Post News Q&A (Patreon)

In response to this month's news, we had a discussion on discord about the comics and perks on Patreon. I wanted to put all that info here so people can access it in one place. These aren't necessarily questions asked verbatim, most of this was all just discussion. I've framed them as a Q&A to keep it more organized than blocks o' text XP

What's priority #1 for the Patreon?

Finishing Cinderfrost, absolutely. It's 7 yrs in the making and I want it to be wrapped up in as satisfying a manner as possible.

Can you cut back on the other comics to prioritize finishing Cinderfrost?

The side comics and Cinderfrost are now the same beast. They're tied together so when I say 'finishing Cinderfrost' I mean finishing it and all the stories that tie into it.

Is it all planned yet? Do you know how it ends and how long it's going to be?

Yes and no. CF was originally planned to be a 30-40 page short love story with fantasy flair. After its completion, a lot of readers wanted to know more about the magic, the world, etc. and what you know of the comic now is what spawned from that impulse decision to satisfy an unsated curiosity. It's now become a much more unwieldy story to wrap up, which is why a lot of it is amorphous in my head with no concrete page-count goal. I do have an ending and several scenes planned, but no proper page estimate as things stand. My plan is to outline as much as possible in August while I'm doing the scripting/thumb-nailing and get a better handle of how much is left to go.

Are there any ways you can expedite the completion of this story?

Some of it could be written short stories with some illustrations instead of being fully done in comics. Comics are time-consuming, so writing the mini-stories that tie into it would be faster. However, doing this is dependent on which bits could be told separately without making the story disjointed. It's a possibility!

Can you still fit in pinups sometimes?

I've thought about this and came to the conclusion that even 'every other month' is too often. Maybe I could do pinups when the mood strikes me, but making it a regimented part of the perks would defeat the purpose of making these changes. They need to be significant enough to make a difference, and cutting one perk won't accomplish that. I might be able to do pinups rarely as a sort of extra treat, but not regularly unfortunately.

Are the sketches for the sketchbook part of your warmups or do you set aside time for them specifically?

I set aside time for them specifically. My warm-up doodles are unreadable gibberish. (When I do them, which isn't as often as I probably should.)

Is it possible to treat the Patreon as a tip jar instead of making exact content quotas a monthly thing, since that's the major source of burnout?

Yes and no? Patron expectations vary on this front. I get some patrons telling me I make plenty of content, and others who leave exit surveys saying there wasn't enough, so I liked having a concrete number behind how many comic pages/sketches/pinups I did because it was a means of managing those varied expectations. Unfortunately, I turned myself into a factory-assembly line where I don't have a lot of time left over for creative exploration or myself in the process. It's possible I could have a tier for all the WIP's/tutorials/random other perks aside from comics, with the caveat that there wouldn't be a guaranteed number of those things each month, if any. It would instead be more of a tip jar.

Are you planning to leave the furry fandom for good?

Full disclosure: I can't imagine myself doing any one thing forever, and that includes furry work. I have a variety of interests I'd love to pursue; languages, teaching, tattoo art, yoga, literally anything active because my job has been so sedentary that I feel 10 years older than I am. I wouldn't worry, because Cinderfrost is going to take a while and, like I said, I want to finish it. But one day, yeah, I probably won't be making furry art anymore. Maybe that sounds sad, but I encourage you to see it as a good thing. There are so many other artists and creators who deserve attention and support while they cultivate their work. The art I've done will always exist anyway, it won't go anywhere even if I move onto other things down the line. Regardless, you don't have to worry about it for a long time!

Will the story be entirely wrapped up or will there be openings for fans to expand upon in fiction/art of their own?

The main story I hope to wrap up in a satisfying way, but there will definitely be plenty of openings for others to extrapolate upon if they want to! There are so many characters in this, it would be very easy to continue their stories beyond the scope of the comic. I'd be thrilled to see fanwork like that!

I think that about covers everything but if you have any questions, feel free to add them in the comments and I'll answer best I can! Thanks to all of you for your understanding; you're continuously compassionate and I'm extremely grateful to have supporters who value my health as well as my work. I'm going to do my best to sort out a more balanced way of working. It's a process and I'm bound to hit bumps in the road, particularly with the world itself changing so much in this past year. All of you take care of yourselves too. Much love <3