Because I might set off a pervosexual interaction. If I comment on a pic that's like 3 years old - and has no comments - I really hope that it brightens someone's day. I think it's courtesy. I never leave one line comments on things that have 12 million comments by popular artists - even if it's a button pusher as it gets drowned in noise.

But like I say - for neglected pics or people I don't know - I kind of hope it might make someone feel better.

That's a good point about the amount of responses. Do you ever feel as though, being late to the party, you need to make your comment stand out all the more? Amidst a sea of "hehe sexy wolfie" it's nice to think that leaving a comment that breaks the mould would be a delight. Then again, I'm terrible with not responding to comments when they're intelligent. u.u

I'm much the same.

I figure people with 163 comments on their technically brilliant but kind of dull porn pic don't give a damn about even a well written critique or whatever.

So something I do sometimes is to go through to their gallery or scraps and looks for something non pervy or cute and leave a comment. You can get crazily talented artists who get loads of comments - then they do some little thing and it gets none. I kind of hope I brighten their day that way. =D

I don't know about FA but I remember DA often prompted people to leave a comment with a favourite and I have a feeling that behavior carries over to FA.

I haven't used dA in what amounts to years. That seems kind of silly!

Basically the premise of this is, is that artists like feedback on *Why* the person in question favourited their art. To see what they're doing well with and to know where they could be doing better. However, what tends to happen is an onslaught of 'Wow you're amazing' and 'Wow you're really good' which, while good for the ego, doesn't really offer anything constructive.

I usually won't if there is already one bazillion comments, but I like to let people know if I like their picture with a comment. Sometimes it's just, LOL, this is funny, or I really like this picture. SOmetimes I want to know what made them want to draw it in the first place, or something and I will ask a question about it.

I would leave a comment, but I can't think of anything meaningful to say. :3

I like to leave comments, usually mostly if I have something nice to say about anything in particular I enjoy about it or I'm just feeling in a chatty mood! I always feel appreciated when someone leaves a nice comment on something I drew, so I like to show that same level of appreciation to others.

"What's the meaning of life?"

What is the point of communication at all?

We sort of think about complimenting people to make them feel better these days, but the point is to tell them what we think they've done right and reinforce that behavior. A "This is great!" really means, "Hey, what you did here? you should maybe do it again" while a thorough comment points more specifically at what the thing was.

Personally, I have gone to comment on an image and realized it had more comments then i felt were appropriate for the reinforcement I was looking for and ended up not commenting. Conversely i've also seen images that didn't have enough comments for how worthwhile i thought it was and come up with something to say as a reinforcement.

But that may just be crazy old me.

Because you can't really start a conversation from a 'fave' is the first thing that springs to mind.

Even if it's a simple "Great pic!" comment, I still love them because it shows that the person took a little time out of their day to express extra appreciation for the picture, almost like a double favorite.

I'll comment much more on the submissions of people I know, especially if the picture or description leads to a larger discussion. Sometimes people will like an element of a drawing that you didn't consider to be the most prominent part, so that's always interesting for me to hear.

PS: What's the point of commenting HERE, moreover?

It's always nice to know/hear something about your work/sketches or whatever. Something I need to get better at myself.

I like to comment if I have an opinion on the picture and no one else has said it yet. If I think of something to say but I see like 5 other people mentioning the exact same thing, I like to forgo more repetition.

Great Journal!

Also, sex

It really makes my day if someone that doesn't actively follow me leaves a comment. Sometimes I worry whether it's worth posting a particular piece and I get really excited that somebody cared enough to write a comment about something I spent time making.

I also try to leave comments if I like something because I know how much I appreciate it. But, as others have said, if someone is really popular I usually don't since I don't think they usually read it....but then I'm commenting here so I don't know. :?

Yess I love getting comments from people I don't know, it's such a great feeling to know you've dragged someone away from their routine to check out something new. :)

And uhhhh I do read every comment, even if I don't respond to them all. I'm not really sure what makes for a respond-able comment though. A lot of the times, people are just so succinct and agree with me besides so I have nothing to add at all!

I know I get a little dopamine kick whenever I see 1C pop up in the top-right corner. Because of this I've recently been trying to comment more frequently, and as you've said, be more specific with my compliments.

I dunno, on the one hand, if you get specific with your compliments by rote it kinda feels like everyone's critically assessing the work instead of appreciating it for what it is. On the other hand you kinda get the "This reminds me of a thing I saw once!" or whatever pop culture quote a person thinks is marginally relevant. Somewhere in between is where it's at. You know, friendly comments!

That's true, but I mean specific in that I don't just leave cookie-cutter comments like "Great pic". Obviously I can decide on an individual basis whether it's more appropriate to leave a comment touching on an aspect of the artist's work I like, or leave an (attempted) witty/sarcastic comment.

