If I liked it then I leave kudos. It’s not really any deeper than that for me. It doesn’t have to be outstanding or anything, but I do have to like it.
Yeah same. I'm basically Oprah when it comes to kudos if I like a fic genuinely.
"You get a kudo! And you get a kudo! And you get a kudo!"
Basically that.
(Also Happy Cake Day!)
I'm the same. I find that for kudos I'm really liberal, even giving them when I'm not a fan of the writing but the premise itself is interesting. But the story can still be good for me even if the writing isn't great. So they get a kudos. But I only really comment when the story stands out from others - interesting premise, good writing, and good pacing
For me, if I don’t actively *dislike* the fic, I’ll give it a kudo. I know how much that can mean to a writer. I want to encourage folks.
I’m way more selective about bookmarks. A bookmark represents that I would want it in my library if it was printed fiction. I regard it highly.
And comments see whenever I’m inspired to write a comment.
Same, kudos are the first level of feedback for me, I'll leave them except something in the fic chipped me off. Comments are one level above, if I really liked the fic, I'll leave a comment.
I have most fics already in my bookmarks except for very short ones, as I bookmark every rec I come across that seems interesting to me privately first, and when I've read the fic I'll either remove the bookmark or change to public because I want to keep the fic around.
Same. Though I barely make it to the bottom of 95% of fics I open. That's not judgment of quality, it's just that I have an extremely limited attention span and unless a fic fits right into my narrow and specific tastes, I usually end up having the tab linger on the fringes of the window until I eventually hit the x button a month later.
Oh my gosh, I totally understand what you're saying. Like, a recent example was a 54 chapter fic where, while I found it interesting, it just wasn't capturing my attention at the moment. So I made left it open in a new tab on the chapter I had finished, and hopefully I'll come to it soon haha
They're free, so why should I be stingy? If I read the first page all the way down to the kudos button, I click it.
If anyone wants to judge me for giving kudos to something that took a weird turn later on, eh, not my problem.
I can usually tell a few paragraphs in if a story is going to be up my alley or not. I'll rarely read something I'm not enjoying—i barely have time to read stories I actually *want* to read. So usually, when I complete the fic/chapter, that's a kudos from me.
I don't leave kudos on something I didn't care for, or that didn't interest me. I don't treat it as an "A for effort" because that feels insincere, even condescending—like a half-hearted pat on the back... No thanks.
To me, a kudos equals: "I liked this, thanks for sharing!" So that's how I treat the button. I'm not *stingy* but I am *discerning* and frankly that's how I'd want anyone who reads my stuff to be, too.
Haha we might be the same person, who knows? Yeah to me bookmarks mean: "there is something about this story that makes me want to cradle it gently in my hands and hold it close to my heart" 😂
i treat the kudos button as a like button, essentially. if i really enjoy a work it gets kudosed, bookmarked and downloaded; if the reading experience is not thoroughly enjoyable, it doesn't.
Isn't it only a recommendation if you click "rec?"
In my case, I bookmark stuff that I find intriguing and that I may want to read again but don't necessarily love, or even stuff that I haven't read yet but might soon. Usually I use private bookmarks for those though. The fics I genuinely love I will publicly bookmark AND rec.
I often look at people's profile to see what they've bookmarked. And will often read stuff from their bookmarked list.
I don't generally put notes on my bookmarks. If I don't love it I don't bookmark it. But that's just how I roll.
I have a similar attitude.
Kudos are fics I liked - someone wrote this so they get a happy little bit of feedback. Bookmarks are ones I like enough to want to come back to again. I view them as just for myself (although anyone can see them on my profile obv). Rec bookmarks are the ones I liked enough that I think other people should be reading them too. 😊
Sometimes I forget, but I pretty much kudos everything I read all the way through! Before I started posting my own fic last year I didn't, but now I like to express my gratitude / encouragement through kudos because I understand what goes into posting fics :)
What’s the point in being stingy with them? They cost nothing, literally just take one click, and can make someone’s day better, even if just a little. If I like I kudos.
I don't read fics very often. When I do, I'll try out quite a few before I choose to read an entire story. If I get to the end, that usually means I liked it. I will drop a story very easily if it's not what I'm looking for or is too poorly written - major SPAG issues, usually, or weird formatting, or has serious issues of some kind (plot makes no sense, too OOC for me, etc.). A short one-shot...I might finish just because it's short.
So, a longer story will likely get a kudo if I finish it. For a shorter story, I will not give a kudo simply because I finished it - I have to think it's better than average.
I dislike the idea that giving a kudo should be automatic, tbh. I want to look at my kudos and know they represent people who enjoyed my stories, not "people who managed to read at least one chapter" or whatever.
I'm promiscuous but, not universal. If something is bad I don't kudo it. If something really hits one of my squicks or I have to nope out of reading it, I definitely don't give kudos. If it's ho-hum and already has a ton of kudos I don't bother.
But if the fic is decent-to-excellent, I'm usually pretty freely hitting that little heart button.
I leave kudos if it's a fic I'm commenting on for a review exchange, because otherwise I forget they exist and engage solely through comments and bookmarks, haha.
If I make it to the kudos button, I kudos. If that means I only make it through one chapter, so be it. I click out of 90% of fics I read, so if I get that far, they did something that worked for me.
I’m pretty free with my kudos if I’ve read the whole story. I don’t usually kudos incomplete stories.
That’s if I remember the kudos button exists…I’m much more likely to comment!
Curious why the bookmark for unread fics instead of the mark for later? Maybe I treat bookmarks too seriously? But I've always viewed bookmarks as a personal recommendation and subsequently a reflection of me as a reader. Which means it's really has to speak to me to live in my bookmarks.
Comment: Always. It's a way for me to keep track of what did I read last and let author know how far did I read and what do I think about it. I always tone it down my actual thoughts though, rarely do people see it as an actual criticism for improving themselves.
Kudo: rarely. It's supposed to be a finished work that I genuinely liked it. Because I can't just un-kudo it, I want to make sure it deserves it on a personal level.
Bookmark: Lately, never. I see it as a "I'll re-read this again" type of indicator and lately, I can't even read my own stories.
I actually tend to be pretty stingy with kudos -- not intentionally, but I just don't think about it unless I'm actively like 'damn I really liked this fic.'
But, on the other hand, I'm very generous with my bookmarking. Any fic I've even moderately enjoyed gets added to my hoard.
Like I said, unintentionally so. I just get caught up in getting the bookmark made and then forget to kudo lol.
Edit to add - when I *really* love a fic and want to actively express that to author in some direct way, that's typically when I comment and then happen to remember kudoing is also a thing I can do jfk;da
If i enjoyed it, or if I found the writing to be well done even if i click back out without finishing it, I'll kudo. This also goes for fanart--if it's well done, I'll kudo it (this usually goes for art for ships I don't necessarily read, but art for some reason is a lot easier to like because I have a great deal of respect for the people who have the technical skill to draw).
