spottyjaguar
patreon
Important changes! Leaving Patreon
🕑 Added 2019-11-20 03:16:47 +0000 UTCHey everyone.
This is a really important post - I cant stay on Patreon.
I wasnt reported or put under review, but I know thats where Im headed.
If youre not in the Discord server, I apologize for how incredibly sudden this is. To the few people who just pledged to me this month, I really apologize for how sudden this is. I realized out of nowhere that I needed to leave about 2 weeks ago, but at the time I had no plan, and honestly, I didnt have one until a few days ago, which is when I started writing this post.
This is another really... really long post (gosh I miss having short and sweet updates, haha), but Im gonna try and keep it as concise as I can. It's not urgent, but it is really important, so I do ask that you read it all at your earliest convenience!
Ill cover,
1 - Why Im leaving
2 - Where Im going
3 - Content warnings, changes to my art
4 - The leaving process, and how you can follow me
5 - The VIP tier, and how to get it
6 - A networking opportunity
And hopefully it will all make sense.
1 - Why Im leaving
Anyone whos been here for a little while will have noticed that Ive been posting less and less to the Patreon feed. Part of that is just that Ive been busy, especially with the Life Update from a few months ago... but a lot of it was just because I have been very unhappyhere.
For those that dont know, Patreon is against a lot of kink work. Per their guidelines, pretty much everything I love to draw isnt allowed, and funding it here is a reportable offense. After getting into these themes in January this year, Ive primarily been flying under the radar by not drawing too much attention to my Patreon, and then, later, by mostly posting it to the Discord.
While doing this has made it so I havent been reported yet, Ive been watching other artists get reported all year long, and the past few months Ive dealt with increasing anxiety about when itll be my turn.
The impact that has
The biggest source of anxiety by far has been feeling dishonest, since I can't speak openly about what I do without asking to be reported.
While this doesnt necessarily impact people who already know my work, it does impact anyone whos new to it, which is more and more people as Ive grown this year. It bothers me a lot that I cant give those people accurate information about what theyd be supporting, so they dont get to make an informed decision about whether or not they want to be supporting it.
Even if that wasnt an issue, I can still be reported for posting my work elsewhere, since my FA and Twitter link to my Patreon.
Ive been looking over my shoulder constantly because of this. I became afraid of streaming; I stopped using twitter and FA for weeks at a time; I had so many conflicting feelings about drawing, especially drawing for myself; I completely gave up on getting an FA advertisement or promoting myself too heavily.
I did a lot of these things anyway, because I do actually want to - I like being productive; I want to be active on social media - but also because I just didnt realize how much this was affecting me in the first place. Between really wanting to do better for you guys, and just everything thats gone on this year, this was background noise until extremely recently.
The last straw
In the middle of last month, an artist I really admire got dinged for their content, despite having a fairly barren page. Their work was certainly against Patreons guidelines, just like mine is, so they werent flagged for no reason, but watching them go to extreme lengths to try and keep their account, including need to delete tweets and art posts, just to try and get out of hot water with this place, just kind of scared me, honestly? It was awful to watch that.
On the 2nd of this month, I spent about 8 hours working on my Patreon page updating some wording and layouts and just generally tightening things up. At the end of the day, I got a lot done, but I couldnt be happy about any of it.
I realized that I had spent half the day trying desperately to find some way to wink-wink-nudge-nudge about what I draw, and all I settled on was saying art with sensitive themes was on Discord. That not only crushed me emotionally, it made things way more complicated, and probably still was grounds for being reported.
I also realized that this wasn't the first time I had felt like this. Throughout this whole year, but especially the past 6 months, on top of everything Ive been through, I have been putting so much energy into trying not to get into trouble for what I draw, that I never have any left to actually draw it.
Do I have to leave?
Although this all crashed into me like a big wave, I have thought about if this was what I really needed to do, or if I really needed to do it right now. The answer is yes, I think so.
I could keep flying under the radar, posting my art here; I could just upload tame stuff, and leave the kinks elsewhere; I could try to move, but slowly, rather than all at once But I think all of these would just be delaying the inevitable, and more work not just for me, but for you.
Leaving came up earlier this year, but I held off because I didnt want to be hasty and inconvenience anyone with the logistics. Now its clear that if I dont leave, I inconvenience you simply by not being able to draw or share anything.
My health
I want to make it really clear that I dont regret making my Patreon, at all. Ive met so many amazing people this way, and grown so much - I wouldnt be anywhere without this site, or all of you using it. Its especially amazing that your support is what allowed me to take care of Namiin pretty much this entire year while shes been grieving. Patreon will always be a part of my life for that. As much as I need to stop using it now, I would do it again if it meant having you in my life, in a heartbeat.
I know plenty of you dont support me just for my art or what you get, but sharing my art is why I made my Patreon to begin with. My work has changed a lot in 2019, absolutely, but my goal really hasnt - I want to connect with people through the work I do, through my art and my characters. Thats what fulfills me as a person, and thats what I cant do on this site anymore.
