Breaking the silence (Patreon)

So, let's talk about the future of In-Tune Studios.

On April 26th, 2024, I started getting the first of many takedowns of my comics on my deviantART account, which is also the same account I used to post this Patreon's deviantART counterpart content on. Then on May 6th, I had even MORE art taken down. I didn't bother to fight the takedowns because I was technically breaking a rule with having characters of teenage age in situations involving growing or shrinking (funnily enough, it was for the much tamer comics). In response, I removed a good chunk of art from my account. I also took down all In-Tune Studios comics for sale on my dA account. Later the same day on May 6th, 2024, I announced that I would leaving deviantART: https://www.deviantart.com/tsuyoshi-kun/journal/I-am-done-with-deviantART-1049537810

Two weeks now it's been since I wrote that message. Since that day I've retreated into video games and have mostly kept my computer unplugged, sometimes for days at a time. I'm still worried to log on to deviantART to this day in fear I'll see another takendown notice. