CarolJ
patreon
BIG Announcement!! (Writing Full-Time!!)
🕑 Added 2020-07-03 18:34:02 +0000 UTCHello again! Here's that announcement that I've been putting off writing, mainly because it addresses a lot of things that have been making me nervous! But that doesn't help me, and it doesn't help you! So let's rip the bandage off. Together.
I have quit my previous job and am now going to be writing full-time!
It's a big, scary leap, I know! Mostly for me, admittedly. Well, almost entirely for me. But based on the numbers I ran, I should be able to make this work for a few months, provided I tighten the belt! For the most part, things are going to be more or less the same on your end, but I want to go over some of the changes that this is going to (hopefully) result in.
The biggest one is obviously that I'll be posting more stories! Given that I'm going to be writing full-time, it's going to be my literal job to write! With that in mind, you should expect around four "paid" stories a month, at least three. I'll get into how you can adjust your pledges and set monthly caps in a bit, but if I'm going to be making a living doing this, I'm going to need to seriously crank up my output.
I'm going to try to not go over four, so you can keep that in mind if you need to adjust anything regarding your patronage. But assuming you're willing to support my writing, this is hopefully a good thing! You're getting more! That's good, right? I like to think so!
Not only that, but you should expect different "types" of stories from me, too. I've been thinking a lot about what kind of writing I admire and what kind of writing I myself read, and I realized that I need to vary my authorship if I'm going to produce the kind of prose that you deserve! I'm going to work on longer, more narrative-focused pieces. They'll still be red-hot, of course, but I really want to sink my teeth into novellas and serials! One-shots are fine, but I want to write engaging stories that readers can get invested in!
I'm also going to try and write flashfiction! After all, one has to practice their craft, and shorter pieces are a great way to have fun with ideas and different writing styles. I don't want my writing to get stale, and I don't want to fall into a rut. I think shorter pieces are going to be a great way to help keep things fresh for me as a writer! And obviously these would be released for free!
I also want to keep making games! Trust me when I say that is still very much a priority for me. Part of my preparation for this jump from a "normal" job to writing full-time was accruing art to use in games. Basically, I have art stockpiled to last me a few months if I aim for one game a month. Given that Blackberry Kisses still isn't out, one new game a month may be a bit of a lofty goal.
Regardless, making games is something I very much want to do, and each of these games are going to eventually be released completely free, so please keep that in mind!
Another big change that I'm making is that I am now accepting writing commissions! If you're interested in them, please let me know! I don't really want to set a specific number for the price, considering a lot of factors are going to influence how much I'm liable to charge, but if I want to make a general estimate, you should probably expect to pay at least $30 per 1,000 words.
A lot of factors are going to influence any commissions I take on, so this isn't by any means a flat rate. And for what it's worth, I've advised a commissioner that any commissions I take on will probably end up longer than you pay for. But I suppose that doesn't affect you much if you have no plans to commission me, so if that's not something you're interested in or it's not something in the cards for you right this moment, it's not going to affect you at all.
So, that's basically it! It's a lot to take in, I'm sure, but it's a lot for me, too! Hopefully this will all go swimmingly, and we'll all be able to benefit from this. At the very least, this will give me a few months to focus specifically on my writing before I take on part-time work. I hope, however, that this works out and I can earn a living writing full-time!
Thank you so much for your support! I truly appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. If you weren't willing to support my literary ambitions, I would still be at a job I *hated,* and I wouldn't be able to produce the kind of prose that you've come to expect from me. This is a dream come true...and a big risk for me, too! But I'm willing to give this a shot and be the author you deserve!
Alright, with all that sappy stuff out of the way, here is how to adjust your pledge and set a monthly cap!
- From the homepage on Patreon, navigate to the "Manage Memberships" page. It may be different on your end, but I was able to reach it via the dropdown menu in the upper-right, the one with my avatar as an icon.
- From there, you can scroll to your pledge to my Patreon and click "edit" in the specific box.
- One of the options there is to set a Monthly Limit. That means, for example, that if your pledge per post is $2.50, you can set it to cap at $7.50 per month. Even if I were to post four times in one month (which would result in a $10.00 charge uncapped), you'll still only receive a charge for $7.50 that month.
I don't want anyone being charged money they can't afford to spend on my writing, so please make sure that your pledge is adjusted accordingly! And if you should feel a bit more generous knowing that this is going to be my occupation now, I would be extremely grateful if you were to make any adjustments in my favor, too! Regardless, I hope you make full use of this handy feature.
Comments
SoVeryBlissful
Wow!
Pangolin
Congratulations! Definitely looking forward to both the longer stories and the flashfics!
Jay Aury
Congratulations! It's a big decision but you've got what it takes.
Matthew Lindquist
Congrats!!! It's a huge step, I understand, but we all believe in you! And can't wait to see what's coming ^_^
