I'm the last person on Earth that should have Vocal goals. Seriously, the very last person. Yet, here I am.
I left Vocal well over 6 months ago. It wasn't pretty. I was very unhappy. I made suggestions. They fell on deaf ears. I screamed louder and still didn't feel heard. It got down and dirty ugly. So ugly that then CEO and founder, Jeremy Frommer blocked me on Twitter.
Blocked me. ME! Umm, excuse you, but don't you know who I am? Check out my credentials, my wins, my placements. Maybe humble yourself and take some suggestions on board.
I sent a haughty reply to Justin in response to an investment solicitation. You want my cash, but the "Big Guy" blocked me on Twitter, baby, Winnie didn't raise no fool, and I got a novel to write over here anyway:
I watched the stock fall and continue to do so. Circling the drain isn't exactly inaccurate. I expected to be filled with glee. And for a while I was. Mess with me, you get what you get.
But the joy began to fade. And it was replaced by something I never expected, sadness and longing. The platform that made me a writer was in real danger of going away. And that's not something I'm ready to deal with.
The love-hate relationship, at least on my end, has some love left in it. Love for the first place I published my work publically. Love for the place that gave me the confidence to call myself a writer. Love for the place that rewarded me and affirmed that what I had to say was worth reading. Love for the platform that turned me into not just a poet and non-fiction writer, but an actual fiction writer! And love for a place that gave me my very first, and longest-lasting writing friends.
It occurred to me, in a bit of a panic that what I got from Vocal very soon may not be available to other young (and not so young), insecure writers out there, looking to dip their toe into the frigid waters of sharing their work. That would suck.
Which brings me to my Vocal goals for 2024. I can't tell you how many challenges I'll enter. I know it won't be all of them. Been there, done that, didn't buy the T-shirt. I'll follow my heart and enter what speaks to me and what challenges me as a writer. With my novel, and another in the very early stages, I honestly don't have the time anyway.
But my goals aren't about challenges, they're about salvaging something that means a lot to me, more than I realized. There was a time when Vocal was great. It was the best online writing platform, bar none!
I want to MAKE VOCAL GREAT AGAIN!
I have ideas, lots of them, but it's going to take some common sense and humility on both sides. I can admit I'm not the sh*t, if others can admit that what's been tried is not working. Let's be honest, conventional business models don't work for more progressive, out-of-the-box operations.
I've never been in the box. I've worked inside it as a lawyer, but I've never lived there. In fact, it's my residence well outside of the box that has served not only my clients, but myself and my writing well.
I'm back to write. I'm back to work with what works. And there is a lot that does. For example, paying for non-member reads is awesome! I love that Vocal has no paywall. And I love the supportive community of creators; they're the best.
I'm back to bring some of my best work, particularly fiction, maybe even exclusive peeks at my upcoming larger projects. I'm keen to give back to the platform that created me.
I'm back to read and enjoy the awesome creators I love and respect and even to maybe find a few new creators.
I'm back to recruit the countless closet writers I know who have never published a word they've written for the world to see, but long to. But to do that, you need to help me. You need to help me make this a place worth bringing writers to.
How about a cut of the membership fee? We bring in someone, we get a cut? Why not? Another revenue stream for creators isn't a bad thing, goodness knows we need the money. So give us each an affiliate link or whatever it's called "join Vocal and enter great challenges...."
Where did the big money challenges go? Those were a huge draw. It's time to court sponsors again.
And I'm here with my expertise, not just as a pretty nifty little writer, but as a person with a damn good head for business, with a ton of ideas, some of which might be good. I'm one of those rare folks who can straddle and function on both sides, creator and corporate.
And let's be honest, there's a disconnect. Vintage creators are leaving, feeling disillusioned and disrespected. They feel like their words aren't gaining the compensation they should. They feel there's a who's who of "in" creators and they're most definitely "out." They feel like they aren't being valued or heard. That could be true. That could be false, but whatever it is, it's real and it's moving people away. It moved me away. But I'm back.
And I'm back with an open heart and mind.
There's no doubt that I'm a bad girl. I'm a good writer with a bad attitude. I speak my mind, loudly, when maybe I shouldn't. Yet, I don't apologize for it. Speaking up and out, and creating a dialogue is how things change. But, my people never really benefitted from laying down and keeping quiet. Now is not the time for quiet. Now is the time for action.
I'm here and I've humbled myself toward my Vocal 2024 goal, to make the platform great again. Join me, talk to me, I'll write, I'll read, I'll open the dialogue, but I can't do it without you. You have to come with the same spirit. Together, we can meet my goal. We can make Vocal great again and I'm confident we will.
About the Creator
Misty Rae
Retired legal eagle, nature love, wife, mother of boys and cats, chef, and trying to learn to play the guitar. I play with paint and words. Living my "middle years" like a teenager and loving every second of it!
