(I originally posted this public post to my Patreon (viewable by all) and created a link on Twitter ("X", eyeroll) back on January 4th):
I had been thinking for the past month or two about what new projects lie ahead in the "World of BustArtist." I've been pondering new Commission themes, thinking about animation (2D), possible individual commissions, printed merch, and a new cinema series.
Well, 2024 started out pretty shitty, and has thrown a monkey wrench into things.
(The following was edited way down to the nitty-gritty from a rambling post that I realized was just venting and not productive, so I stripped it.)
Jan 1st AM: Was informed about credit card fraud on our account. Most charges declined, but one we didn't make is pending removal. We have faith it should be removed by Fraud Dept.
Jan 1st afternoon: Car's transmission blew while driving home from our family holiday vacation. We were still 250+ miles from home, and in a remote area. Got a tow, but dealership was closed. Had to get a hotel (added expense).
Jan 2nd AM: Informed by dealership that car's CVT transmission needs to be replaced. Cost? EXPENSIVE! How long? About a week (at least 3 days ordering, 3 days fixing). So, off to rent a car for over a week (more money). Also had to plan on an 9-hour roundtrip next week to pick up our car once it's done.
Jan 3rd, AM: Pushed off some scheduled, expensive dental work (which we finally budgeted out last month) for 1 more month (the work is due to a deep infection 18 months ago that cost me teeth). Need it done, but delayed it by a month so I can rebudget things due to car (above).
THANK YOU for being a $upporter: either Patron and/or a grOw customer!
Your continued $upport is very much needed for the next few months — scratch that — few years!! I appreciate ALL who $upport artists and creators and their long hours and hard work.
On to future work...
Individual Commissions
I mentioned doing this once before, which was actually back when my dental issues all started and I needed the extra money to pay for it. It never happened, as I was too focused on Patreon and grOw, and couldn't decided a fair price, and needed to learn how other artists dealt with the "red tape" on creating commissions (How do fans submit? How do you choose? How to accept payment? How do you close the deal? Etc., Etc., Etc).
Well, I think I am forced to now do this due to our outstanding expenses. I will need to work some hours on weekends in order to achieve this. I still need to figure out the issues laid to above, so this may take a few weeks to a couple of months.
Patreon Commission themes
I had hoped to implement this for January, but I was too busy with the latest issue of grOw/cinema 2, finalizing Patreon rewards before my trip, and getting ready for the holidays. To bring new life to the Commissions, I wanted to try new things. One thought was to add a "theme" to some commissions from time to time, OR, a size-limit (say, nothing above "huge"). This will add some life by injecting new ideas. I think the "huge limit" on a few commissions is not a bad thing, as this is still "way above normal" and would normally illicit a shocking reaction if it actually happened in real life. "Themes" may help inspire new ideas from patrons (As an artist, I've had people say "Cool! Draw something!" which is a LOT harder than "Draw a cat licking its paws.")
Animation
(This was full-go when I posted it, but may take a back seat to the personal commissions, which have started for higher level tiered Patrons)
I've seen some really good 2D animation out there, and thought my art would really sing if this was applied. Now, to be clear, this is not any time soon. I just purchased Moho animation software at the beginning of December and have been watching tutorials. I will then need to experiment and do simple projects (which I will post here).
This will be 2D animation and will probably begin as taking my artwork, slicing it into "parts" like a puppet, and adding motion and growth. We will see where it will lead from there.
However, there may be a slower output schedule for animation than I had originally hoped due to taking on the Individual Commissions, as outline above, which was not part of the plan when I started to think about animation.
grOw/cinema
With grOw/cinema 2 ("grOwing to a Crescendo") put to bed, it's on to other things. For the next release (or two), I will work on the next installment of grOw/cinema 1 ("The Ever-Expanding Universe"), and brainstorm ideas for grOw/cinema 3. I am thinking the third series of this format will be an anthology, or a bunch of grOwth short stories (1 or maybe 2 issues in length) that can cover a lot of new themes and quick storylines. Like cinema 1, it can be published sporadically, with breaks in between issues while I work on other projects, such as retuning to cinema 1 ("Ever-Expanding"), new grOw/stOries, or animation projects (maybe).
Printed Merch
The least of all new projects. This will start as simply working out a way to sell the printed art books not sold at Exxxotica in 2023. I have about 45 to sell, along with some stickers. My first priority is to recap my investment outlay. I am not sure if I will pursue more, mostly due to the time it takes to process physical merch (packaging, mailing, tracking, etc.). The wife is ready to do most of the fulfilling, I just need to set-up the store and take orders.
It's off to the races...
Now it's time to end this post and begin work for 2024. Stay tuned!
