Friend!! I was wondering what kind of comments would go good on a chapter for a fic? I wanna leave some on the fanfics I read, but mostly I can't form proper sentences?? Like mostly my brain just goes 'hdisjd yes good' but I don't want to comment only that in case the author just thinks I'm being repetitive :( do you have any tips on what would be nice to hear??
ABSOLUTELY!!! Sometimes it's really hard to come up with anything in your brain besides 'AYO?????????????' and I am here to help!!!!
I'll bullet point list this too so it's easier to read for people as well :D
This is help for people who want to comment on people's fics (or art!) but need help figuring out what to say/how to find what they want to say!
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What should I tell a writer when I have no words?
• All writers have a different Style of writing, headcanons, and something we do that you love! What's the thing that keeps you coming back to Our writing in particular? Is it the way we write your fav character in the fic? Is it how you can relate to a certain thing? Maybe you love the inner thinking/monologuing that the pov of the character is doing?
Whatever it is? Tell us!!! My biggest thing for artists alike is to zone in on the thing they did in a piece that I LOVE and then running with it. A typical comment from me might be a staircase of things such as "The way you do facial expressions in every piece you do is absolutely Phenomenal! You can really feel the love and closeness these two have based just on the expression alone! Your colors you chose and experimented with ended up SO cool! Wonderfully done as always!"
Now lets unpack how to do this for writers! Pick the thing you loved, and FOCUS on it. Did you love how they wrote a Certain scene? Talk about that scene and Why you loved it!
Or did the whole fic just do it for you and you can't pick a fav scene? Hell, tell us that too!!!
~Rest under the cut~
Can't find the right words? Even just copy and pasting some sort of dialogue used or even a scene and then going like '<-This scene of xyz??? Lost my FUCKING mind over! This was my FAV bit!!!!!'
Telling a writer like 'hey I love your work! Can't wait to see more!' is all well and good and you'll probs get a 'o ty!' but if you want us to lose our shit? Be Specific on what drove you to love that specific fic!
I really want them to write more of this fic, should I tell them?
• Now I've talked to quite a few writers and we all seem to agree. If you Just leave a comment of 'Where's part two?' or 'Part two when?' we will never. Ever. Want to write a second part or continuation.
Want to let them know you'd love to see more? Follow the steps above and butter them tf up. Tell them every bit you loved about the fic- new or old. Every single thing that made you bananas and why. And then you can follow it up with a nice 'If you ever decide to make another part to this, count me the FUCK in!'
Will it guarantee another part? No! But you will probably be that bitch we think about if we ever continue it. I've had a few people I'll literally @ and be like 'okay bc i loved ur comment sm this part 2 is JUST for u bitch ilysm ty for inspiring me'. It happens! Sometimes it takes just a little bit of niceness :D
But like. It's like- let's say you baked someone a cake. They eat the Entire cake- NOT A SINGLE WORD SPOKEN ON IF THEY EVEN ENJOYED IT. No mmm's. No aaaa's. Nothing. And after finishing it all they turn to you and go 'Kay can I have a second cake now?'
Meanwhile if someone like moans and is complimenting your cake and how good it was and then goes 'Yo if you ever make another cake???? Let me know bc HOLY SHIT THAT WAS GOOD!' you'd have a totally new reaction of feeling appreciated!
Are keysmashes okay?
• Absolutely!! Honestly some of my fav comments I get are the ones going 'werioufheriufgh??? erougheriuheirfghaweklhjfn!?!?!?!! Dude holy shit I loved this' bc boy I GET IT! Sometimes the words fail you and all you can do is scream.
But also, don't be afraid to comment Multiple times on a fic either! Don't have the words Right Now? Not a prob! Keysmash and then a week later come back and be like 'Okay I know I commented already but I just HAD to read this again and HOLY SHIT' I promise you that feels Amazing when someone TELLS you how many times they came back!
Or! Do you want to make sure your comment is meaningful? Pop open your notes app or whatever you type on and re-read the fic beginning to end and write down Every Part that you loved so you can make sure to tell the writer What parts and What specifics you loved! Or even don't re-read and just on your first read have an app open so you can keep track :D
What do you personally love to hear on your fics?
• I put my heart and soul into every thought behind a character. Being autistic, I analyze characters with heightened vision and tear apart their character from top to bottom. Every headcanon, every dialogue, every written body language, every written inner monologue is analyzed Thoroughly to make sure they are in character as much as possible. With an explanation around it.
With that being said, people saying I write characters just how they imagine or accurately. Or even just telling me some line made you horny/gasp out loud or any sort of emotion? Make me Feral with joy.
Also wanna tell me you got wet/hard over a fic? Oh fuckin mama I eat that shit alive. I don't need a long comment to make my day, in fact I honestly LOVE tags where they're spaced apart thoughts all going to basically 'OMGGGGGG'. Or like 'the part where x did this thing??? I am SWEATING' makes me smile SO much! Just those Little things being said.
Now I'll tell you what, one of my favorite people to get a comment from? My mutual, and beloved mutual writer, Nix. She will comment on a fic from Beginning to End and point out specific scenes and then her feelings behind it. NOTHING makes you feel more appreciated for baring your mind and soul than her, on god.
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I hope this helps you even a little bit!!! If you would like, like a template or smth or maybe certain comments that I can copy and paste to give you a visual of what rocks my socks personally, I'm happy to!!!! But everyone is different, BUT everyone is the Same in wanting to feel appreciated and like their art and time was worth it making just One person go bananas and show their appreciation!!!!
