Hey there, Oxdarock here!
Would’ve made this post a few days ago, but I was a bit distracted by gacha patch updates. Anyway, Happy New Year, everybody! I’ve already made my first picture post of the year, so what’s next? Two words: catch up. I’ve got five Squish Drive pictures already sketched out that need to be finished. On top of that, I’ve got a Squish Tips picture I’ve been sitting on since November, as well as a few commissions, so I’ll be busy all month. To those waiting for a commission or anticipating the release of the Neptunia fusions, I appreciate your patience. Look forward to future updates!
On that note, some people might’ve noticed, but unlike previous Squish Drives, I put the first finished post of the Neptunia fusions behind a paywall. The reason is simple: it took too long so I’m trying to recoup some losses. Even if the Squish Drives are passion projects, they’re still technically paid work with a set price per page and, unfortunately, passion and set pricing don’t mix well. That’s actually the reason why, in the past when I had set pricing for commissions, I’d get depressed and stop doing them periodically: I’d end up undercharging, hence my my commissions are hourly these days. Still, I do intend to post the Neptunia fusions publicly, just not until the whole thing is finished.
Moving on, I’ll be holding another Squish Tips (Yes, those still exist) suggestion poll a bit later, this time based on the PokèGiants TJ. On another note, regarding the Biggie 7 suggestion poll last month, I didn’t announce the winner, but that’s because only one person sent in a suggestion, so it was kind of a moot point. Might need to go a simplify the point chart so people don’t get scared off by the mere sight of it. Anyway, the suggestion post is for the Huge ($15) tier and above, so be on the lookout for that!
Lastly, bit of an announcement regarding works of mine that have been pirated, since recently, I’ve come across a site that’s a little too easily visible via a Google search and features way too much of my works, even going as far as posting DMs I send to people. Obviously, I’d prefer if people don’t pirate my works, but for those who do it anyway, I just have one thing to ask: if you don’t want to pay a toll to see my art, at least reward me financially after the fact for my efforts. I’ve accepted that piracy happens and I am in no position to take a moral high ground on the matter, but man, does it suck when it gets thrown in my face. Also, and this is some shade that’s been eating at me for a while, but it’s even more depressing how a lot of people are more than willing to deprive artists and musicians from making a decent, liveable wage for their work compared to most “content creators” on Youtube and Twitch, many of whom can effortlessly pump out videos daily that require little to no technical artistic effort to create, yet get paid many times more money, just from having people view what they make, let alone subscribers who pay in order to use special emotes in chats and/or have the streamer say their names out loud.
But yeah, bit of a PSA on the matter of piracy. Many think it’s common sense that it piracy is bad, but I believe there are even more people who don’t understand just how bad it is, especially for individual artists. It’d be nice if the crowdfunding sites could collectively take down the new site that’s made specifically to undermine artists who put their work behind a paywall, though. It’s not even a problem of it existing, just that it’s too easy to find. Still doesn’t change the fact that I’d prefer people reward me for my efforts, especially since it leads to me spending more time making said works than on other things.
Anyway, bit of a rant, but that’s all for now!
