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What I Wanted Out Of Vocal And Why I'm Still Chasing After That Goal

Finding A New Perspective

By Jason Ray Morton Published 3 years ago 9 min read
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What I Wanted Out Of Vocal And Why I'm Still Chasing After That Goal
Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

Recently I wasn't sure I could write anything of value. I had absolutely had it with writing. I had given up any hope that this was an avenue leading to a success of any kind, financial or otherwise. Then, listening to the support and encouragement of my fellow writers in the Vocal community, I hung on. It was during this period that I had an epiphany of sorts and started seeing things from a different angle.

Writing, it's not for everyone. While there are more ways than one to get into writing, if you're here reading this, you chose to get into writing on Vocal. Maybe you always wanted to be a writer. Perhaps you saw their fabulous advertisement about making up to $6,000 a month writing stories from home. Maybe you just have things you have to get out, share with people, and perhaps bare your soul. For some, it's a combination of those reasons, and some I won't think of to name them. Whatever the reason is, as with anyone that ventures into a project, a job, or a hobby, you want to be good at what you're doing. Right?

Now that we've gotten that out of the way, how do you know if you're any good as a writer? You're going to find supportive people in the world, even if you're a pessimist or cynic like myself. There are tons of them on Vocal or Medium if that is your chosen platform. You're probably writing and posting on more than one platform, and why wouldn't you? It doubles your chances of getting noticed, getting recognition when you do write something that stands out, and fills your need for validation. No? Then maybe it's just me. Yet, from the posts that I've read and the frustration that I've seen people go through, I know I'm not alone. So, how do you gauge success as you go through this writer's journey? That's a great question. A better one might be, how do you achieve success.

Whether it's fame, fortune, or just to feel proud of what you do as a writer, there's no guarantee of success. Yes, it'd be great to make a living as a writer, doing something you love to do, and getting paid to write. Someone once coined a saying, do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life. It is a great plan that the educators of the world should be imparting on kids as soon as middle school. Since this isn't a lesson that we all learned, as most of us don't have a best-selling spot on the NY Times list, or have even seen our face on a book at the library or book store, then we have to figure it out for ourselves. That might require new ideas.

Don't Stop Writing

Don't stop writing. I'd like to think that my writing is good enough to do something with it, and maybe it is. However, I go back and look at the earliest stuff I wrote and I sometimes cringe. Comparing what I did in November of last year to what I did in September of 2021 is like comparing apples and oranges. I've struggled to stay motivated, especially with each passing "failure." However, through the magic of the internet, I've been encouraged beyond my wildest dreams. Some people saw something in what I was doing and gave me the push that I don't have at home--especially with a very small family and a small group of close friends.

It's easy to get discouraged. Vocal has consistently waived dollar signs in front of its' writers. Thousands of dollars a month are up for grabs through the vocal challenges. I've wanted to win as much as the next guy, even swore I wouldn't enter them anymore. Yet, here I am, and so are you. So, how do we make the most of this avenue of creative expression and perhaps turn it into a more fruitful endeavor?

You're A Promoter, So Promote

I'm not suggesting that you get a bullhorn and yell through the streets of whatever city, state, or country you live in because we all know someone will get annoyed. No, that's not the way to go about it, and probably wouldn't work. However, through Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Minds, Reddit, Gab, Pure Social, and all the subreddits and Facebook groups, you can certainly get the word out that you've got something to share. Currently, I am subscribed to over 300 Facebook groups and thirty subreddits. There's a group for anything and everything from poetry to non-fiction, from horror to "filthy," and beyond.

Whether we like it or not, to gain any real traction with a story or piece we're going to publish, we have to be the Vince McMahon's of the indie writers. Any and all avenues have to be experimented with and tried. Otherwise, we aren't getting the reads that we want, or perhaps need, to feel like we're successful or make the extra income we were looking for. For anyone that doesn't know who Vince McMahon is, he's the guy that promoted wrestling to the industry it is, and then went out and promoted a failed football league enough that Pepsi and Viacom ponied up all the money for the venture and let him keep control. The twice-failed league is now in the hands of Dwayne Johnson and his business partners.

