I post something on this forum and it might take days for anyone to react to it if anyone ever reacts at all. There simply just isn't that much activity on this forum compared to another forum I post to where every time I post people react in a few seconds sometimes.
Also, partly, the difference between a forum and a message-board. Some of the more "active" forums I go on are full of pathetic gamesmanship and keyboard warriors picking fights. Also, also we are a very international community, so when you post your sparkling gem for critique or comment, a perfectly valid respondent will be snoring away in the land of nod.
I agree this forum is more civilized than most, perhaps that is better than a forum where there's lots of activity but a lot of it is trolling and exchange of insults.
Whenever I wake up there are between 7-15 new posts in threads I'm following. Responses come pretty quick until I start work and y'all in the Western world head to bed. I assume when you wake up it's a blitz of Iainisms
about 140 genuine users a day... although this appears to be done from a fairly standard 200 in the last three years, the drop is mainly a consequence of us zapping all the spamalopes more effectively, so the genuine user level hasn't changed much. we're sort of mid range for writing forums... smaller than some but considerably bigger than others I'd also agree with hammer that i#d rather have a considered comment that takes a few hours then a troll clique jumping in to start a fight because they have nothing better to do with their time. There's also a certain irony that the OP has only made 269 posts since 2019... with forums you tend to get out what you put in... if you regularly answer other peoples questions helpfully, give good constructive critique and so on people are more likely to do the same for you
Like all things in life, you get what you put in. Says the moose. I have a handful of people that I make a point to read their work, they read mine. There are some brilliant writers here and their advice is treasured. There are others whom I gladly take with a smile. You can only tell the difference if you're reading what they post and write. Anyone who spends any amount of time just reading will have plenty to offer and be able to do it intelligently. A casual glance is worth just that. A well thought out answer or observation, gold. I would rather have one thoughtful reply to something I have written than ten answers whipped up in seconds. I have been on a few writing sites, none compare with this one when it comes to real critiques, that will improve your writing... quality verses quantity.
It's not uncommon. I'm a member of close to a dozen internet forums, I'm a moderator on two and an administrator on another. I am periodically amused, astonished, and annoyed (pretty much all at the same time) when someone who has been a member for ten years but who only has 5 posts to his history suddenly shows up to complain that it's getting slow. WHAD'JA EXPECT, DOOFUS?
Personal observation & opinion: Your recent posts dont seem to have questions.... They are more so musings. Ive read them. They were interesting. The one about falling in love with your character made me think og Pygmalion.... But because they felt more like musings to me rather than questions, i didnt feel the need to respond. If you want interaction, post your musings in the lounge (which you have done and are now getting interaction). Sometimes WHERE you post is important. Character and Setting Development threads to post things that essentially end with: "If you're wondering what my point is I'm not sure I have one. I just wanted to share my thoughts when I read an old story of mine" isnt going to garner much interaction (i personally didnt know what to say after that so i moved on). To reiterate: Sharing is good. But where you share certain things is even better
I wanted to respond to this one - I personally use the forum primarily through the New Posts link, so I don't pay a lot of attention to where posts are made - which can sometimes be a total pain when I'm trying to find a thread. In response to everyone who said, "you get what you put in", I completely agree. As far as forums are concerned, they're places for discussion. If you ask a question, 0r start a point for discussion, you will find you get more responses. As @J.T. Woody says, if you just ramble, chances are, people will read it, go "oh, okay", and move on. If you want responses, make it clear what you actually want responses to. If you post a thread that says "The office is closed, and it's time to write.", I'm not sure what kind of response you're looking for. Sure, the forum *could* be more active. All forums could. I'm a moderator on a forum that's probably 2-3 times more active than this one, and I like to think we keep the content and interactions troll-free and as high quality as possible. But the quantity of postings on here is about appropriate for its audience, IMO. It seems to me that during the height of lockdowns, the forum was more active, but that's really to be expected. I often come here to take a break from amateur academics arguing about the right interpretation of the word "khan". When I googled "writing forum", I seem to recall WF was one of the first that came up, so I'm not sure what else you can really ask for. This reminds me a little of the guy on a business forum I'm on, who posted moaning about not getting responses 5 minutes after posting his question. It didn't occur to him that many posters were too busy running their businesses to be on standby to answer questions on a forum!
This. I've found I get a lot more responses if I directly ask a question, and it should be either right at the end or in the title of the thread. Way back, on a different forum, I had a tendency to ask a question and then conjecture for a while about my possible options. This always killed all responses, because I basically already answered my own question. And just to be clear, I don't know if the OP did anything like this, I'm just talking in general about how to get responses. Another thing that helps immensely is to interact in a friendly way with people on the forum. It's just like in real life, its up to you to talk to people, be friendly, try to get to know a few of them (to what extent that's cool on a forum I mean). Those people will be the main ones who respond to you, because you tend to respond to them. It's give and take, just like our parents (or society or whatever) taught us.
Oh, that one's a classic. People who post in the middle of a weekday work day, and then act seriously annoyed when all the people who might be able to answer the question (which is usually lacking enough information to be even marginally understood) are at work and won't be able to respond for another four to six hours. It's all part of the instant gratification syndrome and sense of self-entitlement that people have developed. It's only becoming worse. And the worst offenders are the ones who NEVER contribute to solving another forum member's problem.
I wish I was more active on this forum, too. Not in Lounge, but Writing Prompts or something like that. I've strayed too far. (Arrgh, just noticed this is in Lounge!) Alerts are darth insidious
You’re probably posting in the wrong section. If you’re looking for critiques and writer-related stuff then you might wait for a response, but get involved in the madness that is The Lounge and it’s as active as anywhere.
I ike this place because of the quality, not the volume. Reminds me of "Never mind the quality, feel the width". 1973 comedy possibly remembered by a few. Like Naomasa2989 I look at "New posts" so no problem finding things. I would say that where you post worries me less than how meaningful the thread title. I post infrequently. Normally too occupied doing other things. However I'm writing everyday and often trying to use input I gained here.
