Comments on: How to Leave A Good Comment (Part Two)

By: Katie

Katie — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 14:11:57 +0000

I’ve had a few comments long, long after a post and it has often been someone searching on a specific topic, or who has taken time to read the archives. I really appreciate both.

One thing I DON’T do is read all the comments that have come before – often there are pages and pages for a 1-2 page post. So I may well come over as repetitive, but that is a risk I take.

By: Jamie

Jamie — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 07:17:21 +0000

I love getting comments on older posts as well. Like Calliope, I enjoy re-reading that old post and seeing if my perspective has changed. Or even just to be nostalgic!

Short or long comments – I love them both. Sometimes an, “Amen, sister!” is all I need.

I comment when I feel I have something to add or want to let someone know I’m thinking about them. My problem is I tend to to talk about myself in trying to relate to the blogger or their story. Sometimes I feel I need to reel myself in and make it not about me.

By: Calliope

Calliope — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:11:00 +0000

I actually really appreciate someone responding to an older post. And sometimes it is one of those crazy moments in time where the “old” post that is being responded to is actually something helpful for me to go back and read.

also- this is totally random- but sometimes I want to comment but get pulled away. So the persons blog ends up sitting on my computer all night. Which is why, if you check your stats, you will see that some crazy sleep training lady was on your site all night. heh

By: claire

claire — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:23:29 +0000

Regarding not knowing which posts are going to get a lot of comments, that is an interesting one. And it seems really random. Here’s a thought that is related to comments and commenting:
On Facebook I am always astounded at the status updates that get a lot of comments – like: “what I am having for dinner”, or “I got a flat tire”, but if you write about the state of the world or something with a little more substance the silence is deafening. I think the food one is a big one though – North Americans love to talk about food, think about food, think about what they are having for their next meal while eating a really delicious meal, wonder what other restaurants they could be at while they are at a perfectly nice one. Oh whoops, I think I am ranting a little. I say this as a Brit and you know that the Brits are famed for bad cooking. We don’t eat much and our food is lousy so we don’t talk about it really. But beer, now there’s another story. ….
That is perfect example of a comment that really got away with itself and went in a whole different direction.
I guess what I am trying to say is: status updates in a very public forum (i.e. facebook) = mundane and not particularly personal; blog entries in a more anonymous setting = much more heartfelt and personal and comments flowing from that are also much more intimate. that’s why I heart blogs I guess. Although my DP loves to post on facebook about what she is learning in seminary and gets lots of responses from her very thoughtful seminarian type face book friends – I must be hanging out with the wrong facebook people!

By: Lavender Luz

Lavender Luz — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:14:08 +0000

I LOVE it when an old post gets a comment. It means someone landed there NOT by reader, but by deliberate search or serendipity. This is one of the things I love about Blogger Bingo.

You are spot on.

By: Io

Io — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 02:47:20 +0000

You are so tricky Mel – a post on comment leaving is guaranteed to get comments!
I don’t get comment notification, but every once in a while I will read an old post and realize somebody commented long after I posted. It makes me feel good, like they cared enough about whatever I had to say there that they needed to tell me something.
I think your three list of reasons is pretty much everything for me.
I leave a lot of short comments – sometimes I write long ones and then delete them and just leave a short “Thinking of you” or something, because I worry that I’m not saying the right thing in my longer comment. But letting somebody know that I am thinking of them? I know it’s enough for me sometimes, just knowing other people out there are in my corner.

By: Kristin

Kristin — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 02:03:17 +0000

Great post Mel! Hope you continue to feel better.

By: Melissa G.

Melissa G. — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:52:10 +0000

Do you think there should be a timetable for commenting?
*Definitely not. It means so much to me when I find someone has gone through my arhcives and found a post that they can relate to.

Is it ever too late to leave a comment on a post if you don’t close your comment box after a given amount of time?
* Nope, I’m always grateful for information. It may end up being relevent in my future or something that I could then pass on to someone else in the same boat.

Why do you comment?
* Comments=Support=Community=Sanity. I’m so grateful for this community and the comments/support I receive. It’s paramount that I return the favor to other’s out there. Not just to the folks who comment to me, but anyone in the blogosphere.

What do you think about short comments that simply express sorrow or happiness for you?
* Honestly, I do my best to leave a thorough comment each time, so of course I prefer it when people say something more than “Good Luck!”. But I know not everyone has that kind of time, and that they’re sincere in their wishes. So short or long, it’s nice to know one more person is pulling for you.

What is some other advice you would offer on how to leave a good comment?
*Not sure. I think the two posts together pretty much nailed it.

Thanks for posting this!

By: Lucy

Lucy — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:47:01 +0000

Great post series. I sometimes feel redundant to add another “congrats” or “I’m sorry”–and yet I never feel those are redundant on my posts, so I should know that it’s okay to keep doing that for others. Sometimes though, I only do that for blogs I regularly follow.

By: tash

tash — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:21:37 +0000

No, I don’t think there should be a timetable, but I’m in a slightly different boat. I’m really moved when people read back and comment on a picture of Maddy from two years ago, or read up on her medical problems and respond two years later, or say that a post from two years ago is helping them right now. It’s why I went public with that particular information and I’m happy to read what people have to contribute. Sometimes when I’m really effin’ late to a comment (I either find the blog late, or am not in a place where I can compose the comment at the time of the post) I just email.