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Comments (21)
I suppose I’ve held Vocal at arms length to avoid disappointment, but I am grateful it’s here and I wouldn’t want it to go away. I do not have a head for business, so I’m glad you are out there fighting this fight. Numbers don’t lie and change can be a good thing. 💖
Amazing, Misty!! Thank you for this! Everything that you state here is also one of reasons why it took me so long to get back to it - I hardly had the energy to get on with normal life, why would I use any of it in a platform which kept moving goalposts? I have no idea of when I'll be paid for any reads, or if I will be paid at all, because the threshhold might be moved up by another $10 or $20 by the time I get there, but I want to write and I want to read you and others I follow, so I'm staying while I can. I'm still catching up with your stories and enjoying lots, for what it's worth! x
This piece hit me emotionally. I began writing online with Vocal Media in 2020. I had my first win in 2023, and although it felt amazing, I felt disconnected at the same time. Insecurity has been my biggest naysayer until recently when a boosted poem on Medium finally afforded me my writer's wings. I plan to be more engaging with the vocal community in 2024. I also plan on evolving the poet in me, the woman who has a lot to say, and one who is finally believing her words carry weight and touch hearts. Best of luck to you and thank you so much for this post!
Love the suggestions!
Great article love the suggestions
Very well said. I know there are many of us hobbling the fence, I hate the idea of leaving, but also feel unseen. I hope you can shake it all into place...You have my vote!!
I love it, Misty!!! You and I are of the same thread. I can't help but to say what I gotta say. Recently I sent a scathing message to one of the staff members. What they don't seem to realize is that I love this platform. I've tried going over to Medium, and I like Medium but for some reason, it just does not jive with me. Vocal is where I belong. Look at how invested I am in this platform. I would really like to see their stock value increase in the year 2024. And I am willing to send them my ideas and thoughts on how I think that can happen. You are right for a company as progressive as Vocal, living inside the box is not going to cut it. Vocal needs to be its own unique little world. Kind of a beatnik crowd or a sense of rebels with the cause. Anyhow thank you for writing this. You didn't do an excellent job. And you have motivated me to keep on going. Like you, I don't want to see Vocal disappear.
Heyyy Misty, glad to see you're back! I really hope Vocal listens this time because soooo many people left. Maybe you should type in all caps, that'll get their attention. Hopefully, lol! I gotta agree with you on the prizes for challenges. When I joined in 2021, it was at $10k. Now it's dropped sooooo low! Another thing that I cannotttttt stand is the amount of AI-generated rubbish on Vocal! I wish something can be done about that!
✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾Misty!
I AM NEW TO VOCAL. I APPRECIATE THE CHANCE TO WRITE AGAIN AT 74. MISTY I AM A WOMAN WITH A MOUTH TOO. LOL
I've struggled getting my enthusiasm back as well. I don't know what it is exactly but something of the magic just got lost to me.
As a newer creator, this was insightful to read. Side note, is the adorable dog in your picture an ECS by chance?
Just make the Runner Up prizes $50 again and I'm on board. If the platform dies because they're giving away too much money, then all Challenges die and my role as the Vocal Mercenary goes with them. Can't be having that. Medium's pay model is a different beast and I don't need to jump ship now
Welcome back!
Hello there, fellow east coaster. Nice to see you back. You make some very good points. I hope they don't fall on deaf ears again. You're right about the vintage creators. A lot of the folks who were around when I joined have disappeared. The challenges, and especially low prize amounts are not a draw, so a lot of the former creators don't even bother. Hopefully they'll get their act together before the whole site is flushed down the toilet
Yeah, Misty Rae!!!💕❤️
Misty, I remember you. You are so right, many vintage creators are on hiatus, or are just disappearing. Honestly, I have been sitting here trying to write an honest assessment of where I am now, and how I feel. The romance of when I first joined is waning like a bad marriage. I have deleted my attempts a few times. I am writing my placard and nailing it to a stick as we speak. I am not happy here right now, and I don't know yet how to articulate it in a story. They want positive goals, I do not feel positive, therefore how can I write such. MVGA is right up my alley. I fear it may be too late, you seem well informed, we asked for the prize money to be lowered so it could benefit more than one winner. It was lowered, but still one winner. I have been here since Covid started, unlike you I never won anything but TOP Stories, i am grateful, but still, we all want to be winners and we long for the simple days of old. MVGA....MVGA....MVGA. Power to the people.
Welcome back 🎉💗❤️💕I am going to be busy working on my Novel.
Great to have you back, and I want Vocal to be great, I have made lots of suggestions but as yet they've fallen on deaf ears, Great story and hopefully a Top one and maybe a Challenge winner
YES! So hear good to hear from you here, Misty! An experienced, unafraid voice of reason. I'm with ya, Girl! MVGA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mikeydred keeps lifting up the Ambassador program here on Vocal where people visiting your profile or reading your work get an ad promoting Vocal &, if they happen to join through that link, you get a portion of their subscription fee. (He's also complained of problems with timely remuneration, but at least there's something.) I love that you are challenging both Vocal as site & we as creators to participate in returning it to it's former glory & more. Very well said for such a bad, bad woman, lol.