[Blog] Patreon - Product v.s. Connection

Preface: The month is almost over. If I don't produce the patron sketch requests before the end, I will add it to the work for next month. That way, no one is screwed out of their request. Also my jaw is still having problems, so I might have to consider getting that looked at.

Product v.s. Connection

I want to shift away from treating Patreon like a job. Instead of building Patreon like a product you purchase, I want to make it feel like a community focused primarily on supporting my creativity & fostering a greater depth of connection.

That is the original spirit of what Patreon represented before we got caught up in quotas, algorithms, and the culture of consumption. Although I don't think it's possible to completely avoid the corporate bullshit of this career... I am getting tired of it - and I suspect many of you are too.

Our relationship with art and social media has changed so drastically over the last few years, and this career has gotten much harder as a result. With that in mind, I feel like pursuing success like I have is a recipe for defeat - nothing changes and it doesn't get better...

I want interacting with my work to feel exciting and interesting -- not like routine consumption.

Community & Interaction

I want to create more opportunities to experiment, practice, and even draw fan art. But I feel like I can't nurture my creativity if I continue to slave over social media and a strict list of monthly responsibilities. My health, the quality of my work, concept art, and comics have all suffered because of these things.

So, I want to create an environment focused on comfortable creation and promoting interaction. I don't want it to feel like you are buying content, but instead, like you are helping me to create art.

Fun & Interesting Experiences

I have already freed myself of some monthly responsibilities by focusing on sketch collections (and the accidental infrequency of concept art) but I still worry about meeting quotas (28-40 images monthly). This behavior is clearly treating "Patreon" like a product, one in which quantity is more important than quality and fun... Which doesn't doesn't feel healthy, so shouldn't I make a change?

But I don't want the experience to feel like a lesser one. Instead of adhering to a strict set of monthly responsibilities, I'd like to make each month feel different from time to time. The idea is to keep things fun & fresh for both you and I.

Here are some ideas for things that might be interesting to try. If you have any other ideas, let me know.

Event Ideas:

• Voting Polls - pinups, outfits, and character focus periods (e.g many weeks of female link)

• Study Sessions - kinda like concept art, but focused on practice & sharing knowledge.

• Work in Progress - development updates / process shots of larger illustrations.

• Game Dev Expansion - showcase actual programming & design choices.

• Patron Suggestions - (maybe) what do you want to see explored during the month?

I don't want to overdo it to the point that these things become the goal of my Patreon, because then that would become a set of monthly responsibilities, quotas, and stress. But I do want to have fun.

Operation Difficulties

Patreon enforces certain restrictions on my work, but it's surprising just how much this impacts what I feel like I'm allowed to create - which is antithetical to the spirit of Patreon and makes the balancing of rewards much harder, at least under the framework of "Patreon as a product."

Because of this fact, I am not allowed to advertise my Patreon on social media. Plus, the unique quirks of posting on SubscribeStar means I have a messy system of delivering rewards at different rates on both platforms, resulting in a disconnect between my art & fans.

So I want to rely less on distributing strictly on Patreon, holding certain art hostage, and answering to their demands.

Discord

The difficulties posed by environments like Patreon & Twitter make me feel like I should use Discord more effectively. Discord is one of the most powerful tools for creator communities, but I rarely use it.

I wonder if I should use Discord to expand my avenues of distributing content with more accessibility. For example, a channel dedicated to swirly artwork or a channel for quicker game dev updates.

Might that be of interest to you?

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Anyway, those are my thoughts. I've been doing this for almost a decade now... Sustainability has, in fact, become much harder and the Patreon experience less interesting. It does feel like I am slowly destroying myself and ruining my creative prospects by living and working the way I do. I feel like some kind of change is needed.

Don't forget to eat & sleep.