October Update - New Tier Benefits/Changes, Personal Matters, and more!

Hey everyone, it's been some time since I did one of these though with October in full swing, I figured now would be the perfect opportunity for an update on what to expect going forward. There’s a lot I want to go over including new updates for the Patreon that I hope you’ll be excited for, so I won’t waste time and get into them now while I can.

UndergroundJ’s art and tier updates

You might have noticed this month saw a new cover for the poll winner drawn by UndergroundJ1 on Twitter. I’ve been in touch with him since last year at least and he’s been wonderful to not only talk to, but work with on commissioning artwork. He previously drew April’s cover art some time back and I decided to reach out to him again to draw September’s since I felt his style would be perfect. Needless to say, it definitely was and I couldn’t be happier to work with him again. There aren’t many people out there who have a style as vibrant as his while also specializing in drawing what I like to write about.

Which is why going forward he will be drawing every cover art piece for whatever wins the monthly poll going forward while I share the full picture of it early on Patreon. UJ and I talked it over and he agreed to let me share the full images here a week early before he posts them on his social media for those who follow him there. I’ll be including the final version of whatever he’s drawn for me here along with every work in progress that led to it from the initial sketch and flat coloring down to the nearly-completed version without the highlights. It should be worth noting now however that the full versions of his work will be available for those pledged to the +$5 tiers while those in the $2 tier will have to wait until it becomes publicly available before they can see it. Those in the tier can see the initial sketch of the cover when I share a sneak preview of the poll winner story, but otherwise early access to the finished work will only be available to those who are pledged higher. Keep in mind that those in the $2 tier will still receive early access to the finished story when it is uploaded and that this addendum towards the cover art will not affect seeing the story in any way, so if you would rather choose to stay in said tier that’s more than okay.

Other tier updates - upgraded discounts, $10/$15 secondary polls, and more

UndergroundJ’s art isn’t the only update towards tiers that I want to announce, however. I’ve decided to also overhaul how those in the $10 and $15 tiers are benefited by adding new perks exclusively for them. Beforehand, $10 tier members were able to access a ten percent discount on commissions while those in the $15 tier could also request a monthly short story that could be added on through waiting an additional month. I’ve realized that these alone aren’t necessarily fair to those who are pledged higher and have decided to tweak them so as to benefit those who are more generous by implementing both a second private poll that those in the $10-$15 tiers can also vote on in addition to the regular polls while also upgrading the discounts for those in the $15 tier to fifteen percent off all orders.

The previous benefits are still in place, meaning nothing else has changed for those still in the $10 tier nor has anything changed regarding the monthly short story for those pledged to the $15 tier. This update simply goes out to add to those who are generous enough to go that extra step beyond no matter how big or small and I want to give back to them however I can. It still amazes me that there are some who are pledged that high, and for that I’m extremely grateful. I only hope that these perks are beneficial towards any and all future orders.

Commission updates and personal life matters regarding the summer

As of the time I’m writing this, I’m currently working through my commissions with the majority of them I accepted having already received some progress. Everyone still on my queue should have an update or a WIP of their commission, but if something happens or if you’re looking to see when you’ll be updated again, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’m always happy to answer questions and have been taking each day to work on someone’s order, with two of the previously eight filled slots having been finished and shared earlier. With any luck, I plan to have more commissions done in the coming weeks before I reopen slots again either later this month or early in November once I have enough time to recharge. When I’m ready to take commissions again, I will be making an announcement early on Patreon and open them for everyone still pledged to me before opening them to the public a week later. There is also no limit on who will be able to reach out to me early if they want to commission me; this goes out to everyone on any tier that is interested.

Lastly, before I end this announcement, I want to also use my time here to apologize for delays that happened throughout the summer for those who commissioned me then and had to wait longer than usual. Throughout May to August, I was extremely depressed because of circumstances regarding acquaintances that turned toxic on me from both September of last year and the entirety of last Winter. I won’t go into detail over what happened, but needless to say it left me in a worse place mentally where I tried to distract myself by working longer and longer, often burning myself out in the process. This culminated during the summer where I was stuck dwelling on these people and stressing over work, but now I can fortunately say the worst is behind me. I’ve managed to maintain a healthier balance of work and leisure while finishing orders faster than before. That being said, I know waiting for an update was extremely inconvenient for that, I’m genuinely sorry. I understand the frustration that came with waiting and I want to get back into how things were as soon as possible. This has been the happiest I’ve been in some time, and knowing that there are people like you out there to support me has been incredible. Without readers like you, none of this would exist, so with that said, thank you all so much.

And this is where I will bid everyone adieu, at least for now. The next poll will be available tomorrow with a slew of spooky themes that I’m sure everyone will like as well as plans to do another movie night stream in the Patreon Discord server this Saturday at 8 PM CST, where we’ll be watching Paul Anderson’s Event Horizon. I also plan to write at least one new story featuring some characters of mine that those who follow me more closely may be familiar with. If not, then I’ll be happy to help you all get acquainted.

Catch you next time.