I have always advised new writers to write short stories as it is a faster and more reliable way of getting feedback on your work. I think this is a pivotal route to becoming an author.

However, do you get feedback at all or do you even get any readers popping by or is Authors Den simply author commenting on author? I also have experience on Wattpad and the problems are similar there.

So how does an author get comments? This question is a work in progress for me so I am open to discussion.

Clearly the short story has to be engaging. Having impact is also vital and very difficult to chieve in a short story and I think that is a skill in itself.

Authors' Den is a great tool. However, stories simply scroll down the page and are all to soon somewhere in the archives.

On my blog I often Tweet articles occasionally to give them a boost so Twitter is a very useful tool. Facebook is not so good as although I have quite a few friends they don't want to hear the same message over and over.

Another option is to request feedback at the end of each tale. Does that work? Does anyone have experience of that helping?

So what tools do you use to increase readership of your Authors' Den short stories and which give you the greatest success?