Creative ways to make more money via Vocal.

Today's piece is all about making as much money as you want as a creative. It's all about being really intentional and confident in your writing skills. I am going to give you 5 ways you can get more money per article you publish but with the collective understanding between us ALL that ALL methods require commitment & strategy for them to work!

Vocal (+) is a supportive space for Creatives

I have been a writer on Vocal+ since August, writing about mental health and trauma in creative ways. I like to use my writing for advocating and creatively expressing trauma I have been through to give validation to my readers. I also think that mental health topics need to be discussed on all platforms, not just to educate but inspire my audience.

I love being a creator on Vocal+ and I am so blown away by the support on Facebook groups for Vocal writers. Everyone has been so kind, supportive, engaged in one another's work, and overall are committed to hosting supportive spaces with a lot of daily engagement.

At the end of this article I listed some of my favorite Facebook groups you should be in already to connect with others and gain subscribers. Remember to engage with other people in them, make friends, read peoples stories and write meaningful feedback or praise on their posts. This support ecosystem only works if everyone continues to exchange appreciation and attention to each others work.

I compare Vocal to Tiktok a lot when talking about it because I see two revolutionary apps (for talkers and writers) built by the artists, creatives, and self-crowned "weird" people who are creating amazing content daily.

These apps are shifting the way we see, experience, and learn from one another. So much knowledge, art, and culture are widely available around the world to people from their phones. But instead of the traditional income-earning way of having paywalls (from coaches and professionals) for that information, there is a growing availability of accessible work from creators.

THIS IS AN IMPORTANT AND HISTORICAL SHIFT. We are all making history by becoming artists, content creators, and exhibitionists' as a career. Accessibility and availability of knowledge, empowerment, art, and education are going to allow more people to grow, heal, and prosper in the years ahead. Thank the creatives for that shift in the age of Aquarius. Yes, it's a thing.

Vocal (+) is a profitable space for Creatives

Vocal is giving creatives the ability to make money through affiliations, tips, subscriptions, donations, and awards/grants. This is also a major shift. For the creative person, the ability to show up doing what they love and getting financial support for it is MAJOR. Creatives have always heard that being an artist or creator of any kind is a piss-poor job unless you make it big. There was never an in-between unless you were discovered and taken on by a manager, company, and/or sponsor. THIS IS SHIFTING.

Vocal and other apps for Creatives make it possible to earn money for SHOWING UP. What do I mean by that? On apps like Vocal, you can begin writing and earn money from day one (and every day after that). Between writing bonuses and pennies earned for reads, you get an immediate turnaround on your investment. You could get even more return on investment by being creative, not just by showing up all over the place (and burning out quickly).

I have been on social media for over twelve years now and an entrepreneur for half of them. I have spent years writing content for FREE to entice and attract prospective clients. I have also built blogs and websites, writing amazing content that barely ever got seen because of the speed at which I had to put it out there. Financial success on social media has been dependent on the NUMBERS and TRAFFIC. You can burn out so fast worrying about posting as much as possible, as fast as possible, to land clients and solid income.

Paying for Vocal+ each month is an amazing investment that gives you so much FLEXIBILITY to earn as much money as you want to. The tools offered for writers to write and publish their stories are so easy to use and give the writer so much freedom to enhance their articles (see 5 tips for more details). For $9.99 (or a promotional discount), Vocal+ writers get to earn cash bonuses for their posts, enter writing challenges that offer payouts from $500 - $5000 in cash prizes, as well as receive tips from readers ( $1, $5, $10).

Each day you can check out your updated reader stats, which show the number of reads of each of your stories. You will gain pennies per read as you share your stories out to social media platforms and Facebook support groups. How much you earn from those immediate ways is up to you and how much you publish, promote, share, as well as apply for.

Being a creator on Vocal+, every single story you publish has the opportunity to be seen, hearted, subscribed to, and tipped. Every story has a URL/tracking ability. Every story leaves a footprint on the internet. But so do your words...

Writing heals people.

Writing is so therapeutic, no matter what your style is or what you choose to write about. When you share your creative and authentic view of the world, it molds the way someone else sees something. But it all comes down to intentionality.

Fiction writers use their ability to describe things in great detail or with purposeful passages that set the scenes. Without going anywhere, a reader can be taken to a different place or state of thinking. Non-fiction niche writers can do the same by writing about what they know, see, feel, and realize about the world. You can teach, inspire, and move people with your words. You can map out a WORKSHOP, LESSON, or GUIDE within your Vocal pieces to get someone from point A to B in your niche area.

It is a form of alchemy to be a writer. But it should not go without reward.

It is absolutely time for artists to make money by being self-expressive. You just need some creative strategy, so I want to give that to you today.

Here are 5 ways you can creatively earn more money as a writer on Vocal.

1. Ask for support. For every single story you write, I recommend that you paste the same paragraph at the end of your written pieces that your readers will see when they read EACH of your stories. Vocal+ makes it easy for you to edit past published pieces to incorporate your last paragraph as one of these examples so you can continue sharing all your work with the same message for support!

