Regarding your article: Anyone reply to reader emails?

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   Will Apseposted 8 years ago

   The emails that I have had from readers would have been a useful addition to the comments section of a page. But are annoying simply as emails.
   
   Is it possible to discourage 'contact the author' misuse? Maybe place the link at the bottom. Say 'please use comment section for page-related questions' or suchlike?
   
   I have never replied to a reader, since I can see no reason to.

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      Christy Kirwanposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      You can turn off this option if you don't find it useful. Simply sign into HubPages, visit your My Account page, go to the Profile tab, choose Account Settings, and uncheck the "Allow others to contact you?" box.

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         Marisa Wrightposted 8 years agoin reply to this

         The trouble with that option, Christy, is that it stops everyone from contacting us, even our fellow Hubbers and (as theraggededge says) potential clients.
         
         The message here is that the "contact the author" link is TOO prominent on each Hub, causing readers to email us rather than read the article or ask in the comments. 
         
         In other words, it's reducing reader interaction on our Hubs which cannot possibly be a good thing.

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            wildernessposted 8 years agoin reply to this

            Agreed to both problems.  Would it help, if it is  possible, to make that link visible only to those signed in?

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      Kylyssaposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      How will people who wish to print publish something you've written on Hubpages or to hire you to do a targeted writing gig contact you if you shut it off?

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         FatFreddysCatposted 8 years agoin reply to this

         Realistically, how often does such a thing actually happen?
         
         I mean, I've been here six years, and I'm still waiting for Rolling Stone to call me up and offer me a gig riding on Metallica's tour bus for a cover story.
         
         Hey Jann Wenner - I'm available!  Hook a brother up! I work cheap!!

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            theraggededgeposted 8 years agoin reply to this

            Happened to me. I was contacted by an editor because she'd read my hubs, and have been writing for them for three years. Over $14k earned. So glad she was able to contact me

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               FatFreddysCatposted 8 years agoin reply to this

               Nice. Wish I got that lucky!

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                  Barbara Kayposted 8 years agoin reply to this

                  I had someone contact me a couple of years back. Because she paid me poorly, I quit after a couple of months.

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            Kylyssaposted 8 years agoin reply to this

            I've had three hubs picked up by print publishers since I joined HubPages. I've gotten five realistic offers for writing gigs on craft topics and I've been contacted by over a dozen charities to write copy for their websites through HubPages. I'm nothing special; I'll bet the popular folks on here get many more such offers and requests.

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   FatFreddysCatposted 8 years ago

   I've only gotten a handful of those e-mails in all of the six years I've been here...and most of them have been from spammers that I called out in the forums or Q&A section
   
   One guy sent me a message that was just the word "Loser" repeated about 1000 times.
   
   Another one told me he hoped my mother would get raped.
   
   Nice, huh?
   
   I didn't respond in either case because I didn't want either of them to get my "real" email address so they could start bombing me regularly.
   
   In both cases I clicked the button that would report the sender(s) to HP for being abusive, and they were banned immediately.

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      Will Apseposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I would to see the emails the author of this page gets: https://dengarden.com/gardening/howtokillfrogs

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         lobobrandonposted 8 years agoin reply to this

         Nice find. The comments on that hub haha
         
         Regarding the original question. If there's really useful stuff, why not include an FAQ towards the end of the hub or find another way to include the information in the hub. I'm sure they're asking as they didn't find the details in there. Let's not forget, you've said it yourself: would have been a useful addition to the comments section

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            Will Apseposted 8 years agoin reply to this

            That page needs to be adapted for television, lol.
            
            Just on the original point, the whole reason we write is to reach a large audience rather than engage in one to ones.
            
            So, it's nice to be reachable, but not so good to get emails that should really be in the public forum.
            
            Maybe, the 'contact the author' thing should only appear when you click the author profile.

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   Wesman Todd Shawposted 8 years ago

   Gosh, I don't get a lot, but I do get some - and often it is someone asking for my advice, which I'm happy to give, and I get very thankful replies for those transactions. So I'm happy about that.
   
   I also get some bit of odd questions which I'd like to be able to answer. Sometimes I just get someone telling me how excited they are about things which we share in common, talking about products and such.
   
   Every so often I get some hate mail. Nothing frightening, just some suggestions about where I should go and where I could probably shove things. I usually try to be very subtle on touchy things these days. It's kinda all worth it.
   
   At first I wondered how these people were getting my email address, but I can see how it wouldn't be unreasonable for HP Network to feel obliged to supply that, whether we wanted it or not. This stuff is all very very public.

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      Will Apseposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      The value of the comments section is that anyone can get involved. So if you don't have an answer to a query, someone else might.
      
      That howtokill frogs page is a good example, as well as downright hilarious.
      
      Bottomline: I only have so many words in me on any given day, lol.
      
      If I am going to answer something I would prefer it benefited the many, not just one individual.

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      wildernessposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Never gotten any hate mail.  Some thank-you's and lots of questions asking for help.  As you say, I'm glad to help out, but would prefer that the questions were in the form of a comment.

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   FatFreddysCatposted 8 years ago

   Well, shoot. I guess I just suck. (*kicks rock*)

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   LeanManposted 8 years ago

   I quite regularly get mail through HP, often it it is requests for help from people in Saudi as I wrote a lot of hubs about working there, and also from journalists investigating all sorts of things there. Can almost guarantee that as soon as anything happens in that country I will have at least one email through HP or my own site about working in Saudi from someone asking for info about it... I have ended up being quoted through the BBC and other places because of it...
   I guess it depends on what you will write about and how many others are writing about it as to whether you will get any mail - and yes I do get a few "burn in hell infidel" type emails and comments because of the subject area I write about.

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