#on internet engagement

[teaandcrowns]

fanfiction.net also send emails, though the site itself has devolved into a hot mess imo.

I think there's a really important conversation to be had here around the type of content-as-content that social media has pushed and pushed and pushed on people the last decade or so, to instill some implication that something has to be recent, current, brand shiny new, in order to be worthwhile or worth giving deeper connection and attention to. Content-as-text*, if you will.

Written works—which include fanfiction, yes—are as permanent fixtures as we can get of content-as-text, and they are evergreen in allowing for connection and engagement, and fanfiction is open to this in particular with the capability of comments (and direct messaging).

I think there's another element to this regarding how engagement with content-as-content, which does not seem to encourage in-depth interaction, lengthy discussion, or a series of back and forths between creators and audience or even between members of the audience. Content-as-text, in my mind, is much more encouraging of that, and was also heavily encouraged by Web 1.0 primarily with forums and early Web 2.0 with interactive blogging-forum sites like LiveJournal. Web 3.0, with its focus on constant generation of content (as content), summarily leaves the space and, I would argue more importantly, time for longer and deeper interaction and engagement in its proverbial dust; it is not concerned with how people actually feel about the content so long as they are still consuming the content.

This brings me to a thought concerning what I, and others, have noted as a lack of what I have frequently seen termed "curating your fandom experience." Algorithms now decide what to content-as-content to show based off what you have seen before. There are (virtually) no more chronological feeds. You can only "sleep" functions rather than say, "No." In short, you are no longer the one with the most agency in your online experience if you choose to use or be on certain sites. If this has been someone's primary modality of interacting with any kind of fandom spaces (or any online community spaces), there can almost be no way to have true organic community the way humans have always made community and made connections. You are not encouraged to view something older as still relevant, you are not encouraged to curate your own spaces because you are being given things based off a calculation of your activity, whether or not that is accurate. It's become a commodification of our attention, because so long as we keep consuming, they will keep the conveyor belt of content-as-content churning and turning.

This is a very circumlocutious and somewhat long-winded way of saying that we need to start taking back our spaces, our time, and our attention. Don't sort AO3 by most kudos or most comments; try sorting by first uploaded. Try not sorting at all (after you apply your preferred filters) and go five, ten, twenty pages deep to see what you find. Interact with the content-as-text as it moves you. Choose who you want to follow—use the "blogs you follow" tab on tumblr instead of the "recommended for you." Engage meaningfully with other members of your communities and find others through those connections instead. Use fanfic rec lists made by folks; make your own and share them. Take back your attention, your time, and your spaces.

*by "text" I mean anything that we can experience, read, or view as an audience and think and interact deeply about across modalities, not just written word

not to be "comment on fanfic even if they are oooold"

But I just read a pretty good fic published in 2014-2015 (you know, roughly TEN YEARS AGO) and I was like, damn this is so cool, I have to leave a comment, even if you know, they probably wont see it...

The author replied less than an hour later.

[moyazaika]

hmm

[provinzpoet]

On Engagement Bait

Whenever you see it, that's an additional five years. All currently active negative effects are dispelled.

A lil' essay.

I hate engagement bait - with a passion.

"Reblog if you care" "Reblog to mark your blog safe for [marginalized group X]" "Reblog or your mom dies in her sleep tonight."

"Reblog, or else."

I know most of these are made in jest. Harmless fun, right? But to me, "harmless fun" doesn’t excuse poor taste. Especially when it veers into manipulation.

So, here's a little something below the cut. If you're here for the poetry, you're free to scroll. If you're here for the ramblings, keep reading.

Either way, have another look at the duck. That's another 5 years on the house. Download it, look at it whenever - stack that immunity to last a lifetime. No engagement bait shall ever touch you again.

That little ducky up there was born in response to a post about you not having any original thought for the next five years.... unless you reblog.

It was meant as silent defiance, as a soft out. Then @bred-is-a-dumb-name reblogged my little ducky. With the following tags:

First and foremost: Thank you for speaking so clearly. Your tags were the push I needed to sit down and write this.

I. The Premise

Engagement bait plays with a simple human desire. Recognition. People want to be seen, they want to be recognized. Above all, they want to be validated.