Be the best social media promoter you can be. Learn it better than you know it now. I just learned that you can schedule posts on Twitter. That means you can share on Twitter so that while you're at that regular job, you can still be getting your works out to the public. But hey, you already know this, right?

By Merakist on Unsplash

Build A Brand

Writing is a way to express yourself, engage with our fellow writers, share stories, make a living, or unburden yourself of those things rattling around in your head that you feel like sharing. I've got so many of those that I'm going to have to stop aging at 50 just so I can get them all out before I shuffle off this mortal coil. So, what's your brand? If you're answering that you don't know, don't feel bad, because neither do I. At least, I don't know with any certainty. So, if you don't have a favorite genre, build your brand around the fact that you're a diversely talented writer. Your product is your work and even James Patterson has diversified some over the years. Whatever your brand may be, whether it's a renowned poet, a mystery writer, a historian, a horror writer, or a romance writer, build it up. When you start to find that one area that is getting the most attention, you'll know you're onto something and you've found that niche in the market.

Building a brand on Vocal is a thought that I recently came to realize deserved experimenting with. Let's face it, Vocal is a business and for the degrees of success that many of us would like to achieve, we are going to have to be patient, work hard, and play a seemingly endless game. We all want to win those challenges but there can only be three. It could be worse.

Since there can be only three winners to the challenges, allow me to present an alternative perspective. BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME!!! Seriously, that's not the only perspective to consider. Vocal's earnings are well known. For one million reads you'll earn 6,000 dollars. Nobody has done this yet, probably because of the amount of time we spend promoting, reading, and writing, on top of our day-to-day lives. So, as part of my brand, at one of my lowest and least assured points, I decided to try things differently. This is why I started the Vocal Progressive Group For Writers And Readers. I spend an hour a day, sometimes as late as one in the morning, plotting and planning on how to promote my stories and that of my fellow writers. I'm actually quite proud of what I've done so far. It's been fun to see the feelings people show and it's a way to give a little back to the ones that have kept me going when I was at my lowest.

Keep It Fun

Writing is work, but it should be fun. We can't allow ourselves to get so overly engrossed in chasing a challenge win that we forget the fun of storytelling. Storytelling is supposed to be fun and challenging as we develop new people, build new worlds, and travel to places that we can only imagine. We should be focused on the quality of our ideas, keeping our skills growing and moving forward.

With that in mind, enter the challenges because at the end of the day, if you promote them, you're still getting reads. If you're looking for a payday, keep writing, whatever it is that you have an idea for, and growing your portfolio. Pull out the old pieces every so often, reshare them with the groups. New people are joining every day and may not have seen that fabulous piece that others overlooked.

For those that have been frustrated, or are doubting themselves, I leave you with this. Keep your chins up, your fingers on the keyboard, and remember that anything worthwhile is something that remained just out of reach until you finally wrapped your hands around it and held tight.

Everyday Things To Do

Write every day. It's important to keep going forward toward whatever your goals as a writer may happen to be.

Read every day. Seeing what your fellow writers are doing is going to help you grow as a writer and get familiar with what works and what doesn't.

Engage with your fellow writers. Comment, leave hearts, or claps, and let them know that you're there. You'll find support and advice when it's needed.

Make notes when you have ideas. If you have an idea that sounds good, write it down so you remember it. If something pops into your head, make a note if it's about one of your story projects.

Remember to keep it fun. Enough said. That was the biggest mistake I was making. It was becoming far too much like work.

My Confession

What I really wanted from vocal, as I'd been writing for years but never publishing anything, was a second income. The advertisement brought me in, the possibilities held me like a prisoner in a cage, and the people I've met kept me going no matter how frustrated I have been. Then, when I was at my lowest point, and ready to really chuck it all in, I hung on for a little while longer and found myself writing more consistently. I slowed down the writing, started my own Facebook group using my own ideas, and can see that there were things I was forgetting. Now, the contests don't frustrate me. Win, lose, or draw, they challenge me to come up with something I might not have otherwise come up with.

So, there you have it, my new perspective and the changes I tackled to make this fun again.

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About the Creator

Jason Ray Morton

I have always enjoyed writing and exploring new ideas, new beliefs, and the dreams that rattle around inside my head. I have enjoyed the current state of science, human progress, fantasy and existence and write about them when I can.

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