Shoutout
From Starting Five Years Ago To Now, This Is How I Look At Vocal
Do you all remember when you started using Vocal? It was the new and shiny toy you needed at that perfect moment in time. You needed Vocal, and it needed you! Vocal sometimes doesn't feel like it needs you, but without the writers, the users of the platform, there was never going to be the launch pad that Vocal became for some. Some, made their biggest moves and became authors. Others threw in the towel and walked away, never to be seen or heard form again, because they couldn't see what was possible.
By Jason Ray Morton a day ago in Writers
Difficulties Of Holidays On Vocal
Introduction Last week I had a wonderful week in Alnwick, but tried to keep up on Vocal, although my time was less than I normally have, plus a little more difficult because I was using a ten-year-old laptop with a faulty keyboard (the space bar does not always register, meaning I have to keep going back to separate words).
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 2 days ago in Writers
Turning the Ephemeral into the Concrete
Some experiences feel real while they are happening and unreal almost immediately afterward. A conversation that sparks clarity, a realization that reframes a problem, a moment where scattered thoughts suddenly align. In the moment, there is a sense that something solid has been grasped. But without capture, that solidity dissolves. What remains is a faint impression, detached from the reasoning that made it meaningful. The experience was real, but it left no durable trace.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast4 days ago in Writers
Alone in the Jungle
The canopy is so dense that it suffocates all light. I am slashing through the dense boscage to get to the light, but I don’t know which way to go, or if I will ever get out of the forest. This jungle feels often filled with peril, and lonely. I came to this tangle of vines, underbrush, and unknown unfamiliar territory, with a dream, a goal, a determination. I planned and still plan to reach the end of the primeval and reach the inner sanctum of a place that is not easily traversed. I am a writer, and I want to write as a career.
By Alexandra Grant13 days ago in Writers
Going Back A Bit
Introduction When I was unable to publish, I started going back to find stories that I could repurpose, but then I saw old pieces that I thought were still excellent but had very little interaction from other Vocal creators. So I had a thought....
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 13 days ago in Writers
Winner Announcement: The Cat And The Machine
First and foremost, I apologize for the amount of time it took me to judge these entries. I could make a million excuses for why it took me so long, but as my father always said (slightly more crudely), "Nobody gives a darn about excuses." Therefore, I'll save you the trouble of explanation and simply move forward to what you do give a darn about, the entries into my latest contest, The Cat And The Machine.
By Laura Pruett15 days ago in Writers
The Protection-of-Innocence Reciprocity Doctrine. AI-Generated.
Core Moral Premise The highest duty of any legitimate social order is the protection of innocent life. Innocent life has absolute moral primacy. Any system that systematically insulates predators, tolerates predatory asymmetry, rewards hypocrisy, or allows aggressors to retain insulation has inverted its purpose and forfeited legitimacy. Truth, justice, reciprocity, humility, mercy, forgiveness, and vertical accountability are structural necessities rather than optional virtues. Vertical accountability means recognition of and submission to a moral law higher than oneself. Authority must flow toward those who most consistently demonstrate sustained competence in moral and epistemic discipline. This competence is shown through observable conduct and trajectory over time, not through doctrinal label, tribal identity, credential alone, or self-profession.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast18 days ago in Writers
The Literary Scam That Counts on Your Silence
Some scams walk in with a mask and a threat. Others arrive with a soft voice, a thoughtful compliment, and a claim of community. That last category does more damage over time because it operates through emotional residue, not brute force. People hesitate to expose it, not because they’re fooled, but because the interaction feels almost polite. That is the point.
By Dr. Mozelle Martin20 days ago in Writers
