#but there are other ways to encourage engagement that don't include stomping your feet and demanding more from your audience. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

byeler · 10 months

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i generally agree with the sentiment of the post about liking v reblogging, but i think at its core the issue is about being able to get work out there and seen by other people. i mean this with all the respect in the world as a big fan of your work, but i’d imagine as the author of the number one kudos’d byler fic in the world (no small feat and a testament to your skill seriously) you have established a solid platform for yourself. i think overall it’s a very interesting discussion and like i said, i agree with you! no one is entitled to an engagement, regardless of the merit of their work. i just also think this adds an extra layer that’s interesting to explore. i hope this comes across as respectful, and my fr deepest apologies if not. all the love.

i do fully understand where you're coming from, but i also was not joking when i mentioned that i've said this before. if you can't tell by the date or the fact that post got a whopping three notes, i really did not carry the same presence back then that i do now. any reblog on any post or fic of mine was (and still is!!) incredibly valuable to me. i know how important it is to encourage and share fics you enjoy because that is what did and still does continue to help me. i promise i didn't post that because i want to stop people from interacting with things that they enjoy.

what really, really bothers me is the guilt trips. i absolutely endorse and support posts that say "hey, if you want your favorite authors/artists/theorists to continue to create more of what you like, reciprocate and interact with them". what i do not condone is posts that boil down to "this fandom is dying because YOU are not reblogging enough" when there are several reasons that someone might just not want to reblog. and i just don't feel like my desire for engagement overrules anyone else's desires for what they want to do on their own blog.

at the end of the day, if i post a piece of writing for free on the internet, it's already written. while getting feedback often feels like a reward for the work i've put in, i've already done the work. if someone wants to read it and enjoy it and then choose not to like or reblog or kudos or comment or acknowledge it in any way, i still don't lose anything from that. i might not gain anything, either, but that is not a loss, because i'm not entitled to someone else's time. and on the flip side, it gives me a huge amount of appreciation for those that do take the time to otherwise engage with my work, because i know it's not a requirement, it's something they wanted to do.

i know it might sound like i'm coming from a place of privilege (?) being able to say this, and i won't fully disagree with you on that, but it's something i've felt strongly about long before my writing really had any sort of traction. i also want to be clear that i can only speak for myself, and that many other authors and artists likely disagree with me on this topic. but i simply do not want anyone to feel pressured to force some sort of interaction with me for whatever reason, regardless of how much they like my fics.

#also pls don't worry you came across fine and i'm never gonna be upset for someone disagreeing/expressing their thoughts respectfully #there's definitely nuance to this #i always try to rb fics and art with detailed tags of what i loved/leave long comments because i know how important they are #but sometimes i just don't have the energy!!#sometimes i like a post intending to come back to it later but i forget about it and never do #sometimes i like a post because i like it but i don't want it on my blog #like. there are a thousand reasons. and getting upset with someone for not immediately spreading their work just comes across as so. nasty #i know it sucks when something you've worked hard on flops. it's happened to me!! multiple times!!!#but there are other ways to encourage engagement that don't include stomping your feet and demanding more from your audience.#ok i have rambled enough but i am open to more discussion on this if anyone is so inclined

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armenelols · 3 years

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For @tolkiengenweek

Rating: Gen Warnings: None Relationships: Manwendil & Tindómiel Characters: Manwendil, Tindómiel Words: 1104, complete (1326 words on AO3 because I put the full version of the poem at the end there. I couldn’t include it here because Tumblr likes messing with formating) Summary: On a hot spring day, Manwendil goes into the streets of Rómenna

Read also on AO3

"We have time yet!" he called. People cheered. "Come on, sing with me! Ere the sunset comes, we can rejoice."

The child laughed. Manwendil steadied the small boy on his shoulders, grasping the feet hanging over his chest. He smiled. Sun rays were on his face. The sea was roaring.

He squirmed in his seat before sending another smile to the children sitting on the ground around him. Then he opened his mouth and sang.

"Vása shines down on Númenor, the waves are rising high. So take your ship, raise sails and go." He paused. "Come on, you know the words." And as he sang again, more people started to join him. "Sun Maiden hear my cry, Sun Maiden hear my cry!"

As he said the last words, the boy on his shoulders started bouncing. Manwendil carefully put him on the ground. When the child protested, liking his seat on the prince's shoulders, Manwendil gave him a sweet kiss on his brow. The boy giggled.

