Adventures on Vocal
Recently, I’ve been entering Vocal fiction contests, and I thought some of you who have also heard of the platform might appreciate the insights of an “insider.” Of course, I haven’t won any contests yet, so I wouldn’t put myself in the ranks of their elite users by any means, but I have been using the platform to post content all the same.
Like most things in life, there are benefits and drawbacks to a Vocal membership. Let’s start with the perks.
Pros
- Big contest pots: If you’re an especially skilled or lucky writer, the payout is generous. Typical first-place prizes are $5,000; second-place prizes are $1,000; and third-place prizes are $500. Of course, the actual prize amount can vary based on the competition, so always check the terms before drafting and submitting.
- Open-ended contests: Most contests have very few restrictions. The usual prompt is to incorporate an object (e.g. chocolate cake, a locket, a green light) into the story, and I once saw the genre defined in a contest. But usually, as long as you include the specified item, you can qualify with a story that is as close or far from your usual genre as you like. You don’t even need to make the object a major part of the story according to the rules. See the end of this post for all the different directions I’ve gone with my four entries.
- Sleek, modern platform: This platform is built with a mobile-first philosophy, so the stories are great to share on social media. The required featured photo also means that your link will display with a thumbnail on most platform. After all, nothing draws the eye like visuals.
- Payment for views: Vocal specifies that you are paid based on the “reads” you get, which they define: “Reads are calculated by Vocal’s read algorithm, which takes into account things like time spent on the page, as well as how far down the page is scrolled.” So not as easy as getting simple pageviews, but still a great way to monetize your stories (especially if you didn’t win the contest you entered — speaking from experience).
- Editorial review: While this process slows down the time to publish, it does lend to a sense of legitimacy and quality versus other platforms like Medium and WordPress that are not moderated. That said, you don’t have full editorial control, which, depending on the subject matter of your writing, could mean you’re not free to share your full message.
That said, there are definitely tradeoffs.
Cons/Pain Points
- Big contest pots: In my normal creative writing pursuits, I tend to steer clear of contests that have large monetary prizes behind them. Why? Because that typically draws out the best writers who might not waste their time on a non-paying competition, so your odds are not looking great. Not to mention, large prizes draw the eyes of more amateur writers or even folks who don’t write but think “How hard can that be?” and send in a subpar story that meets the basic requirements. So, between the big dogs and the detritus the judges have to sift through, your odds of winning are lower right out of the gate.
- Misleading contest rules: Now this might be considered a nitpick, but I mentioned earlier that the rules state that while you need to incorporate certain elements, they don’t need to be central to your story. Yet, I’ve read some of the winning pieces in the contests I’ve entered and virtually all of them do make the elements a focus. So, if that’s what the judges really want, why not say that?
- Monthly fee for Vocal+ membership: To maintain your Vocal+ membership is $10 a month (I rounded up a cent). While not required to post stories on Vocal, the membership is required to submit to contests, and your payout for reads is better when you’re a member: $6 per 1,000 reads vs. $3.80 per 1,000 reads. Thus, unless you have a large following, the chances that you’ll make enough on reads to cover the monthly fee are low, so be ready to foot the bill yourself. OR win a contest, and you’re set for years.
- Lacking some of the features of Medium: I’ve already made a comparison to Medium above, but while they are similar looking platforms, Vocal does not offer some other features that its closest competition Medium does, so the gloves are coming off. 1) You cannot subscribe to a mailing list to be informed when a creator publishes new content, 2) you cannot make comments on stories*, and 3) you are limited in the edits you can make to story once it’s published. I should also point out that you can’t make edits through the platform if you’re not a Vocal+ member. Instead, your only option is to reach out to the info@vocal.media address to make changes.
- Unable to repurpose stories: I’m used to the feeling of rejection after the results date has passed for a contest and my inbox is still empty. Typically, I buoy my spirits by reminding myself that I am now free to place the story with another publication. Not with Vocal. Since the story is now live to the public, most publishers will consider that “published.” Some will accept reprints, but those pubs are not usually interested in stories that are published online where the public can find them for free. Being able to earn money for reads does cushion some of the “wasted effort” frustration, but it’s a definite drawback of these types of contests.
Final Judgment
So, is Vocal worth it? This entire section is wrapped by one big “this is my own opinion” disclaimer, but I would say it depends on your priorities. If you are not interested in the traditional publishing route and are okay with not being able to repurpose stories, then Vocal is a fine spot to park your work and build a following. Their contests are diverse and a great way to push your creativity and try out new storytelling techniques.
However, if you are not interested in entering the contests, then the $10 Vocal+ membership fee is not worth it. Unless you have a significant following, the increased payout level won’t matter that much (you would need to pull in ~1,666 reads a month to make $10 back), and Medium has many more features on a similar looking platform for no membership fee. If you’re still interested in monetizing, Vocal has a free tier with a lower payout level. It’s worth noting that Medium has a Partner Program that comes with monetization opportunities, so it would be better to focus your efforts on reaching the 100-follower threshold to qualify for the program.
My Vocal Stories
As I mentioned earlier in the post, the open-ended nature of the contests gives you free reign to go whichever direction you think best based on the requirements. I’ve added links to each of my four entries below along with a label to give you a sense of the variety:
- “King of the World” — postapocalyptic adventure
- “Beyond the Cape” — literary suspense
- “Outside Mission Parameters” — thriller based on the Challenger shuttle disaster
- “Before the Dawn” — historical action/adventure
Have your own experiences with Vocal? Did I leave anything out of my lists? Let me know in the comments — since, you know, Medium has those.
*In fairness, I believe this may be intentional since the stories are moderated by editors: they may not be ready or willing to have comments moderated as well.
Originally published on The Future Writers of America on September 1, 2021.
