Vocal Memes for Established Creators (Part IV)

If it exists, there are probably memes about it.

This was my philosophy in the years leading up to 2021. But when I joined Vocal in January that year, it became apparent that there weren't memes about everything after all. Not quite. Because Vocal was (to the best of my knowledge) almost entirely un-memed - a tragic discovery, I know. So in an effort to restore accuracy to that beloved motto, Vocal Memes for Established Creators was brought to life, which was closely followed by parts two and three in the months which followed.

For the fourth instalment however, I've been joined by the fabulous Call me Les and the legendary Madoka Mori - two of Vocal’s fine creators who, as it turns out, are also adept meme crafts(wo)men.

As we stagger and crawl into 2023, what better time is there to reflect on the most notable (Vocal) events of the past year? We’ve seen a wide range of Challenges, the introduction of Vocal’s new app, and of course, the Vocal Podcast. So while we eagerly await to see what 2023 has in store for us, we've prepared some freshly baked memes to whet your appetite.

Whether you’re celebrating your wildest achievements, or distracting yourself from 2022's shortcomings, pour yourself a glass and venture through our fourth collection of Vocal Memes for Established Creators. We hope you enjoy!

#1 Everyone loves a good comment

Few feelings are better than the moment you find a comment on one of your stories. I think it's because it's a nice reminder that someone has taken the time to actually read what you've written and (hopefully) liked it. Sure, there's certain monetary rewards which come with reads on Vocal, but sometimes just knowing that someone enjoyed reading your stuff is better than anything else.

#2 Comment Goblins

Buuuut of course, when one opens the window to comments, they're not always going to be positive. I often refer to these people as 'comment goblins'. Oftentimes though, these negative comments are written with good intent, and (appear) to aim to provide constructive feedback to the author - just keep in mind that feedback isn't always wanted. If you do often find yourself wanting to give feedback to creators though, head over to Great Incantations and look out for posts asking for feedback (or posts that mention 'ironmaiden' - the group's tag for straight-to-the-point feedback requests). You can also occasionally find feedback requests in other groups as well such as the Vocal Social Society.

#3 Feedback

Of course, if you do ask for feedback, be prepared for, well, feedback - both the good and the bad. If you are brave enough to request it though, it can do wonders for your writing. Just be sure to use the 'ironmaiden' tag carefully, because it was deliberately set up to encourage readers to give you direct, point-blank, no sugar-coated feedback.

#4 Speedy challenges

Ok, don't get me wrong - I LOVE the challenges, but the 7-day due dates for some of the recent fiction contests have oftentimes been quite difficult to work with. If you felt like you were struggling to keep up, you certainly weren't alone. Luckily, the latest challenges have a slighter longer submission window of two-weeks, which has been well received - thanks Vocal!

#5 In with the new

One of my favourite ways of procrastinating Vocal Challenge entries is to immediately drop the one I'm working on and start thinking of ideas for the new ones. So when Les posted this meme, I knew it had to go on the next instalment. I'm ashamed of how relatable it is, but not quite ashamed enough to stop doing it.

#6 The horrors

For some people, I'm sure this isn't a problem, but if you're anything like me, sometimes your brain just can't figure out what to do with a prompt. One of the most frustrating experiences is when you have 10347854 ideas for your writing, but you just can't figure out how to make it work with the prompt... Hang in there, most of us get like that sometimes.

#7 Let's unpack those bags

When Madoka sent this one through, I nearly spat out my coffee. The accuracy hurts a little, but it also made me laugh, which I suppose is exactly what one looks for in memes. Of course, there's nothing wrong with sprinkling a little of your life's shortcomings into your work. Hell, I do it, and if I'm honest, I think it makes the stories seem more believable. Well, they do say writing is a good form of therapy...

#7 Praise the quick-edit feature

Those damned typos will be the death of me, but then so will having to continuously quick-edit when I find new errors. For some reason (and thanks, Les, for letting me know it's not just me) whenever I correct a typo using quick-edit and re-publish I immediately find another typo and have to redo it again. I've got no idea what this looks like for Vocal staff on the backend, but if it makes your job harder please know we're sorry, and it's entirely accidental.

#8 What's with the random submissions?

I'm not sure if people do this accidentally, or if it's done intentionally to try and rack up more reads, but every time I have a peak at submissions for Vocal Challenges (you know, to scout out the competition), there's always a couple there that have nothing to do with the challenge.

"Top Three Weight Loss Tips" doesn't sound like a fantasy prologue entry...

I have no idea why this bothers me, because it doesn't affect my use of the platform whatsoever, but it annoys me nonetheless. So naturally, I decided to rant about it through this meme.

#9 Working hard

Guilty. There's nothing better than procrastinating your work with a little reading and writing time, and hey, at least it's productive in a way...

#6 Procrastination is a b-

Ah yes, a meme which accurately depicts our weekends. Why do stuff when you can make memes about said stuff instead? It's so much easier. Actually, we have to be honest, Madoka, Les and I actually started working on this article in August 2022 and have only just now published it. We procrastinated doing the thing we were using to procrastinate our actual work... Ironic, we know. That's some expert level procrastination if you ask me.

Well, that's about all the memes we have for you this time.

We hope you enjoyed the fourth instalment of Vocal Memes for Established Creators! Thanks Les and Madoka for your divine contributions. Stay classy.

Until next time.

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