Wednesday, January 17, 2018

More Patreon Thoughts

Many thanks for the feedback and comments on my first post about this.  From them I gleaned a few things.

One, people are happy to ship a $1/month to support my writing.  That is reassuring.

The other is that this would be for my fiction writing.  The game reviews, walkthroughs, etc I post on the blog here are nice distractions, but not what people want to be funding via a Patreon.  This is also good to know.

If I hadn't checked first I suspect my Patreon page might have ended up an unholy kludge of talking about blogs, monster girl bestiaries, Japanese hentai games, half-baked game ideas, oh and did you know I sometimes write succubus porn.

Now I know it should be:

"Give me money to write erotic horror fiction featuring sexy succubi and monster girls.  I'm really good at it.  Here's my Literotica page so you can see."

The next point concerns when to go live.

I was originally planning to have the Patreon page up and running by now.  I had a rethink after seeing the excitement in some posts and also some justifiable concern in others (as I've not exactly been the most prolific on the new story front of late).  I don't want to hype things up, get people subbing, and then have that turn bad if the fifth or sixth story in a row I'm working on falls apart before I finish it and I have nothing to show for it by the middle of March.

I want to do this right.

So this is the plan.  I have two short stories on the go at the moment.  When I've finished both of them, I'll open up the Patreon.  I'm aiming to post one to Literotica's usual annual Valentine's Day contest.  The other will be a Patreon-exclusive.  This is so that when I launch, I will be launching with something.  It's also an incentive for me to stop dicking around and finish the stories I'm working on.

That's the plan for launch.  Next, for going forward.

I want to get back on Literotica (and similar sites) this year.  Last year I went for the big novel plans, failed and knocked my confidence a little, so I think a spot of rebuilding on Lit might do me some good.  And who knows, might even result in that long-awaited "Succubus Summoning 301" chapter finally getting posted.

This means taking a look at the other things I have running.

The H-space monster girl bestiary has drifted a little from its original purpose.  Initially it was supposed to be somewhere for me to park monster girl/sex scene ideas until I had a full story to put them in.  With the last few I found the opposite to be happening.  The idea started to expand into a full story in the process of writing it.  Rather than fighting this, as I was stupidly doing for most of last year, I'm going to write these out as full-length H-space stories like the ones I used to write in the past (like this, or this).

The playthrough series of Monmusu Quest: Paradox I'm currently in the middle of has proven to be more contentious than I realised.  I know some people like it from the comments, but I also know some people don't like it because they think it's taken over my fiction writing.  To be honest, me not posting any new stories for ages because there's seven or eight of them rotting half-finished in various notebooks has not helped dissuade this perception.  So my fault there.  I don't want to abandon the series halfway through because I don't think that's fair to the people currently enjoying it.  However, as part of these Patreon discussions, this would be a good point to consider what to move on to next.

One thing the series has been good for is getting me in the habit of keeping to a regular schedule.  (Yes, I broke it today for this, I know.  Writing this post was way more of an ass than I realised - I was supposed to post it yesterday for starters.)  The series even kept going unscathed during a 100-hour playthough of Persona 5, which is impressive considering my bad habit of occasionally going completely AWOL for a couple of weeks at a time on computer RPGs.  Now, if I can transfer this good habit of posting 750-1K words every Mon, Wed and Fri over to posting an original fiction series, we might be onto something.

Yes, I did try this last time with Okasare Kenny, and it didn't work out too well.  The difference there was I was trying to keep to a much more gruelling daily schedule with an idea I knew I should have kept to its original form of a series of novellas.

I think I should be able to keep to 1k word chunks every Mon, Wed and Fri without it swallowing up all my writing time and this would be something that would fit very well to the Patreon model.

So here's the feedback part.  I have a couple of ideas and - as part of a post where I'm looking to grab some Patreon bux - I thought it might be a good idea to toss them out there to see what people think.

1) Ongoing series - [4 (or more) Guys in MGQ-world]

Not MGQ world exactly (I don't write fan fiction), but a similar fantasy setting filled with sexy monster girls that are more interested in fucking the characters than fighting them.  The characters would likely be from our world (similar to the Jackson in HRPG-world stories I wrote a few years ago).  I imagine the mood will be pretty swingy on this one - goofy to start, but very dark in places, especially with the more vore-themed monster girls, but not as grimdark as say H-space.  I've been itching to go full horror-head on an MGQ-style setting for a while, and this might give me an excuse.

The advantages: I'm following on from the game playthrough series with an original fiction series in a similar setting (likely written in a similar style to what I use in the playthrough).  This should hopefully appeal to both the people that like the MGQ playthrough and people wanting original fiction with graphic sex scenes.  I also won't give a shit about quality.  This shouldn't sound like an advantage, but with me - who is way too nitpicky with his own writing - it might free me up to splurge thousands of words of fun adventure and sex on the page without obsessing over how "good" it is and locking up in the process.  Also, gamers in a fantasy world requires zilch in the way of research, removing another barrier to just having fun writing.

