Behind every book, play, poem, and piece of writing is an author.
And behind that author is their reason why they wrote it, who they wrote it for or in memory of, what they needed to do to write it, and the work they put into it.
I love reading books and fanfiction, but I also love reading about the people who made them- interacting and seeing their motivations.
I want to write. I want to write a novel someday, and I want it to be known worldwide and for it to be a bestseller. But I think I would still be happy if I just wrote it- not because of people who want to read whatever I write, but because I wrote what I wanted to write. But even before I think about novels, I need to practice, practice, and practice writing more.
I don't think it has to be good. If I'm writing what I want to, it won't matter if it's bad or not. It'll just matter that I wrote it, and I like it. And that I want to keep going.
Sometimes it can be hard to want to keep going. Sometimes I just want to not dream, to just be ready for a life where my only goal is a better job, a raise, a good family.
But I want to write.
So even if almost everything I write stays private, even if I never share that work- I'm writing. And I'm trying.
I don't know when author appreciation day/week is (there is such a thing, right?), but it's 11 PM and I just wanted to say thank you to all the authors. I may not know your stories, or have read your works, but you wrote them for a reason, no matter what it was. You pushed through whatever was in your life, you moved on, you got a better story. Or you just wrote it for fun, still- thank you. I'm sure that you have made someone's day by writing it, even if it was your own :)) I love y'all. Keep on writing 💛
Reblog if reading someone else’s fanfiction has helped you get through a hard day
I was a bit shy at first because yep that's kinda embarrassing to leave a comment but I realised the depression when you post something and no-one shows appreciation ( TДT) So I now leave kudos and a comment on the most cringe or filthy fic I read every time ✨
I make a post about how smut writers shouldn't be discouraged if their smut has a low hits to kudos ratio, because people are just afraid to kudos smut.
I get told in response that AKTUALLY smut has a low kudos to hits ratio because people are re-reading that smut.
I make a post about how if you're re-reading a fic a lot you should tell the author because they won't know that and will think no one likes their fic.
I get told that authors should just ASSUME that it's re-reads without needing to be told.
I post a smut fic that gets 100+ hits in its first 24 hours of posting (therefor no re-reads counted) and this smut fic with 100+ hits gets zero kudos.
I make a post about how if you read a fic on AO3 it creates a 'hit' and if the author gets a lot of hits without kudos or comments or response, the author will assume no one liked their fic.
I get told that authors should just ASSUME that everyone who clicks their fic likes it, without needing to be told that.
I make a post reminding people that fanfiction authors are not mind readers and that there's no way for them to tell a hit from a person who clicked a fic by mistake, or hated the fic, from a hit from a person who liked it, and if you don't tell the author you liked their fic they will assume you didn't.
I get told that authors aren't entitled to comments or kudos, or to a certain ratio of kudos to hits.
NO SHIT.
But if they don't get comments or kudos, they're gonna assume ya'll didn't like the fic!
Why Book Reviews Matter! Part One-The Creative Side
I’m sure everyone is tired of hearing about the conversation about reviews. As an author they’re helpful, as a reader they’re helper, but I know some folk think reviews aren’t important. I was actually inspired by an author friend M. Hollis, who recently wrote a twitter thread about how helpful reviews are to marginalized writers, who have the hardest time getting their books in front of the…
View On WordPress
Reblog if reading someone else’s fanfiction has helped you get through a hard day
Any form of response is great feedback. Writing takes time, dedication, some tears, lots of frustration, research, but mostly passion. We write because it's what we love and it can take years to even finish one piece. It's a part of us that we lay bare for thousands of people to read.
If you like something, tell the author; anonymously or not. You really might just be making someone's day, or month. Writers feed off comments for years.
So, take time to tell a writer if they wrote something that impressed you. If something made you laugh or cry. If you remember even one line. I promise you'll make them smile and help encourage them.
okay just got done typing up a Long Ass Comment for a fic that i love and bc writers Live™ for comments but a lot of ppl seem to find it difficult/scary to write them, here are some tips from me, who has been on both sides of the fence:
we will nut over literally any context for how u read our fics, nothing is too specific or embarrassing
i once received a long ass essay about the exact circumstances under which someone read the new chapter including action and dialogue and i still treasure that comment to this day
if u read the fic a few days ago and are still thinking about it, open that bitch up and tell the author “i read this fic a few days ago and i’m still thinking about it”
THAT SHIT KILLS US I SWEAR
do not worry about being annoying!!!!! oh my god i can’t overstate this enough you are NEVER being annoying by leaving comments. examples of situations in which comments are Not Annoying:
commenting on every chapter
this is honestly our fav thing, those regular commenters are the real MVPs and i’d die for them. it doesn’t seem thirsty or obnoxious to us it’s our lifeblood i pr omi s e u
also this is guaranteed the #1 best way to get senpai to notice u, if that’s what ur after
adding an extra comment w a thought/detail u missed
adding an extra comment w a thought/detail u remembered from 4 chapters ago
commenting during a reread (this is only ever flattering!!!)
commenting an 800-word essay that takes several solid minutes to read
this seriously never comes across as irritating, time-consuming, or trying too hard; the author is the one who wrote thousands upon thousands of words in the first place and we eat that shit up
(ok i lied, there is one exception to this. the one thing that is annoying is demanding updates, especially if u do it on the same day as an update was published. this makes us sad, avoid this :c)
but aside from that: comments, great, always!!!
acknowledge how hard writers work. every time someone tips their hat to me for the effort i put in, it’s like the 12 hour binges, inability to think about anything else even while sleeping, longggg inspiration walks, and constant self doubt become worth it!!!!
let us know u talk about our fics w ur friends…. this is like, the ultimate compliment……… i’m still lowkey waiting for the day someone pastes an excerpt from a chat log they’ve had about one of my fics because i Know it has happened and i wanna see it……………i wanna know what has been yelled……………..
just say thank u!!! a simple thank you means so much more bc it shows us we have actual readers and not just numbers on a screen sfjdgslksg