Rant about entitled artists
I’m so sick of bitchy little artists crying over how artists that charge 30kt and under are bringing down the economy because people don’t want to pay for your 6 hours of work when the product isn’t that amazing anyway.
Let me put this in relative terms for you: someone who slaves away at the coli may make 100kt a day or if they’re profit pushing making roughly 300kt a day but working 10+ hours a day to do so. They’re making from 25-50kt profit an hour, maybe more maybe less. Gem conversion (let’s be generous a 1:1000) means that’s still less that 50c an hour. Yes that’d suck if it was a real job in real life, but let’s be real, it’s dragon money on a dragon site and in perspective 300kt for a day’s hard work is like what half the people on this site make in week or even a month. You’ve got it fucking easy mate. Working 4 hours on a piece of art to get the same amount rto someone who grinds with fodder for 10 hours? Why is what you’re doing “harder” or more “skilled?” You think you should get paid because you’re doing an art degree irl or maybe you spent 48 hours doing an online drawing course? Whoopdeedoo who gives a fuck. That was your choice? It’s not a “better” more “deserving” job, it’s just a different way of making money. On a pixel site.
If it was a /real/ job then yes, that would be ridiculous - but it’s not. It’s a dragon job. You’re taking dragon money for art. Not real money. While yes, this does convert to real money if you want to choose to see it that way but you’re charging dragon money for it. So you draw a piece for 4 hours and make 150kt or 200kt or whatever - ok you’re getting less than 50c an hour but that’s not what you’re charging - you’re charging dragon money for your time which in comparison to what everyone else makes per time is fair?
Why do you think you should get more for your time working than everyone else? Because it’s “art” and you think you deserve it because you can draw? No. People work just as hard for their money as you do, so why is it you think that you’re entitled to a higher ratio of pay than people who spend the same amount of time working for their money?
Charging for “time” is dumb as fuck anyway- artists take varying amounts of time depending on their quality and familiarity with what they’re doing. One of my friends draws like a beast and can pop out full bodies in less than half an hour on a regular basis and they look pretty damn good. If she was charging for time she’d be broke as fuck cuz her output is faster than most people’s. But she actually charges above average because her anatomy is dope and her style is pretty - people are willing to part with cash they’ve worked hard to get for a piece. They don’t care if it took 30 minutes or 3 days? They care that the art is quality and the price isn’t extortionate. If you’re going to take 12 hours to do a full body and you’re expecting to get minimum wage for an hour’s work - that racks up to like over $100 dollars in worth and no-one wants to pay for that just because you’re slow. Charging should be, and mostly is, based on quality - so if you take 12 hours and your art is like picasso then fair enough charge accordingly. But if you take 3-4 hours and your work is still average then why should people pay “more” for something that’s average or “good” just because it took you longer? You should either take a faster approach to working or make your work better so that the time represents quality. It’s not an office job, it’s a creative job. You don’t get paid “hourly” and you’re not entitled to that just because you think its “fair.” People who charge 30kt for a full body probably spend less than an hour on it, it’s probably not colored/shaded and its most likely not that great but they’re charging in according to how they feel their art is worth for time and quality.
If you’re complaining about getting 50c per hour or $1 an hour etc for charging dragon money on a dragon site, perhaps reconsider where you’re advertising- because if you’re trying to make bank on art you need to either be good enough where people flock to you naturally and want to shower you in cash OR be taking your art to a different site like art station or deviantart or even tumblr and advertising the fuck out of yourself there. If you don’t think your time for earning dragon money is being spent effectively enough with art then get a “different job.”
“But my computer can’t run the coli” - so? There are many ways of making money on FR that don’t need the coli. Flipping g1s, opening a hatchery, offering dragon holding services or even sniping for your flight can bring in the dosh.
“Oh you must not be an artist you don’t understand our STRUGGLE” actually no, I’m an artist and I do just fine thanks. When I was shit at art I took requests for free and worked into my own unpaid time until I improved to a point where I could charge and then adjusted my prices to what I think my skill level and what other artists were saying I should charge. Which when I look at what my friends are earning through the coli, and what I earn for a couple of hours drawing I’m pretty damn grateful that I have the chance to earn money in a different way. Over the years I’ve adjusted my prices accordingly and I have no problem with getting onsite commissions. Yes, I get there is a problem with undercharging artists but part of the problem is YOU. You’re confusing real life artist problems with onsite artist problems. People expect you to do things for free because IRL artists struggle to make bank and will degrade themselves into giving severely reduced prices for their art - but again, this is a dragon site for dragon money. Just tell them no and if they want to get some art they have to earn some money like everyone else to pay for it. In the end, they’re the ones with the harder end of the stick - you’re still earning WAY about the poverty line. So what, you tell them no and then they go somewhere else? Well then they’re settling for a worse quality of art but then they’re the ones sacrificing their money for something substandard. There will always be people who are willing to pay a bit more for quality. Like in real life there are always people who will shop at walmart and ikea because they don’t want to splurge on things which were made at a higher cost with a higher quality finish. But there are also people who don’t want shit food and don’t want shit furniture so will take their money elsewhere and pay the full damn amount because what you pay is what you get.
Don’t be so entitled to think that you’re worth more than anyone else here just because you’re a self proclaimed “artist” because you’re giving the rest of us who draw a bad rep.
