
EmPAWyee of the Month
Share a story about your beloved furry, feathered, or finned coworker.
Prizes
- First place:
- $2,500
- Second place:
- $1,500
- Third place:
- $1,000
All prize amounts will be doubled as donations in the winners' names, for a total of $10,000 given to support the ASPCA.
Status
CompletedTimeline
Submissions opened
Sep 01, 2021
Submissions closed
Oct 01, 2021 3:59 AM CUT
Results
Oct 19, 2021
Prizes
- First place:
- $2,500
- Second place:
- $1,500
- Third place:
- $1,000
All prize amounts will be doubled as donations in the winners' names, for a total of $10,000 given to support the ASPCA.
Status
CompletedTimeline
Submissions opened
Sep 01, 2021
Submissions closed
Oct 01, 2021 3:59 AM CUT
Results
Oct 19, 2021
About this challenge
At Vocal, we're firm believers in the power of an office pup. In fact, we have no less than five honorary CHOs (Chief Happiness Officers!), and our office wouldn't run the same without them. We're thankful every day that they were rescued and found their forever home with the people who make Vocal happen. So, we decided we were long overdue to launch a Challenge in their honor, and help you give back to the amazing ASPCA while we're at it.
Enter the EmPAWyee of the Month Challenge, our furry coworker photo contest: Whether that means an office dog, the betta fish you keep on your desk, or your cat who walks in front of your webcam on Zoom calls as you work from home, share the furry, feathered, or scaly friend who makes the workday a bit brighter. Nominate your emPAWyee of the month by telling us why your furry friend deserves the title, and be sure to include photos to convince us they deserve the accolades. 🐾
How to enter
For your story to be eligible, it should be between 600 and 5,000 words and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Stories published on Vocal and entered into the contest up until September 30, 2021, at 11:59 PM EST will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here.
To be eligible to win the grand prize, second place, or third place prizes, you must be over the age of 13 and residing in a country where Stripe is available at the time of entry. A complete list of countries where Stripe is available can be found here—winners will need to have a Stripe account created and connected in order to receive the prizes. For this reason, entrants located outside of any of these 35 countries will not be eligible to win.
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Challenge resources
You Are Here Challenge Winners
For You Are Here , we asked writers to put readers somewhere they weren't supposed to be. What really stood out in the stories that placed was how often that line wasn't so clear. Sometimes you knew you were pushing your luck, sometimes you had every right to be there, and sometimes you didn't get much of a choice. Writing in second person made those situations feel a lot harder to watch from the sidelines.
By Vocal Curation Team7 days ago in Resources
Negative Space Challenge Winners
For Negative Space , we asked writers to explore how much can be said through what's left out. Our favorite entries found clever ways to make those silences, gaps, and unanswered questions feel just as important as the words themselves.
By Vocal Curation Team14 days ago in Resources
Out of Season Challenge Winners
We’re trying something new with our challenge awards structure. Starting with Out of Season , each challenge will recognize one grand prize , four winners , and ten honorable mentions . That’s 15 stories to celebrate, with a little extra love for the top pick. For this challenge, the strongest stories made the timing matter. Something showing up early or returning when it shouldn’t changed what people did, what they assumed, or how they saw each other. There was humor in trying to carry on as usual, and sadness in realizing why the usual schedule no longer worked. Sometimes the wrong time of year turned out to be just when someone needed it.
By Vocal Curation Team20 days ago in Resources