TL;DR: A lot of artists who draw the kinks I like to draw have gotten reported/kicked off of Patreon, and I know Im eventually gonna have the same thing happen to me. Im heading it off at the pass, and leaving on my own terms, so I can draw the art I want to draw without being so freaked out.
2 - Where I'm going
I'm going to be using SubscribeStar as my primary page. SubscribeStar is a monthly subscription site like Patreon, but without the extreme restrictions on content.
Some concerns about it
Unlike Patreon, SubscribeStar only accepts debit or credit cards for payment, because PayPal severed their relationship with them. A year or two ago Patreon banned several anti-feminist/racist/alt-right type people, who then moved to SubscribeStar, which didnt ban them; SS took a firm anti-censorship stance, which PayPal didnt agree with.
I wanted to include this for transparency; if that concerns you, feel free to look into it yourself and make your own decision about the site.
My opinion on it
I accepted a long time ago that using a site (or any other service) doesnt mean I endorse what other people do on it. I also accept that, in todays social climate, any space that goes out of its way to protect creators like me is bound to have something about it thats difficult or unsavory for others. Artists cant just starve until the perfect site appears.
And honestly, I just feel like Patreon isnt much better for being anti-porn. Putting limitations on artistic and sexual expression is already doing a lot of harm in my opinion, especially to queer and other marginalized artists. If anything, I think SS not accepting PayPal makes me more hopeful for its future.
Making my decision
I've known about SubscribeStar as an alternative for a few months now. I think of you suggested it to me, actually. Earlier in the year, Namiin switched to that site for a very similar reason as I will be - she draws primarily father/daughter incest - and in talking to her and other artists who have moved there, I know this is the best choice for me.
I like their layout for the most part, I like the customer support staff (Ive been speaking with them), and I just like how the site feels and functions. Theres a lot of features that actually make my life better, and give me more control over my page. Im happy to switch to them.
TL;DR: Im moving to SubscribeStar. Some people are concerned because a few alt-right type people use the site, but I personally don't have a problem with it. I enjoy the site and I feel like its the best choice for me.
3 - Content warnings, changes to my art
Before I get into how I plan to leave Patreon, I wanted to talk about some changes to my work and how I want to present myself, since that might affect whether or not you come with me.
In setting this all up, having the freedom to say pretty much whatever I want, I realized how much I just havent been saying about my art. With this freedom, I will now have a section with explicit content warnings, which will include two important things - the trap trope, and underage characters.
The trap trope is because of my character Trish. I dont know if Ill start calling him that again or not, but since thats still the mechanic for his entire personality/design, I feel it should be there.
Underage is just because quite a few of my characters stories start, well, earlier. This is a lot more likely to come up in text than in images, especially me defending it; its as valid a form of expression as anything else. If I draw it, I dont know when that will be, or what it will look like, or if Ill even post it. If I do post it, therell be a warning, just like gore gets.
Why youre hearing about this now
The reason this hasnt come up before is mostly because I was afraid of Patreon, again. The reason it is coming up now is because I wont have to be so afraid anymore. Thats really it. I dont want to withhold anything if I dont have to.
I realize that I made my stance on fiction/kinks fairly clear in January, but I know this is where some people, even if theyre supporting me post-January, will draw the line. I wanna respect that.
This is here so you can make your own decision, and if that decision is removing your pledge for good, theres nothing wrong with that. Thank you for your support so far, from the bottom of my heart.
TL;DR: please read this entire section, its really important.
4 - The leaving process, and how you can follow me
If you do want to continue supporting me, well, thank you for that too!
With how big this announcement is, Im going to be pausing my Patreon billing for December, so you wont be charged.
Ultimately, I want to stop using Patreon completely. I know I could keep this page as a tip jar with zero updates or rewards, but I prefer not to; its not how I want to run my page, and it just costs me more money (in fees).
Instead, I will be asking everyone to remove their pledge in the end, and use either SubscribeStar or PayPal to support me.
SubscribeStar
If youre able and willing, this is how I would prefer you follow me!
Joining SubscribeStar will make sure you get my art posts via email, the same as you do on Patreon now, and since there are no content restrictions, you can see all of my art this way. You dont have to join the Discord, if you dont want to.
They only take debit cards, and their payment system doesnt work the way Patreon does. Theyre monthly, but based on the date of your first payment, so if you join on the 25th of this month, you will be charged on the 25th of next month. Not the 1st of next month. They also don't support custom pledge amounts at the moment, so instead there are set tiers at different prices.
Ive also mirrored a bunch of my Patreon posts to SS, so that were not starting from total scratch. I havent decided what Im going to do with my posts on Patreon yet.
