Althea Jams, Blogs, and READS

My name is Althea, and I am 'just' a reader.

As readers, we most often send our reviews out into the universe and wonder if the author got the joke we put in. Or if they saw the question we asked about something we were genuinely curious about. Most of the time our reviews don't get acknowledged. 

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Don't get me wrong -- I understand an author's time constraints. Trust me when I tell you that I'd rather an author spend their time writing as opposed to answering reviews (other than mine, of course :)) In all seriousness, I would hope an author would reply if they have time or if they are moved to, but never because they feel obligated to.

[This has been the obligatory disclaimer. As a reader, if you don't make this sentiment clear, you are assumed to be one of those assholes who aren't appreciative of an author's time. Dude, I love being lumped in with those guys.]  

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Anyway, when authors do communicate back, it makes this whole Twific thing joyful. I'm appreciative of the "Thanks for reading" because it is a really sweet acknowledgment of the time I spent reading the story, and my investment in the characters. But I don't expect this or any response. It's special when an author writes back. And I've wanted to break out in cartwheels when I've made an author laugh. 

Readers are not as well known as authors are in this community. It's hard for most of us to reach any kind of audience, whether it's measured in twitter followers or hits/comments on our blogs. We don't win contests or get nominated for awards. These aren't complaints, it is just the nature of being a reader. We don't share in the 'accolades' or 'benefits' that a successful author might, but wouldn't it be cool if there was a way to publicly acknowledge the contribution of thoughtful readers?

There are some readers who take time to put together a thoughtful or creative response to a chapter. There are readers who ask authors good questions or make them laugh. I want to know who these people are. I want to connect with them on twitter and talk about the story. I want them to be celebrated and given props for the piece of joy they contributed to this community. 

On the site that supports our Fic Pushin' podcast, one of the features I am most passionate about is Hump Your Readers Wednesday.

We are asking authors to remember the best reviews they've received. The ones that were particularly heartwarming, or insightful, or that made them laugh out loud. We are asking authors to send these reviews into us (we've made it easy-as-hell: push button for form, copy, paste, send). We want to honor those readers who took the time and hooked it up with an awesome review. For that reason, we created Hump Your Readers Wednesday. Every week we will post the reviews that have been sent in that week. 

Reviews can be the fuel that pushes authors to keep creating. The feedback from reviewers gives them the reassurance that what they're writing means something to someone. With Hump Your Readers Wednesday, we hope to create another mechanism for authors to reassure readers that what they have to say means something too.

If I found out that an author loved a review I wrote, it would make my heart dance. It would make me so happy to know that it meant so much to her that she wanted to acknowledge it and share it with the community. So if you are an author, DO IT!