A question to all you writers

[Stormsworder]

Okay, I am by no means a newbie when it comes to writing stories. I've been doing it for years now. But thing is, I don't tend to get a lot of comments on my stories when I really need the opinions to see how to improve in my writing. I don't quite see what I'm doing wrong. I mean, I know people read it, and I often ask them to comment on it, but my stories rarely ever get commented at all. I think Eternal Darkness: The Fallen has one reader on NSider who ever gives me helpful comments, and that's all. Phantasy Star Online: Darkness Falls has no comments at all the places I put it.

Now, don't think I'm getting all upset and whining about this, because I don't mean for this to be a whining thread. I'm just curious as to what I can do about this. Of course, I may be utterly stupid asking this, but it just sorta popped in my head...

Sorry to bother you guys about something like this.

[Eihwaz]

If you'd like some comments, you could always try something like deviantART, although you'll probably have to join some clubs/groups to get people to notice you. You can find a variety of communities willing to critique your work, you just gotta get in one.

If you're of school-ish age, you can ask your teachers/professors to critique your work. It might be slightly awkward as these are fanfiction, but having read your work in the past, I know you take it seriously.

I hope this helps.

[KodiaX987]

Writing on the Internet gets little to no attention unless you're making a popular Anime/game crossover, usually involving yaoi if you're a girl and lesbo action if you're a guy. These things attract readers like butterflies to a pale blue neon tube. Everything else gets the shaft.

DA-wise, there is a group called Prose Please, which has a workshop section. Every month, members submit a piece of their work with intention to improve and receive advanced critique. I did it with a story of mine and got a handful of comments on it. There's also Fanfiction.net and Fictionpress.com, which are both devoted to nothing but writing stories (although comments will follow the same curve as PSOW)

[Weeaboolits]

There's also Mediaminer, but I've only just joined it, so I've no comments or anything (probly doesn't help that I've submitted but a lone original work), sadly they've yet to add Phantasy Star to the series list, so for the time being NQP remains a PSOW exclusive. http://www.pso-world.com/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_razz.gif

[Moo2u]

I suggest getting someone in RL to read your story if you really want feedback.

[HUnewearl_Meira]

I've been bringing some of my original works to the Professor of Writing at the local University of California, myself; I've intent to make my writing into my profession. From what the professor tells me, the level of my work is very nearly there. PM me a link to something in particular you'd like some critique on, and I'll look it over for you.

[AzureBlaze]

It's an odd phenomenon here.
People comment like crazy on art, but not so much fic. And yes, you DO know they're reading, as your 'looks' will go up up up but the coments won't rise.

I am betting that it's a bit of 'anyone can look at art' but not everyone's a good enough writer to be able to "call you out" on anything particularly awesome or heinous.

If your drawing of a hildebear looks more like Garfiled, they're gonna know. But if you're broadcasting to people who may not be super-skilled writers...and you misuse a quote somewhere, no one's going to catch you at it. Likewise, people may LIKE a story, but not be able to say WHY or how they do--unlike art where you just go "oh your foreshortening is really accurate" because everyone experience that every day.

I write also but never publish stories (I wrote a book on how to do fanfic wheee its published) so I pick up on stuff like grammar/word-misuse/some formatting but in my natural state I'm not the best speller so that will go past me.

I have read your story and I don't see really anything wrong with it. The premise is interesting (most important!) by following Pioneer 1, something which is fresh because very few people do it. It doesn't seem to rely on gimmicry or MarySues to get the point along. The construction is also stable and it's easy to read. (a feat, on a forum!)It is not far enough along yet to know if you have done something like drag-on, a plot-hole, OOC'ness (which probably you wont) because I can comment on stuff like that.

Look at what people who get posts do.

Look who has tons of comments, and what they have done to try and take a cue. For example you can see Shiro Ryuu up there's story. What did he do?

1. Posted tons of chapters in fast succession to keep interest going. (if you're slower writer, you can write the whole thing first, then dole it out)

2. Used other people's chars in his story. This is also being done by Jey and his "PSU Line Doodles" post which also rakes in comments. (of course you're on Pioneer 1, so this doesn't apply)

DONT do what I did
My pic is called "Dont look at me"...and it worked! No one has commented or bothered with the thread. I too like comments on stuff (esp. faces because this is a difficult area for me) but due to the title no one bothers to comment. Possibly your title has to intrigue people enough to lure them in for comments?

[imfanboy]

I'll ask my buddy who mods Mediaminer to add Phantasy Star, but don't expect much action in the way of it either; as KodiaX said, the only thing that gets any attention at all is lesbian/yaoi fanfiction, preferably involving Inuyasha/Naruto/Bleach characters - or whatever anime is popular now and on TV.

I've been writing fanfic for nigh on 8 years now (or rather, I was; now I've moved on to original writing except when the mood strikes), and the most popular things I'VE ever written were the popular animes at the time; Fushigi Yuugi for a time, Ranma back when it was the main thing in the States, and a Sailor Moon comedy tentaclefic written by my Evil Clone. (never by me!)

Hmmm, maybe we should get a PSOW writing guild started up where we look at each other's works and critique them? It's been a long time since I've tossed any fics to the starving dogs I keep to tear the fics apart good and proper... wonder if they're still alive?