You said you were interested so be careful what you wish for! I’m making this post to share my current thoughts on what approach I think might work best for me going forward.
I am not usually shy about sharing my thoughts, so I’m sure those of y’all who have been paying attention have noticed that I’ve been wrestling with the best way to go about this… hobby. I was struggling with it for a long time for reasons that you can read about in-depth in the attached photo, but I will try my best to summarize here.
I think we can all agree that, especially if I’m going to continue posting as much as I have this year, I deserve to be able to ask to be compensated for that. I spent time and energy on this, I assume the risk to my safety/privacy/reputation, and everyone agrees that I’m providing a kick-ass service. I can tell that’s true because a lot of y'all have voluntarily given me money even when I haven’t asked for it, so I know you see the value in what I’m doing here.
HOWEVER, I’ve found it to be stressful and uncomfortable to try to find a model that feels right to me. I don’t like putting myself in a position where I’m afraid of not meeting expectations or having my body/sexuality deemed as not worth the money I’ve asked for to access it. And I know that 85% of you would never treat me that way, but I do genuinely care about providing something worthwhile if money is going to be involved.
I don’t like that a subscription model would lock me into medium/long-term obligations when I am so busy with my personal life. I don’t like PPV much either - I love that it made me feel valued and like I was being appropriately compensated, but I don’t think it’s the best deal for the viewer and I don’t really like pricing people out of stuff in the first place! I want my content to be SEEN. More eyeballs = more engagement = more fun and motivation to do more. With PPV, I hate having to hide stuff away, but I know it wouldn’t be fair to share it if some people paid for it.
When I think back on the last six-ish months of actively posting again, the experiences that have made me feel my absolute best and that have been the most fun have been with crowdfunding. I love that everyone contributes what they can, even if it’s a small amount. It means a lot to me that people are willing to contribute to something I’m making even if it doesn’t only benefit them. It has also helped diffuse SOME of that pressure I feel to meet someone’s expectations. It feels more like people are showing their support and not just completing a transaction. I know that everyone is going to experience it through their own lens regardless, but I think the right move is to follow the thing that makes me feel happy and comfortable.
So here’s what I’m thinking moving forward. If there’s something I’m wanting to do that’s a little more special or takes a bit more time or effort, I’m going to set up a fundraiser. It’ll be on my terms, but you know that I like to take inspiration and suggestions for the things you’d like to see. So if I’m on board for an idea and this community wants to fund it to an amount that I feel is fair, then I will go for it! It honestly probably won’t make me as much as I could make if I just kept posting PPV content. But the awesome side effect of the yeeeaaarrrsss I’ve spent building up this community is that I really believe that y’all will continue to make this worth it for me. Whether you can afford $1 or $10 or $100 at a time.
If a fundraiser doesn’t reach its target, I will still make the project. I’ll just send it via DM to anyone who contributed and post it as a PPV 🥰 But based on what I’ve seen this year, I think this can work.
SO, here’s the part where I ask you what you think. THAT SAID, before you engage in this conversation, I want you to think reeallll long and hard about how you are discussing the matter of paying for access to a HUMAN BEING. So I trust that you will approach the conversation with the respect and sensitivity that it calls for.
So… if you’re the kind of person who contributes financially. Would you be down to crowdfund videos instead of purchasing them? Am I right in thinking that this option would be good for everyone and reflects the type of vibe we’ve built around here? Lmk what you think 🥰
Editing to add: I’m very grateful for the positive feedback and support so far 🥹 I did want to clarify one thing! I’m getting suggestions that are variations on a subscription model. I want to emphasize that I can’t/don’t want to commit to putting out a certain amount of content regularly. What I’ve described here also allows the flexibility for me to make things based on what I KNOW I am in the mood and have time for. I’ll tell you what I’m thinking, and you’ll fund it if you want to see it! I appreciate y’all sharing your ideas, but I’ve already found my solution and this is it 🥰