Lurkers

I'm sometimes a lurker. If a story hasn't really moved me in any way, but there is no constructive criticism I can offer, then I won't comment.

If a story has no comments then I will probably comment on it, though. Especially if it has had a few readers.

Yeah I have silent readers. Who doesn't? I think people should just let them be. We're all silent readers at least once on mibba. :/

^ I agree.

I know I have silent readers, but it doesn't really bother me. Sure, I'd love more comments, but I'm grateful for the fact that there are people reading my story.

I only lurk when I'm rushed for time or when I honestly have nothing to say about what I'm reading. A lot of times, good stories make me speechless

Most of my readers are silent, I don't really mind to be honest as I can be a bit of a lurker myself, but I wouldn't mind getting some feedback in comments and such. Then again from me being a bit of a lurker, personally sometimes when I read things, then subscribe to them, it's just I don't know what to say half the time. Literally speechless

the majority of my readers are lurkers. I have about 150 subscribers and I get around seven or eight comments per chapter. and it doesn't bother me one bit. People should be allowed to reserve their opinions. They are theirs after all.

I'm quite happy with my regular commenters :) They are all so lovely.

I don't mind silent readers that much. Silent subscribers annoy me much more.

I'm a silent reader, most of the time I never comment anything I'm reading unless it's for a swap or for a friend. I just don't read many stories on Mibba at all.

Honestly, I don’t mind silent readers or silent subscribers. I don’t mind, because I’m grateful that they read my stories and also because even though I’m not really a ‘silent’ reader, sometimes I don’t subscribe to my favourite stories (so I guess that means I’m technically a ‘lurker’ as well?)... I don’t even know why I do that. :\

I'm fine with silent readers.
Obviously I like comments (who doesn't?) but if they don't say anything, it doesn't matter.

I've had some on my story Extranormal. I don't like them because they're reading your story and not commenting. Comments is was attracts readers so if you just have a whole bunch of silent readers, people wouldn't be as attracted to a story with more comments. But I wouldn't discourage them because I don't always comment on a story. Sometimes I forget to or never come around to it.

Eh, I don't mind the lurkers, probably because I don't comment on every single story I read myself. As long as they're reading and getting something from my story, I could care less.

I will admit that really great out-of-the-blue comments make me happy though.

I appreciate every comment that I get and I've started putting please don't be a silent reader (: at the end of my updates.

I'm a silent reader. I don't read a lot on Mibba, but I've had some bad experiences with commenting and then getting harrassed by the authors everytime they updated to comment again. So unless a story is particularly good and I want to leave a review on it, I just don't comment. Not even on other sites that I read on.

I always try to comment people's stories unless it's something that's really poorly written, becaues I have this paranoia of being attacked by the author. But the length of the comment usually depends on who the author is.

^ Are you paranoid about me attacking you?

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I'm kind of a shameless lurker. If someone's specifically asked me to read something or if it's by someone I know then I'll definitely comment it, but otherwise I only really comment stuff if it's really, really good. Like staring-at-your-screen-in-open-mouthed-wonder good. Like oh-my-god-why-can-I-not-write-like-this good. Sometimes, though, sometimes I can't think of anything useful to say other than I want to marry this story and have its babies so I don't say anything at all.

^ I'm the same way, except if a story's really, really, really good, then I'll be less likely to comment on it because I'm intimidated, like my incoherent babbling comment is not worthy to grace the comment page of said story

I'm such a silent reader, but it doesn't really bother me. If I'm reading something for my own entertainment, then I read it a lot differently than I would if I was reading it for a review or a comment swap. I'm a lot less analytical when I'm reading on my own, so when I get to the end, I usually don't have anything of importance to say, so I don't comment.

I feel like it's strange that, back when I was reading more frequently on Mibba, I used to comment on every single thing that I read, but now that I don't have as much time to read, I don't comment at all.

I don't think it should be discouraged in any formal or institutional way (such as by changing the rules, or using negative reinforcement). I understand that there are many reasons someone might read but not comment (maybe they were just browsing, and didn't read the story properly, maybe they didn't have time to write anything, maybe they didn't like the story, but couldn't say why, etc.).

However, I also think it's polite, if you start out browsing but then end up reading a dozen chapters and enjoying them, to say a few words. This is especially the case when you don't know how much a comment or some feedback might mean to an author. I get that some people find it hard to give concrit and reviews, and so that's not what I'm talking about here. I just mean a few short sentences to let the author know you're reading, and that you appreciate the story.

Maybe you think leaving a short comment like that is a bit pointless? I don't know, but to me, it seems more like erring on the side of caution. The way I see it, hearing that two people like a story, even if their opinions are identical, is different from hearing the same thing from one.

Overall, I still like my silent readers, and I love my subscribers whether they comment or not. At the same time, though, even the shortest comments make my day.

I hate silent readers...well, of my stories of course...*long, deep, and frustrated sigh*

I'm a lurker, but it's only because I only comment when I find that there is something worth saying. I appreciate it more when people give comments that are specific and/or critique. The "ooh, i like this. update please!" are nice and an ego boost but they just seem generic. I like difference, so when I comment it's because something in the writing has moved me or has intrigued me.

I say before going to lurk other threads... haha

I have lurkers on every site or board I participate on. I only know of two people specifically who actually subscribe to my stories on here, but I do have subscribers. I am a lurker myself at times. I don't always have anything to say about a story. It's fine the way it is or something.

What gets weird is when people recognize me from Nachtkabarett and try to add my personal facebook or try to get me support their Manson fanpage. I don't care about Manson fanpage and I recently went on a mass, rage-inspired deleting of Manson and other fanpages who got on my friends. But yeah. Those people are Nachtkabarett lurkers, as in I don't know them because they don't participate.