"Social" media these days tends to not be so social, unless you're hidden away in a walled garden or trying to start an argument. Especially on an art site like this, it's important to show the work you appreciate more love than just a like, if possible. Your compliment could be the difference between a depressive spiral and renewed spirit, or something like that. And think of all the times you've shared art in a server or group chat and you all hyped it up there. Imagine if the original artist saw all the love they were receiving, the impact they've made on people's day?

I know a small part of the reason comments lost some social currency is because people would comment "Nice!" and nothing else. Here's other things you can say in your comments:

• How it makes you feel, or how you connect to it
• How it made the group chat feel
• Which quality(/ies) you like most (lines, shape, composition, color, texture, obvious skill (avoid the word "talent", which some people dislike), etc.)
• If you have a question about the inspiration behind or artist's opinion on a piece, ask away! Most people love that someone enjoyed their work enough to be curious about it.

Things not to say:

• No self-deprecation; don't say their art is so good it makes you feel bad about your own skills, or that it makes you not want to draw anymore (Consider saying it makes you want to work harder or something.)
• No critique, unless they say critiques are okay
• Unless the artwork is humorous, I would avoid joking in the comments of strangers' work.
• For the love of God, don't jokingly say "im going to kill you/them/myself" and other violent things when the artist doesn't speak English
• No comparing OCs to another pre-existing character, since some people are sensitive about that
• "I can't even draw a stick figure!" (Neither can I, buddy.)

And always keep this in mind:

• Be kind.
• Don't do this selfishly. You don't want the artist to follow you. You don't want a compliment back. You don't want more profile views. You want to encourage the artist and show them that their work has impacted more than the artist themself. That's all. Empty your head and heart of all but that. If you should want something more, it should be a reply saying "thank you," and even that shouldn't be your goal here.
• Don't read all this, think "yea, other people should do this! I'd love more comments!" and then not do it yourself. For years I've seen people share posts about their hard work going unappreciated, and then not being the change they want to see in the world. Treat others the way you wish you could be treated.

I don't always do it -- I'm lazy, too -- but I try to hold myself to this when I remember it: If I have the time to be scrolling or surfing the web, I have the time to type out at least one comment. I'm sure you do too. Now, let us go forth...