What's the comment etiquette for pwp smut? What can you even say without say without sounding like a pervert?
First of all, if you’re a pervert for reading it what does that make the person who wrote it? Don’t worry about that kind of thing. Sex is fun to read about and it’s fun to write about, and authors appreciate being told they did a good job no matter what the topic is that they were writing about :)
Some things you can talk about if you don’t want to talk about the sex itself (although all of these can also be ways to describe the smut too):
characterization
the emotions that were in play
the way this affected the characters’ relationship
the writing style / prose
If you do want to comment on the smut itself:
some form of “that was hot!”
“I’ll be in my bunk” - old fandom reference to Jayne from the show Firefly
*fans self*
reaction gif
emojis (😍😳💕👌💯 etc)
And of course, it’s always appreciated just to thank the person for writing and tell them that you liked it :)
I was scrolling through this blog and came across an anonymous ask about comment étiquette, specifically about telling an author that you'd love it if they keep writing an old WIP. Here's what I do: I like to say "I know you haven't updated in a while and may not be writing this anymore, but if you ever decide to pick it back up, I'll be first in line to read!" I feel like it puts less pressure on an author while also conveying the same message. :)
That’s a fantastic way to go about it. Thanks for sharing!
I like your blog and would like to ask a question. When reading, I sometimes notice glaring errors in details in fics. Otherwise we'll rearched fics where it's clear the author put effort into getting historical, medical, or other specialized details right. It throws me right out of the story. If it's doing that to me, it's doing it to other people. Would it be concrit to point these out to the author? Or would it be better a dick?
I’m going to tell it to you straight, anon. It’s probably going to come off like you’re a dick.
I’m not saying that you don’t have the best intentions. You do. You like a story and you want to see it improve. It’s just really hard to give that kind of feedback in a constructive way.
The problem is that the author doesn’t know you. If a stranger walked up to you, told you what they thought was wrong with your outfit, and then walked off you probably wouldn’t appreciate their words. It’s the same thing for a writer getting a comment telling them what’s wrong with their fic. Why are they going to believe that you’re right when you haven’t built that relationship of trust first.
Feedback like that should be a collaborative process, and the comments section on a fic isn’t the place. It’s too public, first of all. Plus, the fic has already been posted. If the author isn’t specifically asking for that kind of feedback, odds are they think the story is well-written - at least enough that they’re willing to post it.
If you do want to give that kind of feedback on a fic, I suggest finding the author someplace other than their comments section. Then ask if they want that kind of feedback before you offer it. Some authors will jump at the chance while others would prefer not to.
Sometimes I don't comment because I'm scared my comment won't live up to the comments other people have left. I'm awful at commenting and it's like 'this is awesome!' or 'omg loved it' but when I see other people with beautifully descriptive comments I shy away thinking mine won't be good enough :'( How do writers feel about short comments like mine?
One thing that helped me when I first started commenting was to say whatever it was that I wanted to say before I looked at the other comments. Sometimes all I could come up with was “Wow!” and sometimes I had more to say. The authors I interacted with were appreciative of them all.
Commenting is a learned skill, just like any other form of writing. Don’t feel bad or like your comments are “awful” just because they’re brief. They’re still genuine to what you feel. Being able to express your emotional reaction isn’t easy and being able to analyze writing isn’t required in order to enjoy a story.
Yes, a ‘long comment’ is a lovely thing. But a genuine ‘omg loved it!’ is important, too. Without comments like that, an author’s self-doubt can creep up on them. You’re doing a service, anon, and I’m sure it’s appreciated.
Just today, we posted this comment as the comment of the day. Short comments get love too :)
i really like leaving small comments to fic writers, especially those newer to the site. as a writer myself i would have enjoyed having people comment, but also at the same time i feel that when authors dont respond it kind of discourages me from commenting? do they see it? do they acknowledge my compliment? it feels like complimenting a wall, and i feel bad, because i do know that every comment helps. but its hard to keep doing it when you get nothing??
I can’t disagree with any of that, anon. It’s difficult to comment when you get nothing back. It feels awkward. But I do remind myself that some authors have anxiety issues that I don’t have.
So if I like a fic, I will comment even if I see they don’t seem to respond to them. I promise you, anon, they’re getting the comments. They may just be too shy to reply to them. I still want to support them. They may need it more than most.
On the subject of needing comments: A guy real politely came back to comment that he was still waiting on that last chapter I promised in March. He said he liked it, that he checked every week for updates. You know what I did? I wrote a fucking chapter for him. 2k+ words in a night, because he commented that he cared and was willing to wait. He even said that he didnt want to see annoying by repeating what he commented back in march. Thats how you do it, thats why you comment. Learn!
Asking an author for updates is so hard to do because it’s so easy to seem demanding or impatient, and that can make some writers (myself included) feel stubborn or annoyed or other negative emotions that lead to not posting.
This sounds like one great way to tell an author you love their work and want to see more of it without pressuring them.
If anyone reading this is looking for more advice on how to ask for updates, here’s an ask with some suggestions for other ways.
In relation to the discussion on how to encourage comments: I've recently started putting "comments and criticisms are always welcome" in my authors notes, and I've started getting way more comments than I ever had, especially in my most recent fic. So, it seems that just putting something small as a little message welcoming comments is all it takes.
Great advice. Sometimes people need that little bit of permission before they feel comfortable.