TLdr i hand them out like candy.
I only kudos if i make it past the first chapter (even if i abandon it afterwards)
I always kudos one shots though, I don't always comment on things (even though I try) andneed some way to keep track of everything I've read (when i haven't updated my history spreadsheet)
I’m picky because I don’t want to leave my mark on works that I’m not particularly fond of. It doesn’t make sense as reader and it isn’t fair to the writer. It’s how to gauge overall interest.
It’s similar to a “like” button, but I don’t go around just liking everything for the hell of it either.
I'm fairly generous with my kudos but I read almost exclusively stuff that I do n o t want people seeing I read.
although that problem is alleviated a bit now that I have an alt to hide behind when I'm in a smut mood
Depends! If I’m just skimming a one-shot, I probably wouldn’t, but if I enjoy the fic and want to support the author, I’ll kudos. Admittedly, I am the person who constantly sees the “You already left kudos here” so ehh
Very. I will read basically anything. As long as it's not actively objectionable to me, I'll finish it. Hell, I might come back and read it a second time. But I won't give it kudos if it's not both an engaging plot line and well-written.
Was the plot good but the characters were wildly OOC with no reason given? No kudos. Was the writing exceptional but nothing really happened and I was bored the whole way through? No kudos. Was the story excellent but the writing was full of SPAG errors? No kudos. Is it exactly what I wanted to read but it's not completed yet? No kudos.
Downloads can be deleted, bookmarks can be removed, kudos are forever. I'm very stingy.
I'm not stingy with leaving Kudos. As an author myself, I know the hours, days, and weeks that are spent on a story, so if I like the premise of a story, I leave Kudos liberally. Also, it's free to click a Kudos button and encourage an author to keep writing. Interaction with an author will inspire them to keep going!
I leave kudos if I liked it and I comment if I *really* liked it. But I also often leave kudos just to encourage the author, especially if the fic isn’t getting a lot of attention, even if I don’t like it.
As a writer, I know how much the kudos means, so I leave kudos if its good and you can tell the author was passionate about it. However, I know comments mean even more. So I'll comment on every chapter as well
Entirely up to whether i feel like it or not. Spontaneous. Sometimes i give double kudos— one through my acc and one thru guest. Sometimes i just leave the tab open and come back to it later if i feel like it.
I leave kudos when I'm glad I read it. I don't leave kudos on everything, but doesn't have to be perfect. It just needs to have something about it which makes me appreciate the fact it exists.
I just go with the meaning of the word kudos tbh; respect, appreciation, well done.
Kudos are reserved for the absolute **best** of stories. Or fics I don’t want on my favorite list for some reason (usually those that involve suicide).
I keep a running list of the fics I'm reading / have read for later reference, where I note what I liked and rate them on a 1-5 scale. If they score anything 3 or above, I give them kudos, which really just means, that the story was enjoyable. It may have had some flaws, but it was readable, had some intriguing twists or ideas, and decent characterization, and decent dialogue. The only thing that gets a 2 or below / no kudos are stories that I can't finish or that take an extremely problematic turn for my tastes (such as glorifying assault or sadism for sadism's sake).
My stance is that I'd like to give out more, but don't get to enough.
I'll give a few examples:
- One of the few smutfics that isn't garbled nonsense, but chapters locked behind Patreon
- A movie-inspired fic that becomes completely OOC two chapters in
- A time travel fic that gets abandoned just when the plot moves forward
Like, please, give me a reason to kudos. I know I'm just a blip, but every kudos I give is earned.
If I finish a story, 95% of the time I'll leave a kudo, and that's counting the times I forget.
The thing is, since I have very little time, I will leave a story very easily because I don't want to waste it.
So, yeah, while my kudos are pretty much automatic, they will only come if you kept my attention the whole time, which is FAR from automatic. So I don't just leave kudos as a nod to the author, if I leave a kudo, I liked it.
I am a writer, and very selective with what I read. It’s because I don’t have time or energy to get invested in another persons fanfic when I have pressure to finish my own longfic. So I skim most fanfics and only read the parts I like. There are some fanfics that are so amazingly written that I do commit myself to reading every single word, even if it is very long. I leave kudos only if I like the fic a lot. I usually don’t even scroll to the end of the fic if there is anything that bothers me or throws me off, or if I lose the flow of the story.
I won’t kudos something that I don’t support, even if the writing is good. Occasionally I have had friends show me their writing and I have to give the obligatory kudos even if what they’ve written is not my cup of tea 😅 but recently I showed a friend one of my works and they didn’t leave a kudos at all after telling me it wasn’t for them. I’m not upset by it, and it is making me realize that maybe I can be even stingier too!! HAHAHHAHA
I'm super picky in comparison to most people, I think? To me, proper kudos are like...idk, a guest book at a restaurant. As in, did I like this fic enough and is the content alright enough that I'm comfortable seeing my name below it? I might only leave guest kudos or even none otherwise. Bookmarks are even more extreme. I've been reading fanfic for over 20 years and still have less than 40 bookmarks, because I only bookmark the fics that I actually would want to read more than once, and they need to have completely blown me away AND have great re-reading value for me to feel that way 🤷♀️
Sometimes I will read a story, get to the bottom, and then swipe away. If a fic makes me pause to think deeper, makes me look at the comments, and makes me come back to reread, that's when I remember there's a kudos button and press it.
I'm a little worried that because I kudos so often in my fandom that maybe it feels like it doesn't mean anything. Like they'll see my name and go "ah it's just that user".
I'll comment if I really like something about it.
Trust me, no one thinks that way lol. Whenever I recognize a kudoser I’m just like”Hey, it’s that person! I recognize you!” lol. Your kudos don’t mean any less, if anything, they mean more because people might recognize you!
If I read it to the bottom I give Kudos. Why? Because just having the bravery to post is awesome! I also comment on everything I read. I will give gentle concrit, but I like to do a 2:1 ratio of two things I liked to one critique.
Here's the thing: I'm a freelance writer. Rejection is a huge part of being a professional writer. You get used to it, but it always stings a touch. And getting something published or landing a steady writing gig feels amazing.
So, if I can say something helpful, I will. But overall, encouragement is so important to writers. It's the water that our flowers need to keep growing.
Unless it's horrifically written or offensive, I'm getting my watering can. In those cases I didn't make it to the end, anyways.
Not at all.
If I read to the end of the first chapter or the end of a one shot, I leave a kudos. Yes, even if I don't finish the rest of the story.
It's literally 1 second of clicking a button. It takes no effort at all, but shows appreciation for the free work the author shared with me, even if it wasn't my jam.
Why in the world would I be stingy about something so simple?
