Lesson 5

[Robin de Bodemloze]

Lesson 5: AAR Management

Fresh Material

No, this isn't about what we do as WS Staff.

The challenge for the writer of any AAR is the initial lack of attention. If one spends hours preparing a chapter only for it to be ignored by the general public it can be discouraging, disheartening, and seem like a waste of time. By our reckoning it is one of the most common reasons people abandon AARs shortly after starting them. Writing a good AAR is important, but equally so is knowing how to make them known. This lesson aims to give a few pointers on what expectations are realistic, how to publicise one' s own work, and once you have a cadre of readers, how to manage the ecosystem your readership.

Manage your expectations

It's a fact of life that many more people will read your work than comment on it, so it becomes an important necessity to maintain a healthy sense of perspective. I am Skantarios - one of the most read AARs ever with some 210,000 views - "only" generated 700 responses from its readers. Other AARs fare better in terms of ratio between reads and comments, but in all cases the former will be several times the latter. Primus Inter Pares had 550 comments for 46,000 views. Takeda thus far has 300 from 38,000 views.

Often people will not commit to commenting on a piece of work unless there is a substantial body of work to read, so the approach of writing a prologue, to only continue when there is interest in the form of comments, is probably not the best strategy. The patience required to churn out several updates without much feedback can be frustrating, but is necessary, and your work will improve as you get more into rhythm.

Advertising your work

Fortunately there are several ways to get people interested in your work.

The advertising thread - here. Post updates for new chapters - or if your chapters are short, every few chapters. Subscribers to the thread are notified.

Signature - By putting a link to your AAR in your signature, your posts around the forum become advertisement for your work. Some authors use attractive graphics to attract people's attention - it's possible to request art guys for these things - which is an option. From time to time people will click on the links, and a proportion of them will stay to read your AAR.

Reading other AARs - and commenting on them! Not only does reading other people's work improve your own work, authors will often reciprocate when a fellow writer comments on their work. The problem of comments is a common one, so why not help each other?

Engaging in the community - introduce yourself and share your thoughts with other writers in WS Chat. Participate in other forms of writing outside of your own. Set up shop in the Writer's Lounge with your own collection - everyone starts somewhere small.

Entering competitions - this becomes an option once you have a good number of updates. Simply participating will mean you catch the attention of voters.

Managing your readership

Once you have a group of regular readers, AAR writing becomes far more rewarding an activity to engage in. Responding to comments - most of which will be complimentary - isn't the hardest thing in the world, but here are some pointers to take note of:

• Respond to everyone - if you leave out people they feel ignored and may not come back.
• Keep the mood light-hearted. Maintain a sense of suspense when people speculate out loud what happens next.
• Sometimes reader comments will provide inspiration for upcoming updates. Give credit to the right people when that happens.
• Sometimes you'll receive comments that offer critique or criticism in whatever way. These rankle the ego somewhat but often if you approach them calmly they can lead to improvements in your writing quality.
• Don't be afraid to ask for comments or feedback if there's something you want to know from your readers.
• Stick to a regular schedule of when you update, so your readers know what to expect. When real life prevents you from keeping to that schedule, let your readers know.

Happy writing!

[The Kybrothilian]

As you can see, I have already been advertising my AAR in my sig (did the same with one earlier AAR a time ago).