So here’s the thing. I’ve always tried to be polite and understanding when I get messages from readers wanting to know when I’m going to update a story. I get the frustration, believe me! There are plenty of stories that I alerted and got caught up in, only for them to either die in the water unfinished, or for the updates to come every few months. Because I’m a writer I understand that a lot of the time it’s because muses are fickle assholes and just checkout whenever they feel like it. I don’t get a choice in the matter, so I assume it’s the same for other writers. If you’re not feeling it, you can’t just whip out a chapter. It doesn’t work that way.
Here’s the thing you don’t have to be a writer just a human being to understand: YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A TWAT ABOUT IT.
Because believe me, if it’s frustrating for you as a reader, it’s a hundred times more frustrating for the writer. We don’t sit on updates because we’re evil trolls who just want to fuck with you, or because we get off on the power trip of making you beg. In fact, the messages (while often encouraging) begging us for an update can become overwhelming. I can’t speak for other writers, but I get an average of at least five of those messages in a day. It gets frustrating for me after a while, and when I get a message that just straight up DEMANDS that I work on something, it makes me want to take down the entire story and pretend like it never happened.
I’m not your bitch. I don’t get paid to write this stuff. I don’t ask for a goddamn thing in return for posting my work, and I would keep writing regardless of whether or not I posted it anywhere. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not threatening to yank down my work because there are a few bitch ass readers out there who don’t get the point that it isn’t okay to behave like they’re owed something just because they can click a link. All I’m saying is consider your tone when you approach someone you don’t even know who is essentially DOING YOU A FAVOR.
That is all.