From the early days of social media 'likes' equaled validation.

On tumblr, the currency of choice is reblogs. Reblogging equips a post with wings, allowing it to touch down on your own blog, be exposed to your own audience. The growth potential here is exponential, as reblogs don't just live tucked away in your profile, but are the groundwork of the tumblr algorithm on what content to show to its userbase.

My Thesis: You are responsible for the content you pass along to your mutuals. Even if you didn’t create it. Even if you reblogged it "ironically."

From the creator’s side, engagement bait is often a way to chase notes - a hit of serotonin from the numbers ticking up. And I get that. I love seeing my posts resonate too - reading your tags, your comments, the ways my words find you.

But I would never boost engagement through pain, coercion, or bad vibes in general. And I think no one should.

II. The Danger

Here's the catch: reblogging engagement bait feeds a manipulative feedback-loop.

But, at the same time, Let me be clear: Not all engagement bait is created equal.

Baity posts like "reblog to show your moots you appreciate them" (you know who you are! And I appreciate you too! c: ) are fine. Sure, they're meant to play the algorithm and the very human rationale that 'external validation is more valuable than internal validation' . basically: "If I reblog this post it'll mean more than if I just tell my moot they mean a lot to me".

At best, they're a reminder to be kind.

But - and this is the important part - there is also a different kind. Engagement bait like "Reblog or your mother will die tonight", "Reblog or no more creativity for 5 years".

These aren't funny to everyone. To some, they're not even neutral.

They're cruel. They are emotional abuse hidden under the guise of a 'funny context'. Of the absurdity of a duck holding that power.

Let's be real. It's not holding that power. And you'll reblog it ironically with funny tags in the vein of 'oh, better be sure, mighty duck'. Unless you don't.

Because guess what? It IS holding that power.

To those with OCD. To those in intrusive thought loops. To those with deeply rooted fear of loss. To the neurodivergent. Maybe even to you? To those, these posts can be triggers.

III. The Mechanics of Harm

To people like that, the harmless meme becomes a source of real-world stress.

It's toying with - to me - deeply problematic, psychological concepts:

Compulsion and Intrusive Thoughts For someone with intrusive thought patterns, seeing a post that ties inaction to harm can spark a cycle that’s hard to break. It’s not a meme - it’s a trigger.

Guilt-Tripping and Moral Coercion There’s a quiet cruelty to coercion wrapped in kindness. ‘Only good people will reblog’ is just a digital form of social blackmail.

False Urgency & Manufactured Stakes The moment a post tells you "do this now, or else" - it's bypassing your agency. It swaps thought for panic.

Neurodivergent Sensitivity to Harm Avoidance This isn’t about superstition. It’s about the fear of what happens if we don’t play along. That fear is real. Many neurodivergent folks have built entire internal systems around minimizing perceived danger. These posts poke at that. They exploit it.

The Illusion of Safety through Compliance Some users - especially those who’ve seen harm happen "coincidentally" after ignoring a chain post - develop ritualized engagement. It becomes a way to feel in control, even when logic says otherwise. Engagement bait can reignite old fears tied to punishment, loss, or abandonment. And I get it. These posts feel silly. But they sit in the mind like a splinter.

Yes, it's uncomfortable having it called out like this - and it should be. It's meant to be.

IV. Walk a mile in their shoes

I’m not writing this from a pulpit.

I’ve wrestled with compulsive thoughts and weird little rituals my whole life. So when I say this stuff can hurt, it’s not theoretical. It’s personal.

And I’m not here to scold. I’m just inviting you to zoom out. To consider that your reblog might have more impact than you intended.

V. Being Responsible

I try to bear responsibility for what I put out here. Tumblr is full of vulnerable, brilliant, open people. The way we talk to each other matters.

Don't get me wrong, sharing a joke is fun - But if you knew a joke would hurt your friend, you'd probably hold it back. The same logic applies here.

I'm not here to shame anyone - unless you’re making this kind of post in bad faith. If you’re knowingly feeding on people’s fears for notes? That’s not a joke. That’s cruelty. That, to me, is despicable.

All I wanted was to offer this, another point of view. And just maybe, if you’ve ever reblogged something like that without thinking, this helped you see it through a different lens.

