Data on Commenting in the Tolkien Fanfic Community

[dawn_felagund]

I posted some analysis of this data over on my blog (as well as a recap of the data in text form for those who prefer a non-visual format) but I thought it might interest some people here as well!

Comments

[shirebound]

I'm not surprised that a larger percentage of writers leave feedback. We might appreciate more clearly the time and effort it takes to write something for which there is no other 'payment' other than feedback, and also the (occasionally) courage it takes to post something. :)

[dawn_felagund]

I definitely want to look at that data closer, including the writers who admit that they don't comment. I don't know if you've read my linked post, but I also think there is a lot of anxiety around leaving comments: People not knowing how to distill a complicated set of emotions and reactions down into a comment. Authors might also be more comfortable with that kind of thinking/writing ... and, yes, know that even if they "only" say, "This story really moved me, thanks for writing it!" will be appreciated by the majority of authors for having done so.