Patreon State of the Union - Update

Hey all.

So this is going out to all of my patrons (as well as any free members out there), just giving an update on some potential changes and new stuff coming to Patreon.

First, a bit of context:

For the past year, things have been rough for me. Due to unforeseen circumstances, my household now has to make do with less than half the income it once brought in. We’ve managed, but things are tight and they’re not likely to improve in the near future. It’s gotten bad enough that I may need to take on another job on top of my existing full-time position. And that means the comic would likely die, or at least go on indefinite hiatus, as Puck takes 12-20 hours a week for me to make. I just won’t have the time.

In a bid to keep the lights on, I’m trying to see if I can improve the whole Patreon thing. I haven’t changed anything about the tiers since I started this account ten years ago, so I feel it’s about time to change things up a bit.

The changes I’m thinking of making are as follows:

1) the $1 tier will continue to exist, but it’ll only get you access to the new hi-res comics as they come out. Access to the incentive pics will be a higher tier. To be honest, the $1 tier was something that never made much sense, seeing as processing fees ate a big chunk of each donation. But I don’t want to abandon people who wish to keep supporting at this level, so the $1 tier will continue to exist, and the older incentives will still be accessible to those patrons.

2) A new $3 tier will be created, which will offer the hi-res comics AND the new TWC incentive pics.

3) The $5 tier will continue to exist, allowing those patrons to vote on new incentives and submit ideas.

4) A new $7 ‘slightly naughty’ tier will be made which will offer some slightly naughty sketches and less censored versions of incentives. This is one that people were really asking about, but I will stress that this naughtiness is only slightly naughty. Nothing too raunchy - just pinups. If that sounds like it’d be fun, though, you can sign up for it.

5) Lastly, a new $50 ‘top tier patron’ level will be created, which gets a specific shout-out in the description of each comic, and also lets you choose a piece of original art from the back catalogue, which I’ll mail directly to you. Could be an incentive, could be a comic. You choose. Every month gets you a new piece of original art.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments. If you think this is bad or a big mistake, please tell me. Or if you think this is a good approach, also let me know. I didn’t want to change things without first giving people a little heads up.

And to those who have been supporting me these past ten years, I thank you. You’re the only reason the comic continues to exist, as ad revenue has disappeared and merch sales are non-existent. A big thanks to all.