Five Years Later...

December 2020.

That was when I found Vocal Media and created my account. And when my writing journey changed forever.

When I Started

I had no idea what I was doing. This was my first time sharing my writing with the world. And it was kind of scary.

But I did it and liked the idea of being able to earn money from my creativity, so I continued, and here we are today.

How the Platform Has Changed

Vocal has undergone a lot of changes in the time I’ve been here:

More Communities

Over ten communities have dropped since I joined the platform. And it’s been exciting to have more options, especially with the writer-centric ones.

Paid Subs/Pledges

Readers can now give a monthly pledge to their favorite creators.

I still have yet to receive one, but I’m patient and know it is out of the goodness of people’s hearts, not something I’m entitled to.

Exclusive Stories

Stories only your paid subs can read. What’s cool about this is that you have more creative freedom, so you aren’t bound by community or wordcount restrictions.

Choice to Delete/Republish

I was ecstatic when this feature dropped a while ago, especially since I’d written a piece asking Vocal to create this feature before this happened.

There were a lot of stories I’d been itching to delete from my profile, as they were already published on my Medium and/or Substack.

Launching its App

Now we can download the Vocal Media app to read stories on the go.

How My Writing and Profile Have Changed

It’s been five years, so my writing has evolved a lot, and in ways I didn’t anticipate.

Started with Short Stories and Writing Advice

And whatever else came to mind. I had no rhyme or reason to it. And I’m pretty sure that’s how all of us online writers start out. Just trying to get our work into the world.

It Started to Change

Especially once I started on Substack, I decided most of my personal life and writing content should stay on there and Medium, dedicating Vocal to my creative side, with the exception of challenges here.

Deleted Much of My Content

All my fiction installments and most of my non-creative pieces were deleted as soon as I could. And it felt great cleaning up my profile.

Mainly Poetry and Microfiction Now

Now, most of my creative pieces are either poems or microfiction stories, the exception being pieces I create for challenges. And pieces like this one that are related to the platform.

What Changes I Would Like to See on Vocal

There are a few changes I’d like to see happen here:

More Formatting Options

At the very least, a subheading and divider option so I don’t have to bold my sentences to make it a subheading or use an asterisk to divide my sections.

Make it look more professional.

Be Able to Make Our Own Tags

Both Medium and Substack let you create tags for your posts, and I wish Vocal would allow you to do the same, especially when none of the available tags match your piece.

Use Editing Software on the Platform

I would love to be fully able to use Grammarly on Vocal, but I can’t click on the suggestions it makes, which is annoying when it’s a full-sentence suggestion.

And I’m assuming others would like to do the same with whatever they use. So, Vocal, please make that change in your next update.

Adding a Place For Social Links on Your Profile

I would love to have a place for my Instagram, Substack, Campfire, and Gumroad links. And I’d like to see those from other creators here.

I think it’d be cool.

Write/Publish Stories From the App

We all have times when an idea pops into our heads, and we want to write it down, but we only have our phones.

It would also be awesome to publish said ideas from the app, not just on the desktop version.

What Changes Will I Make?

I do have one main change in mind: publishing more exclusive stories.

Not a whole lot more, but I’d like to experiment with different styles of creative writing, and posting exclusive content will allow me to do that, since I won’t be confined to a community.

I Am Excited For Whatever Happens Next

For both the platform and my writing journey as a whole. And I hope you’re here with me!

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