Hi all!
This is a reupload of audio we put on the podcast feed yesterday asking for some of your help staying afloat and getting THIRST off the ground, as well as clearing up some misconceptions. I've included the text for the audio underneath the cut if that's helpful for you.
tl;dr: if our stories and characters have meant something to you in the past, we could really use your help spreading THIRST around to help us build back a sustainable audience after the end of Juno and Second Citadel. I go into detail in the audio as to how you can do that without paying a dime. We are so, so proud of this series, and we really want to give it a chance to shine. Thank you so much for reading and listening.
(And apologies for my voice -- Harley and I have both come down with nasty colds and believe it or not this is the most pleasant I could make it sound over a few takes.)
Thanks,
Kevin
Hi everybody. Kevin here, co-creator and lead writer of, y'know, the podcast you're listening to. A few quick announcements about why we need your help, what we're offering you in return, why now's the time to get into THIRST, and how you can still help us if you don't have the money for donations:
Long story short: we don't have the funding we need to keep going at the pace we've been going indefinitely. We expected and planned for a dip in support after the end of Juno and Second Citadel, and we knew it would take a while before we knew whether THIRST was going to take off, so we aren't shutting down or anything, but if you've been considering supporting us on Supercast or Patreon and just haven't pulled the trigger yet, it would mean the world to us if you could do so now. A misconception we've seen floating around is that Rusty Quill has either purchased our podcast or that they're funding us directly and therefore we don't need your contributions anymore, but that's not really what "joining a network" means: all it means is that they help promote us and help secure us advertisers, and though ad revenue helps keep us afloat, it brings in a very small percentage of what your subscriptions on Supercast and Patreon do, and the way things are now we need both for our show to survive in its current form. We're still completely independent, completely self-funded, and completely teeny-tiny. We're all pretty used to it now, but remember that I'm drafting what are essentially two forty-five-ish-minute-long episodes of TV every single month completely solo, and Harley is revising, directing, and sound designing those episodes for you to hear them for free. It's a massive amount of work, and there is nothing else in the world I would rather do, but it takes significant amounts of time, and the fact is without your help we cannot make that time happen… and that's before we even get to paying a fair rate to the actors, artists, musicians, and everyone else who makes this what it is. We have only been able to tell the weird, ambitious, lengthy stories we always have through your direct support, so even if you're just curious about whether THIRST might be for you in the future, your contributions now are the only thing that's going to ensure that future actually happens.
All that said: we know times are hard for everybody right now, and monthly subscriptions at the rate we're asking just aren't feasible for everyone. I put together a post on Patreon a little while ago explaining the bind that Patreon's new billing system has put us in and how that affects our current tiers -- it's a free post, so you can check it out if you want the context -- and frankly, we still just haven't recovered from that stumbling-block they put in front of us. But we want to open up our subscriptions as a possibility for more of you, so as of right now we're running a limited-time 20% off sale on all subscription tiers, and I've set it on Supercast so that if you subscribe now, you get to keep the 20% off rate for as long as you stay subscribed. We're hoping this makes those tiers more accessible for more of you, because subscriptions are how we can keep paying our actors and artists competitive rates and buy Harley and I enough time to work on this show enough to bring you as much as we do as often as we do. (That recurring offer is only available on Supercast, just so you know.)
And if you're on the fence but you've been thinking about getting into THIRST, let me tell you: now, with the early release of episode 4, is the time to do so. In our initial plans we considered calling the first four episodes the "prologue" to THIRST as a whole, so if you've been waiting for things to pop off… well, they popped, alright. This show is going places I don't think anybody is quite expecting, and if you've liked the off-the-wall nightmare insanity of our in-universe commercials for WetPark and Rough Riders, I think you're going to love what comes next.
But maybe you're listening to this and you don't have the money to contribute, or you're already contributing as much as you can and you still want to help, or you aren't quite sure if THIRST is right for you yet, but you want to help give the creators of Juno Steel and Second Citadel a leg up on their next adventure. First of all: thank you. We hate asking for money. That's why we're largely pretty bad at it. And we don't want anyone to feel guilty for not giving what they can't afford, so if you want to help for free, there are a ton of things you can do to get THIRST in front of people who can afford to support it. Post about us on what remains of social media. Draw fanart -- we're still offering a free month of behind-the-scenes subscription to people who draw some of our favorites. Engage with our posts. Tell your friends. Have a listening party for the first four episodes. Leave us reviews on iTunes and comments on Spotify -- both of those boost us so more people see us. The fact is that social media has changed significantly in the decade since we started this show, and the systems and algorithms that used to make it easier for new people to find us are now either gone or they're actively working against us. That doesn't mean we're doomed by any stretch, but it does mean that we need your help spreading the word more than ever before. If Juno Steel or Second Citadel meant something to you, if they touched your life in a way that feels significant to you, it would mean so much to us if you'd take a little time to help us bring something strange and new into the world that could mean just as much to you or others someday soon. Thank you.
That's all for today. Episode 4, "Duck!" is out now for Early Access supporters on Supercast and Patreon -- you can find those sites at thepenumbrapodcast.supercast.com and patreon.com/thepenumbrapodcast. If you want to follow us, tag us, or shout us out on social media platforms, we've got @thepenumbrapod.bsky.social on Bluesky, thepenumbrapodcast on Tumblr, or @thepenumbrapodcast on Instagram and TikTok. We'll be trying to post more interesting in-world and behind-the-scenes stuff those places in the near future, so let us know how you like it.
Take care, listen to THIRST, and stay hydrated.
