I really like the sound of filling out forms, artist's choice! I think it lets the artist pick their favorite ideas whilst letting everyone get a chance to submit something for a chance at it. I can totally see the appeal in raffling though

Forms is probably the way to go, then you can go through them when you feel you have time and dont have to stress yourself out about it

Plenty of artists use Google Forms. Great for when you want to pick and choose which commissions to take.
Another option is to auction the slots.
All methods have up and down sides.

Forms

I support the idea of commission form sending with a raffle or artist choice then. At least it doesn't feel as devastating as opening a journal just a second after it was created and seeing all the slots already being taken.

Forms and artist choice is still a strong preferred method. There's nothing wrong with artists choosing FCFS but it completely destroys the possibility of others having a chance to get artwork.
A lot of the time life gets in the way for many others, which is why for me when FCFS (First Come First Served) is used I throw the towel and look for someone who can at-least give me the opportunity to write a form.

First come first serve doesn't need respond to comment slots, can literally just take the first x responders after opening a journal.

If you're looking for a way to get as many people as possible through in a fair way, I highly recommend  blueblaster's method, where names are drawn from lists based on how long you've been waiting, or  deonwolf's method using a long wait list. Both methods, they're paid for just before starting.

Don't need luck for either, just patience.

Agreed about forms. I think past a certain point an artist should just choose what they want to draw, especially if they're flooded with requests.

Forms have worked out really well for most artists I've commissioned! It let's people get their ideas out in full, you have some leisure to look them over and decide which piques your interest. Saves on the mad dash of people interested and saves you the stress <3

Artist's Choice, filling out forms always works best for me.

I know some people don't like it because they feel like 'oh i'll never get picked' but honestly at least IMO art always comes out better when the artist enjoys what they're working on.

First come, first served discourages people in different time zones, and as you've experienced, makes it a mad dash when the artist is remotely popular.

If you've got way more demand than open slots, it's also not a bad idea to consider raising your prices.

Auctions aren't *bad* either, you'll almost certainly get more money for your work, but if that makes you feel weird it's not at all a requirement.

If you want to give everyone a chance regardless of your choice of ideas, perhaps it wouldn't be a bad idea to do a mix. Open 5 slots, have 3 be your choice, and 2 be a raffle draw after a day or two.

Forms

I TOLD YOU THINGS WERE GONNA BE NUTS PFF
...I didn't expect that nuts though lmao

I would say make like a small number of slots and have forms for them.

Forms

I've always done artist's choice, and that's worked well for me. I open commissions for about 24 hours and let people send their ideas via Note or email, then after I close submissions I take the ones that are gonna be the most interesting for me to work on.

I also typically state that if they haven't heard from me by 24 hours after I close, then they didn't get a slot. Otherwise I'd spend a lot of time just telling people they didn't get one this time.

Kitty learns a valuable lesson about being such a good artist : )

I have multiple artist friends who have more work than they can handle, I give the same advice.
#1 Raise prices
And
#2 Choose what you want to work on
Or
#3 Open form for 48-72 hours then let RNJesus decide

Forms would be a good idea, then you can pick whatever you feel like working on. Unfortunately the first come first serve is a bit of a mess and unfair. With the form you can leave it open for say 24 hours then close it, giving people from different time zones a chance.

I would say forms, with perhaps an option to pay a bit extra to guarantee a slot.

This is my input, as a commissioner I have a severe disdain for feeling like I have to fight or otherwise earn the ability to pay for a commission. But I understand that as demand grows for your talents, it becomes more difficult and even downright impossible to accept everyone's commission.

And I also don't want to feel like I have to appeal to the artist's particular interests either, as my interest and theirs may not align; even if they're willing to produce what I have in mind.

With that said, I suggest a raffle with a cool-off period so more people can have a chance at landing a spot.

Raffles are fine, forms are good too. Same as what Tarterino said where you mostly prioritize the ones you're most interested in.

Forms and artists choice work fine, but as a long-time commissioner allow me to offer a few tips for the form! :)

* Most important: Automatically email a copy of the finished form to the email address supplied. It means that I have a record of the idea, so I can refer back to it when it's WIP time, or so I can use that idea another time if I'm not chosen. I often put a lot of work into my descriptions and too often I've forgotten to save a copy before I send it, and then it's all lost forever :c
* If you have a selection of styles to choose from (sketch, ink, flat, etc) then it's great to add a picture as an example but also have a link to two or three examples of each!
* It's great if all the fields can be on one page, but if you need to use two pages, definitely have all the actual commission info (links to references, number of characters, the description, etc) go on the same page (ideally the final page) because going backwards and forwards through a form is a good way to accidentally wipe everything you've written and that can be devastating! x.x

That's all I can think of for now before bed time but if I think of anything else I'll let you know! :)