a good reaction but people have different tastes. I've posted stories where some people were screaming "More!" and others were saying "I hated character X" and I've appreciated both sets of comments.

The only comments that have ever disturbed me - and then it was only for a short while - were ones that judged me as a person based on how I wrote something. I've been told that I must have a huge darkness in me to write X, which felt odd, then I decided that it was a wonderful compliment. That I had written a story that implied I had a huge darkness inside me while not having one.

As for people saying "I disagree with this", "In real life", etc - I take them in the spirit that I hope they were offered in. That is I hope that the commenter is engaging in his own bit of creative writing, pretending to judge something that is clearly fiction as possibly real as part of his own fantasy. For example, some comments on "the Dear Anne" have treated those things as if they were letters to Dear Abby and were offering real advice. I love reading "Anne was wrong about this because...." as it means that the commenter has bought into the premise of the story.

Goodgulf

I am not writer, but am a reader and commenter. If I am reading a story that I don't care for or disagree with with the author's point of view, I would like to feel that I could comment on that story and tell the author why I didn't care for it (in a nice way). If I feel intimidated by doing so, I will stop commenting on those stories. I have misinterpreted several stories and the author has explained to correct interpretation to me, which I appreciated. Anyway, this is my feeling on the subject.