Happy New Year! Looking back, looking ahead (Patreon)

Hello all,

First off, a big Happy New Year from MSB! 

It's been such a tough year for so many of us, and your support helped us get through it. Whether you interacted with us on social media, sent us an encouraging message or email, recommended us to your friends, or spent some or all of the year as a patron, we really appreciated it. 

A lot of things didn't go as-planned for us. We had hoped to go to more cons; cons were canceled, and it wouldn't have been safe to go anyway. We had hoped to get the Patreon to $3000/month and patrons to 500, but growth has been slow (for obvious reasons!). I had hoped to take the JLPT N3 in early December; it was canceled. Podcast listens are down industry-wide; it turns out that people mostly listen while commuting, at work, or at the gym, and when a significant number of people don't do these things anymore... 

On a personal level, it was just... hard to focus. Even though we were mostly at home, and theoretically much less busy, world events added constant distraction, stress, and worry that made work more difficult.

But so many good things have happened too! Thanks to generous gifts from listeners, we've put together an impressive Japan/Anime/Media Studies library. We took our first long-break (1 whole month!), and used the time to rest and work on podcast tasks that get neglected when we have weekly episodes to produce. We launched our newly re-designed website. We finished our 2nd season and began our 3rd. We've covered important topics, added new monthly bonus content, and continued to refine our podcast-making skills. 

And even though the growth may not have met our goals and expectations, the podcast DID grow:

• $1,900/month > $2,820/month
• 290 patrons > 427 patrons
• ~1000 subscribers > ~1500 subscribers

We are feeling so grateful that this project connected with you all, and hope that our work has entertained you and taught you new things this year. 2020 has made us planning-shy, but some goals are evergreen: to keep improving our writing, research, and editing skills, and to stay curious about all things Gundam.

Thanks again, and wishing you a safe and happy New Year!

- Nina and Thom