Encouraging People On Vocal To Read Your Stories.

One thing I enjoy about l love about Vocal is the comments section.

I enjoy praise and feedback, and when I read other people's stories I love giving praise and feedback from myself.

I like to talk to other writers about their work, and I enjoy making conversation by answering comments and replies.

In my opinion, engaging with others in this way is a great way to connect with the wonderful community here, and I have made many great writer friends all over the world by doing so.

I want to start by thanking all my readers, and those authors/writers who engage with me whether on their stories or mine.

You make my membership fee worth paying for, and you add immense value to the time I spend reading and writing here.

However, here is a friendly piece of advice.

I have been a member of this platform for many years, and I have loved seeing how Vocal has grown and keeps growing over those years. The team here works hard to help writers and readers have a pleasant experience on the platform, but sometimes some of the comments come across as arrogant and rude.

I receive pleasant comments letting me know how much you enjoy my stories, and I receive fun and engaging comments that help me to start a conversation. Sometimes I will reply with comments such as,

"Thank you for reading my story, I really appreciate your comments."

Or if a comment is detailed and someone says something that engages me in conversation such as detailed and polite feedback, I will reply with a more detailed and conversational reply to encourage that reader to interact with me.

This is a great way to engage readers and get to know them as readers and writers.

Sometimes readers will leave a link to one of their stories that they would like me to read, and many readers reasonably do this by telling me that they enjoyed my story, followed by "Here is a story I think you will like," which encourages me to read their story, and I will gladly do so.

However I sometimes get readers who have read my story and want me to read one of their own who don't bother commenting on my story, but simply leave a link to one of their stories, or beg me to read their stories without responding to my story they have commented on.

I don't respond to this, because it is rude. If you want a reader to read your stories, and you tell them by commenting on one of their stories, you need to show that you have read their story by engaging with them appropriately, a simple,

"Thank you for your story, I enjoyed reading it. Would you like to read one of my stories?" goes a long way. It shows you have read the story, and that you are not just pining for reads on your own.

Other comments I come across are comments such as these,

• "Write more useful stories like this,"
• "Read mine now,"

Or, they simply leave a link, without any comment that lets me know they have read my story.

There is nothing wrong with encouraging readers and writers to read your stories, but a simple "Please," and "Thankyou," followed by a comment about the story you have read goes a long way.

Not everyone on this platform will want to read your stories. Everyone has their reading tastes but coming across as forceful, demanding, begging, or arrogant will not bring readers to your profile.

Here are a few tips for writers to bring readers to their profiles:

• Read other people's stories. Reading is a way of getting known on Vocal, and it is important if you want other writers on this platform to engage with you. Reading lets people know that you are present on the platform, and is a great way to start a conversation with others.
• Be polite. If you are reading a story and it doesn't resonate with you, or you disagree, then leave a polite comment stating why, but don't come across as rude or arrogant by completely criticizing the writer in an abusive way. You can give a negative opinion by simply saying "I'm sorry but I disagree," followed by why, without abusing the writer, and you could leave friendly, encouraging tips to help the writer improve. If you are going to explode, swear, and curse at the writer, then you can expect that writer isn't going to want to read any of your stories or engage with you in the future.
• Don't beg someone to read your stories by leaving comments such as "Read mine now," or leaving a link to your story without talking about the author's story that you say you have just read. Begging is rude in any sense; if you leave a link to a story, and demand someone to read your stories without showing any signs of reading the author's stories, this can come across as begging. Leaving comments such as "Read mine now," comes across as forceful. It is rude to demand a reader read your stories full stop.
• Say "Please" and "Thank you. A simple comment such as "Thank you for a pleasant and enjoyable read," followed by "I'd be grateful if you would be kind enough to please visit my profile, and read one of my stories," goes a long way, and is more encouraging than demanding.
• Don't spam a person's story with your links outside the platform. It is annoying to authors and it is not a professional way to promote your business. Instead, why not write a story about why your business is worth visiting, and let people know what value they will get from visiting your business? Leaving links to your business in the comment section of someone else's story can put people off visiting your business, and upset their enjoyment of the platform; particularly if you consistently spam them with your business links in their stories.

Everybody on Vocal wants to enjoy reading and writing stories on the platform. Vocal is a great writing community with many wonderful, and friendly readers and writers. However, there are a few users who do abuse the platform by being rude, arrogant, or spamming other writer's profiles just to get attention.

We all want our stories to be seen here, but we also want it to be a polite, pleasant, and friendly space where we can share our work, meet other writers, and engage with other readers and writers.

There are a bunch of brilliant readers and writers here, many of whom I have come to love, and have formed some great connections with.

The advice I have just given you comes from my experience of having spent many happy years here at Vocal. The advice is advice that I follow myself when I use the platform and has enabled me to get eyes on my work.

Remember, politeness goes a long way.