Your Supportive Comment Is My Small Win

I know that I am virtually invisible to the judges and moderators, but they are not the ones who give me a reason to write and create. They provide me with an excellent platform to share my creations, but that is where it stops.

I now reshare old stories for my new readers, and each comment I get is another confirmation that what I am doing is worthwhile and right.

One or two people have told me that I must not be very good because I do not get Top Stories or win challenges, but they are few and far between, and they do not bother me. I once had a manager who told me that I was right, but he was in charge and could do what he wanted. He was illegally giving contracts to his friends. That's how I feel I am treated by the judges and moderators here.

You know about the "death by a thousand cuts" where you can be destroyed by lots of little bad things, but the comments I get from the comments on my stories are the polar opposite, and every comment, no matter how small, lets me know that someone has taken the time to read my work, and they appreciate it. That really builds me up and tells me that I should write even more (that's what I think anyway).

If you are reading this and are going to leave me a comment, then you are building my confidence, just a little more, and I thank you for that.

I have said this many times before, and no doubt, I will say it many times again, the greatest treasure we get from Vocal is the wonderful, supportive community and friends that we make.

Most Vocal users are on the North American landmass, so when I publish this, the only ones who may respond are the ones on Greenwich Mean Time like me, but when the ones across the pond wake, I then get more comments, and every one puts a smile on my face.

I love that we can write on Vocal, and it is very seldom that I receive negative feedback here, although I got this for my first book (which was a result of my Vocal writing and the comments I got on my stories):

So every comment for me is a small win, and that motivates me to continue. I have a blog that people seldom comment on, but yesterday had six thousand visits. That is really a diary, and the visits, I am sure, are just robots.

So this is the latest instalment in my ongoing Vocal journey, and I didn't see this coming when I submitted my first Vocal story, which was a lift from my blog:

Since then, every Vocal and Facebook comment and, to some extent, Vocal heart, has shown me I am on the right track. Though I am sometimes a bit deflated when I don't get comments and then see floods of comments on other creators' works, that is usually caused by time differentials, not because my work is not worthy.

So I thank you for your support, your belief in me, your kind words and the 0.6c that Vocal pays me because you have read and commented on this.

After this, I have plans for more stories and poetry, and I am still working on two more anthologies, which, without Vocal and your support, I could not contemplate.

I will now read a few more stories to support you and other creators in this wonderful community that I absolutely treasure.

Thank you for being you, because your comments are the small wins that enable me to be me.