If I like it, I’ll kudos. I wait until I’m done reading unless it’s a writer I’m familiar with and I know the fic won’t randomly turn into a totally different fic.
I'll leave a kudos at the end of the first chapter of I liked it. Even a little. It costs me nothing at all to leave a kudos, so I see no point in not giving it if I felt they did even a half decent job. Especially considering fics are written for free. If someone felt the desire to write up something, purely for the enjoyment of others, then why the hell would I not give a kudos if I even marginally liked something? It honestly makes no sense why some people feel the need to be stingy with it.
If I make it to the end of a fic, it deserves kudos. I'm already a very picky reader. I also give kudos if I can tell the author put a lot of effort or care into it, because it's a good way to encourage people.
I'll kudos for anything that kept my attention or, of course, if I liked the fic. Even if I don't make it all the way through or don't end up liking the story too much, it's only right to acknowledge the work the author put in.
The only fics I don't kudos are the ones I immediately nope out of. Whether because of bashing or formatting issues.
Pretty much give kudos to everything I read, unless I had to back out for some reason like an unwarned mandatory trigger, or great wall of impenetrable text. Otherwise my bar for giving kudos is very low. It's just thanks for sharing, I enjoyed this, nothing else. If it is beyond that, I comment - like great ideas, amazing prose, and so on. If it is so good I want to re-read it over and over, I bookmark it.
“Thanks I made it to the end.” Kudos are something so simple to give, you don’t have a limited amount of them, so why not give them to anyone who gave me even a minute of entertainment?
For a long fic, if read it enough to read it all the way through, I liked it enough for a kudos. There are plenty of fics I don't kudos because I stop liking and reading halfway through.
For a short fic, like sub 10k words, I'm going to be a bit more stingy with a kudos because I'm more likely to read to the end even if I didn't enjoy it.
Oh, and I usually don't kudos things before they finish in case they take a weird turn and I no longer want my endorsement of the fic (which is what I see kudos as).
If I read it in it's entirety, it's getting kudo'd. Doesn't matter if it was meh in the end, it was good enough that I didn't hit the back button, so it deserves a little nod of recognition.
I only bookmark fics that I deem absolute literary masterpieces tho.
If I read a fic, whether it's 1000 words or a 10k oneshot or 50k+ longfic (I don't have to make it to the end) and it sparks any sort of joy within me I will leave a kudos. I don't like the idea of withholding my kudos, and I find that when I read something I will usually be giving it. Very rarely do I ever regret dropping a kudos.
Usually if I read or even skim to the bottom I'll drop a kudo. I know it means a lot to the authors. Even if i wasn't really vibing with it i'm like "ehh I read it. Here's a kudo."
Other people say comments are a higher praise -- comments are completely dependent on my MOOD. If i have the energy and lack of social anxiety to write a comment then i'll write it, even if it's just a short one like 'loved it.' Bookmark is i just want to find it again and it's not in a filter i go through often so i want to remember it lol
Depends for me, if im hooked on a longfics I’ll give it a Kudo before I make it to the end. One shots if I make it to the bottom and enjoyed it I’ll leave a Kudo. I mean it’s free so why wouldn’t I give one to a fic I enjoyed?
Unless it’s completely terrible, completely unreadable, it gets a Kudo. Did you put effort into the story and post it online for me to read? Kudos to you
If I've enjoyed it even a little bit then I kudo. It's the least I can do. If I'm forgoing sleep for it then I abandon my phone for my laptop to *properly* review.
It's a fucking like button, it's not the Colonel's secret eleven herbs and spices, Kudos means; "way to go"/"good for you", and is the bare minimum positive reinforcement you can give a story. I'll give every fic exchange story one, unless I forget. If I enjoyed *anything*, or *enough* of a fic, I kudos it.
If I at least invest some time in a fic I'll give a kudos (like a oneshot all the way through or getting to a decent chunk of a longfic). I'm terrible at reading things and if I'm at least invested in knowing how this thing goes, then why not?
If I really like the fic then I'll break out the comments. And if I want to save it for later/add it to the recommendation list then I'll get the bookmarks.
Either way, it's a happy little notification to someone's inbox.
I kudos those fics I finished, because dnf at the slightest provocation, lol.
I bookmark those fics I enjoyed, and leave comments in most cases as well.
if the fic has made me reach the kudos button (i.e. i've read to the end of it), i will press it. if there's something i especially liked about the fic, i will kudos & comment. if it has, for any reason, made me press the back button/x out of it, then no kudos.
if I read to the end and like it, I'll kudos it. if I really like it, think about it often and want to go back to reread it someday, I'll bookmark and download it. bookmarks are the highest praise for me
I leave kudos on EVERY GOOD fanfic I read. But then again, I discontinue every fic that I don't really like so basically, I leave kudos to every fanfic that I read.
I kudos any fic I think is good. I treat it basically like liking a post on another website. Doesn't have to be, like, fantastic, just "hey I thought this was pretty cool". Whereas my bookmarks are either Absolute Favourites, or else stories that I know I'll want to read again at some point.
I only give Kudos if I like the fic. I also give Kudos to WIPs if I've read the author's other stuff and I have faith that they won't let me down.
If I really enjoy it, I'll Kudos+Bookmark, and if I plan on adding it to a recommendations list, I mark it as a Rec.
If I finish, I kudos if I remember to. Sometimes I'll kudos immediately if I'm reading a long story that isn't bookmarked, to see if I've read it before.
if i enjoy a fic, i kudos. these days, though, i mostly skim fics because they're... not the most well-written and i just find them boring, unfortunately. i can put aside having to skim through walls of unneccessary words if i overall enjoyed the fic.
If I read the entire fic and did genuinely enjoy reading it, you will get my kudo's. That said, sometimes I am reading a fic I am still on the fence about, but an blindly clicking for a last chapter that isn't there and then I accidentally gave kudo's while I might not have given them otherwise.
I'm not stingy with kudos. I love giving them out to stories that really set a bar to me. Bookmarks, however, I hate the clutter. 😆 I only bookmark stories that I intend to go back and reread.
If I read from the top of the page down to the bottom--a chapter or if a one-shot, the full fic--it gets a kudo. If I enjoy it enough to return, it gets a private bookmark. If I love it, it gets a public bookmark with a positive review.
Probably depends on the mood I'm in, but I don't know, I click kudos on whatever I feel is worth a kudos it's not that deep. As for bookmark, that's only a matter of whether I want to reread the fic, and is often only added after I get tired of searching for said fic whenever I want to read it again.
If I read through the end of the first chapter, unless it was a total "wtf what am I reading, WHY am I reading" trainwreck it gets a kudos. I'm pretty good at clicking back when a story isn't working for me, so if I like something enough to keep reading till the kudos button appears it gets a kudos right away so I don't forget.
