r/redditgetsdrawnbadly • u/Choice_Ad7133 • 21h ago
Other I've stopped commenting on posts about offers to draw people because I'm tired of people asking to draw others and then ghosts them
I'm probably going to sound a little petty, but honestly, I don't care anymore. I've basically stopped commenting on posts to get drawn because of how often I see people offering to draw other users for free, asking people to comment their pictures or usernames, and then disappearing off the face of the Earth as soon as people actually respond.
This is a subreddit where people can draw other users, regardless of their artistic skill level. Bad drawings, average drawings, and good drawings are all welcome. It's supposed to be a fun, casual place where people can participate, get drawn, and draw others.
And I genuinely like that concept! I'm not expecting professional artwork. I'm not expecting a masterpiece. I'm not even expecting the person to spend hours drawing me. The entire point is to have fun and see what people come up with.
BUT CAN PEOPLE PLEASE STOP OFFERING TO DRAW PEOPLE IF THEY'RE NOT EVEN GOING TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE COMMENTS THEY RECEIVE?
I'm talking about those posts where someone says something like:
"I'm bored, give me your pictures and I'll draw you!"
"Drop your selfies below and I'll draw whoever I want!"
“Drawing you based on your username!"
"I'll draw anyone who comments! :) "
And then people actually participate.
They take the time to find a picture of themselves they're comfortable sharing, upload it, write a comment, or give the OP their username so they can find their avatar.
And what happens?
Absolutely nothing.
No reply. No acknowledgment. No indication that the OP even saw the comment. No drawing. Sometimes the account just keeps posting and commenting elsewhere while the people who responded are left wondering whether the offer was genuine in the first place.
Now, before anyone says anything, YES, I understand that drawing takes time. I understand that some people receive dozens or even hundreds of requests. I understand that artists have lives outside Reddit, that they get tired, that they can become overwhelmed, and that they don't necessarily have to draw every single person who comments.
I'm not demanding that anybody spend their entire weekend drawing strangers on the internet.
That's not my issue.
My issue is the complete lack of communication.
If you receive more requests than you can handle, just say so. If you only plan to draw three people, tell people that beforehand. If you change your mind, that's fine. If you're too busy, that's fine too.
You don't owe strangers free artwork.
But people also don't have to keep participating in your posts when the same pattern keeps happening.
What bothers me is when someone makes an enthusiastic offer, encourages people to participate, gets a bunch of comments, and then doesn't even bother replying to anybody. Not even a simple "Thanks for commenting!" or "I'll try to get to some of these later."
And I'm not saying every person who doesn't respond is intentionally being rude. Some people genuinely forget. Some get busy. Some abandon Reddit for a while. There are plenty of innocent explanations.
But when you've seen this happen repeatedly, it starts getting frustrating.
Imagine seeing a post that says the OP wants to draw people. You think, "Oh, cool! That sounds fun." You comment, maybe even feeling a little excited to see what someone might do with your picture.
Then you wait.
You check back later.
Nothing.
You check again the next day.
Still nothing.
Eventually, you realize that you might never hear anything from that person.
And the worst part is that you don't even know whether they saw your comment.
Did they forget? Did they lose interest? Did they get overwhelmed? Did they draw somebody else and forget about everyone else? Did they simply make the post for attention and then move on?
You have absolutely no idea.
And honestly, that's why I've stopped bothering with these posts.
I'd rather not get my hopes up about participating in something when I have no idea whether the person making the offer will even acknowledge that I participated.
Again, I'm not entitled to a drawing. Nobody owes me one. If I comment on a drawing offer and the OP chooses someone else, that's perfectly fine. If they never get around to drawing me, that's also fine.
I'm not entitled to the artwork, but I am entitled to decide that I don't want to keep participating in something that repeatedly disappoints me.
And that's what I've decided to do.
I'm not going to sit around getting annoyed at strangers over drawings they never promised me individually. I'm simply going to stop commenting on those kinds of posts unless the OP seems genuinely engaged with the people participating.
If someone says they're drawing people and actually replies to commenters, gives updates, posts their drawings, or explains that they're only taking a limited number of requests, that's great! Those are the kinds of posts that make the community fun.
But if the post is basically "COMMENT YOUR PICTURE!!!" followed by radio silence, I'm scrolling past it.
I also think people need to remember that RGDB is supposed to be a community for both drawing and getting drawn. It's not supposed to be a competition, and nobody needs to be an amazing artist to participate. The whole point is that people can have fun with art without worrying about their skill level.
That makes communication even more important, in my opinion. People should be able to participate casually without feeling like they wasted their time responding to an offer that went nowhere.
And no, I don't think the solution is to start insulting people, harassing artists, or demanding that they draw everyone who comments. That would be ridiculous. The subreddit is supposed to be welcoming, and people should absolutely be allowed to draw at their own pace.
I just wish people would be a little more realistic about the offers they make.
If you know you only have the energy to draw one person, say that.
If you want to draw people eventually but can't promise when, say that.
If you're just making the post because you're bored and might not actually follow through, maybe don't make it sound like you're definitely going to draw everyone who responds.
It's really not that complicated.
And if you're one of the people who has offered to draw others and then disappeared, I'm not automatically assuming you're a bad person. You might have had a perfectly reasonable explanation. I'm just explaining why some people eventually stop participating.
Because after a while, you stop wanting to put in the effort of commenting when the experience keeps ending the same way.
TL;DR: I've stopped commenting on offer posts where people offer to draw other users for free because I've seen too many instances of people asking for pictures or usernames, receiving comments, and then seemingly ghosting everyone. I'm not demanding free artwork, and I understand that artists get busy or overwhelmed. I just wish people would communicate instead of encouraging participation and then disappearing without a word. RGDB is supposed to be fun for everyone, and I'm tired of wasting my time on offers that seem to lead nowhere.
Does anyone else feel this way, or have you had similar experiences with drawing offers on here?