Be nice to each other. Look out for each other.

We're all navigating this life for the first time, let's not make it any harder than it needs to be, okay?

Yours truly,

Poe

Just silently accept. The donkey will know.

[rochenn]

Imagine being into SW and medieval epics and falling for the cunty old swashbuckler in BOTH. Hagen!Dooku for my little soul <3

(outfit and pose entirely stolen from Fritz Lang's 1924 Nibelungen silent film. it's free on youtube btw. if you even care. it goes stupid hard)

[xxivletxx]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU👏👏👏👏👏

[bklily]

It's so baffling to me that people will blame marinette for literally anything. At the beginning of the episode we see her talking about Sabrina and how happy she is that she's changed and is now helping people. And then she shifts her focus to her planned date with Adrien for most of the episode.

But GOD FORBID, she asks ONE QUESTION, in a not sweet saccharine princess tone, because she is CONFUSED, and lacking CRITICAL INFORMATION, which is what the ENTIRE EPISODE BUILD TOWARDS, and she's suddenly "mean" and "a bully" and "ruined this season".

Like. Some people make it so blatantly obvious that they just look for reasons to shit on a fictional 14 year old girl due to her simply existing. C'mon.

[hoofpeet]

it's wild when you're like 16 on here getting anon hate is the most important thing in your life for a few days. and then when you're 20 you have a job and taxes to pay and driving lessons and shit and getting anon hate literally doesn't even register as a problem. "your art looks like shit" there's a housing crisis out here I don't have time to worry about that

[void-token]

I think after listening to Caramel on loop the only thing I can add to the discussion is just how we as a fandom can do better. Yes respecting the band's privacy is absolutely what everyone should be doing and is also the most basic thing you could possibly do.

But after Caramel we need to do more, more than just telling other people to feel ashamed or to do better.

If you see people spreading their real names or pictures of them unmasked? Block them, I'm so serious. Stop giving these people views and engagement, don't argue, don't retweet or comment with something you think is a scalding or witty clapback, banish these people to the fandom's shadow realm. If you really need to confront them at most tell them that what they're doing is weirdo behavior before blocking them.

And this part is know is going to be controversial but I need you dear reader to stay with until the end. Call them out, post their usernames, tell people who these weirdos are. "Oh I don't want them dog piled or harassed" I don't either but guess what? The fandom should know who these people are so they can also block them. Not naming the people who decide to disrespect boundaries is only protecting the weirdos and they don't deserve it. Do you hear me? People who doxx the very people they say they're fans of don't deserve protection from the fandom.

Throw those weirdos out.

And if you really don't like confrontation go to the band's socials and drown out the weirdos with your love and appreciation.

Vessel has done all that he can by asking for people to let him remain anonymous and now writing and releasing Caramel. Now I think its really time for the fandom to put its collective money where its mouths are. If you really want to fight and protect Vessel (and the other of course) then this is the best way to do it. Caramel needs to be the line in the sand that the fandom says "no further, we're done with this and if you want to cross this line then we're going to push back."

[bettertwin1]

Okay just being serious for a second,

To any minor on this site and minors who are our mutuals,

if you receive an anon or ask saying they are your secret admirer i'm actually begging you not to take it seriously or to let it get too far, infact just ignore it all together!

You do not know who is sending that ask, you do not know if they are genuinely meaning it platonically or romantically, they are a stranger and you shouldn't be taking their word for it! Do not entertain it! It's so dangerous!

Parasocial relationships are real, creeps can pretend to be minors, you can genuinely end up in a seriously dangerous relationship.

You do not know these people!

[qqquib]

this is a great time to remind everyone to go offline, to talk with your friends, to engage in content that's fulfilling, to go outside. to live a life that has meaning away from the internet.

[everwalldigan]

hey quick question i saw that post of yours where you listed the shops you don't like. I wanted to ask you why you didn't like damijon? I mean I'm not a shipper but a lot of people like it I'm just confused

YEAH its a very popular ship in the fandom but i dont like it for multiple reasons: Damijon in all their iterations have a weird age gap (before Jon was aged up Damian was 13 and Jon was 10 and after he was aged up Damian is 14 and Jon is 17/18) that I don’t find comfortable at ALL. An age gap like that wouldn’t be an issue if they were just a little bit older, cause even a few years difference in people that young causes a huge mental age divide that I think would be a little dangerous and opens room for the older person (unknowingly or not) taking advantage of the younger.