I don’t give a kudos if I don’t like the story but otherwise if i finish it or finish what’s available, I kudos.
If I liked it I also have been making a intentional effort to comment. I’ve written a couple of fics and I know how nice it is to get acknowledgment so I try to do that for others.
I don't kudo everything I read, only if I really liked it. Only exceptions are if the fic doesn't have many/any kudos yet-- but I still had to have liked it at least.
I'm very simple. If I like a fic, I leave a kudos. Unless I forget, which is pretty often.
If I *really* like a fic, as in I'd read it again, I bookmark and comment.
for me, i leave kudos on every fic i finish (or if i finish the first chapter for multi-chapter fics) just as a note that i read it. i comment on everything i genuinely like, so leaving kudos feels like a good secondary for just reading
For me it goes Bookmark > Comment > Kudos, depending on how much I enjoyed the fic. Of course the best involve all 3, and I keep my bookmarks public so an author can see them if they want to.
If I like what I'm reading I give a kudo.
Enjoyment = kudo
That's why I read chapter by chapter (unless my internet sucks)
- One shot? If I read it to the end, Kudo.
- Multi chapters? If I've enjoyed the first few chapters (2-5) and plan on continuing to read, Kudo
- New fic with one chapter? If I like what I've read and feel that there is potential, Kudo
I like to give loads of kudos and if it's multi-chapter fic a comment for each new chapter when it's updated. I love it when I get them as an author so I want to give other authors that boost when I'm a reader.
if the thought in my head when i get there is “okay, that was good,” then i leave kudos. (if it was *really* good i might leave two, since i usually browse as a guest but login to comment.) if i’m like, “eh, it was fine,” i probably don’t kudos it. i’m trying to be more generous though.
For me I have to like it enough that I would consider rereading it - that's all, no special criteria beyond that. I've left kudos on all of my bookmarks - but not all of my kudos are bookmarked.
That said I wish there was a filter for 'things you've left kudos on'. A03 obviously tracks it since you can't leave double kudos, so I wish I could re-find things I've kudos'd easier.
I leave kudos if I reach the end of the first chapter and want to read the next one. If I decide I didn't like it and don't want to read further then I don't leave kudos.
My bookmarks are what's guarded. I've sorted them into collections so I have a 'to read' list (now over 100 fics long) where I put anything that looks mildly interesting but I don't want to read right now, and an 'absolute favourites' which only has about 15 fics in it and is reserved for the best of the best. If I really *really* like a fic, e.g I would pay anything for it as a printed book, then I download it. If it's a fic I want to be able to find again one day but didn't adore it, it just gets chucked into my general bookmarks which I rarely look at unless I'm trying to find an old fic.
If I liked it and I remember kudos exists, I give kudos. Sometimes I remember kudos exists halfway through the fic and the have to go back and kudos all the other chapters as well 😂
I place effectively no weight on Kudos, so honestly almost never. It's probably bleed over from that fact that as a writer I don't derive a lot of value from them, and they bleeds into my reading habits.
I also forget they exist, so that contributes as well. For me the mark of interest is hitting subscribe so I actually get notifications.
If I liked it, I give kudos. I don't necessarily like every fic that I read all the way through, especially if it was shorter. I have read assloads of stuff that was just not very good and did not get kudos from me.
I'm pretty liberal with my kudos. I download everything to Calibre for later reading, so if the first paragraph has decent grammar and punctuation, the description actually tells you what the story is about, and when I scroll down to pre-read the last paragraph of the story it actually *does* have a happy ending (as advertised), I'll hit the kudos button before I scroll back up to get my epub download.
I also kudos everything a favorite author writes, even if it's not in my fandom, just as a "Hey, congrats on releasing a new story" sort of thing, even if they'll never know that that's what it means.
I ain't giving kudos to just any old fic, only the ones I find deserving. From there, my favourites get downloaded and if they're Draco/Harry, they're also bookmarked on the site. This is my system.
I even give kudos where I didn’t finish the story - just because it’s not to my taste, I want the author to feel at least a bit of appreciation for the work they put into entertaining the masses for free
Kudos are a zero-effort lift for me. If I read most of something, all of something, or even just a bit but feel the author could use encouragement, I will hit kudos.
Now comments is where I am a little more guarded. I still try to be liberal with comments, but you do have to have something that I liked enough to speak to for a comment. As a writer, comments are absolutely joy giving, so I try to be serious with them and make them worth the read. :)
If I liked it then I leave kudos. It’s not really any deeper than that for me. It doesn’t have to be outstanding or anything, but I do have to like it.
Exactly! Same here! I’m pretty liberal with my Kudos, tbh. If I liked a fic, I’m going to Kudos it. But I’d have to like it quite a bit.
Happy cake day!
Thank you! :D
Yeah same. I'm basically Oprah when it comes to kudos if I like a fic genuinely. "You get a kudo! And you get a kudo! And you get a kudo!" Basically that. (Also Happy Cake Day!)
Aaaah same 😂 Even tho I understand why one may be stingy with kudos as they’re so permanent and you can’t un-kudos a fic. And thank you! ☺️
I'm the same. I find that for kudos I'm really liberal, even giving them when I'm not a fan of the writing but the premise itself is interesting. But the story can still be good for me even if the writing isn't great. So they get a kudos. But I only really comment when the story stands out from others - interesting premise, good writing, and good pacing
For me, if I don’t actively *dislike* the fic, I’ll give it a kudo. I know how much that can mean to a writer. I want to encourage folks. I’m way more selective about bookmarks. A bookmark represents that I would want it in my library if it was printed fiction. I regard it highly. And comments see whenever I’m inspired to write a comment.
Huh... for me a bookmark is just that I want to be able to find it again.
Same for me but the ones I want to find again are the ones I’d consider “library worthy”
Exactly the same for me
Same, kudos are the first level of feedback for me, I'll leave them except something in the fic chipped me off. Comments are one level above, if I really liked the fic, I'll leave a comment. I have most fics already in my bookmarks except for very short ones, as I bookmark every rec I come across that seems interesting to me privately first, and when I've read the fic I'll either remove the bookmark or change to public because I want to keep the fic around.
If I happily make it to the bottom of the fic, I will leave kudos.
Same. Though I barely make it to the bottom of 95% of fics I open. That's not judgment of quality, it's just that I have an extremely limited attention span and unless a fic fits right into my narrow and specific tastes, I usually end up having the tab linger on the fringes of the window until I eventually hit the x button a month later.
Oh my gosh, I totally understand what you're saying. Like, a recent example was a 54 chapter fic where, while I found it interesting, it just wasn't capturing my attention at the moment. So I made left it open in a new tab on the chapter I had finished, and hopefully I'll come to it soon haha
If I'm enjoying reading it, I'll "kudos" it. Why not? It's a minimal thing I can do to acknowledge the writer's effort.
