Brellom
patreon
(Updated) Important Notice: Following Up on the Previous Post
🕑 Added 2023-12-13 01:17:37 +0000 UTC12/13/23
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I have thoroughly removed all links to Patreon from twitter & tumblr. That means I am now cut off from the ability to generate new patrons (and increasing my earnings) through advertising on my primary outlets. A shame, after the massive success of last month...
Issues with SubscribeStar
This feels like a problem where a simple victory is impossible.
Financial Loss
I am apprehensive about having you all move to SubscribeStar because many of you simply won't. Also, SS takes a 10% cut of my profits compared to Patreon's 5%, so I'll earn less money even if you all move and we use the same exact reward structure -- I'll probably earn what I was making before the recently added patron sketch requests (despite still offering that reward). It's also worth noting that because of this, SS advises against having a $1 reward tier -- which cuts a lot of you off.
It will likely be a while before I can make up the loss of earnings through SS alone...
Value Disparity
If I provide a substantially better experience over on SS, there will be less reason to stay here, and I will thus fall into the previous issue of losing money. Also... If I set up two distinctly different reward environments, patrons may feel like they're getting screwed out of value.
I know a lot of you came here for a specific subject matter, and if you can't get it here (or if you can get it for free), then why should you pledge in the first place?
What can we do?
I can continue to draw the same kinds of stuff I usually draw, I just don't think it should posted on Patreon - because it can not be funded by Patreon. So, if you want to keep up with everything, you'd have to do so elsewhere, like a social media website, discord server, or an archive containing all my work -- if such places even exist.
In the mean time, we could still use Patreon - as long as it funds the creation of a specific, non-violating creative project -- like a game, webcomic, or illustration series that would not violate those guidelines. As I suspect many of you will not want to give me money for nothing specific.
Therefore: Think of something I might create that you would love to fund via Patreon.
That said, if I keep people on Patreon... SS runs the risk of under-performing, allowing it to go even longer without meaningful growth. I don't know if that means I should simply consider SS as a tip jar where you can pay whatever you want and then simply focus on generating money via comics, commissions, creative social experiences, or fancy art stream micro-transactions, etc...
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12/12/23
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I've kept in touch with the team over at Patreon across the last few days, and this post is a follow up to the previous one concerning the long-term viability of this account. Thank you for your patience during this time.
So, what happened?
Patreon had a policy live stream earlier today. In it, they explained that the platform guidelines have not changed, but they plan to better detail them in the future (especially for 18+ content).
Recently, a number of creators were purged from the platform. Their work primarily consisted of adults wearing diapers, but artists depicting transformation and pet play were also affected at the same time. This suggests that, although the rules may not have changed, their enforcement has.
When asked about it, staff explained that such content (specifically adult diapers, due to it being the catalyst of the discussion) is still allowed on the platform, but not if it is sexualized. This is done for the sake of user safety - standard moral stuff.
The Conclusion?
This rule will likely apply to other subject matter, such as pet play and hypnosis. Even if they feature adults (consenting or otherwise), they gently touch on other concepts like sexual violins or bees-tiality, and it is an inherent problem in Patreon's eyes for those subjects to be sexualized. This is an inherent risk to all creators, but technically not as bad a situation as I made it out to be prior.
However, that means subject matter including, say... vampires with mind control powers, game over screens featuring bad ends for an unlucky heroine, and even cow girls... are inherently risky should any artist choose to create artworks featuring them.
Additional Clarification & Escape Clause
When hypnosis artists were purged in 2020, I asked staff a question. I asked that same question today to ensure the answer is unchanged (it is, although there is now video proof of it).
Brellom:
If an artist creates & shares content OFF Patreon that would otherwise be considered a violation of the community guidelines, are they safe from being banned ON Patreon provided those creations are not connected to or funded by Patreon in any capacity?
Laurent Crenshaw, Head of Policy
If you're a creator who is creating works you're passionate about somewhere that may violate our guidelines, but are not ultimately funded through your Patreon or directly linking to it, then that is your business and you should feel comfortable creating those works without being concerned about violating community guidelines.
While Patreon may look at what you're doing off platform, we primarily look at what you're linking back to us or funding through Patreon... If you're not doing that, then we aren't to going to moderate against it.
With that in mind:
I have removed my Patreon link from all platforms that I am active on (except Twitter, temporarily). This is bad because I'm no longer advertising my primary source of income, but it means I will be free to do whatever I want... OFF platform.
That also means you don't have to move to an entirely different platform just to support me. But I can not use Patreon to fund & post any content that violates the community guidelines.
But... what does that mean?
It is more convenient to keep everyone here at Patreon. It means nothing more is demanded of you and I earn slightly more money due to Patreon providing lower creator fees than Subscribe★.
But hypothetically speaking...
There may be some inherent risks with the current implementation of Sketch Requests & Collection Posts. While we definitely don't draw stuff like it very often, what might happen if a hypno'd cow girl were to suddenly appear as a result of random circumstances - like a patron sketch request?
What is an artist supposed to do? How do they ensure that their Patreon can still exist to provide value while also minimizing risk?
The simplest answer is to use Patreon to fund a specific (safe) product - and that's it. Those artists are free to post whatever they want anywhere else as long as it's not at all connected to Patreon. Though this creates its own share of problems.
The Problems...
How would this hypothetical artist use this OTHER subscription platform if it makes no sense to split their consumer base (earning less money due to higher fees)?
Plus, what happens to the rest of their art? Does it simply get posted directly to Twitter & Tumblr? So now all that art is simply being given away for free? Is that even okay? Also, that means patrons won't be able to easily see EVERYTHING on Patreon itself... Will they need to use Discord to keep up with the latest artworks? Will the patrons hate that idea entirely?
Does this mean the artist's Patreon will need a complete revamp? What product can they provide that would even be satisfying despite the apparent loss of value? Are there seamless ways to provide an alternative to that lost value elsewhere?
Anyway, those are where my thoughts currently lie. I'm interested to hear what your thoughts on any of this is. No decisions have been made - but these are questions anyone using Patreon should ask.
Don't forget to eat & sleep.
Comments
brellom
I'm not familiar with Discord Subscriptions... I imagine the barrier to entry might be slightly higher though because it's kind of a less concrete reward than having platforms designed around supporting an artist - while a server is just something you can kinda just chill in and you don't see the hidden channels. I don't know if there might be rules against NSFW content with Discord subscriptions either. That said, technically one can still just use Patreon subs & SS subs to give access to role-specific channels IN the Discord.
Chaplin (Wolfborg)
I'm not sure how well it would work in practice but what about changing your Discord server to a community server and then using Discord subscriptions for access to supporter channels. Then you could have NSFW channels tied to the Discord subscription where you can post whatever you want. That way they aren't paying for access to certain content via Patreon, they're paying for it through Discord, a place where many of your Patreon supporters already are. That's just my initial thought though. The experience will be different on Discord compared to Patreon blog posts but I do agree that getting everyone to move to SS will probably be a lot harder. Although I'm not sure how much of a cut, if any, that Discord takes...
Shawn Heatherly
Not ideal, but better than I was expecting in all honesty.
