they're immune to your consultations

[freckles_and_doubt]

So, you lot are odd. More specifically, I lament my complete and utter inability to map your responses, i.e. to predict which of my posts will garner millyuns of comments, and which will languish with no more adornment than a grammar nit-pick and an unrelated link. On the whole I'm in this blogging lark for the dialogue and wish to provoke same, tending to feel confused and unfulfilled if I don't succeed. This is provoking introspection. (Possibly exacerbated by an uneasy night after an emergency visit to my dad, who seems to have picked up a 'flu bug which is not interacting at all well with his motor neurone symptoms).

I am interested to notice that, while posts tagged, for example, "narcissism" on the whole attract a reasonable number of comments despite my expectation exactly to the contrary, posts in which I offer a detailed review of a film or book generally don't pick up on the comment action. In fact, most of them are not commented on at all. I am fascinated by this, and somewhat at a loss to account for it. Inevitably, pollage results.

[Poll #1442936]
Or, as always, leave some other pithy rejoinder in the comments. (See what I did there? self-conscious self-fulfilling recursive reference ftw!)

Comments

[egadfly.livejournal.com]

I have a theory that better thought out posts are less likely to attract comments. The edifice of ideas may be intimidating, or it may simply be too much work to develop a fitting response. Flawed/uncertain posts give readers more "hooks" to hang responses on. Just a theory.

[kadekraan.livejournal.com]

I think that if the better thought out post is serious that's probably true. If it's silly that isn't necessarily the case. But you could argue that the silliness is a big, fat hook. Or Greek wedding. So, I agree. With the theory that is yours. Ahem.

It's possible to introduce more hooks while still maintaining essay integrity, but I don't know that's time well spent unless you're desperate for comments, or are specificially looking for a discussion.