i used to unlock a bit of a single Premium series with Ink but then i thought how impractical it is. Especially for long ongoing ones.
So for now i save my Inks for tipping artists, while straight up paying for a bunch of episodes when it's done OR when i actually have time to binge read (which still didn't happen yet...)
but yea, i'm willing to pay. That being said tho, there isn't much Premium content that appeals to me. But that's a topic for another discussion...
I don't think it's particularly helpful to broadly generalize everyone who isn't partaking in premium comics the way you want... then name calling/ink shaming them.
There's amazing content on the free side of the wall and amazing creators who are working within that economic model. Choosing to read series like ...
...and so many more... and then using my available ink to support them is a choice, MY choice... not a consequence of "prejudices" or "entitlement".
Where I live there are no ads Ink.
Ink IS money for me.
And yes I do read 1-2 premiums comics.
Any support I get I count as cash and is very happy to receive ( even if I know it is ads ink, bc for me, I count it as money.)
I've so far only bought one series, The Extreme Dog owner but I intend to finish reading most the wait to read comics I have going on rn. I also bought a few episodes of Crimson Tracks which I'm reading with the waiting method as well because I was left in such a cliffhanger part, lol.
I'd happily purchase more episodes but it's so hard for me to get ink for free since I cannot really afford paying money to get ink. I get barely any ads and if I do there might be just one or two, I can't watch the demos and most of the time I'm not in the "intended target group" for surveys. I guess I should get the free ink from playing the game (I tried) but I don't enjoy the game at all.
There's one series I don't mind unlocking episodes for when I have spare gift ink that will expire. Ad ink I save for tipping events.
I WOULD buy ink if only I had more disposable income. But alas, I'm a poor artist.
I don't. I'm broke as heck and ink ads are scarce so I just use my IMAGINATION and think what the story looks like in a series of panels. lol
i agree that artists and writers not only need but deserve compensation for their work, and i hope to soon be in a situation where i can liberally, directly, support my favourite creators
that said, im not willing to buy premium episodes usually just because the premium stories just dont appeal to me and arent worth the effort of gathering coins - generally ive grown up averse to paying for media, which im starting to feel is an impulse i need to reverse, but it pushes me away from stuff i cant at least preview for free and the things i pay for are usually the things i really love / value.
in @LordVincent defence - as ive had this conversation with him before - i dont think hes talking about people who just dont read premium, but rather talking about the people hes encountered who get angry at him for producing premium content.
not consuming content you have to pay for is fine - as i said earlier, most of the premium comics arent worth the bother for me - but complaining that paid content isnt free betrays the entitlement vince is talking about.
that said, i agree with you that anyone harbouring disdain for people who avoid premium generally would leave a bad taste in my mouth, and i find the most exciting work on the free side of wall as well (given premium has a bit of the same gatekeeping safe decision making as oldschool publishing). but i do think people who create work for free still deserve compensation and that people who can support them and enjoy their work should feel compelled to give them direct support.
I buy what I like to read, and it's generally not premium comics.
If I come across one that I most likely will like, I would pay for it.
However, I think it's most likely going to happen with wait for free, because I can delay the time when I pay: not for money reason but for support reason. I would hate to support an artist and then realize the comic is promoting nauseous ideas etc.. I like to support, but I like to know what I support.
Also, I would like to be able to give ink to anyone. I can think of small comics I would like to support, and I would probably be quite generous for some. This is a bit a shame to not be able to support everyone, even these who are not very successful (yet).
@punkarsenic That's also how I understood @LordVincent message. It was clearly addressed to people who complain that it should not be paying, no to people who choose to read something else.
You read my post entirely wrong. The people i talk about when I spoke of entitlement are not people who merely choose not to purchase premium content. That is fine. As a consumer you are entirely entitled to that choice.
What you are NOT entitled to is paid content without paying. If an artist states a price, you accept or move away. You don't haggle, you don't moan, and you certainly shouldn't (and this is something i experienced) attempt to start a mob against the seller to bully them into releasing it for free. THAT is entitlement and that is what I was referring to in my post.
People have literally used guilt, threats and other manipulation methods to try to get me to release my premium comics for free. It is ridiculous.
For example, let's say a jacket is for sale at a shop.
A customer lays their eyes on the jacket. The jacket costs $70. Here are the acceptable responses:
All of these followed by the customer simply walking away. The store is not entitled to the customer's money.
The unacceptable responses would be as follows:
And it goes on. The customer is not entitled to a product that has a certain price stated unless they provide the money that is asked.
I would add a number 4 acceptable, that artists don't like but that I think is crucial to consider:
4 : I like the jacket but I don't think it's worth the price, so I won't buy it.
It may or may not be an uneducated reason, but it's a valid one as a client.
Oh yeah, no that is definitely a valid reason. I run into that one quite a lot. When it comes to a lot of exclusive/expensive products, it's a matter of the product finding the right customer rather than as many as possible.
For example I ended up paying probably around $300 for a exclusive dakimakura from one of my favorite series. If it had been almost any other series, I would have never considered it worth it.
i mean, haggling isnt always unacceptable - but thats just a breakdown of the analogy i spose. haggling on an already cheap indie comic is defo unacceptable tho.
Where I am from, haggling in a store is frowned upon and never works. Only place it works is in temporary markets outdoors and in sell/buy scenarios from one private person to another.
Comics are sold in a manner that is more comparable to a store rather than small sales of single objects, so that is why I put that response as unacceptable.
The only time I consider haggling ok is when the customer buy enough items for me to consider it a semi-bulk sale, but that is when thinking as a farmer, I don't know how that would translate for art.
I use ink for novels, never comics. Mostly I use it to tip authors who's work I like that aren't incubator or premium. Never comics because I haven't found one I like enough to pay for.
I pay for them! They are worth the money. It's higher quality content and edited. @staff are excellent at spotting up and coming talent. I also love supporting my friends who are Premium creators.
