Bringing this thread over from tweeter, mainly as a reminder for myself: I've been thinking lately about fics that only get a handful of kudos/comments, and how disappointing it can be - and something that I come back to is how these fics are the equivalent of reading stories around a campfire 1/? - ThreadSky

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social • 58 days ago

Bringing this thread over from tweeter, mainly as a reminder for myself:

I've been thinking lately about fics that only get a handful of kudos/comments, and how disappointing it can be - and something that I come back to is how these fics are the equivalent of reading stories around a campfire

1/?

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tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•57 days ago

📌

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•58 days ago

Because some fics, the fics that get hundreds or thousands of kudos and comments, are like stories being read before an audience filling a stadium, or a large auditorium - you have a large crowd before you, responding to your story and loving it, and how wonderful!

2/?

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•58 days ago

But when you post a story and only get 5, 10, 15, maybe 30 kudos at most and a handful of comments - it can feel like you're reading before an auditorium meant to sit 500 but there's only a half-dozen people there. And it sucks, it's discouraging and can feel really lonely.

3/

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•58 days ago

The way I'm trying to view it now (even when it's hard) is that instead of reading to an empty audience, I am sitting around a campfire, with my closest friends and maybe a few strangers who needed some warmth, reading them a story. We're pressed together, toasting marshmallows while we listen.

4/

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•58 days ago

And what felt a little lonely can now feel a lot richer. My stories aren't lost in the empty echoing space - they are being lovingly read to my friends, basking in the warmth of a bright, crackling campfire, drinking hot chocolate and laughing at the silly bits of my story.

5/

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•58 days ago

There's a closeness now, an intimacy. Its the feel of seeing a concert played in someone's basement, or squishing into a restaurant booth too late at night as we eat french fries and talk about truth, or sitting on the kitchen floor away from the big party in the living room.

6/

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•58 days ago

And this isn't to say that the auditorium stories (the ones that get a lot of attention and readers) are less intimate - there's a sort of magic to being a part of a crowd like that.

7/

albetown.bsky.social•58 days ago

😭😭😭😭😭 this is so beautiful

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•57 days ago

Thanks 🩵

gothsockmonkey.bsky.social•58 days ago

I was just saying this morning that it's best to write for yourself rather than for an audience; that way if you get a kudo it's like "Yay! I'm glad you like it too!"

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•57 days ago

Absolutely! I think 'writing for yourself ' is good, but most of us who are creating & sharing want others to enjoy what we made - which isn't a bad thing! It's okay to want an audience! Just helpful to remember that # of kudos doesn't reflect on how much your fic was loved, or how good it is, etc!

gothsockmonkey.bsky.social•57 days ago

Agreed! It means the world to me to know that the six or seven people who read my fics are enjoying them 🥰

shalamarr.bsky.social•58 days ago

This is a great way of looking at it. Even if you “only” get a handful of kudos, that’s a handful of people who said “I like this.”

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•57 days ago

Yeah, that's the intent! Easier said than done, but it's really helpful to remember that a small audience still means some folks enjoyed your thing a lot 🩵

littlefingies.bsky.social•58 days ago

This is beautiful 💚 and really helpful advice as a podficcer too

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•57 days ago

Thanks! And yeah, I think it's helpful for any creator with a smaller audience - podfics, art, etc!!

clairegregoryau.bsky.social•57 days ago

📌

tragicallynerdy.bsky.social•57 days ago

Oh god I should do this too so I can find this again 😂

clairegregoryau.bsky.social•57 days ago

😂 The struggle 😂

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