Leaked Patreon Content

It’s come to my attention that paid content from here has been leaked on to other sites.  Having managed to escape this fate for so long, it is heart breaking to find the content that I created for my supporters elsewhere for everyone to see.

The most upsetting aspect of this is the ignorance of those who feel it is okay to do this.  Worse still is how many others argue against this being theft, claiming it to be no different from showing others something you bought from the shop.  I like to think that they just don’t realise what a detrimental effect this can have on an artist’s livelihood, so I will take this opportunity to explain.

When people purchase a physical object, like a phone or a television, they can show it to another person, which may spark their interest in the product.  But for that other person to obtain one, they would have to go purchase it themselves.  The same cannot be said for the paid content shared from artists on Patreon.

Sharing exclusive content to other sites makes it freely available to everyone, but the difference is those people won’t go out and pay for the content themselves in the same way they would with physical objects… they already have it!

It must be obvious where I’m going with this, but if I can’t earn any income from the content I create, then I won’t be able to create at all.  The same can be said for any line of business.  Patreon is my primary source of income now, and the work I produce is only possible because of it and my wonderful supporters.  

So the next time you feel like you want to spread paid content elsewhere, please spare a thought for the artist.  We’re not rich; in fact most of us are only just getting by.  I know that as one month passes into another I dread the prospect of losing any Patrons, for fear of not being able to pay my rent.  And leaked content will most certainly lead to financial losses.

I know it’s been a long post and I’m grateful to all of you that made it this far.  I would like to say sorry to all my genuine supporters because there is nothing I can do about it, besides trying to spread awareness as to how this can affect us.  To those of you who feel it is right to share exclusive content, I have this to say.  You are paying for the privilege of being able to steal work to post to other sites.  No one will genuinely thank you for it, they will just take it.  There is literally no benefit in it for yourself.