Author:
I read the post Erin made on the 20th asking for donations because the Hatbox was broke. I understand completely that it is never fun to do that and a shame it has to be done. Many free-takers here. I also am well aware that the caretakers of this site are very busy as are many of us. However, I have a rub to get off my flat chest. Reading through the respondents to the plea made, there were many who gave the little they could share while there were others like myself were able to share more of the load. Some donations not even acknowledged. What I would like to see is the Operations Kitty updated to reflect the roughly $850 dollars in donations made by the 25th that would have pushed the monthly total to a figure closer to the goal. I am very fortunate that I have a job that is only limited by the number of hours I want to work over 60 every week. The compensations make it mostly worth while which gives me the ability to donate to causes and internet sites I wish to support. I feel a fair representation of the total received for the month is not asking too much. It doesn't have to be to the penny but an amount closer to the actual intake would be nice. Making a donation and not having that acknowledged or seeing a change in the Kitty can make a person be a bit suspicious and nobody wants that.
Comments
I may not be able to make
what I consider a significant donation every time the call goes out, but I will try to put $5 into the pot as a minimum. If everyone would do something similar I believe it would be a significant help.
Thanks, hon
Every bit helps.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
i wish
there some way I could but I'm living on a fix income. with my wife passing at the first of the year. I lost her check if there was some way to send the funds I would.
Understood.
We appreciate your support for the site, even if it can't be monetary at this time.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
Kitty updates
I understand your concerns and want to let everyone know how this works. It is not automatic. :)
Usually, I only update the kitty gauge when I need to post a blog asking for funds. That's really what it is for. If you see it hasn't been updated lately, that generally means that donations are keeping up with need or other income is filling the gap. I don't update on a regular schedule but the date of the last update is right there and the dates of previous updates and amounts are also there. It takes half an hour or more to do the updates and write a blog about them.
The usual time we need to ask for funds is near the middle of the month because we have income that hits between, approximately, the 27th to the 3rd. Part of that shows up in the kitty but a lot of it goes to pay our Kindle authors. Right now, about $1500 from Patreon goes to the two kitties. So we start the month off in pretty good shape.
I see that you made a post on the 25th about your donation that did not get answered or acknowledged in a timely manner. Friday through Monday, I was ill and not on the site, or even out of bed, for much of that time. By Monday evening when I felt better, the blog about the kitty had been pushed off the front page and I did not see your post.
So that's how it works. Most of it is done by me, by hand. Piper keeps the hardware running and some other things, like advertising and some correspondence, Cat handles a lot of the DopplerPress and Hatbox Premium stuff, Jamie helps keep me organized, Amy fills in when she can and the onsite volunteers do various things like alerting me to new authors who need to be put in the system and helping me sort out the outlining of chapters (which is also not automatic).
But mostly it is me. I do almost all of the Patreon stuff, too, and make most of the DopplerPress covers and other images on the site. When I get time and energy, I write stories or draw cartoons. Sometimes I fall behind at one task or another but I've been muddling through for about twenty years. :)
Thanks for your support and interest in how things work behind the scenes. I will try to keep the gauges up to date, but they are designed more as a nag than an indicator. If I don't need to nag anyone, I don't think of doing an update. :)
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
Kitty Response
Just returned home so Thank You for the reply. Hope your feeling better.
Francis G.
Kitty meter
Now Patreon has picked up the start of month load, as a reasonably regular donor I would be obliged if the kitty meter could be updated shall we say each weekend (I always look ) With a comment as to the overall picture and any major bills / impending bankruptcy. I do have to balance my own books so to know if I need to dig behind the sofa to find an extra large can of kitty food is useful on top of the usual is always useful I still have a lot of saving to have £20/30,000 in the bank for when I am cleared to spend it and make Allison the reality.
Detail Not Necessarily Needed
I am sure we all appreciate the specific updates on the finances, which this month stopped at 19 August (sorry...last month) but it would be nice to know if the monthly targets have been reached so that we do not have to wake up one morning and discover that our favourite site has gone broke. It only needs to say "We're OK" to relieve our anxiety.
We're okay :)
At this time of month, we usually are.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.