November 10, 2004
You Talkin' To Me?
Our pal Lynn S. over at Reflections in D Minor notes the hatefully enigmatic position of being the last commenter on a post. I often feel the same way.
This caught my attention largely because the number of comments left 'round here is steadily increasing. I love getting these comments and read all of them, but I don't always answer. I was thinking about this last night and wondering whether it might not really be rather inconsiderate on my part. What is the protocol? Should I simply acknowledge as many as I can? Or withhold response unless I have something intelligent to say?
I know what you mean. Let me know if you figure it out (even if it means being the last commenter on this thread).
Posted by: JohnL at November 10, 2004 11:39 AMI don't think there's any single answer. As I said in the comments to that post, looking at it from the other side, sometimes I just don't have anything to say. I try to answer comments that ask a question or somehow seem to be expecting a response and I try to welcome new commenters (unless they're obvious trolls then I ignore them) but I don't always feel obligated to respond to things like Harvey's customary "OO, pretty" every time I post a photo. I know he'll be back. ;-)
You build commenters in a separate but equal way from building readers.
If you want more discussions and more comments, then you have to treat it like a conversation. Even if the statement doesn't seem to require a response, you are better off doing so, even if it is the written equivalent of a head-jiggle.