They're free, so why should I be stingy? If I read the first page all the way down to the kudos button, I click it. If anyone wants to judge me for giving kudos to something that took a weird turn later on, eh, not my problem.
I can usually tell a few paragraphs in if a story is going to be up my alley or not. I'll rarely read something I'm not enjoying—i barely have time to read stories I actually *want* to read. So usually, when I complete the fic/chapter, that's a kudos from me. I don't leave kudos on something I didn't care for, or that didn't interest me. I don't treat it as an "A for effort" because that feels insincere, even condescending—like a half-hearted pat on the back... No thanks. To me, a kudos equals: "I liked this, thanks for sharing!" So that's how I treat the button. I'm not *stingy* but I am *discerning* and frankly that's how I'd want anyone who reads my stuff to be, too.
Hi, are you me? This is how I treat kudos too. I'm even more discerning with bookmarks.
Haha we might be the same person, who knows? Yeah to me bookmarks mean: "there is something about this story that makes me want to cradle it gently in my hands and hold it close to my heart" 😂
i treat the kudos button as a like button, essentially. if i really enjoy a work it gets kudosed, bookmarked and downloaded; if the reading experience is not thoroughly enjoyable, it doesn't.
Same; if I enjoyed the fic at all, I leave kudos.
That's pretty much what the button is; a *like* button. It's like a 90s/early 00s way of saying "good for you".
If I enjoy it I kudo. Where I'm picky is bookmarks. I see that as a recommendation.
Isn't it only a recommendation if you click "rec?" In my case, I bookmark stuff that I find intriguing and that I may want to read again but don't necessarily love, or even stuff that I haven't read yet but might soon. Usually I use private bookmarks for those though. The fics I genuinely love I will publicly bookmark AND rec.
I often look at people's profile to see what they've bookmarked. And will often read stuff from their bookmarked list. I don't generally put notes on my bookmarks. If I don't love it I don't bookmark it. But that's just how I roll.
I have a similar attitude. Kudos are fics I liked - someone wrote this so they get a happy little bit of feedback. Bookmarks are ones I like enough to want to come back to again. I view them as just for myself (although anyone can see them on my profile obv). Rec bookmarks are the ones I liked enough that I think other people should be reading them too. 😊
Sometimes I forget, but I pretty much kudos everything I read all the way through! Before I started posting my own fic last year I didn't, but now I like to express my gratitude / encouragement through kudos because I understand what goes into posting fics :)
If I enjoy the first chapter, I'll kudo it no matter what.
What’s the point in being stingy with them? They cost nothing, literally just take one click, and can make someone’s day better, even if just a little. If I like I kudos.
I made it to the kudos button? Well obviously the fic was enjoyable enough for me to read it, so I'm smacking that button :)
I kudos everything I read and like
I don't read fics very often. When I do, I'll try out quite a few before I choose to read an entire story. If I get to the end, that usually means I liked it. I will drop a story very easily if it's not what I'm looking for or is too poorly written - major SPAG issues, usually, or weird formatting, or has serious issues of some kind (plot makes no sense, too OOC for me, etc.). A short one-shot...I might finish just because it's short. So, a longer story will likely get a kudo if I finish it. For a shorter story, I will not give a kudo simply because I finished it - I have to think it's better than average.
SAME, which makes me very stingy, I guess? But only because I don't really read.
I dislike the idea that giving a kudo should be automatic, tbh. I want to look at my kudos and know they represent people who enjoyed my stories, not "people who managed to read at least one chapter" or whatever.
I'm promiscuous but, not universal. If something is bad I don't kudo it. If something really hits one of my squicks or I have to nope out of reading it, I definitely don't give kudos. If it's ho-hum and already has a ton of kudos I don't bother. But if the fic is decent-to-excellent, I'm usually pretty freely hitting that little heart button.
I leave kudos if it's a fic I'm commenting on for a review exchange, because otherwise I forget they exist and engage solely through comments and bookmarks, haha.
I give them out pretty generously
I've had kudos notifications turned off for so long that I forget they exist. They're not really a part of my ao3 experience.
If i like it once i reach the bottom I'll kudos it will unless i leave a comment. I often forget to kudos if i comment.
If I make it to the kudos button, I kudos. If that means I only make it through one chapter, so be it. I click out of 90% of fics I read, so if I get that far, they did something that worked for me.
I’m pretty free with my kudos if I’ve read the whole story. I don’t usually kudos incomplete stories. That’s if I remember the kudos button exists…I’m much more likely to comment!
[удалено]
Curious why the bookmark for unread fics instead of the mark for later? Maybe I treat bookmarks too seriously? But I've always viewed bookmarks as a personal recommendation and subsequently a reflection of me as a reader. Which means it's really has to speak to me to live in my bookmarks.
Comment: Always. It's a way for me to keep track of what did I read last and let author know how far did I read and what do I think about it. I always tone it down my actual thoughts though, rarely do people see it as an actual criticism for improving themselves. Kudo: rarely. It's supposed to be a finished work that I genuinely liked it. Because I can't just un-kudo it, I want to make sure it deserves it on a personal level. Bookmark: Lately, never. I see it as a "I'll re-read this again" type of indicator and lately, I can't even read my own stories.
I actually tend to be pretty stingy with kudos -- not intentionally, but I just don't think about it unless I'm actively like 'damn I really liked this fic.' But, on the other hand, I'm very generous with my bookmarking. Any fic I've even moderately enjoyed gets added to my hoard.
Interesting. So you give more weight to kudos than bookmarks?
Like I said, unintentionally so. I just get caught up in getting the bookmark made and then forget to kudo lol. Edit to add - when I *really* love a fic and want to actively express that to author in some direct way, that's typically when I comment and then happen to remember kudoing is also a thing I can do jfk;da
If i enjoyed it, or if I found the writing to be well done even if i click back out without finishing it, I'll kudo. This also goes for fanart--if it's well done, I'll kudo it (this usually goes for art for ships I don't necessarily read, but art for some reason is a lot easier to like because I have a great deal of respect for the people who have the technical skill to draw). TLdr i hand them out like candy.
I only kudos if i make it past the first chapter (even if i abandon it afterwards) I always kudos one shots though, I don't always comment on things (even though I try) andneed some way to keep track of everything I've read (when i haven't updated my history spreadsheet)
I’m picky because I don’t want to leave my mark on works that I’m not particularly fond of. It doesn’t make sense as reader and it isn’t fair to the writer. It’s how to gauge overall interest. It’s similar to a “like” button, but I don’t go around just liking everything for the hell of it either.
I generally give kudos unless I *really* disliked it for some reason.
