I do not normally write a whole blog post just to rant, especially because of another blog post that made me unhappy. Most of the time I would comment and let it go, but this matter has been bothering me for too long.

I have seen tons of writers who say they are writing for themselves, because they love to write, but then want to hear from their readers. They want subscriptions, comments, just anything to show them they are being appreciated, being respected. It sounds contradictory to me. I mean, if you write for yourself, you would write even if nobody would read your story. You would continue writing, regardless of anything. If writing is your passion, nothing else should matter. But to force readers to give you respect by making them subscribe or threatening them to only continue the story when you get a certain amount of comments - that's just wrong in my eyes.

I know every writer wants to hear something for the readers, but it should not be in the form of subscriptions and comments. I mean, you should not force them to do so unwillingly. If someone wants to subscribe or comment, they should do so willingly. I see lots of readers stop updating and deleting their stories because they argue nobody appreciates their stories. They put so much time in it but nobody gives them any respect. But those are also the people who say they write because they love to, they write for themselves. I do not get it why they would stop just because seemingly nobody reads it.

Respect is not something you should be striving for. Writing should be your goal and respect is something you gain as you walk that road. I always stood by my belief that if I become an author worth respecting, readers will speak up themselves. I will get comments and subscribers and upvotes without having to ask for it. That is why I have never once asked anyone to subscribe or comment on my stories. I never end my updates with 'please comment or subscribe!' but with a 'thank you and until next time!' because it should be good enough that someone is reading your stories. And people will give you respect if you deserve it. People will comment when you deserve it, subscribe to your story if it is worth it.

Saying that you dislike silent readers is already prove enough that you do not deserve any respect right now. Because if you want respect, you need to give some respect too. Give those who read your stories but do not give any feedback some respect. They read your story, that should be enough. The biggest joy of a writer is to have stories that are read. If you write well, they will. I feel disrespected as a reader myself that some people would say that silent readers are rude and impolite. What the?

I might not subscribe to every story I read, but I try to give long comments with constructive feedback whenever I read stories. I might not always have the time to, but that does not mean I do not try to. And you know, not everyone has that much time to comment on every story. Just because you do, does not mean others do. I do so especially to those who have stories with little to no comments, wanting to help them.

I mean, when I posted my first story, I had a handful of subscribers and from time to time a comment that I would read with glee. But I continued writing, not caring about anything else, becaise writing is what I want and I was sure that as long as I continued writing and practicing my writing, I would one day get appreciation from readers. Right now, I have readers that pop up and tell me they have been reading my stories all this time but want to comment because they really liked it a lot. They found my story worth commenting on.

Some readers might not be able to comment a lot, might not want to or are capable of subscribing. That should not matter. I read stories on LiveJournal without an account and without commenting, but the good stories I willl remember and reread and will tell other people. The same goes for stories on Asianfanfics. Respect is not a number, should not be a number. If you are a writer worth respecting, you will get your respect from the readers. You do not have to ask for it.

In sum, I believe that if you cannot respect that some readers will not say anything, will not subscribe, comment or upvote, then I do not really think you should be getting any respect either. Every reader is a reader, and your stories should be available for every one of them. You should not be saying that some are bad readers and some are good. They are all your readers, readers that took time to read your stories. Stop complaining about how you took so much time writing a chapter but nobody seems to appreciate it. When you act like that, you already lost my respect.