What I Would Need

So, I’ve been doing a bunch of things to try and get myself to have an honest look at what I would need in order to be able to quit the rat race and create full time. All this so I can set goals; something to work towards, you know. After having a proper look, it all seems impossible, but at least I have a better, more realistic view of what I need in order to do what I am passionate about.

So, if I was fully self-employed, and nothing else about my life changed (which is to say, I remained renting instead of looking to buy a house (sobs in Millennial)), and rent didn’t increase too much, and groceries stopped their exponential increases, I would need to earn quite a bit of money in order to maintain my lifestyle.

$7 500.00 a month to be exact.

This, because I would have to pay into my own CPP and health insurance, as well as all the other things that we’re expected to pay into as a wholly self-employed individual. Like taxes. Duh.

That seems like an obscene amount of money to me. That means I would have to have 7 500 subscribers here on Ko-Fi. Or have the equal amount of regular viewers per month on Twitch. Around 10 000 subscribers on YouTube. Or sell that amount of books regularly every month (less the deductions various sites take for selling those books).

Impossible.

​But maybe it’s not so impossible if I manage to combine all those efforts. If I get a bunch more followers here on Ko-Fi, and also on Twitch. If I manage to sell a bunch of books (and maybe art), or somehow blow up on YouTube…

None of these seem very likely, but it’s still giving me something to work towards. The most stable income I could create from the above options would be aiming for 7 500 subscribers here on Ko-Fi.

I doubt very much I’ll be able to reach such a goal. I can’t even seem to break 10. I am still hoping that offering up stories for free or donation on the two platforms that permit it (itch.io and here), and by letting folks know that this is an option in my printed books, I might be able to get a couple of interested folks willing to spend $1.00 (CAD) a month to help me along.

There are also plans to start doing other creative things to sell here. I am limited in my leather working, as I live in an apartment which is above another. I can’t be hammering on leather into the night. My poor downstairs neighbours. So I am limited to stealing away to my Dad’s girlfriend’s house. She has a workshop in her basement, and it’s a detached house. Much more bearable for the neighbours. I can only do so when they’ve gone to the cottage in the summer

However, with a sewing machine set up in the living room, I can create a few bookish things I can sell here. I am currently shopping for sewing machines and tables. I am also looking for a Canadian supplier of custom printed cloth (as I can use some of my art for that). I’m not especially good at sewing, having done it only during Grade 8 during Home Economics… which was more about sewing pillow cases and making Cornish Pasties than economics, actually… But I have always wanted to learn.

While I highly doubt I will ever get to my goal, I have been making moves. I am wildly uncomfortable with charging more than $1.00 a month, even if I get the time to start doing more here. It just feels really icky to me. Times are really tough for everyone, and while I think my work has value and I think that earning a living from it isn’t a tall ask, I do think that asking more than $1.00 of people is a bit much. I do have a couple of subscribers who are paying more per month. For what reason I have yet to discern. They’re just really wonderful people.

So, though I refuse to increase my prices, I’ve added a couple more things to the benefits for my Ko-Fi subscribers. For starters, if I have something in store that is not exclusive for my subscribers, subscribers will get a 5% discount. So, regular books, limited edition prints (when I get them), art prints, and other merch will all have a discount. It’s automatically applied. You have no choice (maniacal laugh). 

Also, whenever I have a new book release, subscribers are automatically entered to win a signed physical copy for free.

I’m feeling pretty good about these additions. I don’t think they’ll do all that much to bring in new subscribers, but it is a way to give more to my current subscribers. And that makes me happy.

Right now, it doesn’t mean much. I don’t have a new release to give away yet (The Timbercreek Incident coming to pre-order soon!), and I don’t really have much in the store right now to apply any discounts to, but I’m hoping that I will one of these days.

I have other income streams (sort of). I have Twitch. While I don’t get many views when I’m streaming, I do have a surprising (for me) number of followers. Now, 93 is laughable, especially since I would need 1 000 to make any kind of money. But it’s still the largest number of followers I have on any platform. I have a goal to make it to 150. If I get there, I’ll double it.

7 500 people each parting with a dollar a month seems so incredibly impossible. But doing what I can to get a little bit of income from my various things (diverse income streams seems like the way to go) does seem very doable. Not, you know, soon. But who knows. Maybe sometime in the future.

But hey. We must have goals, right? And as impossible as it seems to me right now, I fully intend to chase it all the same. There are many things to do on every single one of my activities. It’s a little overwhelming, but I am determined.

Wish me luck!

Slán go foill!