Could you give the full explanation for why you dislike the "comments = paying for fic" analogy? Thanks!
I don’t want capitalist ideology affecting the way that I use my free time. Strong words, I know, but I feel strongly about that. My free time can be spent however I want it to be spent, and I don’t want anyone telling me that I should be “monetizing” it or that I’m missing out on cashing in. I don’t care. I want to write stories to make myself happy and to make other people happy. The end. No caveats about commenting attached.
Fic is not my job. My job is my job. Fic is one of the ways I decompress from working and from the rest of my life. If I let myself start going down the path of “I should be paid for this” then I’ll just be working all the time. Fic will be an obligation rather than an outlet, and I want my hobby to remain a hobby.
Tied to this idea of “payment” is the idea of a minimum wage. The idea that just because I’ve written and posted a fic, I deserve “the bare minimum” of a kudos if someone reads it. I’ve been caught by this particular lie before and it’s an insidious one. Clicking the kudos button is so easy, but if we make it a requirement for everyone who finishes a story to click on it, then it loses all value. Why have a kudos button if clicking it is required?
This also leads to the idea of readers somehow “stealing” a story if they read it without leaving kudos or a comment. I often see the argument that published authors get paid when people buy their books, so fic authors should get paid in comments and kudos. Well, if reading without “paying” for it is “theft” then shouldn’t we arrest everyone with a library card? Is it also theft if I really loved a book and lend my copy to a friend? They haven’t bought the book, but they’re reading it.
Look, I get that everyone wants more comments and kudos. We want to know for sure that we’re really “good” and other people telling us that is what feels like the best way to know. It’s the part where it becomes required that makes me incredibly uncomfortable. I want more comments and kudos just like everyone else, but I’m not the one who decides whether I get them. I’m okay with that. I still like my story even if no one else even reads it. That’s the important thing.
