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Feedback wanted on a "Sponsor a story" patreon tier.
2 years ago
General
*** Direct from the keyboard of Jeeves the Bunny, providing literary lewdness for the furry fandom to enjoy. ^^ ***
I've been a full time writer for about seven and a half years at this point, and I still think it's the coolest fucking thing in the world that I get to follow my passion and write fun stories for people for a living. In those years of writing full time however, there is one thing I've struggled to find the time for. Personal work.
I have so, SO many ideas I want to write. Series', one shots, stuff that y'all might love and other stuff that really is just self-indulgence on my part that no-one else has asked for or probably even considered, haha. Some that are smutty furry stories of the kind I'm known for writing, some entirely clean, some not even furry at all (gasp). Over the last year I've been doing a monthly story poll over on my Patreon where folks can vote on which of a handful of different personal ideas I work on each month, and that's been a great way for me to get at least one personal piece complete per month. But, it's still down to my patrons to decide which of the ideas they want to see, and as a result there are some stories I really want to write that basically never get votes when they show up, because like I said above they're ideas that are very, very specific to something I want to see/create, without as much crossover appeal.
So, I've been thinking... would it be ridiculous of me to add an extra tier to my patreon that is, essentially, someone offering to "sponsor" a day of me writing for myself?
Let me be very clear, I don't expect this to be a wildly popular tier or something that will always, if ever, get filled up. I know it's essentially asking for someone to pay for a commission and have no idea what it will be, or whether the content is anything that interests them beyond "I like some of Jeeves' stories and it'll be a story written by Jeeves". Which is a frankly wild and insanely over-generous thing to ask of anyone. And, that's why I want your feedback.
Basically, what I want to know is, does the idea sound selfish and self-serving to the point where it feels like a negative, rather than just something you might not be interested in (assuming you had the spare funds to do so, of course)?
If it just doesn't interest you, that's totally understandable. If it's something you'd be interested in contributing to in theory, whether or not you ever do, that's fine too. And of course, it'd be amazing if any of you showed interest in pledging that way, even if it was just a one off, single pledge that you stopped before the next month rolled over. But as I said, what I really want to know is if it sounds like a greedy or entitled thing for me to even suggest that people might do. Because, if that's a view held by even a small minority of people who put forward any sort of opinion, I absolutely won't do it. Because, to be honest I can see that perspective even when considering the idea in my own head, so what I'm trying to figure out is if that's unreasonable self-criticism rearing its head, or if that's a legitimate concern I've considered and should keep in mind before asking for something of that nature.
Please let me know your thoughts via a comment if you have any, and as I've said, please be honest if you think it's an unreasonable thing to ask for. Also, I hope this goes without saying, but do not criticise anyone else's responses if they disagree with your feelings on the matter. I am actively wanting to know if anyone feels like this is an awful idea, so negative views are welcome and encouraged if that is how you feel about the matter.
For reference, the tier in question would be $50USD, and while the main "reward" would be sponsoring a personal story chosen and written entirely by me, with the option of having your name included or not as the sponsor when I post it, anyone who pledged at that tier would also receive my patreon's 'standard' rewards that anyone at $5 or above gets, namely access to the monthly PDF bundle containing all the stories I wrote in the prior month, and the opportunity to put forward an idea of their own for my monthly Patreon Request Days. :)
(And, for anyone who thinks "wait, why doesn't Jeeves just have a much cheaper 'tip jar' tier that many people can contribute to rather than trying to get support for personal work via one or two bigger pledges?" I do. It's $2 per month and it has had either 1 or 2 people in it for the last three years or so, far less than any of my other more expensive tiers. So, this is me considering other options. :3 )
I have so, SO many ideas I want to write. Series', one shots, stuff that y'all might love and other stuff that really is just self-indulgence on my part that no-one else has asked for or probably even considered, haha. Some that are smutty furry stories of the kind I'm known for writing, some entirely clean, some not even furry at all (gasp). Over the last year I've been doing a monthly story poll over on my Patreon where folks can vote on which of a handful of different personal ideas I work on each month, and that's been a great way for me to get at least one personal piece complete per month. But, it's still down to my patrons to decide which of the ideas they want to see, and as a result there are some stories I really want to write that basically never get votes when they show up, because like I said above they're ideas that are very, very specific to something I want to see/create, without as much crossover appeal.