This paragraph you will plan ahead of time and paste to each piece before you send it off to be published:

Example: "Hey there! I'm a creative fiction writer from ____, NY. Please tip my work to help support my talent as a creative. Earning money here helps me sustain my ability to keep writing and creating content. I love to ____ and ____ my readers with my knowledge about ____. Thank you for your support and time."

You can get very specific to state your desires and needs too.

Example 2, with more intention: "Hello! I love writing about ____. Every $5 tip allows me to continue writing from home as a content creator. All money earned is helping me save up for ______. Thank you for your support!"

2. Create a branded series. Write several stories that connect and make one big story, book, or chain of themed information. You can keep readers hooked on specific themed series or your creative writing this way.

Let your audience know it is a series by designing banners on CANVA that are the same COLOR and have the title / name of the series written on it so that people can see the cover image from your profile and know its "series 1 through 8" or "chapter 1 through 25".

3. Become an affiliate for a brand or product you love. In addition to being a writer, partner with one or a few affiliate programs offered by your favorite products or brands. You can market several different apps and products that go well with what you already focus on in your niche. Amazon affiliate program lets you market anything on their site so you can tag books, art supplies, your own self-published book on amazon, electronics, business supplies, fan art or toys, and other relevant items. You can sign up for a lot of different companies that offer helpful services to your readers who already read your tips and tricks ( for personal development, business, and coaching writers).

4. Self-publish your stories as a book or collection. Use Vocal articles as teasers or tidbits from a full book you write and publish through LULU.com. This company helps you publish your writing into hard copy books and sell them within the platform, as well as through your link you can share to get people to buy your books.

You could put your poetry or fiction stories into a full collection and then link the book at the bottom of your published Vocal story to allow readers who liked the excerpt to buy the full book!

5. Create an email subscription for your readers with Convertkit. You can sign up for Convertkit for free (to collect up to 1,000 subscribers) OR leap into the Creators level ($15 a month) to set up an email sequence and a sign-up link that you add to the bottom of every Vocal story you publish.

Create your email sequence and make a chain of emails that you update every time you have a newly published story on vocal. Just add a quote or exerpt from that story to the email for that date and add on to the sequence as you go. Email subscribers will receive these updates, which you could turn into a newsletter or bulletin that contains other things about you (the author) or your business / what you offer. This also would be a great way to market your published books for sale (via Lulu) or your affiliated product links (from the earlier tips).

RECAP: Though you have the ability to earn $ per read, earn cash prizes from winning in writing challenges, and get tipped (plus the newest feature that Vocal just unrolled, "pledges"), there are so many more ways you can enhance your ability to earn an income as a writer. Utilize the ability to create and attach links to your stories. Make a custom banner for each story header image. Create a custom copy + paste a footer into the end of each story that talks about who you are and why you want tips (or other forms of support). Be clear on what you are sharing with your audience and offer them advice, tips, and resources that can better their life (or business) with affiliate links.

FINALE: I can think of so many more ways for writers to promote creative call-to-actions for their audience so they can make more money per story, so I am turning this piece into a small series.

Stay tuned for the next few pieces I publish on how to be more creative and strategic in how you can utilize design apps, automate your posting onto social media, how to build your portfolio of writing, and how to grow an authentic following that looks forward to your next published piece!

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ABOUT THE WRITER:

Jean Grey is a NY native with a passion for writing, self-expression, and empowering individuals through storytelling & visual/verbal consulting. She is a mom of 3, a wife, and an entrepreneur working remotely so she can be with her little family daily.

Jean was raised as an only child between two abusive homes and fought hard to survive until she became legally estranged from her birth parents at 16. That same year she became a single teen mother and put herself through school while raising her child through both of their formative years. Jean attended two colleges, toting her daughter with her like it was second nature. She majored in both Women's Studies and Literature / Creative writing until graduating in 2015. Afterward, she met her now-husband of 6 years and had two more children, as well as dove headfirst into entrepreneurship from home.

She has written and advocated openly about her personal experience with child abuse, poverty, being the child of addicts, being a victim of assault and emotional abuse, surviving abusive homes, being a single teen parent (and student), experiencing terminations of pregnancies within abusive relationships, the hardships of reparenting while parenting, the hardships of having ADHD + PTSD as an entrepreneur, and the continued pursuit for a healthy + happy life.

Jean focuses on writing for Vocal + as a mental health blogger to spread awareness, validation, and empowerment amongst trauma survivors and abuse victims who have otherwise felt silenced, burdened, and invisible.

All tips, income, and awarded financial support make a difference right now in Jean's life. Her number one priority is to thrive after a lifetimes' worth of being in survival mode.

She is currently raising money and asking for support via AMAZON WISH LIST to help fund her move from NY to TX in January with her husband and 3 little kids. All support helps them move safely into their new apartment where they will be able to start from scratch building sustainable careers from home while raising their kids in a safer and healthier environment than they have ever been in before. Thank you for your contributions!