what is the most interesting/complimentary/satisfying comment you have received

[Adam Donaldson Powell]

what is the most interesting/complimentary/satisfying comment you have received regarding your writing from an admirer?

- that the admirer likes your style, use of technique and characters, message etc.?

- that the book/story was entertaining?

- that he/she wishes he had written it himself/herself?

- that he/she wants to get to know you better?

- that your style reminds him/her of another 'famous author'

- that he/she has become inspired to start to write him/herself?

- that he/she wants to meet you (and possibly date or have sex with you)?

I have received all of the above reactions, but enjoy most number 6:

that he/she has become inspired to start to write him/herself.

How about you guys?

[Graeme]

Initially, it was being compared with writers that I admired, especially as I didn't think I was up to their standard.

Recently, though, the most interesting comment I've received was a request from a school teacher, asking permission to use one of my short stories in their high school class. I said yes....

[Adam Donaldson Powell]

Great Graeme!

Have you been asked to read the story aloud yourself and to talk about it,

or will the teacher assign the story to the class members? Either way, it

would be very interesting to hear the students' reactions/feedback. I just had a

similar experience earlier tonight: several of my Spanish-language poems

were read and analyzed at my Spanish conversational class. Interesting

comments and varying degrees of understanding/interpretation ....

Such feedback is every bit as exciting as official book reviews in my

opinion.

[Tanuki Racoon]

I don't get a lot of mail to begin with (grumble) however my favourite type of letter is when either

(A) A reader says what I wrote helped him/her with a rough patch in his/her life

OR

(B) The very, very rare instance when one of my readers really gets what I was saying. It may not sound like much but I don't know that most people get it...

[Graeme]

No, I wasn't asked to read it, and since I'm Australian and the school in question is in America, I suspect my accent would have just confused things.

The teacher is using the story as part of their lessons on contemporary issues. It fitted what they wanted to talk about, so they asked if they could use it.

[Trab]

Geez. You lucky shits. The best I've gotten is, "There weren't too many errors."

Actually, that's not really true, but you have to admit it's kinda funny. My bee sting story got the best review, as I was told it was "just like it was happening to me".

[Cole Parker]

Wow, what an interesting question.

I like letters that go into the logic behind parts of my stories. I try very hard to make things real, and to have depth in them. Some readers see this and want to explore what I was thinking when I wrote those parts. I love that, because it gives me the chance to expound on why I wrote something the way I did. When you take a lot of time to make something right, I find it very gratifying when readers notice, and want to discuss it.

I also love it when they say a story affected them. I've had several people wanting to use them in schools, which scares the hell out of me because, while I don't have much sex in my writing, there is some there, and it's gay sex, and I don't know that the world of elementary and middle school education is ready for that. But people telling me that what I said is important and should be disseminated can't help but make me feel rather proud of what I''ve written.

I also like it when people write that I brought tears to their eyes. You know you've reached someone if you can do that.

And that of course is what we're all trying to do, isn't it? To reach someone?.

Cole

[Madrigal]

*giggle*

Well, recently, various people told me that one of my stories "though excellently written, made [them] nauseous."

I took it as a compliment, of course, as the theme of the story was horror.

But I guess the best compliment I've ever gotten would be that I 'wrote better than Allan Poe". Of course, this was from the author of the above quote, and it might have been to support their argument that I almost made them puke. Haha.

I guess it's a double edged sword (bite me, I know I'm not using the term correctly). While I did feel proud, it made me a bit conscious about my own style; here I was, thinking I was so original and then somebody (though their intention was absolutely pristine) points out the obvious. But I guess that's the nature of horror stories. People don't get scared by many things nowadays.

Maddy

[JamesSavik]

Comments from Broken:

• I thought that I was alone- I was shamed into silence.
  
• I would have stayed in scouts but I saw and heard how they acted so I drifted away.
  
• You just had to be there to understand the shame and humiliation...
  
• I spent a lot of time forgetting... your story showed me that I wasn't alone.
  

[aj]

I've gotten some very nice feedback on some of the few stories I've done...I think the ones I most appreciated were when people commented on "Story Time" (soon to be on AD) and said they wished they'd had a gramps like in the tale...frankly, I do too. What it showed me was that I had succeeded in my attempt to write a good character, and that always feels good.

Sadly, no one has said they wanted to meet/date/sleep with me...I think I'd be a lot more complimented by that.

cheers!

aj

[Trab]

What? Asking to meet with you isn't good enough? I have to date you and sleep with you too? Geez. Some people are SOOOO damned demanding.

[Cole Parker]

No one's asked to sleep with me, either. Well, there was this one guy. . . . But no, no one's actually come out and made that request. I console myself with the fact that I don't post a picture. If I did that and my dashing, manly charms were on display, of course everyone would be lining up, but think of the hassle that would present, having to choose.

No, what I actually console myself with is, I wouldn't want to sleep with them, either. So there.

C

[Adam Donaldson Powell]

I am certain that you are great to look at Cole, but I must say that (being a dog lover) I find your profile photo quite "gorgeous" and would be honoured to take you for a walk.

Seriously guys, this is a fun thread .. let's me get to know a bit about other writers' experiences/feelings about writing.

I look forward to reading several of your stories and novels and poetry.

[colinian]

The most satisfying comments I've received were for my story Escaping Katrina, from people who lived through Hurricane Katrina. Their comments were that my story sounded just like some of their own experiences, and a few of them asked where in New Orleans I had lived. I actually live in the San Francisco Bay Area and have never been to New Orleans or Louisiana. The story is here on The Hub.

