@erikkemp yeah I don't like speculating but maybe part of the appeal of the other place is the broader audience (as in, not so niche).
I don't know, I'm just sad to see for every one post they publish here, they publish 10 there... with a very different tone, too.
Others (including favorite authors, photographers, cinematographers) have completely abandoned Mastodon in favor of Bluesky and aren't even bridging their accounts