FAQ! (Patreon)

A well overdue rundown of common questions. As always, If you don't feel I cover it here, feel free to ask me anything as it relates to my Patreon or art and I'll add it here if it's relevant!

------------------------------------ FAQ ------------------------------------

Q: What kind of art do you do? 

A: Mostly furry or anthropomorphic art, though occasionally I will dabble in other fantasy humanoids. I do a lot of erotic works and love pinups but am also trying to round myself out better as an artist with full scenes and vibrant worlds for characters to inhabit. I am passionate about illustrating a variety of creatures, monsters, genders and sexualities. It isn't all I do, but I also love scalies, dragons, avians, caprines, mythical animals and cryptids. I'm often in my element drawing scenes within nature or those with occult or gothic themes.

Find more of my work here: https://www.furaffinity.net/user/ultraviolet 

Q: Why do you use Patreon?

A: I love what I do and it's always fun and challenging! However, I've gone independent and took on being a self-employed artist full time. It's a bit scary, but I hope with your patronage that I will be given the chance to work on the art projects that are more personal to me so I can continue to share them with everyone! Simply put, the more patronage I get the more time I can dedicate to art and the more I can create! With enough, I will even get the chance to work larger projects such as art books, animations, comics, and even small apps or games!

Q: How does your Patreon function?

A: I will never use my Patreon as a paywall! All finished works will be posted, uncensored to my Furaffinity and Twitter. Finished pieces are generally posted publicly shortly after the rewards are posted for patrons, though I may also share cropped previews on Twitter or FA. Benefits to patrons are other files, like sketches, wips, high-res files, wallpapers, PSDs, and all other benefits listed in the reward tiers!
Additionally my Patreon is goal orientated and now has unlockable posts, engagement and even rewards available when certain goals are met!

Rewards are posted via Patreon submissions within the first week of the following month. For example, pieces posted in December will start being charged on the first of January. Once payments are received, usually around the 5th of the month,
I then begin posting all the digital rewards.

------------------------- Rewards & Unlockables -------------------------

Q: What are those locked/unlocked items in your membership tiers and goals?

A: My Patreon is now goal orientated, so when my Patreon reaches a certain amount on a goal tier it will unlock rewards, perks, or other stuff. Some of these unlockable items will be automatically available to all patrons like ASKS, Patreon art streams, or Discord stickers & emotes. Then others will be rewards specific to certain  backer tiers; Like smartphone wallpapers,  physical rewards, and the cameo art!

Q: What is an "ASK"?

A. An ASK is when I take any questions directed towards one of my original characters (or in some cases regarding myself or my art) and do an illustration or comic panel as a response to that question. Generally with a screenshot of the original question. It's just a fun way of doing a Q&A. :)

THIS IS AN EXAMPLE of one of the ASKS I've done.

Q: What exactly are the Promotional Shout Outs and how do they work?

A: The Promotional Shout Out is a reward where I link to your FA page whenever I post a finished Patreon art piece on Furaffinity. When you pledge on one of the relevant tiers, I do need to know your FA handle though, so please let me know and I can add you! Additionally I have three tiers of shout out depending on your pledge amount; Sprout tier gets you bronze, Sapling tier will get you silver, and Crystal Tree tier will get you a gold level shout out at the very top of the listing.

You can see an EXAMPLE HERE!

Q: What exactly are the cameos offer in some tiers?

A: Cameos are an unlockable reward. A cameo when I select one of my patron's characters and put them into my art, be it a pin-up, a comic or a slot in a multi-character piece. It's a bit like a commission but it gives me a bit more creative flexibility. I try to think of scenes or scenarios I would love to do that the character would fit into and incorporate them into the setting or scenario. I'd still work closely with the patron to ensure they get an image they are happy with. This is just a way for people to get art of their characters drawn by me. Slots in those tiers are limited and only available when the reward is unlocked.

Q: How do you choose cameos?

A: Cameo slots will only be given to patrons who are part of one of the tiers that offer it as a reward. The slots in these tiers are limited in order to reduce any wait time for their turn.

Every 6 months I will go through the list of patrons who are currently in one of the cameo tiers and choose who gets slots for the next 6 months. I choose based on several factors: How long has a patron been supporting me? Have they received a cameo before? How fitting are their characters for the ideas I have? Etc. I try my best to make this process as fair as possible.

The chosen patrons will then get contacted by me and I'll ask them some questions to make sure we can come up with an idea that we are both happy with. If you don't want your characters to be in a group picture and would prefer a single character pic instead, that is perfectly fine. I try to make it work for both of us. Ideas that are set in stone are then added to the Trello board I use for scheduling. 

The scheduling will be found here under "Future Cameos":

https://trello.com/b/SU8lrzHD/ultraviolets-patreon-projects 

Once cameos are active I will aim to do one every other month so that I will still have time to do personal projects.

Q: How do the quarterly physical rewards function?

A: Quarterly physical rewards (one and two) are unlockable rewards. Once they are available, I will mail out physical rewards to patrons on those relevant tiers every three months. For Physical Rewards One, this will be items like stickers and button pins sent out randomly. On Physical Rewards Two will be enamel pins or limited edition prints, of which you will be offered a selection to choose from. Because these will have to be mailed out, it is important you make sure your mailing address is up to date!

Also note; If I expand the type of merch items I produce in the future, there may be additions to these rewards as well to reflect that. :)

----------------------------- Other Questions -----------------------------

Q: Your Patreon is "Per Finished Illustration". What does that mean exactly?

A: A majority of Patreons are set to "Per Month", which means that you pay the amount you pledge every month. "Per Finished Illustration" simply means that you get charged for every finished art piece I submit instead. So for example, if you pledge €5 and I submit 2 pieces that month, you get charged €10 at the end of the month. You can also set up a monthly limit to make sure you don't overspend.

This also ensures that if I have a dry month where I don't post any charged finished art, that I don't have to worry about temporarily closing my Patreon to prevent charging you. If I don't make any charged art posts, then you simply won't be charged anything for that month!

Even though my Patreon is set to "Per Finished Illustration", your cards only get charged at the end of the month and not when I post a finished art piece.

Q: Monthly Limits? How do those work?

A: When (or after) pledging, in your membership settings, you can set a monthly limit for your contribution. For example, if you pledge €5 and set your limit to 1 and then I submit 2 pieces that month, you are charged only €5 at the end of the month instead of €10. You still get access to all posts and all rewards for your tier amount. This is meant to make it easier for people on a budget and to help ensure I can't cheat you by posting 100 pieces a month. Please set the limit to whatever you are most comfortable with! <3

Q: So, how many finished pieces do you post every month?

A: In my current workflow, I generally post just once a month. However some months my workflow is just quicker and I might do a second finished piece. It doesn't happen all that often, maybe a few times a year. So currently my max is two pieces a month.

Q: Do you have a Discord server connected to this Patreon?

A: Yes I do! It's a perk for all patrons on any tier! To join the Discord server, you need to connect your Patreon account with your Discord account (somewhere in your Patreon settings). Patreon's Discord bot should automatically add you to the server. It's a nice little hang out, where I interact with patrons more closely and I regularly post WIPs and other art stuff as well. Come say hello. <3

-------------------------------- In Closing --------------------------------

I hope that covers everything! Of course, if you have further questions or feel it's missing anything, feel free to let me know!

And lastly a big thank you to VaderSan for letting me use some of his FAQ as a template! He is a damn good bean! <3