This is my preferred option, mainly because while thinking it up I came up with a few "meta" ideas for audience participation that would work very well with Patreon.

On the other hand, it is more MGQ-type stuff, which people might be sick of at this point.

2) Succubus Summoning

This is the option I think most people would want - me continuing Phil's adventures in bite-size chunks here on the blog.

The advantage here is obvious.  Those bite-sized chunks quickly become full chapters and then, before you know it, a full novel.  Plus, people have really really been wanting me to write this for a long time.

I think it also has the biggest danger of failing or falling behind schedule, because I do give a damn about this story and want it to be the best it can.

That said, one of my biggest problems is being nitpicky and obsessing over making a story the best it can.  Trying to hit 3 1K-word deadlines a week, every week might bust me out of that, or wreck me.  Not sure.  The thought of trying to make the series work under those conditions does scare the hell out of me, but maybe that's what I need right now.

High risk, but potentially very high reward.

3) Barry Lyle Goes Out In Fucking Style

You probably don't have a clue what this is.  It's the book I was trying to write in the first half of 2017.  An overwhelming army of succubi invade a city on earth.  Barry Lyle is a student at university when the sky turns black with demons.  After hiding for a while, he realises he has no chance of surviving and throws himself at a group of seven succubi in the knowledge that at least he'll die having his brains fucked out.  The problem: all 7 succubi saw him at the same time and succubi don't fight over food.  Barry is going to have to make a choice and the 7 succubi couldn't possibly let him make that choice without letting Barry have a taste of what they have to offer first...

This is an easy option for me.  The first quarter is mostly written, so I probably have about 3 or 4 weeks worth of updates without even having to do anything.

I don't know how strong the overall idea is.  The mood is all over the place on this one.  The setup is clearly comical, but in order to make Barry's decision to take the suicide-by-succubus option plausible, I had to show him what the other non-succubus demons were doing to the students they caught.  Those scenes... are not comical.

4) Various Mini-Series

Another easy option.  No big series, just various little ones.  I've done this before with the Jackson stories.  The reason you haven't seen the bee girl H-space story was because as I was writing it I thought this might make an interesting little mini-series about a team of soldiers trying to burn down a bee girl hive and eventually being overwhelmed sexily by various bee girl types.

This would make a decent filler option for those times when I need to take a breather on a longer ongoing series.

Those are some thoughts.  I estimate I'm about 2/3 to 3/4 of the way through the MQ:P series (which will return Friday as normal).  I think it will be another month or so before that winds up.  This gives me some time to get a follow-up series prepped and ready.  (If I decide to go with Succubus Summoning, having the whole first chapter done would be a must before I'd even consider running it.)

Whew, this post was a real ass to write.  Let me know what you think in the comments.

Now, time to get back to that succubus Valentine's Day story.  (You are not fucking stalling out on me this time!)

23 comments:

  1. Option 1 appeals to me at the moment, particularly if it's the easiest for you to get going on.

    I was never a particular fan of the Succubus Summoning series, so that probably has something to do with it. Others will no doubt disagree.

    A succubus invasion sounds like a great idea to me, although I have my doubts about the comic storyline you're pursuing. I think I'd prefer something more straight ahead like the very best earth can offer underestimating the power of succubus seduction.

    A hive full of bee girls sounds intriguing, but my taste in succubi is fairly vanilla, I admit, and the further they diverge from human anatomy the less interested I am as a rule.

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  2. I like Options 1 and 2 the best. Option 1 because your MGQ: P playthrough was what drew me into your blog in the first place, Option 2 because I like Succubus Summoning the most out of your original fiction series.

    However, I have to mention that you're closer to halfway through MGQ: P, from what I've seen of the game.

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  3. All of these sound like pretty good options to me, personally.I'd prefer Succubus Summoning 301, myself, but I would buy any of them. Patreon's more problematic, as they don't take my cards... and my cards aren't kind that are amicable to adult-type subscriptions. Patreon isn't just that as far I know, but Amex is a bitch and a half even at the best of times so I'd rather not chance it. S'why I prefer buying on Amazon, Amazon gift cards are the gift that keeps on giving. But specific points...

    1) This sounds like fun, especially if you mix in (relatively,) friendly Monster Girls with the more Vore-y types. One day the gang are being sheltered by a group of Lamia and paying them for said shelter with semen from the tap, the next day the guys are surviving by the skin of their teeth on the run from a Kaiju type Monster Girl who wants a dildo and a few snacks.

    2) I have no idea how to comment on this, what would help. I'll just say I enjoy the story, and hope that whatever you decide to do with it at this point doesn't stress you too much.

