Dear Vocal Moderators

Hey Vocal Moderators,

How ya holdin' up?

I mean, seriously. It’s been a rough 24 hours for everybody. You guys hanging in there?

Sometimes I think it would be fun to be a Vocal moderator. You get paid to read, and this site can be pretty entertaining. It would be cool to watch new writers join the community and find their voices.

And sometimes I wonder how you all do it day in and day out. You must be staring at a screen for hours. You have to make your way through thousands upon thousands of stories, some of them great, others barely intelligible. Reading strangers' innermost thoughts and unsolicited opinions gets tiresome after a while.

It must be even worse when a glitch like last night’s happens. I can only imagine that you guys have been overwhelmed with emails, support requests, and complaints. It must upset the flow of the day and put extra strain on everybody.

I feel bad when there's an extended wait to get published. If things are moving slowly on our end, that probably means you’ve got a lot going on on yours. And if my wait lasts for days, I can only assume you’re swamped. I hope they’re paying you guys well.

Because you doing what you do is what makes Vocal such a great platform for writers. I love that this site actually takes the time to vet every story, ensure basic quality, and enforce the community guidelines. By reading every submission, you give people a chance to be recognized and have their work featured.

But I’m worried about you guys. I think we need some kind of signal to let me know you're okay…

I’ve got it. If you're not okay, make this a Top Story. That’s how I’ll know.

Thank you, Vocal mods, for reading our stories. You make this platform possible, and the writers of this community are extremely grateful.

P.S. Sorry for adding this one to the pile and for lying about this being poetry. I can make it rhyme if you need me to.