My Thoughts on the "Exclusive" Enterprise

The little sci-fi references- Star Trek, The Matrix, Loki even with pruning all makes for entertaining reading LC haha. I agree with pretty much all of this. Pledges needed to go, and while I don't think this will work in the long-term, I can appreciate what they're trying to do. Micro is a great call (seems to be a theme for you!), in that very few writers on here are going to pay an extra $3, but I think a smaller amount that you could purchase rather than subscribe would work better.

I appreciate you writing this as I've been "away from platform (AFP)" and this explains some strange occurrences. Glitches...

I still don’t know what to think about paid subscriptions. And aren’t tips in essence micro purchases as you describe them?

Lol, I ain't gonna make anyone pay to read my stuff. The fact they spend their time to read it is by itself a hugeeeee thing.

I've been too busy moving to see the update. This is not a platform where people read multiple episodes for free so what makes the powers think anyone will pay to read them? Thanks for this, L.C.

I concur with your analysis, LC. I think we all try to post our best efforts on Vocal and some people won’t even pay free to read them! In all seriousness, I’m not trying to make a living here. I already have a job. I have no problem with the bartering nature for how the platform works out in reality. In a world where fewer and fewer people read, googling cute cat videos is going to beat us darn fool writers out every time. Maybe if we could record our writing for consumption rather than people having to take time to point their eyeballs at it, it would be easier to commoditize.

Definitely not a fan of the new update.

I agree with pretty much everything you've covered in your post, including waking up to the "Page Not Found" glitch (which is still not fixed on my end but thanks for alerting them of the same).

Not a fan myself, mainly because pay walls are always cumbersome and, as you point out, there is already so much content one can access for free. I'm still discovering stories by writers I'm just now discovering on here. Thanks for elevating the discussion!

Your correct. Plus, the only niche to share your work here or on Medium is social media and the demographic wants everything free. If you have another platform to use with these it helps but otherwise there are challenges to promoting here.

Haha! It’s like subscribing to Netflix then paying extra to watch Baby Reindeer! Humorous insight! I guess time will tell… For the very reasons you’ve stated, I’m not sure how much traction this feature will receive. I’ve actually had 2 active pledges for a while. Down to one now, lol. It’s never about the money more than the confidence it gave me that people are willing to pay for my content. It’s a very appreciative gesture. And although unnecessary, it’s still a way to supplement income for your writing efforts. Do I ever expect any or more paid subscribers? HELL NO! I feel lucky for the one I have. It doesn’t mean I will write a story exclusive for one set of eyes. That to me doesn’t make sense. Now, if I had 20 paid subscribers that would be a different story ( pun intended) the chances of that happening are astronomical. Until then, I’ll just stick to the normal. Also, I think tipping is a good practice. I have tipped quite a bit on this platform. Mainly for stories/series that really spoke to me. It helps to show writers here that their work did not go unnoticed and was highly appreciated.

What works for Vocal are the challenges. Upgrade those and readers as well as writers will follow. I definitely agree with you about commitment phobia among writers who are the primary investors of the platform. Perhaps if we were able to have the option of taking our $9.99 and distributing it out to 2-3 writers we want to sponsor. Anyways I still love Vocal and will see if this works or goes the way of pledges. Great write up L.C.

You're dead on. (Sorry, Vocal. Just sayin') Internet "surfers" are notoriously cheap. Nothing gets you to close a window faster than "Hey, pay for this." And starving writers are even worse. I just haven't seen this work anywhere. Not yet. (Though I've heard of some making an actual living on Medium--a myth?) Besides--and this is the sobering reality--Vocal.media is a writers' site, not really a readers' site. The readers just come with the formula. I've long since given up on making any real jack from writing. But what the hell does a retired gynecologist know about all this? Nothin'! So, break a leg! (Wrong muse, so, "Spill the ink!").

I don't really think it will take off either, and I'm not too thrilled about it. I actually preferred pledges tbh lol. At least everyone could still access all of the content. You can read more about my thoughts here if you're curious: https://shopping-feedback.today/writers/on-vocal-paid-subscriptions%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/a%3E. All of my content will remain free.

I don't think it'll really take off either. Kind of like the YouTube Memberships exclusive content, I just doubt that there will really be anything to make me want to sign up to anyone like that. I mean, the whole point of Vocal is that we share freely and get rewarded as the algorithm or other creators deem appropriate, right? I do have one active pledge, from a dear friend who wanted to support the dream without committing to reading everything. Hopefully she'll now put a stop to that because, nice as it is, I would much rather just the attention. Joys of being an artist with a job

My favorite line was “they’re changing something” referring to the glitch in the matrix- I frequently see glitches in my everyday life! Lol secondly I hope we’re not looking at a medium 2.0…I have an account as well that I don’t use..but thank you for this think piece ✌🏽🩵

I share all of your thoughts and feelings on this. All of them. Lol. Not even lying or trying to curry favour so you will by some effing happenstance sign up for exclusive content from Paul arsehole Stewart. I remain on the fence about it all. If they had setup this kinda system from the get-go...it would have been different, but it's like changing the rules that have already been established. I never liked the term "pledges" either cos it sounded like a Lenny Henry or Bob GeldoffmyTVset gif would pop up telling us "we need yer money!" Well done on putting this succinctly and with the ol' Schafer charm we've come to expect from you!

I just... Can't see this as a feature I would participate in. Also, it's annoying me, not to be able to see comments. It's easier to find when it's a comment on your own story, but where people have replied to my comments on their stories, it's a lot of work to find, and I don't know if they've said "thanks" or "now that is interesting Hannah, do you think the nub of the problem lies in the treatment of indigenous women in the first half of the 29th century or do you think it relates more to the basic geologically driven realities of the landscape?"