I Will Go Skimming, No More!

Dear People That I Have Subscribed to,

Some of you may notice that I have taken a little break from publishing regularly on Vocal recently. I am hoping this will serve as a good explanation as to why.

If I were a bug, I would be a pond skimmer. I flit from one thing to the next, spending very little time focusing on things in detail. Because of this, I miss out on a lot of great things. One of those things has been some of the amazing writing here on Vocal.

I follow fiction and poetry on here and if you are on my subscription list, that means I find your work very pleasing, You are an excellent group of real people writing things that should receive WAY more attention than they do.

I tend to skim as I read on here, focusing on the main plot point and not any detail. I use my possible pending ADHD diagnosis as an excuse to reach for the end of a story as opposed to savoring every word. I think I do this because I am excited to read everything in one go and get to the next great piece as quickly as possible. You are all exciting people writing exciting stuff!

But here's the thing, if I go to eat at an amazing restaurant with an exciting chef, I would not be chomping through the dishes to get to the next course. I would be savoring every bite and trying to make every mouthful last as long as possible...

A few months ago, I really challenged myself to savor the stories that come into my subscription feed. I challenged myself to be an attentive reader.

It is difficult to fight back the want to skim, especially if I am living through a day of distractions. However, over the course of a few weeks, I think I have managed to train myself to be a decently focused individual. When I read your stories, I actually lose myself in them, disappearing into the descriptions like Alice down the rabbit hole - completely.

There is something of great importance I have to say to all of you.

YOU ARE ALL SO TALENTED!

I knew you were good, that's why I subscribed, but I had no idea you were all so brilliant!! You have taken me on so many rich adventures through your stories this month! Futuristic sci-fi mystery, poignant seasonal poetry, spooky tales - you name it, I've read it!

I had no idea you were all such geniuses!

All I can say is that I am thoroughly sorry for ever skimming your work, however small the skim. I was robbing myself of the true value of your work.

I solemnly swear to skim no more!

Thoroughly reading every word of a piece gives value to subtler themes. Themes that are overlooked when skimming. I have found such deep enjoyment in my reading recently. I feel I have rediscovered you all!

This platform, and the folks on here, sometimes encourage a level of production that I find can dilute quality and actually encourage skimming. As such, I have also vowed to write for myself, and not the numbers. Since doing so, my numbers have tanked, but the comments I have received recently have been so detailed and much more encouraging to me. I have a lot of you to thank for that!

My next resolution will be to learn how to give valuable feedback back to you all.

Any advice?

Sincerely,

ThatWriterWoman (the ex-skimmer)

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See these three:

Grey by Poppy

The vivid imagery of this poem is matched only by the masterful language used to describe it. I highly recommend this. Poppy is a fantastic writer!

https://vocal.media/poets/season-shift

Season Shift by Celia in Underland

Stunning descriptive visuals in the poem on the shifting seasons - Beautiful!

Humans by Kayleigh Fraser

Brilliantly sobering message with a hopeful theme! Motivating, vivid, and stunning work from Kayleigh Fraser