Update, Patreon, and Getting it Together
Hi friends!
Thanks for coming and peeking over here, I know facebook is a lot easier to check in on but we all know how FB feels about long posts, keywords, and basically anything other than not taking my money, hahaha/sad
Anyway, let's just jump into it- my announcement for today is I'm beginning a Patreon account.
My emotions on Patreon are pretty conflicted a lot of times, I have to be honest, and I'm sure you can understand what I mean if you've been online and seen all the backlash that some people get from starting Patreons. I've always been afraid that my work wasn't good enough, consistent enough, or popular enough to warrant anything like this. But then my personal (financial and time restraint) circumstances changed, and my options were:
1. Stop cosplay nearly entirely, disappoint you and myself, and lose something that brings me and many other people a spark of joy.
or
2. Ask for help, be able to continue, and with the money that I receive I'll be able to dedicate that much more of myself to improving, to sharing with you, and to making our community better.
Obviously, I'm going to pick number 2.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's all the me-me-me explanation of my life recently, so feel free to TLDNR if you don't give a poo. I won't be offended!
~~~~~~~~~~
To go into more detail, the move to Seattle has not been the best for me. The move really happened because I had to find a career, not a job, and the chances of this happening in Hawaii were much slimmer than Seattle. So we packed up, in the middle of one of the deepest depressions I've felt in a long time, and booped over here. It's been nearly 3 months, I think, and I haven't found a job that can pay the bills + student loans, not to mention support a hobby like costuming, despite literally sending in hundreds of applications to jobs across the board, relevancy to my degree be damned. I'm still working consistently, online, so all isn't lost yet!
Side note, who new that direct marketing what the new direct sales scam? I've had nearly a dozen interviews with places that have the WORST glassdoor ratings, they don't have work life balance, don't pay for crap, have you traveling all over.. tell you what, anyone who tries one of them should go apply to Starbucks. You know what you're getting there, and it's wayyyyyy better for you in every way.
Anyway!
On the depression front, adopting a new support animal was a GREAT step and I feel the improvement already, but it's not an instant cure. I've started to go to a therapist, which has been phenomenal, but because of the move and everything insurance is going to be gone very soon. We're working together quickly to see what I can do myself to stay afloat in the long term, even if I'm not able to go see them anymore, and one of the big things in the cycle that needs to break is job stress. Worst case scenario and I don't find a career very soon that pays the bills, I'll be adding more online work to my plate while scheduling myself to have traditional weekends off- both because I'm suffering from burnout and also because weekends = occasional well paying event work.
The other big thing that I need to do, and my therapist nearly gave herself whiplash nodding at this, is have my creative outlet. When I was consistently sewing, painting, drawing, performing, CREATING, I was the best version of myself and the happiest I've been in a long time.
All of these issues and more are just cyclical, and 90% going back to the job thing- example, I've been working so much and so hard that I haven't been able to update this blog even so far as combining the Facebook automatic crossposting- and finding the weak points where I can address the problems easiest is going to make the biggest difference in everything.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Okay, the me-me-mes are over!
Now then, since the biggest thing I need to do is create, and that's why you guys are my friends in the first place, we come back to the Patreon idea and asking for you to consider becoming my Patron. My rewards aren't going to be anything crazy, but I'm going to do my best and I'm up for hearing your suggestions.
BUT
ONLY
BECOME
MY
PATRON
IF
you're in a financial position to do so and you're inclined to! I would NEVER pressure you to do anything like this, just like when I got help with the mermaid tail fiasco- I appreciate everything from your monthly patronage, to your friendship online, to seeing me at cons, to birthday cards, to even just liking my stuff on social media. Knowing that you all get smiles from what I do is a huge part of what keeps me going, and I already owe you a lot for that.
I'll do my best no matter what happens.
Love always,
Leah
WWW.PATREON.COM/LEAHROSEFTW
Thanks for coming and peeking over here, I know facebook is a lot easier to check in on but we all know how FB feels about long posts, keywords, and basically anything other than not taking my money, hahaha/sad
Anyway, let's just jump into it- my announcement for today is I'm beginning a Patreon account.
My emotions on Patreon are pretty conflicted a lot of times, I have to be honest, and I'm sure you can understand what I mean if you've been online and seen all the backlash that some people get from starting Patreons. I've always been afraid that my work wasn't good enough, consistent enough, or popular enough to warrant anything like this. But then my personal (financial and time restraint) circumstances changed, and my options were:
1. Stop cosplay nearly entirely, disappoint you and myself, and lose something that brings me and many other people a spark of joy.
or
2. Ask for help, be able to continue, and with the money that I receive I'll be able to dedicate that much more of myself to improving, to sharing with you, and to making our community better.
Obviously, I'm going to pick number 2.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's all the me-me-me explanation of my life recently, so feel free to TLDNR if you don't give a poo. I won't be offended!
~~~~~~~~~~
To go into more detail, the move to Seattle has not been the best for me. The move really happened because I had to find a career, not a job, and the chances of this happening in Hawaii were much slimmer than Seattle. So we packed up, in the middle of one of the deepest depressions I've felt in a long time, and booped over here. It's been nearly 3 months, I think, and I haven't found a job that can pay the bills + student loans, not to mention support a hobby like costuming, despite literally sending in hundreds of applications to jobs across the board, relevancy to my degree be damned. I'm still working consistently, online, so all isn't lost yet!
Side note, who new that direct marketing what the new direct sales scam? I've had nearly a dozen interviews with places that have the WORST glassdoor ratings, they don't have work life balance, don't pay for crap, have you traveling all over.. tell you what, anyone who tries one of them should go apply to Starbucks. You know what you're getting there, and it's wayyyyyy better for you in every way.
Anyway!
On the depression front, adopting a new support animal was a GREAT step and I feel the improvement already, but it's not an instant cure. I've started to go to a therapist, which has been phenomenal, but because of the move and everything insurance is going to be gone very soon. We're working together quickly to see what I can do myself to stay afloat in the long term, even if I'm not able to go see them anymore, and one of the big things in the cycle that needs to break is job stress. Worst case scenario and I don't find a career very soon that pays the bills, I'll be adding more online work to my plate while scheduling myself to have traditional weekends off- both because I'm suffering from burnout and also because weekends = occasional well paying event work.
The other big thing that I need to do, and my therapist nearly gave herself whiplash nodding at this, is have my creative outlet. When I was consistently sewing, painting, drawing, performing, CREATING, I was the best version of myself and the happiest I've been in a long time.
All of these issues and more are just cyclical, and 90% going back to the job thing- example, I've been working so much and so hard that I haven't been able to update this blog even so far as combining the Facebook automatic crossposting- and finding the weak points where I can address the problems easiest is going to make the biggest difference in everything.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Okay, the me-me-mes are over!
Now then, since the biggest thing I need to do is create, and that's why you guys are my friends in the first place, we come back to the Patreon idea and asking for you to consider becoming my Patron. My rewards aren't going to be anything crazy, but I'm going to do my best and I'm up for hearing your suggestions.
BUT
ONLY
BECOME
MY
PATRON
IF
you're in a financial position to do so and you're inclined to! I would NEVER pressure you to do anything like this, just like when I got help with the mermaid tail fiasco- I appreciate everything from your monthly patronage, to your friendship online, to seeing me at cons, to birthday cards, to even just liking my stuff on social media. Knowing that you all get smiles from what I do is a huge part of what keeps me going, and I already owe you a lot for that.
I'll do my best no matter what happens.
Love always,
Leah
WWW.PATREON.COM/LEAHROSEFTW
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