I love fandom, I do.

[fightingthecage]

I don't think I like the stats thingy on journals now. I've only just realised they exist. Checking out the loads of people that have visited my fic journal, and not left comments = me going, 'do I suck, or what?'

But then I remember that loads of people read and don't comment, and I've been guilty of it myself in the past. These days, I seriously try to leave a comment if I like something, or even if I've just read it, unless there are things about it that I'm trying to get my head around. I guess it's just an instance of me wishing everyone did the same. But! Never mind. Onwards and upwards. I imagine the key is to write better, and that's always the goal, right?

Comments

[ceitfianna]

Yes, this so much. I recently posted a fic and so far I know people are looking at it on Archive of our Own and probably my own journal but no comments. It's making me antsy.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's...weird. I mean, I've barely used this journal for years, and when I discovered the stats thing earlier, I was surprised at the amount of views it gets when I make a post, even about something dumb. Surprised, but not unduly bothered either way.

And then I thought to check my fic journal, and that bothered me far more. I suppose it's - in my case, at least - a vanity thing. When we write stuff, we want to know what people think, don't we? So seeing all those people who've been reading, and fairly consistently through this year, but not saying anything - well, it just automatically leads to 'do they hate what I write?' And because they don't comment, we'll never know.

Like Flynn says below, it's just the ratio of lurkers to posters, I guess. And I've done enough lurking in my time that I don't have a leg to stand on. It's just different when the stats are there for you to see, and stress over.

[ceitfianna]

*nods* Yeah, the hits thing on A03 makes me happy and paranoid all at once. I'm also trying to share what I write more and write more so I think basically I just have to get over it.

This is why I love the whole Kudos thing on Ao3, you can say I liked it and not leave a huge amount.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Aye, I think we all do to a certain extent. It's just the way it is, really. There will always be people who never say a word.

I suppose one advantage is being able to see who comes back again and again. That says a lot right there. Unless they've got the 'invisible guest' thing switched on.

[mmexlibris]

This is an age old problem in fandom, I suppose because the bulk of content-consumers are also content-creators, which gives us a unique platform to complain from. In truth, in any online community, only 10% of the overall population ever becomes content- contributors and only 1% ever participates. (Lurkers are the norm, not the exeption.) So if you're getting 100 hits for every 1 comment, you're in the "acceptable" range.

I know, it still sucks. We're fandom; we can do better, right? Cue the cycle up again.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I think you're right. And I really don't mean to complain, per say - like I said to Fi there *points up*, it's probably just an ego thing with writing. For me, at least. I'm not at all bothered about the stats on this journal. But lurkers on fic = entirely different.

Lol, I don't know that there are a hundred people total in the LJ LoM/Ashes fandom. So by that rationale, I'm probably doing OK. And really, I'm fine with lurkers because I've done enough of it. It's just that when the stats are laid out for you, it opens up a whole insecurity thing that surprised me today.

I'll have forgotten about it tomorrow, no doubt. It is what it is.

<3