    3) Hmmm. A thought - If you're going for an overall comic theme, maybe present the non-succubi deaths in a dark-comedic manner. Like, oh say... "One time, I saw this guy, looks exhausted, running from this giant, 3 story tall demoness. I was thinking about signalling to him, having him hide with me, but before I can do anything the Demoness trips on a pothole or something and lands on him. Then she gets back upright, and the guy is lodged tight in her massive vagina, sticking out feet first. She stares at her twat for a bit. Then she just shrugs, pushes him the rest of the way in, and goes on her way."

    4) Again, not really sure what to say. I've always enjoyed your shorts, some more than others admittedly, so whatever you come up with is good in my book. Though the Bee Girl Hive series does sound interesting.

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    1. Can you use paypal? I pay my patreon through that

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  4. Civildeviation17/01/2018, 23:29

    Regarding SS, are you using peers or editors to help with the writing? I am sure dedicated succubi fans like myself and literotica authors would be happy to help the writing or plot development so the story meets if not exceeds your and our expectations.

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    1. I mean even if there are roadblocks in the main story I'd love to see even short stories like the three from the McHooligans collection where we get to see more of that universe/characters

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    2. Thats one of the good things about SS, the universe itself is interesting and I would love to know more

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  5. I always enjoyed your early stuff, before you fixated on flipping games (that has to be niche among your followers surely) I've followed you seen your first writings on literotica. SS is eagerly awaited, as is more short compendiums. The less game stuffI see, the happier I am (sorry) just don't underestimate or neglect your regular writing fanbase, we (or I) feel a little left out over the last year plus

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  6. As an SS fan i definitely appreciate quality over quantity and would be willing to chip in 5-10 every month just to know the project was being properly worked on, I'm okay with it being ready when it's ready, but it's certainly the content i love to see the most from you.

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  7. Good grief I love these ideas!!! I NEED more SS.. and I love the Gary story idea!

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  8. Addendum to my last post - While I definitely want more story content, I do still appreciate the Game Play Throughs. You bring exposure to stuff it'd otherwise be hard for me to hear about. Though I'm perfectly fine with it going back to your "Game Play Through on Friday," schedule.

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    1. I'll keep doing, but cut it down to game roundups rather than in depth playthroughs.

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  9. I'm happy to see this, and would wholeheartedly agree with other commenters: I really don't give a hoot about the game walk-throughs, and never read them.

    Much more excited to see a resumption of SS, and also a filling out H-space into a series with a real narrative arc, rather than simply the introduction of new type of succubus after new type of succubus, with essentially no other narrative development.

    FWIW, I strongly prefer the straight-succubus and more-or-less-straight-succubus stories to other monster girls (spider bodies, etc. are just turn-offs to me). Only speaking for myself of course, but you're already writing in a niche. The further out there you go, the more people you may lose.

    All of this is in the context of appreciation, so please don't misinterpret: I love (some of) your stuff, and I know you have to write for yourself as much as or more than your audience. Just telling you what I like most!

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    1. I'd second this post, particularly your take on straight-succubus versus other monster girls.

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    2. I like spider girls( I am terrified of them in r/l but there is something about that terror combined with eroticism that works, maybe because when I think of a spider girl I think of the the type in the MGE rather than a real spider) but stomach girls and vore type stuff does less for me( I still enjoy your stories with it tho so don't restrict yourself). Everyone has their own taste. I think you are doing fine the way you are with a nice variety of fetishes.

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  10. >Barry Lyle Goes Out In Fucking Style

    I remember you mentioning this in a comment some time ago and I definitely would like to see it! I simply love the premise of the guy willingly surrendering to the succubi even while knowing that a soul-sucking death is in his future.

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  11. I concur about the game playing. You gained a following from your story submissions, not monster quest.
    Don't lose your followers. Return to the smut we all love and look forward to. Even if you end a sentence with a preposition. :)

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  13. A mix of options 1 and 2 sounds good to me.

    Maybe you could aim to have 1 SS and 1 MG ongoing series release a week as a baseline and more of each, or a short or other work (whatever you are feeling you can write at the time) mixed in. This sort of plan will hopefully make you less likely to burn out working on SS as it is your baby and you want to treat it right.

    I love the idea of an ongoing series in a monster girl themed world as I love the monster girl encyclopedia stuff especially with the strong, dominant type girls. This and SS would make me super happy!

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    1. I would happily give you 20 or more a month for this

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  14. I love Succubus Summoning and really hope to see more of that.

    Option 1 sounds pretty interesting too.

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    1. But, if I may give a little bit of criticism regarding Succubus Summoning.

      I feel that the sex scenes are becoming shorter and less detailed as the story progresses. Maybe this is intentional, and you want to focus more on the plot, but please don't forget the power of well written smut.

      Succubus Summoning 301 and onwards, while still a good read, is nothing compared to episodes 101-105 and especially 201 (which might be the best you have done).

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  15. Personally, I'm here for Succubus Summoning. That said, you have to write what you're feeling. Forcing something that isn't there isn't going to make anyone happy.

    I'm curious, how are you planning to work Patron vs. posting on free sites?

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