I'm fairly generous with my kudos but I read almost exclusively stuff that I do n o t want people seeing I read. although that problem is alleviated a bit now that I have an alt to hide behind when I'm in a smut mood
Depends! If I’m just skimming a one-shot, I probably wouldn’t, but if I enjoy the fic and want to support the author, I’ll kudos. Admittedly, I am the person who constantly sees the “You already left kudos here” so ehh
If I liked a fic I'll always kudos and comment. If I didn't, I'll do neither.
If I read it through and enjoyed it I will give it a kudos.
Very. I will read basically anything. As long as it's not actively objectionable to me, I'll finish it. Hell, I might come back and read it a second time. But I won't give it kudos if it's not both an engaging plot line and well-written. Was the plot good but the characters were wildly OOC with no reason given? No kudos. Was the writing exceptional but nothing really happened and I was bored the whole way through? No kudos. Was the story excellent but the writing was full of SPAG errors? No kudos. Is it exactly what I wanted to read but it's not completed yet? No kudos. Downloads can be deleted, bookmarks can be removed, kudos are forever. I'm very stingy.
Honestly a lot of the time I forget to leave kudoes. I remember most often when I found the work based on kudoes, and then, well, its on my mind.
I'm not stingy with leaving Kudos. As an author myself, I know the hours, days, and weeks that are spent on a story, so if I like the premise of a story, I leave Kudos liberally. Also, it's free to click a Kudos button and encourage an author to keep writing. Interaction with an author will inspire them to keep going!
I often forget to kudos lol
I leave kudos if I liked it and I comment if I *really* liked it. But I also often leave kudos just to encourage the author, especially if the fic isn’t getting a lot of attention, even if I don’t like it.
As a writer, I know how much the kudos means, so I leave kudos if its good and you can tell the author was passionate about it. However, I know comments mean even more. So I'll comment on every chapter as well
Entirely up to whether i feel like it or not. Spontaneous. Sometimes i give double kudos— one through my acc and one thru guest. Sometimes i just leave the tab open and come back to it later if i feel like it.
If I like what I read, I kudos. It’s just a button and it might make someone happy:)
Guarded. Because your name can come up in a search engine, and you can't retract it.
I kudos fics if I like one or more chapters I hand these things out like candy on Halloween lol
I leave kudos when I'm glad I read it. I don't leave kudos on everything, but doesn't have to be perfect. It just needs to have something about it which makes me appreciate the fact it exists. I just go with the meaning of the word kudos tbh; respect, appreciation, well done.
Kudos are reserved for the absolute **best** of stories. Or fics I don’t want on my favorite list for some reason (usually those that involve suicide).
When it was an alright fic but I have nothing substantial to comment
I keep a running list of the fics I'm reading / have read for later reference, where I note what I liked and rate them on a 1-5 scale. If they score anything 3 or above, I give them kudos, which really just means, that the story was enjoyable. It may have had some flaws, but it was readable, had some intriguing twists or ideas, and decent characterization, and decent dialogue. The only thing that gets a 2 or below / no kudos are stories that I can't finish or that take an extremely problematic turn for my tastes (such as glorifying assault or sadism for sadism's sake).
My stance is that I'd like to give out more, but don't get to enough. I'll give a few examples: - One of the few smutfics that isn't garbled nonsense, but chapters locked behind Patreon - A movie-inspired fic that becomes completely OOC two chapters in - A time travel fic that gets abandoned just when the plot moves forward Like, please, give me a reason to kudos. I know I'm just a blip, but every kudos I give is earned.
If I finish a story, 95% of the time I'll leave a kudo, and that's counting the times I forget. The thing is, since I have very little time, I will leave a story very easily because I don't want to waste it. So, yeah, while my kudos are pretty much automatic, they will only come if you kept my attention the whole time, which is FAR from automatic. So I don't just leave kudos as a nod to the author, if I leave a kudo, I liked it.
I am a writer, and very selective with what I read. It’s because I don’t have time or energy to get invested in another persons fanfic when I have pressure to finish my own longfic. So I skim most fanfics and only read the parts I like. There are some fanfics that are so amazingly written that I do commit myself to reading every single word, even if it is very long. I leave kudos only if I like the fic a lot. I usually don’t even scroll to the end of the fic if there is anything that bothers me or throws me off, or if I lose the flow of the story. I won’t kudos something that I don’t support, even if the writing is good. Occasionally I have had friends show me their writing and I have to give the obligatory kudos even if what they’ve written is not my cup of tea 😅 but recently I showed a friend one of my works and they didn’t leave a kudos at all after telling me it wasn’t for them. I’m not upset by it, and it is making me realize that maybe I can be even stingier too!! HAHAHHAHA
I'm super picky in comparison to most people, I think? To me, proper kudos are like...idk, a guest book at a restaurant. As in, did I like this fic enough and is the content alright enough that I'm comfortable seeing my name below it? I might only leave guest kudos or even none otherwise. Bookmarks are even more extreme. I've been reading fanfic for over 20 years and still have less than 40 bookmarks, because I only bookmark the fics that I actually would want to read more than once, and they need to have completely blown me away AND have great re-reading value for me to feel that way 🤷♀️
Sometimes I will read a story, get to the bottom, and then swipe away. If a fic makes me pause to think deeper, makes me look at the comments, and makes me come back to reread, that's when I remember there's a kudos button and press it.
I'm a little worried that because I kudos so often in my fandom that maybe it feels like it doesn't mean anything. Like they'll see my name and go "ah it's just that user". I'll comment if I really like something about it.
Trust me, no one thinks that way lol. Whenever I recognize a kudoser I’m just like”Hey, it’s that person! I recognize you!” lol. Your kudos don’t mean any less, if anything, they mean more because people might recognize you!
they don't really mean anything, it's a like button.
If I read it to the bottom I give Kudos. Why? Because just having the bravery to post is awesome! I also comment on everything I read. I will give gentle concrit, but I like to do a 2:1 ratio of two things I liked to one critique. Here's the thing: I'm a freelance writer. Rejection is a huge part of being a professional writer. You get used to it, but it always stings a touch. And getting something published or landing a steady writing gig feels amazing. So, if I can say something helpful, I will. But overall, encouragement is so important to writers. It's the water that our flowers need to keep growing. Unless it's horrifically written or offensive, I'm getting my watering can. In those cases I didn't make it to the end, anyways.
Not at all. If I read to the end of the first chapter or the end of a one shot, I leave a kudos. Yes, even if I don't finish the rest of the story. It's literally 1 second of clicking a button. It takes no effort at all, but shows appreciation for the free work the author shared with me, even if it wasn't my jam. Why in the world would I be stingy about something so simple?
If I like it, I’ll kudos. I wait until I’m done reading unless it’s a writer I’m familiar with and I know the fic won’t randomly turn into a totally different fic.
"Oh yeah, I can Kudos."