(Whether you're already in the Discord, or you want to join it for the first time, please click the "Discord Chat" button at the top of my SS page! That will make sure you enter correctly and get the right role for your tier. SS's Discord bot is 10x better than Patreon's; it won't yank you into servers or do anything dumb like that, it just handles roles for me.)
I think your support on SubscribeStar will be good for other artists, too, especially ones like me; it makes SS a viable option for more of us, rather than just that weird site no one uses.
If you are an artist thinking about using the site, you should know that there's a $150 payout minimum. If you dont think thatll be an issue, theres a networking section further down, and I would love to hear from you if it sounds interesting.
PayPal
If you cant, or simply dont want to use SubscribeStar, Ive set up PayPal subscriptions that you can use instead. These are recurring monthly payments made directly from your Paypal account to mine, which youll be able to sign up for with a button on my website.
Like SubscribeStar, the first payment comes out right away, and then the next is in 30 days. You can cancel them at any time.
Unlike SubscribeStar, you will need to join the Discord server to keep in touch with me and get updates about my art. I wish I could change that, but theres just no easy way for me to deliver updates or any other rewards to you outside of the server, I apologize.
You can learn more about the Discord here, if youre considering it.
You can find the PayPal subscriptions here, with options that match my SS tiers.
Once Im totally off of Patreon, I dont plan to offer the PayPal subscriptions publicly - theyre just for you, so that you have options if you still want to support me. Its not your fault I cant use this site anymore, and I dont want to punish you.
TL;DR: SubscribeStar is going to be my primary page, but if you cant or dont want to use it, there are PayPal options. My goal here is to make it as easy as I can for you to keep supporting me.
5 - The VIP tier, and how to get it
$15 VIP tier I promised previously will sitll be available, it's just going to use the same PayPal subscription system from the previous section, rather than Patreon tiers.
For $15/month, VIPs get:
- A 10% commission discount
- A special role in my server
- Your name on my Patreon page and Stream overlay
- Access to all of my art, the high-res archive, and everything else the lower tiers get.
A slight change
For this tier, since the rewards are just vanity, I decided there wasnt really a reason it needed to be so locked down like I originally planned, so it will now be an unlimited tier.
On SubscribeStar, the exact same VIP tier will be available for $25, but I promised you this tier for $15, so thats what this PayPal subscription will cost. Like the last section, this won't be available after I leave Patreon - If youre supporting me through this move, youre essentially getting an early bird special.
If you feel generous, youre welcome to pay $25 or more for this tier via either PayPal or SubscribeStar, but you do not have to. Its my fault this took so long to come out in the first place, so again, Im trying not to inconvenience you any more than I already am.
The main downside
This option relies much more heavily on my Discord, the same way I mentioned in the last section.
If you take tihs option, but really prefer not to use Discord, the only other option is to also join SubscribeStar for $1 or $5 per month. That way, youd get emails about my art updates, the same way you do now, but without having to be in the server. Again, though, SS only takes credit cards, so that may or may not be a solution for you. I wish I could fix that, Im sorry.
Getting one of these tiers
You can sign up for the $15 version of the VIP tier here, via PayPal.
TL;DR: The $15 tier is now unlimited and only available while I'm moving from Patreon to SS. However, since Im leaving Patreon, youll need to either join my Discord, or also pledge on SS, to keep getting art updates. .
6 - A networking opportunity
Something Im particularly excited about, using SubscribeStar, is their referral program. It has two sides to it.
The first one is for artists who are making their accounts and want to get support for their work; I can give them a unique link to sign up through, and then theyll be my referral. The way this works is, when SS takes their (7%) fee from your earnings (which they were going to do with or without the referral), they give a chunk of those fees to me. This comes out of their pocket, not yours, so if youd like to help me out this way, you can use this referral link to make your account. You can do this whether you plan to subscribe to me or not.
The second part is for getting artists subscribers. Im able to generate a link to your page, and if someone ends up supporting you after clicking that link, we both get paid; you get the vast majority of their subscription, and I get a small cut of it each month. Since this does come out of your pocket, Im only doing this with consent, and with artists I know.
Both of these encourage us to network and help each other on a new site, and since ad companies are kind of trying to make our lives hell right now, I think we need that more than ever.
If youre an artist thinking about switching to SS, or if you have already, I would really love to hear from you - especially if your work is anything like mine, but even if its nothing like mine at all. Least I can do is give you some tips if youre not sure where to start with the site!
End
And thats thats all I got. Thank you if youve read all of this. Its about 3,500 words, but I just had a lot to cover and I wanted to make sure I explained everything to you. Again, Im sorry for this happening so suddenly.
If you have any questions, please just ask. I understand that you might not want to ask publicly, so youre more than welcome to message me on Patreon (go to your messages, then your Patron Inbox, click new message, and then find my name), or via Discord if youre on there.
Whether you continue to support me or not, I really am thankful for what youve done for me. Even if weve never really spoken - if youre reading this, youre a part of why Im able to do what I love, and I appreciate that ?