Also it’s a very boring ship in comparison to the other options they have rn, it’s basically superbat 4.0 like PLEASEE switch it up a little not every bat needs to be shipped with every super. Lastly while this may not be a strictly damijon issue, I’ve observed a lot of damijon shippers tend to have weirdly racist undertones when talking about Damian which I also don’t like and would rather stay away from lmao. And as with many bat x other people ships Jon is also often just reduced to Damian’s keychain with no own purpose and life on his own.

Like their ship does not introduce any new dynamic nor does it add to them as characters and I find ships with their more age appropriate counterparts MUCH more compelling. (like daminika and jayjon) I know it’s hard for some people to adjust to the aging up of Jon but that’s how it is now and I just don’t think a 17-18 yr old should be anywhere near a 14-15 year old romantically😭

[cry-ptidd]

Fuck it, Vlad in the modern day Headcanons

- Calls every technological appliance with a screen a "pad" because Seras showed him an IPad first.

- He was shocked to know he has so much stuff written about him, and absolutely delighted about it.

- Enraptured by the idea of a grocery store. Doesn't understand why there's hungry people when there's so much food available. (No he doesn't know what a "Marx" is)

- Got a bit scared about headphones at first, denied it entirely. Prefers to listen to music on full speaker, much to Integra's frustration.

- Cries watching movies. Tries to play it off.

- Broke a phone because he wanted to understand how it worked. Got in trouble.

- Doesn't understand how a car works for the life of him. Likes the idea though, even if he misses his horse.

- Has to be physically dragged out of libraries, (all kinds of) stores and jewelry shops.

- Whenever they visit a city he insists on visiting the local church. Opinions vary, and Seras and Integra find him a bit snobbish.

- Finds modern clothes a bit boring, really wants a cape again.

- Once saw someone being unruly in the street and confronted them, leading to a physical fight. (He won, but also got in trouble again for breaking 8 bones in their body)

- Looks forward to movie night each week. Really into historical dramas/war movies and, surprisingly, animated films.

- "Seras what's a DILF"

[baronet-of-ruddigore]

Hail, posters! We have commandeered this account, located upon this wretched digital platform - the most criminal of them all - to ask the general public a question.

Answer promptly - within the span of one week. We wish to see whether the common ones consider our torment justified.

[project-sekai-facts]

do u think prsk writing is good?

it's inconsistent. sometimes it's pretty good, sometimes it's not so good. this is something i would like to go way more indepth on but i don't think i'll have the time for a while, but i'll outline a few things here.

honestly early events are much stronger than some more recent ones. partially this is preference on my part due to preferring more character driven stuff which most early events were, but also in general the writing was much higher quality.

most year one events had a very strong sense of flow between them that has been lost over time. while events usually revolved around one character's issues, they would introduce aspects of the other characters and their issues which would be focused on later. if you read wonder halloween you'll notice there's foreshadowing for emu's arc across smile of dreamer and wonder magical showtime. this is partially because of the fact the events were so early on. we weren't as familiar with the characters as we are now and we were also new to the plots. you can also see how much more cohesive stories were back then as well because of there being way more mixed events marked as key story, like twilight parade and sakura for ln and picnic for n25. while most events still pick up from where the previous left off the sense of flow for most units just isn't felt as strongly as it was going through, say, l/n arc 1.

it also in some ways feels like the writers had a much stronger vision for early events than they do now, though distribution meta may come into play a bit. first arcs were the ones planned from the getgo. this is what they had already planned ahead for by launch. pretty much everything past year 1 was written after the game launched. we know they have a clear end, and it's evident they also had a clear start. we're currently filling in the middle and some events really feel like there's a slight lack of vision for the middle. vbs is a good aversion what with rad weekend having happened (aside from arata and souma's arcs lmfao), but other units and characters feel shafted.

