Introduction to a Vocalite Manifesto
And an invitation to voice your ideas
Greetings!
Over the past few months I've joked with some fellow creators in comment threads about adding concerns to my hypothetical Vocalite manifesto. Well, it is no longer a hypothetical.
Before I go any further I want to emphasize something: I love Vocal. I love the platform and I love the community that's been created here. I believe the Vocal Team works really hard and I'm so grateful for all that they do to provide such a wonderful space to publish creative work.
The support and friendship I've received from fellow creators on Vocal has been an incredible blessing. There are so many amazing writers here and the stories woven from our hearts and heads connect us to one another in such a beautiful way. That's the lifeblood of the platform: Real writers. Real artists. Real people.
The Challenges hosted by Vocal and other creators have pushed me to write things that I never would have attempted without the push. I've written some pieces that I'm really proud of in this past year and a half. And I have Vocal to thank for that.
Vocal has been such a source of joy for me and I know it has been for others too. But as with other sources of joy found within our broken world, there are also frustrations and imperfections. I do have some concerns with aspects of the Vocal platform. Some of these concerns may just be issues of personal preference, but I do think some are objective problems that should be addressed.
So I've written a Vocalite manifesto. Its aim is to not only identify problems, but suggest solutions. And ultimately to spark consideration of other solutions beyond the proposals of one creator.
I'm publishing this manifesto in multiple parts because I've got a lot of thoughts and I'm hoping at least one part catches Vocal's attention. But if not maybe it will inspire some more community dialogue that can help lead to some changes that I believe many of us want.
These pieces are definitely my own personal opinions so I invite you to respond with pushback to any of the ideas I put forth. I believe there are some ways Vocal could be improved, but I don't want it to be based solely on the observations and insights of me, myself, and I! So please weigh in if you have thoughts to share. I hope to conclude this series with a piece highlighting ideas in the comments of other Creators that challenge mine, offer alternative views, or address issues I've neglected!
About the Creator
D.K. Shepard
Character Crafter, Witty Banter Enthusiast, World Builder, Unpublished novelist...for now
Fantasy is where I thrive, but I like to experiment with genres for my short stories. Currently employed as a teacher in Louisville.
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Comments (20)
Coming back to the start just to say that I'm taking a look at your Manifesto now- bit by bit! So interested to see what Vocal has/hasn't addressed, and what the regular creators were asking for!
It’s the end of semester crunch for me, so I’m only now seeing these, but I’ll catch up as soon as the madness is over, DK!
Good on you!✅ I love Vocal & am having so much fun on it and enjoy interacting with the community. Looking forward to your following articles.🤗
I must have missed this one. I have enjoyed my stay on Vocal as I did every writing platform I have written on. I learn something new from all of them. I have not placed in any of the challenges, and I have not made very much $, and anymore I can't even make Top Story. But I am learning about poetry and writing fiction. I will still enter the challenges that interest me, but I stopped hoping I will win anything. At a couple cents a day, I won't hit payout by the time my time is up, but cry not for me, I am taking it all in and learning and enjoying the ride. At 75, that is all I can do. Do they still pay for external reads? At a penny a day or null I can't see me paying for another year however, but I just came in January so for now I am just enjoying the ride.
Nice Intro, D.K. I think this will be an interesting exercise and can't wait to see its progression. I'm not exactly sure when it ended, But Vocal use to have a bi-weekly segment called 'Creators Chat'. It was for this exact thing, listening to us about issues, recommendations, gripes, praise, you name it. It featured much talk about a 'roadmap' they keep for outlining future improvements and new features. Some of those features actually came true. I think they stopped it because it must have become overwhelming. Not everyone read everything for each segment, so they received a ton of duplicate suggestions that authors never read previous responses to. Maybe your manifesto will spark a renewal of the segment. It felt positive for us being able to stay in the loop.
You can count on me to read all of your installments!
Preach it DK! I admire your enthusiasm and passion to make Vocal better for all of us!
I look forward to reading your insights!
Omgggg, I'm sooo looking forward to the other parts! I have several thoughts and suggestions and I hope it's okay for me to voice them here. 1. Vocal should ban AI. If not, then they should at least demonetise people who use AI (attributed & unattributed) 2. Vocal should eradicate the Leaderboard. If not, then they should at least remove the Most Subscribed Creators and Most Supportive Commenters categories. 3. Non V+ members should only be able to publish 1 piece per week. There are V+ members who are AI frauds as well but this way, the flood of binge AI publication could be reduced. I know I have more but that's all that I could think of now hehehe
Oooooo! DK, I am salivating over the thought of what's to come!! This was a great appetizer and I can't wait to see/ hear/ read your thoughts on the coming subject!! 😁
Dear D ~ Just Terrific: I don't go into contests, so I really have no voice. I'm not a writer like all of you. I'm just a silly storyteller with my goofy sketches that lead into them; nothing more. There is something that's bothering me terribly. But, I can't say anything or I'll probably be run out on writers~rails...! Good for you..! j.in.l.a.
Hey DK - really look forward to reading your ideas. Always enjoy your stories so any ideas you have for making Vocal even better will be awesome. Have a smashing Friday.
Great idea, DK :) Really looking forward to your thoughts, and I’m so grateful for people like you who come forward with stuff like this. I always second guess myself and never could, so thank you for being a voice for us :)
Looking forward to it!
Thanks so much for inviting us into a space of reflection/constructive critique, D.K.! I think one of the most crucial aspects of loving something - be it a person, ideal, country, or in this case, website - is the ability to be honest about imperfections. So I look forward to productive and well-meaning dialogue; your love for this site is so clear in the wonderfully positive presence you have in the community!
Have you got a section on Communities and Tags? Because I have thoughts...
I am sure we will align. I hope this gets some traction. I love this place too.
Yay! so glad you did this, DK, well done! I was still planning my piece, but have been pushing it back because other things were taking more important places in my "need to do" pile. But, throughout it, I will weigh in and if you ever want to ask about my specific views on specific things before posting (you don't have to, but just an option) I will be happy to give you my thoughts, because I have a lot. LOL. And some of them, I believe, would be unexpected and a little controversial. I love the formatting for this, as it feels the best way to handle it is to address your intent and then take a detailed approach to each area for improvement! Looking forwward to this alot!
Great idea, D.K.! I love Vocal and the community here, but I agree that there is room for improvement. I will try my best to follow along with your series!
My gods you beat me to the punch on this but I have several thoughts as well!! Want me to drop them here or connect on discord or the like?