A comment on comments.

If my calculations are correct then for approximately every 4 words I write, somebody reads one of my stories.

This is in line with the stat's on my author page - 80942 words ÷21267 views = 3.80

It's encouraging to know that so many people view my efforts and those of my fellow LSF authors . It would be good though if more members took the trouble to post comments. To date I've received only 625 comments from those 21267 views. I think most of us share a little of Mark Twain's sentiment in the quote - "I can live for two months on a good compliment" - but constructive criticism is also welcome.

I couldn't agree more with Hotspur. Comments are wonderful--positive or negative.

I make a point of trying to send a pop-up to everyone who comments. It is only very rarely that a commenter responds to a pop-up, even if it includes a question. Pity. It's just great to be in contact with readers.

Geoffrey Stirling.

The good news is that after several years of a downward trend in the total number of comments on the site, we've seen an uptick in 2020 - easily surpassing both 2019 and 2018, though still coming nowhere the totals for earlier years. May it continue.

I try to comment on everything I read, unless I quit before the end. I know how lovely it is to get the email that you've had a comment, and like sharing a little bit of that joy with people!

I certainly appreciate all comments, good bad or indifferent, and try to respond to acknowledge them taking the time to do so.

Just for comparison, my words/viewer ratio is far higher than yours, perhaps an indication I tend to be too wordy? 1,780,060 words / 254,548 views = 6.99 words/view

I have not written in a while, but I love comments too.
My average view to word ratio is 9.5. You guys need to teach me here.
I have 32 total stories or chapters and a total 265 comments. That is about 8.25 per effort that goes into the library.

Like the others who have responded, I greatly appreciate each and every comment I receive. Writing is often lonely work, and in sharing that work, the writer takes a risk. It's nice to know readers are out there and are occasionally moved enough by a particular story to post a comment. And, while I certainly enjoy receiving and responding to the comments, mostly I am simply grateful that such a forum exists. Thanks to all who read and participate in whatever way suits you.

I try to comment on everything I read and reply to pop-up messages.

I always comment on every story I read. I think it's only fair when someone has gone through the effort of writing and submitting a story on their private time. I try to give response to as many of the comments I get as well. I enjoy thanking everone who goes through the effort to comment on my stories, as it is my lifeblood. It is what gives me ideas for more stories and what I could have done better with the stories already loaded.

Regarding statistics, I think it's more fair if you go for views/story and not words/view. Otherwise it'll always look better if you only submit really, really short stories. My average story length is roughly twice that of the average story length on site, so I guess I sort among the wordy ones.

My stats:
Words/View 6.3
Views/Story 504
Words/Story 3195

I'm more than a little reserved about commenting. More than a few stories I've encountered on this site aren't exactly my cup of tea and I don't finish every story I click on. I try to comment when I have something positive to say. I'll put in my criticisms too but I like to have at least one nice thing to say before I do.