Been having trouble with the mouse double-click?

It's great when you find out that a picture you've made has left some sort of positive impression on someone. I find it interesting that people seldom leave negative comments because it's much easier to just ignore it and move on. So when you get that 1C in your inbox you know there is a high chance that it will be something positive. Or, in the case of journals and non-picture-related comments - that somebody was interested in what you had to say.

*Gives you a kick*

Hell yes me too. So I try to leave comments, even dumb ones but I like pointing out some detail like the artist deliberately drew some brand of mineral water bottle. Because it shows theyre thinking.

 t-man101 commented (on the other journal):

i am a person who craves criticism. negative or not. but i have not yet received anything in three months, sadly.


 rip_k commented:


heh, I completely agree. I meen what makes art more than just a spattering of colors that form a discernible image is the fact the it "speaks" to the viewer. it conveys some aspect of the living experience. as an artist, I would trade all the hollowed praise in the world for a single moment of "connection" with my viewers.There is more to art than just ascetics. I believe there is two sides to talent, one is the production or presentation, but the other and most important is conveyance. A stop sighn and be made to be mathematically perfect in function, and it clearly states its massage, but it is not art. It just makes me sad that there seem to be so many that miss this point. also it is why I wish porn could be taken more seriously as art as sexuality is a universal experience, some thing we can all relate too. at the end of the day, if I have created an image, and the Idea it conveys is powerful enough that the viewer wishes they them self could pertisapate or be a prat of that experience, I fell I have brought a unique and enriching experience to them and I am happy. in fact you gave me the best comment I have ever received, on this pic ( http://www.furaffinity.net/view/5313393/ ) when you said "LOVE, I want to be in this world. <3, Oh wait I guess I kind of am!"

I admit i am a comment whore. I like the buzz i get when someone has something to say about what i do or have down- its an even bigger charge when its is someone i admire... that comments. I will say that sometimes something is done that has to be commented on, but it is so awesome that words fail and all you can say is AWESOME pic or something that might seem generic.

so if i don't always contribute i am sorry. just know you rock!

Pretty much the only time I say one-word things is if I <i>don't</i> fav it.

To be honest, I'd rather have someone say "Nice." Than nothing at all. Because that means my art was worth enough in their opinion to take time out of their day to scroll down and type four letters and one symbol (even if it just another few seconds). Because in the long run, in a society so bombarded with images and high paced web browsing, few people will take the time to express their actual feelings about something and while a favourite is great, that little bit extra always means something to me. No matter how pointless the comment is.

I enjoy someone Faving a picture that I created. I enjoy it even more if they comment, even if only "Beautiful." Most FA artists are critters with at least some social instincts and appreciate being appreciated.

Sometimes I comment on pictures of friends to let them know I did look at the picture or journal and didn't ignore the notice in my inbox.

Occasionally to say Hi as I just did to Pierre above, especially when seeing someone out and about on someone else's picture or journal.

It's also about being seen -- everywhere the icon is, you have a chance of more people finding you that like you. And the content of the comment is as advertisement: If you like what I say here, you might like all the other things I say on my own page. That goes for the page owner and also for anyone browsing though the comments.

Also it's like a game to watch the numbers of the comments given and received add up on my front page.

BUT

The biggest thing is connection -- like a search for a really deep connection. That's the main reason I do anything. Looking forever for someone that /gets/ what I'm on about. It feels like a shame to /not/ say something when you think there might be (or that there could become) a connection between you and the artist/other commenter. One of the tragedies of life is letting a connection slip by out of fear of rejection, out of laziness, out of self-consciousness, etc. It's better to toss something out there and annoy or offend someone than to let someone of a similar soul slip on by. I figure, the ones annoyed of offended don't matter, the ones that resonate with you are everything that matters.

And when I comment thoughtfully, I have to figure out what I think about a thing. It makes my mind clear, makes me less lazy, more focused, I learn something, I write better. Sometimes it changes my mode of thinking long-term, or for a period of days. Much of my current thinking has developed from comments I've left or received on FA, or from things I have researched as response to comments on FA.

That second part... pretty much sums up what was in my head when I was trying to write this journal! That's the key to really appreciating the medium, being able to make that connection with other people through a process of art and feedback.

My first reaction whenever I see comments that contain an unqualified "this is so fucked up" I wonder who the heck they're expecting is going to read the comment. I mean, I read it! In fact, I get a notice in my inbox that prompts me to check it out. And like... what are they thinking when they hit "post"? It doesn't seem like they're thinking at all. On the flipside, I've gotten comments where people have written short pieces of fiction inspired by stuff I've drawn, and it just warms my soul to see because it feels like <i>they get it</i>.

