I start my morning by reading several comic strips on the Web, some of them traditional newspaper strips and some of them Web-only comics. One of them, War and Peas, has leaned hard into Patreon recently with members-only content.
I could be more generous in supporting artists and creatives on Patreon and similar services. Even then, I can support only so many. Even at just $1 or $5 a month, it adds up fast.
I’m fortunate that I can afford everything about this site: hosting costs, gear and repairs, film, and developing and scanning. It’s totaled almost $1,800 so far this year.
It hasn’t always been this way, however. Several years ago I started looking for ways to defray this site’s costs. I tried advertising first, but it was an enormous hassle for meager return. I considered joining Patreon — I went as far as making a creator account. But I stopped short because Patreon works best when you create content that appears only on Patreon. I strongly prefer that my work live on this site, which I own and control.
So I turned to a service called Ko-Fi, which is essentially an online tip jar. I started dropping this little button at the end of most posts.
It lets anyone send me a little cash anytime they feel like it. This felt good to me — if I’ve done something you especially appreciated, you can click the button to leave me a tip. Or not — I’ve got no pressure or judgment to offer.
So far in 2023, readers like you have donated $179 through that little button — almost 10% of the site’s costs. That’s amazing! Thank you.