On Patreon and the Future (Patreon)

This might be a bit of a read, so for those short on time, please bear with me. You can skip all the way to the end for the conclusion of this enchanting story, but for those who want to know the details on my little endavour, please do read on.

First of all, I'd like to talk about the Sword of Damocles Patreon managed to dangle over their own heads.

For those not in the know yet, here is a little video that explains how Patreon is going to screw mostly you guys and gals over, which effectively is going to screw this here Patreon over as well:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxDJT3Zbkls 

Now, if you have watched this video and/or know about the new fee changes, you'd probably like to know my stance on things as well.

By far, the largest amount of pledges I receive from you are in the $2 and $5 tiers, for which I'm of course very grateful! Patreon however thinks they can squeeze out a bit more by actually overcharging you because they 'have to pay fees'. I'm fine if Patreon would relay the fees to my final transfer at every end of the month, but I'd hate to see these fees being paid by my supporters! I have already lost supporters because of this very reason. It doesn't only makes me feel bad for myself, but it also makes me feel bad towards them having to be forced to make that choice.

Recently, Patreon has also changed their stance on adult content, which also put me off on using Patreon in concern of having mine shut down. This is mostly because the stuff that appears in the KYTHERAverse might come over as non-consensual sexual acts. The implication alone would be enough to end my Patreon when being scrutinised by the morality police.

So, combine that with the introduction of screwing you supporters over, I'm seriously considering moving to a different platform and continue KYTHERA and my shenanigans over there. Possibly with a different structure as well, as I'd be starting over anew.

Secondly, the future of mostly me, myself and I. Well, not necessarily in that order, but you get the drift. It's real life kicking in. Some of you may know and I think a lot of you don't; I'm married with a family and that also takes up quite a bit of time next to drawing.

At the end of January we're expecting a second child, which means another swing in life. Especially the first three or so months after birth will have a great impact in my abilities to work on anything, as I work from home. Eventually, things will return to a relatively normal state again, but I fear for the next two years at least, things will be slower again. This will result in a lower output frequency from my side on. This means I probably won't be able to meet the rewards I've set for you all. At the moment I'm already working on my mental and physical limit to get all Patreon stuff out there, including individual commissions in between. I feel that this isn't really a healthy way to continue working, as it takes its toll on my mind and body as well. So, I will have to overhaul the whole system soon anyway...

So, both the Patreon fee changes, their change in policy on adult content, and real life kicking in, all come both as a blessing and a curse.

The curse part is pretty obvious, but the blessing I see that I'm being pushed from all sides to make rational steps to a better digital working environment. The implications for you as supporters mostly will be that I will have to possibly drop the Waifu voting contests. I know these have been a lot of fun to discuss, vote for and anticipate, but I feel like this little gig is taking up too much time (research) I could have put better into creating more original art.

In conclusion, I think it's best for KYTHERA to keep going on a different platform where I know my work will be safe from scrutiny and you, my supporters, are treated with the respect you deserve.

So yeah, a lot of things going on again... I know some of you will understand and some won't, but that's just how things are going to be. Sometimes life just comes in your face and you have to make do with what lemons it throws at you.

Toni

P.s. included are some sketches for Jilly about to smack a bitch.

P.p.s. if someone knows an alternative to MakerSupport.com that offers a similar fair 5% fee system and accepts adult content, please let me know!

P.p.p.s. I have decided to drop my MakerSupport profile, because they seem to cater more to hate rather than the fun things in life. I'll be waiting for http://sponsorion.com/ to go online for more better.