2022 Patreon Wrap-Up/Future Changes! (Patreon)

Hey, y'all! Hoping 2022 was a better year for everyone, and hello to all of the new faces who came along for the ride! I want to talk about the state of my Patreon and some things that will change starting in 2023.

As many of you have noticed, there's been a reduced output of content from me this year- which is mainly due to producing my visual novel Burrows. While I have a team that helps, its a labor of love that I do almost everything for. I'm not saying this as an excuse, since it is a free game anyone can enjoy (and has NSFW with my fans in mind!), but I understand that it might not appeal to everyone. In 2023 I'll try to better schedule what I work on so that I don't burn out or run out of time (i.e rewards coming after the month they're for.)

This leads into another issue that's been plaguing me this year: burn out. I've been drawing for a living since 2012, and it's slowly been taking a physical and mental toll on me. I have carpal tunnel/tendonitis which hinders how long I can draw every day, which means I need cool-down days where I do other creative things like write, make music ect. Most of this is for the VN, which makes it a very liberating project for me as it isn't solely reliant on my ability to draw. I would like to find other ways to incorporate that into this Patreon so everyone is happy, but that's TBD.

Another issue that affects this are commissions. While they're the quickest and most reliable way to earn cash in a pinch, they have become increasingly draining and hard to work on in addition to everything else I do. I love the idea of drawing something that make's someone's day, but finding ways to fit them into my increasingly chaotic schedule is getting harder and harder, and I hate making people wait for content they've already paid for. This Patreon's earnings have been stagnant, earning roughly the same amount every month for the last 2 years. If interest peaks with these changes and I start earning enough to cover rent, I would be able to stop taking commissions and focus solely on my two Patreon-funded endeavors!

Now, for some happier conversation: Discord! I've really been enjoying the Community Comics project and working with you $8 patrons to make raunchy, sometimes silly pieces. However, it's become clear that apart from that, there's not much interaction between users outside of creating said comics. I run 3 separate servers, and they share many members, thus people tend to be more social outside of the patron server. To remedy this, I'll be making some big changes:
1. I'll be shutting down my general server (Nikko's Corner) and merging that with the Supreme server, making non-patron channels that anyone can join to talk about art, games, music ect with.
2. The designated patron channels will be locked at the current $8 tier. I'll be trying to stream more often as well, and I'd like to get people's input on what days/times work the best for those so more people can join! I'd love to do a sketch request stream at least once a month and have some fun with y'all! I'd also love to have a gaming night or something, if people are willing.

Moving on- for the $3 patrons, you'll be excited to hear that aside from our pinup polls, additional monthly pinups will be making a come back next year! However, these will also be voted on: with a special condition.
These will be "OC Pinups", aka. characters I own from my various projects- or even my sona Randall! These polls will go up at the start of the month and be randomly generated from a list into 4 options. The other monthly poll will be renamed "Rule 34 Poll" and will only be featuring characters from existing IP's. This means $3 will have two polls a month, with one exclusive pinup (OC pinup will be a flat color piece available for all patrons.)

I'm hoping that this layout will be more enticing to new patrons and make everyone feel like they're getting their money's worth. Please leave your feedback below, I'm making this a public post so I can get everyone's input.
Happy Holidays,
-Nikko