Manwendil stood up and started clapping to the rhythm of the song, encouraging others to do the same.

"Arien! Glorious on a bright day of spring, I call to thee rejoiced! Will you show me the far west and east, as I take my ship and go." He ruffled the hair of two children near him. They laughed and joined in song, their voices high and joyful. "As I take my ship and go!"

The next came the chorus and by that time, everyone was singing. He felt the light wind messing with his golden hair. The sand was between his bare toes. He spun around a dark-haired girl who couldn't be older than ten, then he took the hands of two children and nodded at others to do the same and form a circle. With their hands full, they couldn't clap anymore and settled for stomping to the beat instead. They have started dancing - moving closer to each other, raising joined hands, walking around to both left and right.

"Can you hear the wistful melody, the beauty of these shores," he sang again. A few feet away from him, a child fell on the ground and was quickly picked up by an older stranger who stood next to them. "Can you see me dance and trill, Daystar of Númenor? Daystar of Númenor!"

Suddenly, there was a new person. Before he could realize what was happening, instead of a child's hand, he was holding Tindómiel's. His sister had her golden hair let loose, her dress of red and blue and gold was glistening in the sun, shimmering as the waves of the sea.

"Sneaking in, are you?" he asked her with a grin while others continued to sing.

"I am not missing out on all the fun," she smirked at him. Then they both have raised their voices in song.

"I find myself being rejoiced at the sight of the sun. At the sight of the sun!"

A large wave rose, splashing the legs of the ones standing nearest to the sea. Manwendil laughed out loud, and with him many others. Then in the heat of joy, he let go of the hands he was holding, and run towards the water. Soon he could feel it hugging his feet, then calves, then his knees.

"Don't stop singing! We have yet the last verse!" he called to others. He felt as some child crushed into him and, laughing, picked them up, and held them close to his chest.

"I stand on the board, I wait for a sign to pull the anchor out of the sea. I sing joyful songs, I listen to the sound of blue water bubbling!"

He pinched the child's nose, ruffled the messy hair, and got out of the water. The boy grinned at him.

"Sunset isn't here yet," he said.

Manwendil laughed in answer.

"Nay, it is not, though it is getting near," he agreed. "Do you want another song?"

"Yes!"

And so they have raised their voices again.

By the time they were done, the sun had almost set. The sea was coloured in red, orange, and yellow hues. Manwendil was drenched to the bone - even though he never went deeper than his thighs, the children greatly enjoyed splashing him with water. One mother kept apologizing to him until he waved it off with a laugh and told her it was no issue.

Once everyone left, only Tindómiel remained behind. Somehow, miraculously, she managed to stay mostly dry, despite being almost just as much engaged with the children as he was.

"It is a talent," she told him.

"Sure it is," he snorted. "There is still time to get you soaked."

"You would not dare."

He grinned. "Watch me." And before Tindómiel could realize what was happening, Manwendil run to her and gave her a tight wet hug. She moaned in displeasure.

"My dress, Manwendil. It is new. From Mithlond. You will pay for this."

"Your dress can not survive a little water?"

"You and I have a different definition of what a little water means."

And indeed, when he pulled back, she was almost just as soaked as he was. He grinned at her again.

"Back to the city?"

She gave him a displeased look before turning her gaze towards the sea.

"No, to the port. Atanalcar will be there soon."

"Atanalcar?" He blinked. "He is here?"

"Not yet, but we had seen his ship. I actually came to get you to greet him, but I got distracted."

"Why did you not say so sooner?!" Manwendil asked quickly, already walking towards the port.

Tindómiel rolled her eyes and quickly followed him.

"Because I know you. You would go straight to the port and then you would feel bad about leaving the children behind without spending ages of having fun with them before. There was still enough time to wait for Atanalcar; I did not see the need to hurry. I am sure we still have at least half an hour."

She had a point, but-

"Tindómiel, it has been three years! Of course I would go straight to the port - his return is the only reason why I am here in the first place instead of hiking in Forostar. The mountains! The children could have waited until tomorrow."

Tindómiel gave him an unimpressed look.

"If it helps you sleep at night."

She was right, of course. Manwendil would feel bad about leaving the children without entertainment after promising them fun.

"You are a nightmare," he told her.

"Thank you, I try. Now stop complaining about me not telling you about our dear brother finally deciding to see his family instead of endless bodies of water. Vardamir should be waiting for us at the port - I told him we had seen the ship on my way to you. He said he would be there at sunset."

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