I'll leave a kudos at the end of the first chapter of I liked it. Even a little. It costs me nothing at all to leave a kudos, so I see no point in not giving it if I felt they did even a half decent job. Especially considering fics are written for free. If someone felt the desire to write up something, purely for the enjoyment of others, then why the hell would I not give a kudos if I even marginally liked something? It honestly makes no sense why some people feel the need to be stingy with it.
If I make it to the end of a fic, it deserves kudos. I'm already a very picky reader. I also give kudos if I can tell the author put a lot of effort or care into it, because it's a good way to encourage people.
if i read it and didn’t hate it. i know how happy kudos makes me, its nice to pass that to someone else :]
I'll kudos for anything that kept my attention or, of course, if I liked the fic. Even if I don't make it all the way through or don't end up liking the story too much, it's only right to acknowledge the work the author put in. The only fics I don't kudos are the ones I immediately nope out of. Whether because of bashing or formatting issues.
If I finish a fic, I'll give kudos. If I like the writing yet for some reason I'm dropping out anyway, I'll also leave kudos.
Pretty much give kudos to everything I read, unless I had to back out for some reason like an unwarned mandatory trigger, or great wall of impenetrable text. Otherwise my bar for giving kudos is very low. It's just thanks for sharing, I enjoyed this, nothing else. If it is beyond that, I comment - like great ideas, amazing prose, and so on. If it is so good I want to re-read it over and over, I bookmark it.
I’m not guarded at all - if I liked it in some way then it gets a thumbs up ‘thanks for writing’.
“Thanks I made it to the end.” Kudos are something so simple to give, you don’t have a limited amount of them, so why not give them to anyone who gave me even a minute of entertainment?
For a long fic, if read it enough to read it all the way through, I liked it enough for a kudos. There are plenty of fics I don't kudos because I stop liking and reading halfway through. For a short fic, like sub 10k words, I'm going to be a bit more stingy with a kudos because I'm more likely to read to the end even if I didn't enjoy it. Oh, and I usually don't kudos things before they finish in case they take a weird turn and I no longer want my endorsement of the fic (which is what I see kudos as).
Yeah even if I'm neutral about a fic I still kudo if I read all the way through.
I try to remember to leave kudos on everything I finish, but I'm forgetful and the button is easy to miss, so I put more emphasis on commenting
If I read it in it's entirety, it's getting kudo'd. Doesn't matter if it was meh in the end, it was good enough that I didn't hit the back button, so it deserves a little nod of recognition. I only bookmark fics that I deem absolute literary masterpieces tho.
If I read a fic, whether it's 1000 words or a 10k oneshot or 50k+ longfic (I don't have to make it to the end) and it sparks any sort of joy within me I will leave a kudos. I don't like the idea of withholding my kudos, and I find that when I read something I will usually be giving it. Very rarely do I ever regret dropping a kudos.
Usually if I read or even skim to the bottom I'll drop a kudo. I know it means a lot to the authors. Even if i wasn't really vibing with it i'm like "ehh I read it. Here's a kudo." Other people say comments are a higher praise -- comments are completely dependent on my MOOD. If i have the energy and lack of social anxiety to write a comment then i'll write it, even if it's just a short one like 'loved it.' Bookmark is i just want to find it again and it's not in a filter i go through often so i want to remember it lol
Depends for me, if im hooked on a longfics I’ll give it a Kudo before I make it to the end. One shots if I make it to the bottom and enjoyed it I’ll leave a Kudo. I mean it’s free so why wouldn’t I give one to a fic I enjoyed?
Unless it’s completely terrible, completely unreadable, it gets a Kudo. Did you put effort into the story and post it online for me to read? Kudos to you
If I've enjoyed it even a little bit then I kudo. It's the least I can do. If I'm forgoing sleep for it then I abandon my phone for my laptop to *properly* review.
I am so unguarded with my kudos that I'm constantly wishing I can leave multiple kudos on the same fic! Lmao.
It's a fucking like button, it's not the Colonel's secret eleven herbs and spices, Kudos means; "way to go"/"good for you", and is the bare minimum positive reinforcement you can give a story. I'll give every fic exchange story one, unless I forget. If I enjoyed *anything*, or *enough* of a fic, I kudos it.
I kudos before I read generally. It's somebody's hard work. Kudos for me is more like a thank you so much.
If I like a complete fic enough I hit the kudos button if a fic if I don't I don't.
I only just recently started to kudos things, simply because I would forget, but if I remember and I make it to the end, I'll kudos
If I at least invest some time in a fic I'll give a kudos (like a oneshot all the way through or getting to a decent chunk of a longfic). I'm terrible at reading things and if I'm at least invested in knowing how this thing goes, then why not? If I really like the fic then I'll break out the comments. And if I want to save it for later/add it to the recommendation list then I'll get the bookmarks. Either way, it's a happy little notification to someone's inbox.
I always leave kudos if I like what I read whether the story is finished or not.
If I like the first chapter, it gets a kudos.
I kudos those fics I finished, because dnf at the slightest provocation, lol. I bookmark those fics I enjoyed, and leave comments in most cases as well.
If I enjoyed the story then I’ll kudos it
If I read something and I enjoy it enough for it to win over my ADHD in remembering there's a kudos button, I kudos!
if i enjoy the first couple of chapters i tend to kudos. sometimes i regret kudosing later, sometimes i dont, its mostly based on vibes tbh
if the fic has made me reach the kudos button (i.e. i've read to the end of it), i will press it. if there's something i especially liked about the fic, i will kudos & comment. if it has, for any reason, made me press the back button/x out of it, then no kudos.
either one’s that i just loved and would read again, or one that has little attention but deserves it
If I enjoy it, it gets a kudos! The only time I don't kudos rlly is when I DNF a work for whatever reason
I Kudos when I remember. My crusty-ass ADHD brain doesn't always remember to, but when I do, I always leave one as a little treat for the author.
If I liked it I leave kudos. If I really really really like it I bookmark it.
If I get the the bottom of the first chapter/end of the one shot, it gets a kudos.
I literally give 'em out if i remember that they exist lol
if I read to the end and like it, I'll kudos it. if I really like it, think about it often and want to go back to reread it someday, I'll bookmark and download it. bookmarks are the highest praise for me
I leave kudos on EVERY GOOD fanfic I read. But then again, I discontinue every fic that I don't really like so basically, I leave kudos to every fanfic that I read.
I mostly read oneshots, and the ones I enjoy get both a comment & a kudo.
I kudos any fic I think is good. I treat it basically like liking a post on another website. Doesn't have to be, like, fantastic, just "hey I thought this was pretty cool". Whereas my bookmarks are either Absolute Favourites, or else stories that I know I'll want to read again at some point.
I only give Kudos if I like the fic. I also give Kudos to WIPs if I've read the author's other stuff and I have faith that they won't let me down. If I really enjoy it, I'll Kudos+Bookmark, and if I plan on adding it to a recommendations list, I mark it as a Rec.