So, I've been thinking... would it be ridiculous of me to add an extra tier to my patreon that is, essentially, someone offering to "sponsor" a day of me writing for myself?
Let me be very clear, I don't expect this to be a wildly popular tier or something that will always, if ever, get filled up. I know it's essentially asking for someone to pay for a commission and have no idea what it will be, or whether the content is anything that interests them beyond "I like some of Jeeves' stories and it'll be a story written by Jeeves". Which is a frankly wild and insanely over-generous thing to ask of anyone. And, that's why I want your feedback.
Basically, what I want to know is, does the idea sound selfish and self-serving to the point where it feels like a negative, rather than just something you might not be interested in (assuming you had the spare funds to do so, of course)?
If it just doesn't interest you, that's totally understandable. If it's something you'd be interested in contributing to in theory, whether or not you ever do, that's fine too. And of course, it'd be amazing if any of you showed interest in pledging that way, even if it was just a one off, single pledge that you stopped before the next month rolled over. But as I said, what I really want to know is if it sounds like a greedy or entitled thing for me to even suggest that people might do. Because, if that's a view held by even a small minority of people who put forward any sort of opinion, I absolutely won't do it. Because, to be honest I can see that perspective even when considering the idea in my own head, so what I'm trying to figure out is if that's unreasonable self-criticism rearing its head, or if that's a legitimate concern I've considered and should keep in mind before asking for something of that nature.
Please let me know your thoughts via a comment if you have any, and as I've said, please be honest if you think it's an unreasonable thing to ask for. Also, I hope this goes without saying, but do not criticise anyone else's responses if they disagree with your feelings on the matter. I am actively wanting to know if anyone feels like this is an awful idea, so negative views are welcome and encouraged if that is how you feel about the matter.
For reference, the tier in question would be $50USD, and while the main "reward" would be sponsoring a personal story chosen and written entirely by me, with the option of having your name included or not as the sponsor when I post it, anyone who pledged at that tier would also receive my patreon's 'standard' rewards that anyone at $5 or above gets, namely access to the monthly PDF bundle containing all the stories I wrote in the prior month, and the opportunity to put forward an idea of their own for my monthly Patreon Request Days. :)
(And, for anyone who thinks "wait, why doesn't Jeeves just have a much cheaper 'tip jar' tier that many people can contribute to rather than trying to get support for personal work via one or two bigger pledges?" I do. It's $2 per month and it has had either 1 or 2 people in it for the last three years or so, far less than any of my other more expensive tiers. So, this is me considering other options. :3 )
That said, there are two things to consider. Would it be possible to narrow your existing polls so that one of your truly desired ideas is chosen? I could see how that might invote some negative feeling, however. Perhaps if framed in the correct way it could be done every so often.
The other thing to consider is that someone who would be willing to enter that tier may not be willing to stay forever simply out of altruism, particularly if the stories that result don't overlap their interest. Perhaps there's some token way to give them something extra, like a 500 word/month credit that builds toward a story they desire? The name-credit thing is pretty good though, kind of like the old medieval patrons, heh
TLDR: It'd probably be fine, just have to make all aware that it's optional, like you mentioned
Regarding the idea of extra benefits, I should be clear that the "request day" access I mention is basically a guaranteed short story in itself at least once every two months, more often than not every month. Currently between 9-12 people tend to put forward request ideas each month, and I tend to write between 9-12 short request day pieces, normally between 1500 and 2500 words apiece. So, that very much covers the idea of them getting a tangible benefit from it, and unless interest in that reward massively spikes in the near future, I do get to most workable ideas every single month, or every other month for those I don't quite get to at the very least. :)
Apologies, my lack of research is made apparent here. If that's the case, I think you're even more in the clear! Helping with a personal day on top of a Request Day access will be an easier sell since they still have a good chance to get a return. I've been on the periphery of the fandom for years, and it still amazes me how many words you can put to 'paper' in a day
Cheers, and here's hoping you get some takers if you put that tier up!
I had more success selling YCH stories, which is the type of story that I wanted to write, but let someone else choose the characters involved and any other changes they wanted.