imaBunBun

SEPTEMBER NOTICE: I'm flying back to Norway 21st!

Added 2023-09-18 19:53:04 +0000 UTC

Heya bunbuns!
I'm here to write a much needed update on how things are going at the moment. I've divided this post into 3 sections; "Important", "Future thoughts" & "TLDR" because it got a lot longer than I anticipated and I don't expect everyone to read a wall of text LMAO.
You can refer to either "Important" or "TLDR" (too long didn't read) to get the main points!

Important

First of all, I want to say I'm so happy to see everyone utilizing the new Voucher system! I hope it's been easy to use, but I'm always open to feedback on it if y'all got any ^^

Second of all, I realize I've been pretty silent with updates this month. For those of you who don't know, I have ADHD and take medications for it. I've been in Canada for about 3 months now to visit my partner, and done my best to work as per usual while abroad. It's been more challanging than I expected, but I managed okay. Unfortunately, I didn't bring enough medication and have been running out for the past 2 weeks. I've had to halve my dosage to keep myself afloat (though it still wasn't quite enough cuz today is my last day of meds lol). My perscription is only eligible in Norway, so I can't get any here. Luckily I'll be back home soon, but it's safe to say I've not been running at my most optimal.

So, with that in mind there's a good chance I won't be able to get much done for the rest of September. I'm gonna be unmedicated the last 4-5 days while in Canada, and very jet-lagged for a couple of days after returning home. There's a good chance that I'll have to pause October's Billing cycle to finish up September's rewards. This means that you will NOT be charged at the start of October if you stay pledged. However, if your pledge doesn't directly roll over from September into October, you will be charged by pledging later on in October. That's how Patreons system works, unfortunately. September and October would be joined into one Patreon-pack, like the August-September pack and November-December pack from 2022. The monthly rewards like redeeming packages & receiving points will still be valid tho!

Future Thoughts...

I've thought a lot about my workflow and the challanges I've faced with creating content the past 3 months. If you've seen my tweets, I posted about how I've been facing burnout for a while. I don't know if it's because of being abroad, or if it's an accumilation of other things, but I'll figure that out once I get home. Depending on the answer I might rearrange a few things on Patreon to optimize my workflow (i.e, extending deadline from one month to two, lessening monthly polls, etc). Regardless- I'll update you all on that later should I do it!

I've also been planning out and working a bit on a bigger project behind the scenes. There's not much content to share on that yet, but once I get the ball on that rolling I'll probably have more teasers to drop. It ties into the thoughts I've had about my workflow, and the part of me that wants to expand and try out different things. For example:

Creating roughly animated shorts of my OC's like this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBuUEn5MEmE
Creating more lore-related content of my OC's (illustrations, 1 page comics, etc).
Working with editors to create shorts from my stream footage like these: https://www.patreon.com/posts/kinky-hiccups-83827824
Working on improving my Twitch Streams!

Emphasis on "try out"! If I find out I don't enjoy it I won't continue doing it lol. As it stands right now though, I've been unable to dip my toes into it since I'm already barely meeting the deadlines of Patreon art-rewards. Hence why I've been thinking about possibly changing up some things to allow for more breathing room.

But- and please allow me to gush over you guys a little- I am incredibly grateful to receive so much support from you guys. Even when I'm struggling to meet my own goals. I sincerely appreciate the value you all see in my work, and am always taken aback when you express that to me. A lot of me dipping my toes into different mediums has to do with how the landscape is changing. A lot of artists (especially nsfw) have a difficult time after Twitter's enourmous algorithm changes. I've noticed it having an impact on me, too. Especially with the recent shadowban on nearly ALL posts with links & methods of self-promotion. The strain on economics from inflation is just the cherry on top for everyone lol. So I'm doing what I can to stabilize myself, throwing stuff at a wall to see what sticks!

I realize how lucky I am to be in the position where I can pursue these opportunities. I do my best put in the work and effort to give back to the community of course, but I still regognize the luck I've had. I've met so many wonderful people who've generously given me their time, kindness and support., even when times are tough. And that include you guys!! So thank you, truly.
I hope this post fills in the gaps of the recent months, and gives you an idea of what's to come!

TLDR:

I'm still in Canada, but will be back home in Norway the 21st-22nd.
Been taking half of my ususal ADHD medecine dosage for the past 2 weeks, ran out today.
Will be jet lagged for a couple of days after returning to Norway, so I doubt I can finish all September rewards within the end of the month.
There's a good chance that October's Billing cycle will be paused to finish up September's rewards. This means you will NOT be charged at the start of October if you stay pledged. But If your pledge doesn't directly roll over from September into October, you will be charged when pledging later into October. That's how Patreons system works, unfortunately. September and October would be joined into one pack, like August-September & November-December from 2022. Monthly rewards like redeeming packages & receiving points will still be valid.
Been burnt out, unsure if it's because of working abroad or an accumilation of other things. I might change how my Patreon runs in the future after I figure it out. Will update you if I do.
I want to try making different content, i.e roughly animated shorts of my OC's. Example here. I'm also working/planning out a bigger project behind the scenes.
Twitter's landscape is changing a lot, and so is social media overall! It's harder to find public platforms which accept NSFW content. Reason for branching out is to hopefully stabilize myself more.
I sincerely appreciate all of your support, especially through my rough patches!! I'm lucky to be in this position where I can pursue different opportunities. So Thank you guys so much for your kindness and contribution towards my art and other creations!