Life
The Fire I Built After The Fireworks
I recognized him immediately, because I used to be the one looking at the sky instead of building a fire. Back then, I knew every kind of brightness except the one that lasts. I knew how to chase color, noise, applause, the sudden rush of being wanted somewhere, by someone, for something. I mastered the art of mistaking motion for life – of letting flashes of joy convince me that I was warm, charismatic, even while I was freezing underneath them.
By Gabriella Retiabout 4 hours ago in Writers
True Story: The Creepy Lady who tried to Open my Back Door Late at Night
I live in Denver, in a house divided into an apartment. My portion is on the far side of our shared driveway. A metal fence surrounds the property. It’s very quiet back here at the end of the street that leads into a wooded area.
By Criminal Mattersa day ago in Writers
Major SSI Overhaul Could Reshape Benefits For 7.4 Million Americans
A sweeping proposal in Congress could bring the most significant changes in decades to Supplemental Security Income (SSI), a federal program that supports low-income seniors and people with disabilities.
By Matt De Levia day ago in Writers
Why?
Do you ever ask why? Why did this happen? Why me? Why did someone hurt me? What did I do to deserve this? I often wondered these very questions. I am a product of abandonment. My mother abandoned us, my dad, sister and me, when I was a year and a half. It left wreckage. I lived a lifetime, in fear of more abandonment. That shaped the way I behaved around people. It made me more permissive than I should have been. You tend to let people walk all over you, when you fear them leaving. That was difficult enough, but there was more.
By Alexandra Grant2 days ago in Writers
Mumbai meri Jaan earned its name
I grew up in Goa. For anyone who has been there would know it’s easy going, slow and forgiving. The kind of place where time waits for you and houses are wide, airy, the neighborhoors wave and the world will always accommodate you. Then Mumbai happened.
By Nutty Natter 2 days ago in Writers
The Road to 500 Stories on Vocal
Since the Spring of 2018, I've written over 400 stories and had six Top Stories on Vocal as of February 2026. Now, I'm focused on achieving another milestone: 500 stories written. Now you're wondering how I could I possibly come up with topics to write about. It's based on personal experiences and events that are happening in the world. The question is will this feat be achievable by year's end? It's a longshot, but not impossible either. I write everything from sports to video games. One of my goals as a writer on Vocal is to encourage everyone to take something away from any story I write. In early 2018, I was at my lowest point in my life. I was going through mental health issues, including a couple of suicide attempts. One day, I went to my local library and was on a computer. I wanted something that'll lift my spirits up a bit. All of a sudden, I discovered something online where I could freely express myself. That site was called Vocal. When I wrote my first story on there, I was automatically hooked. I kept writing more and the rest, as they say, was history.
By Mark Wesley Pritchard 3 days ago in Writers
Grace Isn’t the Gift — It’s the Giving
I asked God to show me what grace looks like. He showed me what grace doesn’t look like. It doesn’t look like a cure for cancer, HIV, or COVID. It doesn’t look like a financial windfall, a promotion, opening a new business, or finding a sack of money a hundred yards off the side of the road. It doesn’t look like someone who has mastered the first two — who reasoned it out, found the cure, and got paid.
By Mark Elliott 3 days ago in Writers
