I Got A Top Story On Vocal
Some Thoughts On Top Stories With Little Interaction
Introduction
These are just some thoughts, observations, and musings about when I drop into other creator's stories and see they have only a few comments and hearts which implies not many reads.
I am not going to include any links or names in this piece, which will make it more difficult for me and maybe less useful for readers, but hopefully, it will make people more observant when they read.
The music I have included is "You Take Me Up" by The Thompson Twins
My Observations
I try and read as many stories by friends and also try to discover new creators, many of whom are just starting up. I am always open to chatting with people about creation and promotion, but just offer advice, tell people what I do, and hope to help them on their way.
I sometimes drop into new stories by certain friends and see loads of comments and hearts for a relatively new story, and feel very late to the party, and think that people must not like me very much because I don't get that many responses. The reality is that I am not in many Facebook Vocal groups because I can't cope and I do not write my stories with SEO (Search Engine Optimization) in mind, but I still, overall, get a lot of responses, but my average reads per story is 22, ranging between 1 and 1180.
Then I drop into others, some quite old, and see a few hearts and comments, even with Top Stories, and think that must be very disparaging for the creator. I once complained that a Top Story of mine had only got twenty reads and got slapped down for it.
When I see this happen I always try and leave an informative comment and, if appropriate, invite them to join the Facebook Vocal Group that I help to administer.
This does still happen to me, I don't always get a lot of reaction to my stories. One recent story I put a lot of effort into, including recording a song for it, but at the moment it only stands at two reads and comments, which is disappointing, but then again another one, which grabbed a Top Story has hit nearly two hundred reads in a few days, so for me it is swings and roundabouts.
Unfortunately, I am just one person, and you don't know if a story is well-read until you drop into it, but always try and leave a comment because that will mean that Vocal will be more likely to register a read and the creator will get a little more in their Vocal wallet from your interaction with them.
So What Can We Do?
These are the things that I do, gleaned from how I got started on Vocal after thinking it was another dead-end writing platform.
I always try and comment, and if they are a new creator I will leave a dollar tip, it's not much, but it was a dollar tip (two actually from the same person) that made me believe that my work was worth something, and without that, I would probably not be here on Vocal today.
If they have been on Vocal for a while and do not seem to get a lot of interaction, tell them about the Facebook Vocal Groups for support and maybe grow their audience.
You can offer advice about how to get more reads of their work.
Also, share their work on Facebook in some of the groups.
These are just a few of the things that I do on Vocal, to try and make it a more inclusive environment for everyone, and I hope I have given you a few ideas and pointers.
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More stories from Mike Singleton 🌜 Mikeydred 🌛 and writers in Writers and other communities.
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Introduction This is just the devil in me that I have written about so often when it has got me down and upset, but writing this piece I feel in a good mood and on top of things, because where I used to think I was being forced into something, now I feel it is entirely my own choice and in my own hands.
By Mike Singleton 🌜 Mikeydred 🌛10 months ago in Writers
Comments (24)
1000+ reads on a single story!! Wow! I haven't cracked 200 on a single story yet. Not that it's a competition ❤️ I've found that the length of the story impacts how many reads it gets. If it is over 5 minutes, it can be hard to get much attention on it. Length isn't the only factor, but it seems to be a fairly big one.
I have realised one thing. Someone who posts more frequently has lesser heart, comments and reads compared to those who don't post frequently. So that might be one of the factors as well. I'm not saying you should post less but just sharing my observations with you. I hope I didn't offend you.
Some good advice here! Nicely done!
I rarely worry about reads. It's not the reason why I write. Comments matter a lot more. And Vocal creators are excellent at writing them. :-) Good post!
This is great! I love that you go above and beyond to help others, that's very kind. I try to do some of these things when able and when I have time, I will try to implement more of your ideas. I remember when I first starting off and getting very little engagement, so it's good to remember how it was and lend an assist to those who may desire that.
Sound advice.
Thank you for sharing this with us, Mike. Sound words we all need to hear.
Mike, I applaud you. There is so much material and so little time. But we can all do our bit to encourage and ultimately, read the work of other writers. I have been gratified this week with some of the responses I have received to work which has sat since bring published with barely a view. But I'm reconciled to that because I see how much there is to read and a lot of it gets lost. I am trying to explore more the work of others because we all need a bit of recognition, don't we? Thank you for writing this.
