Ever had a reviewer like this

[Wolfie]

I was sitting and thinking. I know just about everyone here on the forum, has an author account.

I was and am now continuing to write a HP story that I started sometime ago.

Now, I don't mind for my reviewers to ask me from time to time, hey, when are you going to update ect, ect, story. I don't mind them adding me to messagers. But what I do mind is this.

A reviewer, sorta author, trust me she has a long ways to go, added me about a year and a half ago to her messager. It didn't bother me, I was cool with it.

As I stated above, I am currently working on a HP story.

A rundown of the situation..

My father battled cancer for over a year or so. It went into remission but by the time they found it again, it was too late. He was in the hospital for over two months.

One day, towards the end of September, I had just finished the first paragraph in my newest chapter whenever my phone rang. It was the call that all children dread, my father had died.

I had just signed on to leave off line messages, explaining to my friends what had happened. This was less than thirty minutes of me finding out. Better to go ahead and do it, instead of making them worry. And I still remember this conversation...

Her: Hey

Me: Not now ********* I just found out my dad died

Her: Your still going to finish your HP story right?

Me: WTF I just told you my dad died and your asking about a f**king story?

Never an apology, nothing. It has been two months and still no apology. That hurt me more than anything.

And not two weeks before, this girl actually made a false account and flamed the same story. I wouldn't have thought it was her, until the way she answered said flame. Then the minute I signed onto messager, she started in with I didn't do it and I'm sorry for the flame. She didn't even ask if I had seen it or nothing.

Was I wrong to blow up at her? I mean, surely if I was told by a friend that their father or whoever died, I wouldn't in the next sentence ask if they were going to continue to write. What kind of person does that?

And this same person hounded me for over a year about a story I told them I no longer had and then they expected me to give them direct reasons as to why my story was no longer online. Don't we as authors have that right to remove stories if we choose to and not to explain why?

She knew the story was gone but she still continued to hound me. Even now she asks about if I have found the story yet.

Also, why do reviewers wait till you remove a story, go onto another one, say they aren't reviewing the story it is on and ask why you removed said story? This reviewer never reviewed the story so why wait till it is gone to ask for it?

[Solaris]

I have never had reviewers like that, Wolfie, but some nasty reviewers who told me that I shouldn't write that character in such ways and I had already stated in my Author's Notes that they will be out of character in my story, so don't complain about how so and so is acting towards others. It's all part of the plot.

Then, there are reviewers who want more from a huge story that has been stated at the bottom of the story this story is now done. They didn't get the picture that I ended that story right where I wanted it and if there is another story going to be done, I would say so.

Jeepers! People want you to drag out another story from your ass or think that one-shot is good enough to have another chapter done. When the author had stated it was a damn one-shot.

Beth

[DarkCabaret]

That is soo wrong. I've had something similar. When I first began writing someone said I was so bad I should never write again, well it didn't stop me and I've improved since then!

[Xx....-Dark Vamp Writer-....Xx]

Same thing happened to me but not as bad I had alot of sympathy emails and people backed away for awhile because I didn't update for 2 years. But now I re-wrote the story and I am getting harassed lol I get the same ol "when are you gonna update?" bleh that shit takes time ya know it's not easy being a writer.

[Ginevra]

I agree that it's wrong to harass a writer for an update when they have made it clear that they have some sort of crisis going on or that the story is completed as written. Or even that they have lost interest in finishing a story.

I don't really have a problem with people suggesting that a one shot be extended into a chaptered story. Several of my best stories started out as one shots. If I think a story might work as more than a one shot, I usually mention in my post that I'm not opposed to continuing if there is interest. For me, update requests actually help with my motivation. I think I work more efficiently when I know someone is waiting for an update.

It was reader input that drove me to write a 145,000 word story in 2.5 months. Without those readers, it would probably have remained as a one shot of about 6,500 words. And I would have missed out on an amazing learning experience.

With some writers "oneshot" means "this is it, done, finished, don't ask for more." With others it means "here's an interesting idea/premise, I wonder if it there will be any interest?" I don't get mad at being asked for more unless it is just phrased obnoxiously. I usually give the request serious consideration and see if it sparks a vigorous plot bunny or not. If it does, it goes on the list. (Which is growing almost daily.)

[Kanashii]

Wolfie:

First, my deepest condoelences on the passing of your father.

I have never had a reviewer/IM like that, but I have occasionally gotten one or two really bizarre reviews.

So who knows with these things? The person was insensitive but probably a young immature person.

[AloneintheOpen]

are you serious? no Wolfie you're not wrong for blowing up at her, thats some, for lack of better words, bullshit. its almost like some reviewers act like writers don't have lives outside of the website. i mean, its okay to want a fast update, but sometimes thats not always possible, even I know this with my constant busy schedule, but that is ridiculous.

oh and I'm sorry for the loss of your father.

[Shinju]

My condolences about the passing of your father and his prior illness.

People like your reviewer who have so little compassion about such things are obviously very much sick in the head, and deserve to be told so for two reasons. 1) Because it is your right, when someone treats you rudely like that, to treat them rudely back, and 2) It may do them some good to hear that they need to seek some sort of psychological counseling and/or medical treatment. Your reviewer obviously does not have a firm grasp on reality or possess priorities befitting a rational functioning, decent member of human society. You would be perfectly in your rights to tell this person off, and, if you felt it necessary, discontinue all contact with this person and delete all her reviews. It also sounds, according to her behavior, that this person may be a kid in their early teens and should not be aloud on this site. At least in that case it may not be too late for them to grow up and get a life.

Edited December 6, 2007 by Shinju

[Toushikku]

I'll give you an easy answer for this question.

MOST PEOPLE ONLY CARE ABOUT WHAT THEY WANT/THEMSELVES.

Though by no mean is EVERYONE like this, sadly, more than half of people are. I've had a jerk like that too, though slightly different.

I recieved a request from someone to write a male/male pairing with a certain fetish. There was no time limit, and it was requested as a oneshot. There were NO other specifications.

So I agreed, wrote their story, with the pairing and fetish they asked for. A slightly longish oneshot, but nothing complainable.

Not two hours after posting it I recieve an emial from the person who requested the story.

They FLAMED me.

Seven and a half paragraphs of 'What the hell kind of story is this?' and 'Where's (a completely different character), I said use them too!'.

Completely confused, I sent back 'You never asked for that character. You said two people, not a threesome.

They then went into another almost story-length rant about how the story sucked and that I wasn't putting my full effort into it. Also that they had 'specifically asked' for the third character and that I was just a 'lazy-ass who didn't want to bother answering a simple request'.

It made me so angry I deleted the story and blocked them from emailing me. After that, I got a few flames on some of my other related stories, and I'm quite sure they were theirs. The typing style and wording were the same.

So don't feel alone... there are idiots everywhere. But there are also good friends.