Comments – The Sweet Sauce for the Vocal Pie

Every writer has their own reasons for writing. Every story, whether it's poetry, fiction, humour, or fact, has a purpose.

We write to share ideas and tell stories, both real and imagined. We express our feelings and can also earn money. I'm sure that's the aim of many people. It’s unlikely you can make a living from writing without lots of talent or a large following. The exception is those who regularly win in competitions.

Some people aim to build a commercial career. Others see it as a personal hobby or artistic outlet. Regardless of our aim, if we're completely honest, we all look for some response.

The crème de la crème on Vocal is winning first prize in one of the challenges. That's not going to happen for the majority of us, because it is a competition after all. For me, these inspire me to try new things. They push me out of my comfort zone and help me explore different possibilities.

Top stories are also recognised on Vocal. There is a lot of chatter about who gets top stories. Perhaps there is a way to make it more even, or to “spread the love." At the end of the day, they are called Top stories for a reason. In the eyes of whoever is reviewing them for each community, they hit a chord, whereas others don’t.

Some communities haven't had a top story in a while. If you rely on top stories for recognition, it’s best to avoid those ones.

I have been very fortunate in my time on Vocal to have several top stories. Some have been a complete surprise. Others I feel I did a reasonable job on. It would be naive to think everything that you produce is a top story. If it were you, you would be a famous poet or author somewhere else, making heaps of money.

That brings me to my point in this story: comments!

Comments are a beautiful thing!

They are the sweet sauce of Vocal.

I write for another site as well. It also has comments, but nothing like the depth on Vocal. Only the underground supporters often share their views. It's a shame, but some commenters team up to increase views. This leads to more money for their stories.

I ran two websites for two years, which I just closed down. Every month I posted at least three stories. This is almost 150 stories. Circulation was a couple of hundred people. Total number of comments over both sites and over the two years: fewer than twenty!

I do not get a lot of comments from any of my stories on Vocal. I think the most I have ever had was in the low twenties. I know others get four or five times as many.

I am not complaining. What I am trying to say is that every comment that I get is like a piece of gold to me. It is the highlight of my day to know that my writing resonates with readers. When they take the time to leave a comment, it means a lot.

Comments also give me inspiration for follow-up stories or a new idea to work on. Several of my stories have been a direct result of a comment that someone left in passing.

The way this works on Vocal is wonderful, rewarding, and, from my experience, quite unique. Whatever we feel isn't working on Vocal, or whatever might need improvement, comments are the sweet sauce that makes Vocal a great writing platform.

To all those who regularly comment on my work, a big thank you. You keep me going.

Till next time,

Calvin