#writingsofstardust

[hollywritesinstardust]

I’ve published the first chapter of a new story! It’s based on NBC’s Chuck.

You can check it out on AO3 here, or on FFN here.

[white-collar-lawmen-and-conmen]

My Ko-Fi

What is Ko-Fi?

Ko-Fi is, in short, a platform where supporters can donate a “coffee” to content creators by paying small units - such as $3, enough to buy a coffee.

Is it legal to commission fanfiction?

Fanfiction isn’t exactly a codified legal area, so it’s a bit of a grey situation. However, I am not ever claiming to own any recognizable content (characters, settings, canon plots, etc.), so I am respecting the copyright of USA Networks. Making a small profit off of my fanfiction should not violate copyright law, as I take donations in exchange for my own personal resources of time and effort and never claim to own the property of any other person or organization.

Why do I now have a Ko-Fi?

I am a college student, so I’m automatically broke because college in the United States is ridiculously fucking expensive. I’m also trying to further my career goals by pursuing relevant internships and experiences overseas, which only mount up the bills. Not to mention that it costs money to live. Although I’m trying for a part-time job, if I can secure one I still can only work so many hours a week because of university policies. Oh, and let’s talk minimum wage! In my state, I can work a full hour at minimum wage and still not be able to afford even a single box of shrimp at the grocery store. So, yeah. I love to write and I’m going to do it anyway - so if someone would like to pay me to create fanfiction, why say no?

That is not to say I’m only writing fanfiction for profit now. It’s saying, “this is something I work hard on that takes up my time and energy, and if I can make a few bucks off that investment, it helps me support myself.” Whether or not I receive donations, I am still going to continue writing fanfiction.

So why donate at all?

I tend to write what I feel inspired to write, which means I have been filling requests out of order. I have absolutely no intention of being unfair, but writing has been nothing but a creative outlet, and if all I get from writing a request is a muse or inspirational pleasure, then I’ll obviously write the most personally satisfying ones first, and when it suits me at that. If, however, a donation is made, then the investment of resources (be they time or money) are no longer one-sided, and I bear responsibility to produce content in a reasonable time.

Another incentive is that I have closed my requests because a large list is overwhelming. A commissioned request will bypass the closing of requests.

What are the “coffees” for?

I am probably going to put some of this money towards buying literal coffees, as I thrive off caffeine and there are at least 3 Starbucks franchises within walking distance of my home.

That said, the majority of any donations are actually going to be put towards actual goals, like buying textbooks for next semester or affording the extra expenses of an internship.

Content

For now, this is just a very experimental and hesitant thing, so I’m only advertising it here, on my White Collar blog. The Ko-Fi page itself is under my main blog’s username, Writings of Stardust, in case I expand it. Because I don’t actually expect to make much off it, I want to start with just White Collar content and this blog’s following.

I’m paying for Gold status so that I can offer different prices for different commissions, but if I make so little that I actually lose money on the membership, this venture will end in a couple of months.

Pricing and Commissions

The very cheapest commission is $1 for a would-include. You’re paying me about $1 for about 30 minutes of thinking, writing, and proofreading.

For $2, you can request a new imagine. You’re paying me $2 for about an hour of thinking, writing, and proofreading.

For $2, you can also bribe me to write a request, whether it’s a oneshot or an imagine, which is already on my request list but that I haven’t gotten around to writing yet. You’re paying me about $1/hour, because oneshots usually take me about 2 hours to write, and that’s a reduced price because you’ve already submitted your request before they were closed.

For $4, you can request a new oneshot with a minimum word count of 2,500. An additional $1 ups the minimum word count to 3,500. This all includes thinking, planning/outlining, writing, editing, and a final proofreading. You’re paying me, at most, $2/hour for an average oneshot.

I’ve explained the pricing to hopefully show my reasoning. When requests open again, these will have to change - not sure how, but they would - but for the time being, I think these are reasonable. I do reserve the right to increase the cost of a oneshot commission if I feel that putting aside my resources essentially on demand for these larger projects is more of a hassle than it is worth.

I aim to have all commissions completed within two weeks of request. Would-includes and imagines should be put out in a few days, while oneshots would ideally be between a few days and a week, though might take a couple of weeks if I get caught in a busy period. However, two weeks is the most time I would like to take and if there are extenuating circumstances, I will contact you to explain and propose an alternative deadline. If I have to offer an alternative deadline, I will also offer a refund through PayPal, but if a refund is accepted, then I might not finish the oneshot.

Exception

I am not, at the moment, taking commissions for series, nor will I accept one to write the one in my request list. I have that series planned out, but I need to rewatch the relevant episodes, and then write many full-length chapters. I can’t promise a quick enough turnaround for that and I don’t know how I would price a series.

Now that all the information is shared, here is a link to my Ko-Fi if you’d like to donate in exchange for a written request: https://ko-fi.com/writingsofstardust

[hollywritesinstardust]

Fandom: Doctor Who

Imagine meeting all of the Doctor’s incarnations.

[hollywritesinstardust]

Fandom: Doctor Who

Imagine teaching the Doctor youth slang.

[hollywritesinstardust]

Fandom: Doom Patrol

Imagine going to Danny Street with Larry and Vic.

[hollywritesinstardust]

Fandom: Psych

Imagine fighting with Shawn over a pineapple smoothie.

[hollywritesinstardust]

Fandom: Sherlock

Imagine being John and Sherlock’s upstairs neighbor and constantly getting dragged into their cases.

[hollywritesinstardust]

Fandom: Criminal Minds

Imagine being rescued by the BAU and sending them a thank-you letter every year.