200

Two hundred stories:

Sonnets, haikus, ekphrastics;

Vocal, I remain!

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I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to many, intrepid Vocal contributors who have inspired, encouraged, challenged and cajoled me as I have tried to leave the stuffy, pretentious realm of academic writing behind in favor of poems and stories and bibliomaniacal babbling.

In particular, I ought to laud the dauntless courage of Rachel Deeming and Gerard DiLeo, who have taken up the gauntlet hurled before us by the inimitable L.C. Schäfer! We have almost conquered a third of the year; here is to publishing rather than perishing, at least once a day, for the rest of 2024! Mark Gagnon's impatience with habitual poets recently inspired me to write a short story rather than yet another poem, and Ward Norcutt's work, and his wit and wisdom, have been especially valuable of late. All of their works are linked below for your delectation. Write on, friends!

I ought also to pay homage to the queen of commentary, Dharrsheena Raja Segarran, who has offered an encouraging word or sly joke almost every, single time I have dared to post something to Vocal:

I could go on, but I am sure it is clear by now that Vocal is a vibrant creative community which has made me a more able and inspired writer. I am grateful to every reader and writer I have had the pleasure of meeting here and hope that those ranks will continue to grow!