The Facebook group is a wonderful place full of fantastically supportive people :) I also don’t write with SEO in mind and am always taken aback at what does and does not garner interest from the curation team and readers. It is a an Eldridge mystery that we mortals are not meant to understand
I found this really interesting and appreciate your emapthy so much. I am new to Vocal and I am enjoying so much discovering other writer's and reading things I might not ordinarily read. And as a result, I am trying out things I may not have tried before. I can speak from my heart when I say that you (and a few other) dropping in on a poem of mine really made me feel like maybe I could write a bit. And, I know how that's made me feel, so I fully intend to pay it forward. 💔
Interesting article because I place myself with the Lost in the Woods group. Occasionally I'll get a TS but rarely get 20 likes let alone reads. You graciously invited me into your FB group but not knowing how to post stories in it, I dropped out. Tech dino here! I do appreciate your effort.
Good piece Mike 🤗
Thank you Mikeydred for sharing what you do. It makes sense and should help others get a footing here and support with their writing.😊💕 I came on to vocal to better my writing. It is a bonus for me to get reads and an occasional top story! That means to me my writing is getting better. I write books for memorials and fundraisers primarily and topics that will be helpful to at least one person in my community. My community: Native American, Substance Abuse Recovery, Elders, Females, Large families.
This is great advice, thank you! I’m slowly finally editing some older stories I posted that I clearly neglected to see how it didnt read easy at all 😅. I understand why they don’t get more reads or likes. Thank for this!
Great job 😉💯👌❤️👍💯
These are excellent tips for helping creators feel more welcome, and less intimidated. 😊
You know, last night I had one comment on a poem I wrote that made my heart sing. And I went to bed thinking about how I used to get 50 or so likes on an instagram post and not care, or think that was low compared to my follower count. It was a meaningless numbers game. Here one kind, heartfelt, genuine comment means more that 1000 likes. (To me) I really do think it’s about perception and I am so delighted with my small audience and the people I’m meeting through it. And maybe that will grow… and maybe it doesn’t, but I realised I’m not playing a numbers game anymore. I’m free of it. I write purely to create… and I’m certain that if I create well, my audience will grow and be genuine, and really caring to read what I write next. That means the world to me. Quality over quantity 😉 My suggestion to anyone lost in the numbers game? Pause. Really take time to pause. Your heart is not engaged. Go back and read your comments section. FEEL the genuine love in the authentic handful that are there. If you can do that, you won’t ever worry about number again… for one comment will be enough to charge your heart and inspiration to write. Let the love in Mike! ❤️
Thank you for this, Mike, you always give good insights. The truth is that writers reading other writers gets you only so much. I wish Vocal had more exposure but it seems we live in the world where there are more writers than readers and we all have only 24 hours in the day.
If I had a piece get 200 reads, that would make it my 3rd most read piece. You've got a terrific audience.
Very informative
From where I'm standing, your read counts are quite impressive. In the 2.5 years since I joined Vocal, I've amassed 877 reads. That's total, over all my posts. I won the inaugural $5000 V+ Fiction Awards. Obviously, I am proud of that and grateful to Vocal for the recognition. That story has fewer reads than one of my flash fictions which got Top Story. In fact, the TS flash is my most-read piece, at 83 reads. Why? No marketing. The frustrating reality of being a writer and trying to make a real go of it is that you can't afford a decent marketing firm when you set out. By the time you're raking in enough that you can afford to hire one, you no longer need to. Top Stories are great exposure while they're on the home page of the website. Once new ones supplant them, that's it -- though I gather that there are plans to find ways to keep giving life to Top Stories. Without a marketing team, we're left with mechanisms like Vocal's podcast/ Top Stories/ other highlights, social media, the algorithms, SEO, and luck. All of which is well and good. But after my day job, the vagaries of adult life, and getting my stories out there? I'm too tired or just plain out of time for the day. I don't have the room in my shed for marketing. Gonna have to make it fit somehow, though. For what it's worth, you're doing really well and continuously building. It can be discouraging at times, but hang in there; having a back catalogue is one of the best resources a writer can possess. The more you have out there, the better your chances of taking off as time goes on.
Great tips!
Great information and insight, as always. I know you have always been a great supporter for me. I also have few reads. It is discouraging, but, like you, I write on. Maybe one day it will click. Thanks Mike, for your constant musings. They do help, a lot
Always useful to share the basics!