What makes you comment?

I try and comment on every item I read, if nothing more than to applaud the efforts of someone writing from their heart. I learn something from every story and every author I have the privilege to read. There are thousands upon thousands of items to peruse and yet, contributors continue to produce interesting and novel tales. I think that deserves acknowledgement whether it's my cup of tea or not. I'm grateful for those who do likewise and truly appreciate their feedback when offered.

I also try to comment on each item I read - if only in the hope that it will encourage others to comment on my stories!

It's sometimes difficult to think of something original to say, especially if there have been many previous commenters, and they've covered any points I might have made. Still, I'm sure that the authors would like a simple 'Good story - I enjoyed it!' more than no comment at all - I know I would!

Commenting deity; 4.2:1
Like many of the other comments in this thread, l try to comment on everything l read as a mark of respect and to encourage the author into publishing more stories. Of course if we are regular commenters then we will reply to this thread. More interesting observations would come from readers who don't comment. It would provide some insight into why not, l suspect it maybe embarrassment or not knowing what to say or how to say it.
But of course they are unlikely to reply here.

My V/C stats are 1.28:1 as a reader and 30.6:1 as an author.
Like the other commenters I try to comment on everything, but struggle with the stories which are badly thought out or just plain yukky. Badly written is ok, we all have to start somewhere.
I've become quite risk averse in what I write in comments because authors are understandably protective of their babies, and don't always want their shortcomings pointed out, particularly in public.
I have been flamed before when commenting where my view of a character did not agree with the author's.

One thing I have tried when I have a what I hope is a valid criticism of a story is to put it in a private message to the author, but one can only really do this if one thinks it will be fairly received. At least it's not in public then, though it does deprive other readers of a different idea to consider about the story.

I am grateful for every single comment and I have to especially thank Alef who's my top commenter by a wide margin. However, I don't think we should be too hard on those who don't comment. It may be down to shyness or lack of confidence as much as laziness or a feeling of entitlement. If people read my stories without commenting I still feel they are doing me a favour, rather than vice versa. As for myself, I have to confess to being only a supreme commenter - oh, the shame of it!

I find this an excellent observation and one that reveals an interesting view. As the receiver of a comment I actually prefer that someone (politely) point out a writing flaw rather than some perceived character flaw, and I think that is understandable if a reader knew how much of my characters and plots are based on real people I love and things I've actually experienced to some degree. Some stories of mine are literally fictional depictions of actual events with only minor changes. So I myself am guilty of reacting a bit strongly to a comment that either says, "oh that would never happen", or "the so-and-so character is a mean little bitch"............when that character is nearly a carbon copy of a loved one and the story is something I lived through in real life. I guess it's like "hey that's not just some made-up character but my wife, or stepdaughter, or dear friend............or even ME."

The thing with comments that criticize things a reader just doesn't like, is that the actual variety to people's preferences, even within the same dynamic, is vast. And so, I much prefer someone pointing out a spot that isn't clear, or is redundant, or a plot inconsistency, or some remark that would lead me to making the story better, than someone who isn't into F/m with a willing submissive male accusing that character of being some spineless wimp. Odds are that character is probably based on me, and anyone who is in any way familiar with me knows 'spineless wimp' is not a terribly accurate assessment, so a negative reaction to that characterization is likely forthcoming. I've gotten very cruel comments about stories that reflected my lifestyle, and to me that has nothing to do with whether a story is written well or has believable dialog. It's just an attack on something the reader doesn't like or understand. But again it's a matter of wording. There's a big difference between "that character is a bitch" and "I could never see myself submitting to someone like that" and also between "I find that hard to believe" and "that would never happen.".............unless of course, it truly IS something that would never happen................of which there are boundless examples. LOL

As for the kindly interpretation others have towards a non-commenter just not knowing what to say? Well, if they truly can't put their thoughts into an eloquent critique, how about, "Thanks for the story."? Granted not a terribly insightful comment, but I would still prefer it to silence.

This is a dilemma that I'm glad is being discussed on the forum. My stories and serials are here under my author's name, Cherry Red. I have kept up and read this thread with interest and appreciate the varied opinions. It has given me some insight to the lack of comments on to a story or new serial part.

Since joining and participating on this site over ten years, I have seen the number of comments on stories decrease on the site. I make it a point to answer every comment on a story or serial that the reader has taken their time to post. It represents their effort and regardless of their point of view, I welcome them all as a way to get better at my chosen craft. The bottom line is we learn from each other.

Thanks for starting this thread, transmanspankee, and for initiating the recent surge in comments - we might even hit 1000 this month for the first time in ages.

I remember the halcyon days of 5000 comments a month, when the library was so busy that the noise levels from over-excited spankos had Mrs Thrashbottom busy at her business all the hours God sent - she had to visit a spa for a week to recover; Dr Grace said it was the worst case of tennis elbow she'd seen in years. Mind you, new stories appeared daily back then, and regular Challenges laid on by the generous long-suffering Administrators also inspired much commenting. But nor did we have the thousand joys of LSF Publications.

I've commented on everything I've read since late 2010, and I must be close to being the Zeus of All Commenters with my 1.1 to 1 ratio, not that I've read anything like as extensively as many others. And who remembers Zeus these days anyway? (There's an EM Forster story called 'Mr Andrews' about that btw).

I do it because I know how great it feels to get a comment - especially a comment that addresses the story in a bit of detail - and I believe that as you sew, so shall ye reap.

I try to comment on every story I read. Those I particularly like or pique my interest provoke a more detailed comment.

I subscribe to the 'if you can't say anything nice' philosophy. When combined with trying to make a comment be more than just the same 'blah blah blah' as previous comments, even if some of those were quite good comments (i.e. not just great story'); that means I have little to say for most stories I read (and I read quite a lot of stories).

I used to comment when an author got character names mixed up, but was mildly told off for doing that on unvalidated stories. Since I rarely read a validated story, these comments have ceased. Despite this I sometimes do see such mistakes in validated stories and even in LSF Ebooks which annoys me, but I try not to let it spoil my enjoyment too much.

I also tend not to comment on individual chapters in a series, saving my comments for the last one, the same as with 'favouriting'. I soon ran out of individual story favourite, so I've adopted this approach rather than going through the list and trying to find lesser favourites to remove in order to make more space for new stories.