I've started thinking of art and critique as a complimentary duo, where art is the act of putting something out there in the world and asking "what IS this?" and critique is the answer to that question. Critique in this case isn't so much assessing an artwork's qualities (as often goes on in the comments section) but rather placing it in a larger context, even if that larger context is just the context of furry porn.

When people tell me my pictures or writing or stories from real life are fucked up or it horrifies them, either I think they /wanted/ the "scare" and thought I intended that and so are saying I was successful -or- they have so much disgust at me that they are trying to punish me with shame for being abominable. In either case I've won. While I would prefer to attract more people that also get (or get off) on the weird stuff, I also like to shock. I've read that you don't, though maybe some people think you do and are actually complementing you? So if I shock, that is one benefit to me, though less than if someone /gets/ it in the same way I do. And if they are trying to punish me because they don't like what I do and really feel like they need to try and shame me out of being what I am, then I am damn proud that I screwed up their censorship-inclining agenda for a few moments. And pretty much I have already punished /them/ for being the sort to be so tight-assed and vocal about it, since they got flustered to begin with. But love is a better interchange for me than spite, and I'm not just saying that because of some fluffy moral crap.

"That second part... pretty much sums up what was in my head when I was trying to write this journal!"
I think those two comments count as successful then

"Critique in this case isn't so much assessing an artwork's qualities (as often goes on in the comments section) but rather placing it in a larger context, even if that larger context is just the context of furry porn. "

Generally I don't care much about critique of /technical qualities,/ but I am more concerned with meaning, story, expression of emotion, etc. I think that is at least partly what you mean by "larger context." Those things get me closer to the Transcendent than does visual/physical form. Though Form is needed to communicate the Meaning in visual art (and without it there is no visual art), and in that way I appreciate form. But splitting hairs over the quality of the lines or inking is besides the point -- the form I am more interested in is how a hand placed here or there in the picture communicates the message, however "poorly" or "well" the hand itself is drawn to look like reality or like some other intended style. It's that kind of thing that points to what the creator has going on in their mind, and it's the mind I am after, since that is what's needed for that higher connection. And since for some reason I just plain old have a thing for minds.

I don't know that it is "just" furry porn, or if that is the self-depreciating attitude that surrounds sex and porn and all that in general, coupled with the self-depreciation that happens with furriness. Sex is pretty important but seems to be hated at the same time. Maybe 98% of what porn's out there isn't interesting enough, and everyone suspects that, and that porn's not really reflecting what sex can be.

"I've started thinking of art and critique as a complimentary duo, where art is the act of putting something out there in the world and asking "what IS this?" and critique is the answer to that question."

My reason is typically to resonate with others. Though maybe the reason to resonate is to gain further insight into myself. Further insight into the thing I've just made can be useful, especially from those handful of people that resonate with it/me. It brings up a topic or situation that the other person has also experienced in the past or that they think about often, something probably recurrent in the human experience (though maybe this is something a small percentage of all humans focus on), and they took time that I will never have to reach their current understanding of the thing, and have made different observations. Someone like that is a volume of information relevant to what I want to know. And on an emotional level, there's simply appreciation or love, and security.

Getting off-topic a little because I don't want to make a whole journal about this... I have a weird relationship with being shocking, haha. I enjoy it kind of! In very mediated doses and in controlled situations. What I don't think comes across when I draw porn for myself is that the sense of anxiety I bring to the situations I illustrate is only there to hype up the sense of relief when the source of anxiety is then removed. It's difficult to explain! I have a lot of social anxiety, and it has an extremely inhibitory effect on my sexuality. Like, I always imagine people are appraising and judging me, and when I hear people call me creepy or whatever it just confirms my worst fears.

I think I've built some sort of connection in my amygdala that responds really intensely to the dynamic of social stress and relief from it, and both need to be present for my brain to react to it with arousal! It seems like people assume I'm just into "freaky stuff" because I never draw the denouement, the part where it turns out things are okay, and so react by congratulating me on creating a terrifying scenario. I just imagine it, because it's stronger in my brain than it is on paper!

What I want to get across to people, the thing I've had such a hard time understanding myself, is that despite the scenario being terrifying, the arousal comes from the journey from inescapable social anxiety ("help! my body is unpresentable in public!") to a feeling of intense relief ("oh it's okay everybody loves me anyway"). The actual arousal happens in situations where the consequences of my actions won't trigger the libido-destroying FUCK EVERYONE AND THEIR OPINIONS response that my body mounts in response to my constant paranoia being confirmed.

Getting called a freak is a huge cockblock and that's why it makes me so angry. It's a paradox, because without a public website like FA I would never be able to find people who are similar to me, but it opens up the door to people whose reactions to my imaginary sex world are extremely inhibitory. The best I can do is yell at them, and hope they come back when they understand. :)

"I just imagine it, because it's stronger in my brain than it is on paper!" I end up actually writing or drawing very little of my porn. Two of the reasons are that first, I don't have the patience because it is strong enough in my mind and by the time I fuss with actually forming it into the World though writing, and even harder though pictures, I've either lost interest or just want to fap before I finish the thing. Then all the energy that would have went into making the drawing or writing is gone because I just went and figured the rest out in my head while fapping. It would be kinda boring then to remember it all /again/ and then put all that effort into making a thing I had already experienced.

