December freeze and possible changes (Patreon)

I had been considering taking December easy when it comes to writing for a while now, because the holidays are peak for my job. Even if my hours didn't change it's to be expected I'll be worked a lot harder and will have less energy when I get home.

Then a couple days ago I learned my manager is transferring to another district right before Thanksgiving. And a new manager hasn't been lined up yet. And we've been short-staffed for months now. We already have two positions to fill, and now the manager's position as well.

So those of us already here are being asked to extend our hours starting with the first week of December. I'll take what overtime I can get, I have debt I'm trying to pay off so this will be beneficial to me, but more time at work (during peak season) will come at a cost of free time, of the energy needed for creative pursuits.

So I'm going to freeze charges for December on Patreon (not sure how to do it on dA). I still have to do the two exclusives for November, I'll try to get to those next week (the calm before the storm, as I'll have three days off thanks to the holiday), but if there is an exclusive in December it'll be a present just because I was inspired and had the time. More likely any writing I do in December will be to shore up exclusives for January.

Speaking of January and the coming new year... I'm thinking of changing up my tier structure on Patreon and dA, as well as my commission rate. For the latter I've charged $10 per thousand words for what may be over a decade now, and while I've never discussed this rate with other people it seems this is low compared to others. It doesn't seem sufficient in my own mind anymore.

So starting in 2023 I'm going to increase my rate to $15 per thousand words.

As for Patreon and dA, there is also the 'I've done it this way for so long but I see others charging more' factor. Comparing myself to other writers or creators in general isn't the best idea, I know, but I constantly worry I'm undervaluing my work. Hence why I'm charging more for commissions soon, and why I'm planning to introduce another paid tier.

$5 a month is the obvious next step, but the question is what do I offer to make that more enticing than $3? And the answer I've come up with is to change my 'exclusives per month' set-up. Instead of how I have it now, where at $100 a month I'll do two stories, I'm going to change it to where I'll do one exclusive a month for the $3 tier and a second for the $5 tier.

As someone who's not a fan of paywalls I'm not eager for this, but at the same time, as I said, I don't want to undervalue my work. It may not look like it but I spend a fair amount of time doing all the writing here I do, and it's not all just for kicks. If I'm going to treat at least some of my writing as a revenue stream then I want to do it properly.

So yes, December will be an off month and 2023 will see some cost increases. Those who stick to the $3 tier will lose out on a story a month and maybe I'm pricing out some people interested in commissions. Sorry, but that's the way it is.