Colin

[R.J.]

I don't get a lot of mail to begin with (grumble) however my favourite type of letter is when either

(A) A reader says what I wrote helped him/her with a rough patch in his/her life

OR

(B) The very, very rare instance when one of my readers really gets what I was saying. It may not sound like much but I don't know that most people get it...

I'm offended. None of these two are in my emails. Seriously though, I agree with these two. And I had one comment that I like that said my story, The Ride Home, was "important."

[DesDownunder]

At the moment I treasure most, the large font, "I Love It!" that I received from Codey for some of my stories/poems. Bearing in mind his love of fun and laughter I have written the following response to the question.

My most interesting responses to my stories and poems are the ones in my mind, which usually go along the lines of:

"Why o why did I write that?"

followed by days of recriminations for having thrust my poor efforts on my fellow humans.

I lay awake at night thinking of how I might atone for making people suffer the posting of my dismal attempts at writing. At least I do, except, when I lay awake thinking of another story or poem that might just be good enough to attract something near acclaim. So I gingerly hop out of bed, careful to not disturb the slumbering beauty that is my significantly snoring other.

I quietly close the doors, my mind is racing with ideas no longer disturbed by snoring from the deep throat of Hell. These are the ideas that will stun the world and wow my friends with the powerful profundity of my poetry or stately insights of my stories. The chosen characters of charismatic proportions will leap from the pages of my inspiration to arrest the souls of my readers.

Quickly I start up the computer, switch on the kettle for some tea and pop a donut in the microwave.

Thus armed with the tools of expressing the noblest thoughts and entertaining arrangements of the written word I poise my hands above the keyboard and begin typing...gibberish.

All my greatest ideas and aspiring alliterations of simple similes and mighty morphed metaphors have evaporated faster then the tea has cooled into a dull insipid mud.

"What are you doing up?" comes a voice, "Do you know what time it is? You will be tired tomorrow."

"Do you want to read my new story?" I ask.

"I'm going back to bed," he says, "show it to me tomorrow."

I follow the deep throat back to bed as the computer bids me "goodnight."

Such is the life of the unappreciated artiste.

[Cole Parker]

Been there. Done that. Who hasn't?

C

[EleCivil]

I always like it when people tell me where they're from when they leave comments. Italy, Africa, France, Germany, the UK, Australia, India, Japan, Iceland...it surprised me how many Icelanders are reading Laika. All I need is somebody from Antarctica and I'll have a full collection as far as continents go.

I once got an email from someone who wanted to set me up with his "son." He even included a picture. Kind of creepy. It was, I believe, the only feedback I've ever left entirely unanswered.

My most common comment that always makes me smile is "I've started wearing mismatched socks." Heh.

The best comment I ever got was from a guy who started out by talking about how he's always depressed, that the world is such a "dark, nasty place", and that he "feels completely helpless all the time." Then he said that, lately, he's been bursting out laughing at random times (sitting in class, waking up in the middle of the night, etc.) because scenes from Laika would pop into his head, and it was really cheering him up.

[Cole Parker]

That's incredible. EleCivil, the healer.

Actually, it's not that strange. I have this feeling you could accomplish whatever you set your mind to.

C

[Graeme]

The time I had an "oh, my god" response to feedback was when I received a request from another author, asking if they could do a sequel to one of my stories -- indeed, one of the first short stories I ever wrote. That author was the well known teenager master, Grasshopper. I was knocked off my feet... figuratively, at least.

Because of my personal situation, I also get responses from married gay men (and in one case, the wife of a gay man), asking with help with their marriage. I can't offer a lot, but I tell them what I can, and what has worked for my wife and I. These are, to me, the most important emails I respond to and I always take a lot of time in answering them. I also try to be as honest as I can, because it's a situation where trying to hedge the truth just makes things worse.

[Tanuki Racoon]

Then he said that, lately, he's been bursting out laughing at random times (sitting in class, waking up in the middle of the night, etc.) because scenes from Laika would pop into his head, and it was really cheering him up.

Your blog often has this effect on me :)

[R.J.]

I second that. :) If you're having a bad day, just read EleCivil's blog. If you want to kill yourself, read mine.

[DesDownunder]

If you want to be thankful you are not me, read mine.

[Jason Rimbaud]

I've been thinking about this topic for a long time. And I must say that the single most satisfying comment I have ever received came from Camy a few weeks/months ago after reading a poem I wrote called Rainbow Warrior. I can't exactly remember what he said, but it goes something like this...

reading your poem made me think, like all your poetry does

I guess that says it all really. If something I write makes another person think, then I guess that is most satisfying. And it helps to stroke the ego because after reading my poem, he wrote a piece called Iraq. I inspired him to write something, that's a compliment that can't be equaled.

Jason R.

What I won't say, is that his poem that I inspired him to write, was so much better than the one I wrote that inspired him in the first place. damn emu. If you haven't read it yet, I urge you to look it up. Great piece.

[DesDownunder]

...What I won't say, is that his poem that I inspired him to write, was so much better than the one I wrote that inspired him in the first place. damn emu. If you haven't read it yet, I urge you to look it up. Great piece.

Sorry Guys, you both inspired me:

Jason found Camy's poetry an inspiration

Whilst Camy, looked at Jason's verses with admiration

This caused Camy to be inspired,

When Jason sweetly perspired,

As he felt the inspiration for admiration of the emu-nation.