Another reason is that I don't usually know how to convey the whole thing in pictures. It's a lot of conceptual stuff that words tend to work better for. Plus it is /hard/ for me to draw and not nearly as hard to write. Trying to get a hand to look just delicate enough is not as hard as just explaining what that hand would mean if I had drawn it, or just verbally describing the hand. So writing works better. But this is typically what happens when I try to write porn: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/3284045/ . I don't get to the traditional porn. That much just usually happens in my head in a happy-feeling-blurry-quickpased mess after I am mentally exhausted from essentially writing an essay for a few hours. I imagine that from a quick look though my art I look like I don't even care much about porn, since most of it are non porn things, mainly because it's hard for me to draw porn. But to correct that, a lot of them /are/ porn things but they look nothing like traditional porn and probably don't show what I was thinking about them.


Maybe you should link from your front page to why you like what you do. People would probably read it either out of curiosity or thinking it would be sensational, then they would at least know a little bit more as to why you like this. I didn't know until now that you liked the relief (and the /process/, and a process is a transformation and a transformation a process). It appeared that your focus, what you mainly liked, was the situation that we tend to see, which is the uncomfortable part. And I'd assumed for a while that it just wasn't uncomfortable to /you/ but was instead comfortable. And that is why you seemed weird, that you had an opposite response to this thing that about everyone else finds uncomfortable (but don't worry, I like weird, though that would only make you fine with me and would still verify that all the non-weird-lovers still don't like you, And that you would in fact be weird yourself, for whatever that is worth.) But now I see this is also uncomfortable to /you./ It is a lot less weird to me to want some kind of strife in order to build up relief when the strife is removed. I like strife and struggle, because its a fight that I win in the end. And the end is relief and also triumph. Or I like pain that a thing goes though in order to have in the end someone's comforting it, and also that it has gained experience that makes it more complex of a thing and has given it a kind of life-badge to be proud of. This seems like one of those things, where you want the "foreplay" or the situation that comes before to be extremely bad so that the ending can be extremely good. Contrast, and Process (and both are inherent in Transformation). But specific to I also think you want this so that you can be okay with yourself. I suppose one of my fears or fear-like-problems is that I do not feel strong enough. So there is maybe the root of wanting to go though nasty experiences so that I Know things, so that I have credibility and confidence that I /can/ deal with those things. Among other reasons. I think you want to know that people aren't actually assholes and will actually like you, and that you aren't some abomination, and that people aren't going to turn on you - even ones you've known for a while who have been okay with you - and let you know that they too think you are an abomination. And it's something you want from a real person, which is the topic of the journal or the reason for it. I am unsure how much of this anxiety is that people will abandon you or not like you, and that then is probably rooted in a worry about loneliness. And how much is a worry about /identity,/ which is that being an "abomination" thing -- about being something you yourself find repulsive and that when people tell you you are freaky, they verify that you are indeed what you don't want to be. I think it is a combination but I don't know.

"I have a lot of social anxiety, and it has an extremely inhibitory effect on my sexuality. Like, I always imagine people are appraising and judging me, and when I hear people call me creepy or whatever it just confirms my worst fears." You might also like to know that you are intimidating and admirable to me because you are well spoken and seem to spend a lot of your time figuring yourself out. You seem to be very intelligent. I'm sort of surprised and not really surprised at all that you have social anxiety. At least from my own experience with that, I think it would help to know you do in fact give off an impressive image. If people don't like you because they think you are freaky, maybe they aren't reading your journals.

I'm not sure if this is what you get out of your uncomfortable/comfortable thing, but I'm getting a sense of /invincibility/ and security out of it when I think of that for myself. That no matter how bad anything at all is, you will still be (more than) okay.

I can't tell you how similar a wavelength we are on with all this stuff.

There was a dude who used to IM me who'd call me 'cargoweirdsel' and go out of his way to point out that he thought I was the freakiest artist writer out there (although he felt my stuff was good enough to fap to and to want to RP with me) but his attitude was so wrong that I ceased all contact with him.

I've got a few friends on here that always leave fantastic comments whenever I stumble upon them in the threads. They give useful information or boosts that sound sincere. I rarely feel that any of my comments are ever that good. So I tend to not comment unless I feel that I have something good to say, and that if I looked at it a day or two later I wouldn't feel embarrassed about what I said. That also tends to make me delay a few days after first reading posts.

So yeah, I guess I just finally felt like commenting on this.