"Thank You"?
I have a question. You post a fic / art / vid / other fan work, and in response, you receive a positive comment that includes the word "Thanks." Or "Thanks for sharing." I'm not talking about the recipients of gifts thanking you for crafting something expressly for them; I'm just talking about comments from people in general.
How does a thankful comment make you feel? Pleased? Annoyed because you feel you're left with no graceful way to respond? Unsettled because you wonder if it was meant sarcastically?
This is inspired by
swtalmnd's recent post "How to Write a Good Fic (or Art) Comment (in my terribly humble opinion)", and the discussions in the comments. It's an interesting post, worth reading. I agree with most of the points, which is why I was so surprised to see "Don't thank the author. This leaves them in the socially awkward position of thanking you for thanking them."
Wait, what? When it's been said to me, I feel warm and glowy, not awkward. Or rather, no more awkward than the whole comment-reply interaction ever is. ;) And it's something that I say to other people A LOT. It's mostly "thanks for sharing" that I say, and I tend to say it more in response to meta or discussion posts, rather than to fic / art / vids.
So, I disagree on that point, but I'm really glad it was brought to my attention, because it's something that would never have occurred to me otherwise. Is this a rare peeve, or is it -- like the other good points listed in that post -- a more widespread opinion? Because I don't want to make the poster feel awkward. Or even worse, I don't want them to doubt my sincerity; to think that I really think their post is horrible, but "thanks" is the only thing I can think of to say. That's pretty much the opposite of what I want the poster to feel. This is really bothering me!
When I say it, what I mean is, "I appreciate you putting this out there. The world, or at least my slice of it, is a little bit richer place for this being in it." (Gah, and there's the reason I don't spell it out like that, but instead just say "thanks for sharing": because I know how incredibly sappy and cringe-inducing it sounds.) But still, I like that sentiment. I like saying it. But if it doesn't come across in the way I intend it, please tell me. Because wow, that sucks.
So do you express thanks in comments? How do you feel when other people do?
How does a thankful comment make you feel? Pleased? Annoyed because you feel you're left with no graceful way to respond? Unsettled because you wonder if it was meant sarcastically?
This is inspired by
swtalmnd's recent post "How to Write a Good Fic (or Art) Comment (in my terribly humble opinion)", and the discussions in the comments. It's an interesting post, worth reading. I agree with most of the points, which is why I was so surprised to see "Don't thank the author. This leaves them in the socially awkward position of thanking you for thanking them."
Wait, what? When it's been said to me, I feel warm and glowy, not awkward. Or rather, no more awkward than the whole comment-reply interaction ever is. ;) And it's something that I say to other people A LOT. It's mostly "thanks for sharing" that I say, and I tend to say it more in response to meta or discussion posts, rather than to fic / art / vids.
So, I disagree on that point, but I'm really glad it was brought to my attention, because it's something that would never have occurred to me otherwise. Is this a rare peeve, or is it -- like the other good points listed in that post -- a more widespread opinion? Because I don't want to make the poster feel awkward. Or even worse, I don't want them to doubt my sincerity; to think that I really think their post is horrible, but "thanks" is the only thing I can think of to say. That's pretty much the opposite of what I want the poster to feel. This is really bothering me!
When I say it, what I mean is, "I appreciate you putting this out there. The world, or at least my slice of it, is a little bit richer place for this being in it." (Gah, and there's the reason I don't spell it out like that, but instead just say "thanks for sharing": because I know how incredibly sappy and cringe-inducing it sounds.) But still, I like that sentiment. I like saying it. But if it doesn't come across in the way I intend it, please tell me. Because wow, that sucks.
So do you express thanks in comments? How do you feel when other people do?