What's this Patreon thing then?
If you've never heard of Patreon before, let me explain:
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It's a membership system that allows people - 'patrons' - to offer monthly support to their chosen creators in exchange for benefits as laid out by those creators.
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You sign up at your choice of tier, you can change tier if you want to or cancel your membership if you no longer feel able (or inclined) to support that creator.
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The creator gets a little bit of financial security each month (something we can all appreciate!) and also the happy warm feeling of knowing someone likes and supports what they're doing - and believe me, this means as much if not more than the money some days!
Essentially it's a handy way to show regular support for an artist's general work.
My Tiers
Tier 1 - Egg Sitter
£3 a month
Patron-only Post access
- I write 1-2 posts a month discussing current work, upcoming plans, and occasional tid-bits about art, life, and my cat Jiji.
Digital Wallpapers
- every other month I produce a digital wallpaper featuring some of my artwork, which you can download for your own personal use.
You also get to know you've made my day by signing up and letting me know I must be doing something right!
Tier 2 - Hatchling Herder
£5 a month
Patron-only Post access & Digital Wallpapers, plus:
Bonus Posts
- I write 1-2 'bonus' posts each month. These can include such things as work in progress reports, sketch book tours, exclusive previews of experimental work or more in-depth discussions of work/life stuff.
Patron Polls
- tier 2 patrons get to vote on the digital wallpaper design, such as art choice and background colour.
- occasionally there may be other polls about upcoming work, or just asking for feedback on how I'm doing!
Tier 3 - Dragon Keeper
£10 a month
Patron-only Post access & Digital Wallpapers,
Bonus Posts & Patron Polls, plus:
Dragon Discovery Club
- every other month you receive an A6 print with a new dragon design
- Dragon Keeper prints are hand embellished with metallic inks and come with a dragon detail card
- the designs are voted for by Dragon Keeper-only polls, choosing dragon type, general theme and specific inspiration
The Dragon Discovery Club
Aka the DDC
The Dragon Discovery Club runs on a two-month cycle.
In the first month I run a series of polls to decide the key design elements:
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dragon type - traditional, aquatic, fairy, leafy
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general theme - this varies depending on which dragon type the patrons choose, it could be 'elements/habitats?' for a traditional dragon, 'salt/fresh water?' for aquatics, 'tree/flower?' for example
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specific inspiration - this would be a short list of flowers for a flower themed leafy dragon, or a choice of elements for an elemental themed traditional dragon
Each poll lasts for a week, and once they're complete we move into the second month. This is when I create a new piece of dragon art based on the patrons' choices and get it sent off for printing.
Once the prints get back to me I hand embellish one for each Dragon Keeper, usually with metallic inks, and sign the back.
Along with this hand detailed print I include a little data card for the design. It records the voting results for that dragon, and also features a little bit of blurb about how I see that dragon - I always find myself wondering about where and how these dragons would live, so I thought I'd share that with you! Print and data card get posted out at the end of that month.
In the future I'd like to include 'wildcard' design options, where we maybe venture beyond just dragons and create some other interesting beasties!
If you're interested in the DDC art but don't feel able to become a patron right now, keep an eye on the Etsy shop - spare (non-embellished) prints will be making their way there!
If you'd like to sign up for the DDC yourself, or maybe just want to read me rambling on and get a regular dragon-y update to your desktop, then click the button to go check out my patreon!
Gallery
Patreon Launch bonus wallpaper - The Workshop
March 2021 wallpaper - Coral Sea Dragon on teal
November 2021 Dragon Discovery Club - the Mountain Spring water dragon
Patreon Launch bonus wallpaper - The Workshop
I started a YouTube channel!