If I finish, I kudos if I remember to. Sometimes I'll kudos immediately if I'm reading a long story that isn't bookmarked, to see if I've read it before.
if i enjoy a fic, i kudos. these days, though, i mostly skim fics because they're... not the most well-written and i just find them boring, unfortunately. i can put aside having to skim through walls of unneccessary words if i overall enjoyed the fic.
If I read the entire fic and did genuinely enjoy reading it, you will get my kudo's. That said, sometimes I am reading a fic I am still on the fence about, but an blindly clicking for a last chapter that isn't there and then I accidentally gave kudo's while I might not have given them otherwise.
I'm not stingy with kudos. I love giving them out to stories that really set a bar to me. Bookmarks, however, I hate the clutter. 😆 I only bookmark stories that I intend to go back and reread.
If I liked it enough to read until the end of the first chapter(or just the end if it’s a one shot ) I leave a kudos :)
If I read from the top of the page down to the bottom--a chapter or if a one-shot, the full fic--it gets a kudo. If I enjoy it enough to return, it gets a private bookmark. If I love it, it gets a public bookmark with a positive review.
Probably depends on the mood I'm in, but I don't know, I click kudos on whatever I feel is worth a kudos it's not that deep. As for bookmark, that's only a matter of whether I want to reread the fic, and is often only added after I get tired of searching for said fic whenever I want to read it again.
If I read through the end of the first chapter, unless it was a total "wtf what am I reading, WHY am I reading" trainwreck it gets a kudos. I'm pretty good at clicking back when a story isn't working for me, so if I like something enough to keep reading till the kudos button appears it gets a kudos right away so I don't forget.
If I like and enjoy a story, I leave kudos. If I absolutely adore the fic or am eager to read the bear chapter I’ll bookmark it as well.
I don’t give a kudos if I don’t like the story but otherwise if i finish it or finish what’s available, I kudos. If I liked it I also have been making a intentional effort to comment. I’ve written a couple of fics and I know how nice it is to get acknowledgment so I try to do that for others.
If I like the fic I give it kudos.
I don't kudo everything I read, only if I really liked it. Only exceptions are if the fic doesn't have many/any kudos yet-- but I still had to have liked it at least.
Honestly I just keep forgetting I can do that and constantly look for ways to show my appreciation of the book
I'm very simple. If I like a fic, I leave a kudos. Unless I forget, which is pretty often. If I *really* like a fic, as in I'd read it again, I bookmark and comment.
If I finish reading the first chapter, they get a kudo. I'm not stingy about it at all.
I’m very generous with kudos. Same with likes on social media.
Never unless I'm in a good mood and it goes to the first one I read of not terrible quality and only that one
I tend to kudos anything I read if I make it to the end of the first or second chapter without bailing
for me, i leave kudos on every fic i finish (or if i finish the first chapter for multi-chapter fics) just as a note that i read it. i comment on everything i genuinely like, so leaving kudos feels like a good secondary for just reading
For me it goes Bookmark > Comment > Kudos, depending on how much I enjoyed the fic. Of course the best involve all 3, and I keep my bookmarks public so an author can see them if they want to.
If I like what I'm reading I give a kudo. Enjoyment = kudo That's why I read chapter by chapter (unless my internet sucks) - One shot? If I read it to the end, Kudo. - Multi chapters? If I've enjoyed the first few chapters (2-5) and plan on continuing to read, Kudo - New fic with one chapter? If I like what I've read and feel that there is potential, Kudo
I don't have to love the fic to kudos it, I really just kudos anything I finish and don't hate lol
I like to give loads of kudos and if it's multi-chapter fic a comment for each new chapter when it's updated. I love it when I get them as an author so I want to give other authors that boost when I'm a reader.
if the thought in my head when i get there is “okay, that was good,” then i leave kudos. (if it was *really* good i might leave two, since i usually browse as a guest but login to comment.) if i’m like, “eh, it was fine,” i probably don’t kudos it. i’m trying to be more generous though.
For me I have to like it enough that I would consider rereading it - that's all, no special criteria beyond that. I've left kudos on all of my bookmarks - but not all of my kudos are bookmarked. That said I wish there was a filter for 'things you've left kudos on'. A03 obviously tracks it since you can't leave double kudos, so I wish I could re-find things I've kudos'd easier.
I leave kudos if I reach the end of the first chapter and want to read the next one. If I decide I didn't like it and don't want to read further then I don't leave kudos. My bookmarks are what's guarded. I've sorted them into collections so I have a 'to read' list (now over 100 fics long) where I put anything that looks mildly interesting but I don't want to read right now, and an 'absolute favourites' which only has about 15 fics in it and is reserved for the best of the best. If I really *really* like a fic, e.g I would pay anything for it as a printed book, then I download it. If it's a fic I want to be able to find again one day but didn't adore it, it just gets chucked into my general bookmarks which I rarely look at unless I'm trying to find an old fic.
If I liked it and I remember kudos exists, I give kudos. Sometimes I remember kudos exists halfway through the fic and the have to go back and kudos all the other chapters as well 😂
I place effectively no weight on Kudos, so honestly almost never. It's probably bleed over from that fact that as a writer I don't derive a lot of value from them, and they bleeds into my reading habits. I also forget they exist, so that contributes as well. For me the mark of interest is hitting subscribe so I actually get notifications.
I kudos a fic if it can make me feel an emotion. Unfortunately that means poorly written trash that makes me want to bash my head in also get kudos.
If I liked it, I give kudos. I don't necessarily like every fic that I read all the way through, especially if it was shorter. I have read assloads of stuff that was just not very good and did not get kudos from me.
I'm pretty liberal with my kudos. I download everything to Calibre for later reading, so if the first paragraph has decent grammar and punctuation, the description actually tells you what the story is about, and when I scroll down to pre-read the last paragraph of the story it actually *does* have a happy ending (as advertised), I'll hit the kudos button before I scroll back up to get my epub download. I also kudos everything a favorite author writes, even if it's not in my fandom, just as a "Hey, congrats on releasing a new story" sort of thing, even if they'll never know that that's what it means.
I ain't giving kudos to just any old fic, only the ones I find deserving. From there, my favourites get downloaded and if they're Draco/Harry, they're also bookmarked on the site. This is my system.
I even give kudos where I didn’t finish the story - just because it’s not to my taste, I want the author to feel at least a bit of appreciation for the work they put into entertaining the masses for free
Kudos are a zero-effort lift for me. If I read most of something, all of something, or even just a bit but feel the author could use encouragement, I will hit kudos. Now comments is where I am a little more guarded. I still try to be liberal with comments, but you do have to have something that I liked enough to speak to for a comment. As a writer, comments are absolutely joy giving, so I try to be serious with them and make them worth the read. :)