A year of Patreon (Patreon)

About a year ago, I decided to start writing stories: me, the guy who had never read a full book until three years ago. I had never written anything decent before or tried to learn how it worked.

My first attempt at a story was Feliformia. Written in a language that wasn't mine, I put on paper (well, virtual paper) some words that seemed pleasant to me. A small Asian girl, wearing a latex catsuit with ears and tail, who drank a bit too much to fight her shyness. How nerdy.

Following that text, an avalanche of comments poured on the gromet's plaza's forum, praising the story and demanding more. I quickly wrote a few more chapters, and with the help of Teann, I quickly realized that I wrote like an infant and that my text was loaded with stupid mistakes. I decided that I wanted to write well.

I went and got a Grammarly subscription, and roughly at the same time, the pandemic hit. Bored at home, and combined with my renewed interest to straighten my finances, I decided to create a Patreon page.

"Maybe I could make enough to pay for my Grammarly subscription." (that's like 130$can per year)

"Maybe I could get 15 patrons." (I now have 160 or so)

Then people started to join. Most of the original patrons joined for Feliformia. And then some more for The Sun I Can't See… I rapidly improved my writing by watching youtube videos and acquiring knowledge that made sense to me. I focused on what I liked the most, dialogues, and writing became fun. 

The texts grew bigger and more complex. I relied more and more on the characters' personalities and gradually walked away from the extremes that led me to a wall. If Kitty had spent all her time in the sex coffin, Feliformia would have died.

And then something incredible happened. If you were there back then, you would remember. On July 17th, I published several chapters of a new story about a particular animal café where the animals were cute rubber girls. It was an extremely fun story to write, but I didn't think much of it. I still thought Feliformia was my flagship story.

When AC went public, a rogue wave of new patrons joined the page and more than doubled my page's size within a month, which is something I couldn't have expected.

That said, and you know that very well if you've been with me for a while, I like variety. I write what I like, and I keep what YOU like. Sometimes it works, other times it doesn't. But overall, I'm proud of my style and track record.

Feliformia, AC, Winter Maid, Girls and Bridle, TSICS, even Mermaid that will see a second chapter eventually. I'm very proud of those stories. Even the new ones like Dive and Women will save the men. Those will find a place on this Patreon page, not because they are the most demanded, but simply because I love them…

I lack words to express how important having a good base of followers is. The vast majority of you do not follow me to "purchase" the stories. You are doing it so I continue writing. You are doing it for the love of certain characters. Perhaps you want Vix to stay alive… or Kitty… or Alex... 

What I can tell you is that it works. Your support helps me pay my bills and become more financially independent, but it also keeps me disciplined. Part of what I do is a hobby, but it is also a job when there is monetary support. You pay me, and I deliver stories. That's the deal, right? It's a cold way to say it, but it is also a reality. If it had only been a hobby, I don't think Animal Cafe would have seen the light. The reason why I created it was to give more to my paying supporters. Day in day out, I feel the obligation to offer you a good product for the price.

But it's everything. The inspiration, the motivation, the interest, the revenue, the creativity, the desire to shine, the selfishness, the empathy, the community. There is not a single reason that is more valid than the other.

All of this is why in one year of Patreon, I created and posted 76 stories. I didn't keep track of the stats, but the vast majority of them were above 7000 words. Many were double or triple that. Then you have those shorter series like AC that hover around 4000 words.

It's a LOT of words in a year. If the average is about 7000 words, that is over half a million words in a year, which is absolutely nuts.

But I did it; I'm proud of it. Such a beast would never have happened without Patreon and your incredible support, trust me on that. This adventure brought me way more than money. It brought me friends, it brought me pride, it brought me self-confidence, it brought me the work ethic to work on my text better and improve.

I wish I had words to thank you, but I put all of those in my stories. Half a million words that all mean "thank you for supporting me."

If there is one thing I want you to believe at the end of this text, it is that I'm grateful for what you've done. No matter if you gave 2$ or 100$, you have made a difference in my life.

Now, let's write some more of those stories.

TS