Journal logo

Why Haven’t I Joined Vocal+ Yet? I Guess I Just Needed a Reason

I already have a lot to do on a daily basis. Will this be worthwhile?

By Michael BrockbankPublished 2 years ago 4 min read
2
Why Haven’t I Joined Vocal+ Yet? I Guess I Just Needed a Reason
Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

I’m still fairly new to writing stories on Vocal and am still in the process of finding my groove. To get me into the swing of things, I launched a 30-day challenge for myself to see if I can write a new article every day.

Although I am an active writer on other platforms, I rarely spend money upgrading to premium services. However, the latest challenges for Vocal+ users have definitely piqued my interest.

Especially the recent addition of the Fiction Awards.

Why Haven’t I Upgraded to Vocal+ Yet?

Usually, I only spend money on online services that directly impact my writing and YouTuber-ing career. Software, cameras, microphones, and the like are things that improve what I create.

Spending the $5 per month to be a Vocal+ user doesn’t really fall into the category of productivity for me. Sure, I could make more money per story read. But, I don’t really have that massive of a following.

My stories are seldom read, anyway. So, the extra cash boost is not going to help me much at this point. That’s what happens when you write articles no one wants to read.

Then there is my lack of time. Right now, I manage five blogs, three YouTube channels, two podcasts, all while finishing my first self-published book. This is on top of managing clients as a freelance writer.

Needless to say, I often don’t have a lot of time to dive into writing some amazing pieces of content on Vocal.

Lately, though, I’ve been on the fence about really diving into what the platform can offer.

Wasted My Free Trial a Few Months Ago

A few months ago, I wrote an article that was shared on social media by Vocal. It was my story about why I still play Minecraft in my 40s with my daughters. With it came a free three-month trial of Vocal+.

At first, I was kind of excited and was looking forward to seeing if paying for a subscription was going to be worthwhile in the long run.

Unfortunately, I didn’t take advantage of the trial. At that point, I had a lot of other things going on and simply forgot to claim the prize. I can’t even find the email that stated how to claim it.

Again, this is what happens when you have way too much on your plate and have trouble balancing the day. Sometimes things get forgotten.

Anyway, the trial was a waste and I’m kind of kicking myself in the rear because of it. But, what can you do? Life happens, and you gotta roll with the punches.

The Challenges are Calling to Me

I’m a big fan of challenging myself in a myriad of ways. From health and fitness to writing, I often push for self-improvement. Unfortunately, Vocal doesn’t have a lot of challenges available for free users.

Still, the ones that are available have sparked an interest in me. Actually, some of the past challenges were calling to me as well. But in September, I was in the middle of a 30-day challenge of my own to write 90 blog posts.

I succeeded, but it took quite a bit out of me.

At any rate, the most recent challenge of the Vocal+ Fiction Awards has me all kinds of excited. Seriously, who wouldn’t love an extra five grand while being published in a book of short stories?

Not to mention the other challenges that I often pass on because I’m a free Vocal user.

So, am I Ready to Give Vocal+ a Shot?

In reality, it’s only $5 per month. I spend more than that on coffee every day. And it would be nice to see what kind of a difference it makes having all of the benefits available.

The hardest part is making sure I’m active. As I said, I really don’t have a lot of time in my day. And I need to make sure the money I spend is worth the return.

I already spend a great deal of money on monthly hobbies.

Besides, I am really interested in giving this Fiction Awards challenge a shot. Even if I don’t win or am one of the thousand who get a year subscription to Vocal+, it’ll be a launching point to really get me going on being more creative.

Who knows, maybe some of the challenge stories will resonate with a larger audience. Even if the challenges only net a handful of readers, it’s still better than what I’m doing now.

If anything, at least I’ll have a few blog posts and YouTube videos to make of the experience. The one video I have up right now for Vocal Media seems to get quite a bit of attention.

I wonder how videos of my experiences on challenges would fare?

Let’s See What I Can Accomplish as a Vocal+ User

OK…I guess I’m committing, then. The curiosity has overwhelmed my senses and I essentially just talked myself into getting a Vocal+ membership with this post.

No matter how I slice it, I’m going to win whether I do well in the challenges or not. Mostly because I have an audience who is curious about the platform. I’m sure I’ll get a few visits to the blog and viewers on YouTube from this experience.

Now, I just need to make sure I squirrel away enough time to really make Vocal+ worthwhile.

workflow
2

About the Creator

Michael Brockbank

I am the owner and operator of several blogs including WriterSanctuary.com. As a freelance writer since 2012, I have covered a range of topics and completed over 8,000 projects for clients. Follow me @WriterSanctuary on Twitter.

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.