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March 09, 2005
Comments: I
To my mind, making it possible for readers to comment directly upon what they've read, and, by the same technological token, publishing those comments, thus expanding the original piece of writing in unforeseen ways and to unforeseen dimensions - these aspects of the Comments feature of a Web log mark an epoch in the history of literacy itself. That sounds grandiose, and it may well be mistaken. But I think not. Comments have certainly begun to change the spirit in which I write. Like every writer since the introduction of cuneiforms, I used to write for unseen, unknown readers, only a very tiny fraction of whom could ever be expected to respond. Now I write with the flavor of comments that I've received very much in my mind. Again like any writer, I crave proof that what I've written has actually penetrated other people's skulls. Unfortunately, I've become greedy. I find that I want more. I want conversation.
Because it is what I do, I forget that writing can be hard work. (I try to forget that writing is ever hard work for me.) Writing requires thinking, and publishing what you've written drags vanity into the picture. And I'm aware that the cool factor of a given site is perhaps the most powerful prompter of commentary. Just as no New Yorker wants to pay for a meal at a backwater restaurant, so no blog visitor wants to post a comment that nobody but the site owner will ever read. What I have to say about comments takes the foregoing as understood. I also want it to be understood that I am not setting forth rules for visitors at my sites. I'm suggesting guidelines for being a good visitor at any site.
First of all, it is never improper, and always welcome, to say "thanks" to a blogger whose work you enjoy. Because every comment, even the most critical, is an expression of gratitude, I'm specifically addressing visitors who never comment, for whatever reason. You might not, to carry forward my analogy, wish to pay for dinner at an empty restaurant - unless, of course, you like the food, in which case the restaurant will probably not remain empty indefinitely. Just because you're invisible (and you're not, really; at a minimum, your visit leaves a trace on the tracking service) does not excuse you from the moral obligation to say "thanks."
Moral obligation? Since when? Well, since the invention of blogging software. So forgive yourself for not having seen that visiting a Web log is different from any other kind of reading. The blogger is more or less permanently saying, "You're welcome" - meaning you. Exactly you, not the guy standing behind you. You and the blogger may not know one another (yet), but the relationship is quite real.
Besides, have you stopped to think how agreeable it is to give pleasure?
Don't say "thanks" if you don't mean it: if, that is, a site leaves you cold or indifferent. Just keep moving to more congenial spots.
Once you've gotten used to saying "thanks" every once in a while, consider other pleasantries - formulaic, perhaps, but most welcome when sincere - such as "Nice post," "Well said," or "I agree!" I suspect that you will soon find yourself adding details.
Bloggers don't expect you to write fluently. They hope that you will write as clearly as you can, and that you resist the temptation to "think out loud" - "writing silently" is much preferred. And bear in mind that vanity is useful only when it's positive - when it inspires us to look good and behave well. Withholding comment because you don't think that you'll make as good a showing as other commenters is always wrong. It's your spirit that counts, not your rhetoric.
So: hie to the nearest Comment box and say "Thanks." No one will think that you're stupid or unimaginative or lazy - nobody besides you, that is. If I'm the recipient of the Comment, you can be sure that I won't be carping. Mind, it's not that I want thanks in particular. It's just that any acknowledgment is welcome, and "thanks" happens to be universally appropriate - as well as very, very easy.
Posted by pourover at March 9, 2005 08:55 PM
Comments
How's this: The piece above reads like the script for an NPR pledge drive.
Posted by: Walrus Pete at March 10, 2005 12:31 PM
No wonder it was so easy to write!
Posted by: R J Keefe at March 10, 2005 12:34 PM
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