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« on: August 23, 2006, 03:35 PM »
I am reprinting some comments here I posted in Flacksguy's newest photonovel chapter.
Generally speaking, though I think we are seeing more and more great photnovels than ever before, I am dismayed by the general lack of participation and commentary that this great work seems to generate, not only here but at RS, which also has its own PN forum with many of the same members and stories.
I am not singling myself out of the bad behavior, as there have been many stories in which I have not personally commented on, so i don't mean to come across as hypocritical. But it is upsetting that these labors of love seem to get so little in the way of replies. While in-depth feedback is always appreciated, even a few of the quickie comments would be a step in the right direction.
There are a number of amazing chapters right now in this forum that have less than ten replies each (and many of those are replies from the authors responding to the few comments they did get.)
Here is what I wrote in Flacksguy's forum. I really wish that we could revitalize the level of analysis and participation here. It terms of material, it seems like we've never had a richer mix of projects, so it is puzzling and frustrating that the comments themselves aren't commensurate with the great work being done.
Hopefully together we can find the solution and make this an exciting, encouraging place to be. From personal experience, as someone who has poured his efforts into photonovels in the past, there is nothing more disheartening than having to wait days and days and days just for a few comments.
Here's what I wrote in the other thread -
I am a little dismayed over the fact that there are so many good photonovels here and at RS that seem to get very little feedback. And I'll admit I'm just as guilty as others, since I haven't been posting much lately and don't comment on every single photonovel (just because I'm usually pretty busy).
But I really wish that these awesome stories, whether they're yours or Swede's or Longhorn's or Ennis' or Lushro Dofine's got more replies. Making photonovels is probably the most difficult and labor intensive project on these boards, as it involves making customs and making dioramas and writing and photoshopping/special effects.
And yet....so often, an awesome story like yours only gets a small smattering of comments. What the heck?
It seemed like last year, all you had to do was crank out a quickie clone custom and you'd easily get a dozen replies or more. But spend hours and hours on a photonovel and you're lucky if you crack double-digits.
I don't want to denigrate anyone's great custom work, but I just wish that, both on JD and RS, that we could somehow revitalize and re-energize the fan base so that these stories not only get big audiences but get some feedback.
As a once and (hopefully) future photnovelist myself, I have had many frustrating days when I've worked my ass off on something only to get a minimal response.
The general slowness of the forums lately has been one of the reasons why I haven't been eager to resume my stories. I worry about spending literally four, five or six hours on a single chapter if I'm only going to get three or four replies.
Unfortunately, I don't know what the solution is. The last year has really been a "golden age" for photonovels, with many wonderful and talented people getting into the act. There are some really amazing stories being made out there and, at least for a while, there seemed to be the audience to go along with them. It's why RS eventually created its own forum (following in JD's footsteps, which made the sub-forum here.)
i've tried to be a cheerleader for photonovels for a while now (though admittedly I've been lacking in at least the past few months) and I just wish there was more interest, more discussion and a greater awareness and appreciation of the art form from these forums.
A story as cool as this deserves 50 or a 100 comments, not just five or six. Like I said, I don't have any answers, but it frustrates me to no end to see our uber-talented photonovelists get so little love from the general public.