Patronage is suddenly a bad word…

I don’t know why, but suddenly asking for donations is taboo and politically incorrect.

For some deranged reason, websites like patreon.com that are used to help crowdfund artists is being blocked by websites like youtube or fanfiction dot net because artists are supposed to work for free and not ask for support. Heaven forbid artists try to give themselves a leg to stand on, right?

I have a patreon account, and while I try to promote it… several websites ban the use of the word or term on their website. I cannot even write the word patreon on some sites because it will only show up as *******, which is just total bullshit.

So let me get this straight: it’s perfectly alright for politicians to beg for donations all day every day for their “Campaigns” but the moment artists try to ask for a little support to help us create our art, we’re begging for charity and/or entitlements. Once again, total bullshit.

Is it wrong to ask for donations while trying to create art/writing that people love to read, especially when a lot of it is being consumed for free? I don’t think it is, which is why I took to time to create a patreon page for myself:

This is what my patreon page looks like, and I like to think I made a great effort to build what I think is a pretty impressive list of ideas. The list of patronages to choose from on my page vary in price from $1 – $1000 but there are 18 different options. This leaves the choice of monthly pledge to the donor while offering an array of ideas and spoils. Before creating this list, I took the time to study and check out many other patreon accounts, and there are some that are asking for a lot more than what I’m seeking and offer nothing in return for their donor’s generosity. Every one of my pledge options offers something back, as I feel if someone is nice enough to support you, you should thank them in one way or another. I guess that’s just the way I was raised. I even tried to be very creative with my options, but it appears they are falling upon deaf ears.

I don’t think this kind of patronage should be considered bad, if its no different than what politicians do every 4 years when they need to run for office again. I think this kind of selective hypocrisy on the internet is shocking, and just out of touch with reality.

If you’re curious and want to check out the patreon page for yourself, here’s the link:

https://www.patreon.com/pjlowry

So what do you guys think?

Should artists use crowdfunding sites like patreon to look for support?

Peter