to add to that last point as well as distribution meta. tsukasa5 is arguably one of the hardest hit. what seems to have happened is that they needed a second wxs event to focus on daigo's troupe, and tsukasa is the character who is most fitting for that troupe's speciality. unfortunately in order to come up with the actual plot, they had to retcon elements of tsukasa's character. tsukasa5 overall is probably one of the worst written of the recent events. it's really rough and doesn't make sense in some parts. it truly just exists bc they needed a wxs event with daigo and a wxs event in that slot.

kanade is another character who got hit hard. while she had the white day event in 2024, she was heavily shafted in terms of n25's story due to the focus being on mizuki and ena for half the year. mafuyu and ena's events were also very focused on them as individuals, leading to kanade getting like no character development for a year.

for non-2024 examples the 2nd arc enders were a mixed bag. step by step is very clearly a shoe-in because they needed to pad for time. retie functions perfectly well as an arc ender and reads like one in a few places, especially near the end. while minori had some good moments in this event it honestly feels like a mixed event. hell look at the banner card. shizuku and airi are also only in this event for a few lines of dialogue it's really rough.

oyf is incredibly rushed and tries to wrap up way too many loose ends from lutf. it feels like this arc was cut short, and you can really feel it in arc 3 when all the loose ends that still existed after oyf get their proper conclusion. side characters barring kotaro excluded, tatsuya and gurney flap had the shittest resolutions ever (tatsuya is also. barely a character lol). kohane had some good moments here, but other than that it was a really weak event.

same can be said for ohe they really needed more time and it's painfully obvious considering how much foreshadowing they did with rui only for... him to get one chapter in an emu event. there's some other things that really make this feel like it was meant to be rui or be two events one rui one emu, like the travelling troupe show. remember when rui wrote that show about his life and wxs rewrote it to show him he had a place with them. clpl doesn't. obviously it's always been important to all of them but it's significance to rui specifically has always been highlighted for obvious reasons. hell it was even mentioned in wxs first live like a couple weeks before this event dropped. while again this has good emu moments and good wxs moments it's painfully obvious at points that this was either a rui focus at one point or they combined two events. i wonder if part of the reason for that is because they realised that rui graduates at the end of the next arc so "wxs disbandment arc 2" (tentative name) will probably be more centered around him, especially with asahi's return looming over the story, and they didn't wanna make it seem like they did the same character arc with him twice.

sayonara persona and starry song are fine.

clpl really fucked themselves over with wles and the event schedule lol.

another issue with the writing from a technical standpoint is that recent events have really obnoxious exposition. listen i know we all make fun of people who only read chapter 1 and 8 of an event but did you know that actually works. you can sometimes even just read chapter 8. there's this need to constantly remind the player of stuff that happened earlier on in the event, sometimes in gratuitous detail, and i can understand why this might be necessary for the really long events like lutf or curtain call, but most events since 3rd anni have been under 1hr 30, in most cases just over an hour. the player can retain significant events that happened in the previous chapter. we don't need it constantly explained and it can actually make the audience less engaged if you constantly treat them like they don't understand what's going on. even for a game aimed at the tween/teen demographic you don't need to handhold them through the story. while yes younger audiences won't have the same literacy as an adult you should also trust that they can follow the basic story and read into basic subtext (honestly prsk is usually fine with subtext this is just an example).

"outline a few things" my ass this is pretty much everything i wanted to say. i do games writing next year and i think we cover VNs so maybe i can provide more insight then if the blog isn't dead.

(obligatory i'm not saying you can't like the events i outlined here i'm just saying that from an objective standpoint they're not the best. doesn't mean you can't find enjoyment in them. like whatever you want i'm not here to dictate your opinions)

[unbfacts]

In 2012, rapper Pitbull's promotion with Walmart promised a visit to the store with the most Facebook likes. Internet users, led by writer David Thorpe, campaigned to send him to the most remote U.S. Walmart in Kodiak, Alaska. Pitbull honored his commitment, performed there, and invited Thorpe to join him.

[missgryffin]

Feeling really heavy about fandom and my role in it, for a few reasons. Obviously the UK ruling. And then some other things I'm not going to get into here because tbh they pale in importance right now. But they're all weighing on my mind and right now I honestly don't know what I want to do. Sending love to everyone hurting 💗