Hey everyone,
Now that it's a little ways into a new year, I figured it was time for some more updates!
Over the last half a year or so I've been slowly trudging back to being on top of my commission stack again, and I have to say that it seems to be going very well. I'm nearly completely caught up; last year at this time I had more than 30 commissions on my to-do list, and this year I am currently down to 5.
My other job is still going to be on hold for the foreseeable future and so I have been making a lot of changes to my commission structure to help me stick to things better in the long run. Unfortunately, this means that I have been struggling over the last months to bring in enough money through commissions to be able to pay for my bills and that has contributed a lot also to the long period of time that it has taken me to start getting back on-track.
I have debated with myself long and hard about this, and I don't think there's a good way for me to continue doing this unless I raise my prices. I know that it's going to be bad news to a lot of people, but unfortunately there is only one of me and I can't keep burning myself out cranking out piece after piece of art and always feeling extreme pressure to move on to the next as soon as possible. To that end I will be raising my prices this year.
It has been almost five years since I did a large price change, and in that time I know things have gotten backed up, and there has been a big learning curve for me to figure out the best way for me to work and how I can keep things going forward for myself as a furry artist. In all honesty, in the time that has past since then the average amount of time that I spend on a commission has increased considerably (along with, I hope, the quality of my work.) Unfortunately, due to the stresses of life, my bills have also more than quadrupled. My student loans are piling up and I have health insurance and a host of other problems to deal with on top of those.
I say this not to get sympathy but just to inform everyone as to why I'm making this decision. I realize that this will probably make my commissions less affordable for potential commissioners, and for that I am truly sorry. But I have crunched the numbers again and again and I can't cut down my monthly budget anymore... the bottom line is that if I'm going to be able to make this work, I need to charge more for my time.
I do hope that with the added income potential, however, that I would be able to do a few things much better. In general, it would be a huge relief for me to have some more breathing room for each commission, so I can really spend time with the commissioner and get them artwork that is great and not feel like I have to push through it as fast as possible so I can pay rent. I will also be partnering with InkedFur to offer a print of your commission that would be included in the price. In addition, I have not been able to afford to get to go to a convention since 2012, and I would very much like to have a little more freedom to make plans in advance and make sure that I can be more present for the fandom at large. And last but certainly not least, I would like to make enough on some commissions that I can actually devote at least enough time per week to really get into Deep Breaths and make it a reality instead of that project that I can't seem to find time to work on.
I hope that everyone will understand why I am making this decision. I still very much enjoy being able to do this artwork, and if I can make some changes to give me what I need as an artist to keep going for the long haul, then I need to make those changes.
Thanks so much for reading, and I hope to have more art for you all to enjoy soon!
-Tsaiwolf
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8 years, 3 months ago
15 Jan 2016 01:07 CET
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