They deleted my account for no reason they didn't give me a warning or email me for any reason. All of my hard work 20+ story is wasted.
I have been using vocal media for weeks now and suddenly I can't login on my account even though it is not hack since it's still connected to my email.
Please don't use Vocal media, I got really stress and disappointed.
CU
customer
Absolute scam
Absolute scam. Lured me in with a writer’s competition which I had to set up a stripe account for. Then started charging me fees that were not authorised. Stripe say Vocal own my account. Vocal say Stripe has to close it. And I can’t seem to clear out my bank details between them. Stay away from is scam platform.
CB
Chelsey B.
Definitely not worth your time
Definitely not worth your time (or money if you're a vocal+ member). Vocal clearly has favorites and nominates the same people over and over again for top stories. I have yet to see an unfamiliar creator featured on their front page. Their challenges seem to be rigged as well. They receive hundreds of entries for each challenge, yet manage to read all of them in about two weeks?
And most of the time, the winners' pieces make me raise an eyebrow (bad grammar, horrible structure, etc). Anyone who says this website is amazing is probably one of the "favorites."
WC
Wilson Colon J.
This morning I woke up and it looks…
This morning I woke up and it looks like someone hacked my vocal.media account and change the email confirmation. When I tried to confirm my current address it didn't work so I have to update thbe same address I signed up here. Now, my articles are gone. I'm done with this site after using it for 2 days!
KI
Kia
Not worth the effort
This is yet another site where creators are treated like garbage. Basically you crete content, bring traffic and earn close to nothing, or you even pay for being there!
The amount of views you need to start earning some pocket money really is not worth the effort. Also, before you can request a payment you've to reach $35, or $20 if you pay the monthly fee. This is not so easy given how you need 1000 views to earn 3.80$ (free membership) or 6$ (paid membership).
With the amount of writers and the algorithm that doesn't help, unless you're not already a known writer, you can see how this is not going to work.
You can still choose to pay a monthly fee that's supposed to give you more visibility and the chance to enter contests that I've been told are quite shady.
So basically it's a useless effort, unless you already have many followers, in which case I'd consider self publishing, so even if one reader (not 1000!) buys one book from you, you'll earn more than 6$.
PC
Phyllis C.
I signed up for Vocal+ to enter a Haiku contest
I signed up for Vocal+ to enter a contest. I had the worst time trying to submit the darn thing. There was no submit button after I had done everything. That was a telltale sign that this site was not worth it. Canceled today.
JP
Julie P.
They say they don't allow multiple…
They say they don't allow multiple submissions to contests when clearly they do, and usually those people have won, in my experience. It is a popularity contest and a mediocre writitng platform, nothing like what anyone who wants to be a writer would value, in my opinion. Snarky customer service people. Also, I am suspicious that the judges don't even have access to half of the entries to contests because not a single human being that works for Vocal has EVER given feedback, or anything. I think it's rigged. I deleted my account.
LB
Lilly B.
NOT a place for writers!
I’ve come to understand that Vocal Media is a story telling platform and not a place for writers.
They do not value grammar, punctuation, proper story telling elements, etc. Instead, they chose Top Stories and contest winners based off of personal preferences. They seem to also chose the same winners repeatedly. I honestly think many of them are friends of friends of the judges.
Vocal basically believes: “if you can afford an education, you’re too privileged to win a contest.” It has absolutely nothing to do with talent. I would normally love seeing an advantage go to the underdog, except in this case, I don’t. As an underdog myself, I’ve spent a decade teaching myself what I’ve missed by not being able to afford college—to only then be judged as someone who writes too well.
After writing on Vocal for years, this is what I’ve learned. Even look at their “contest rules.” They are so flimsy. “Should be within 600-5,000 words,” and winners have gone over by HUNDREDS. “Must include the prompt:” but then winners don’t always have the prompt and STILL win. It truly makes no sense. Their judging is Willy Nilly at best.
Do not use Vocal if you’re a writer. If you’re a story teller who doesn’t care about grammar, this place is for you. I will be leaving this month, which is a shame because the IDEA of Vocal is great. The reality is not.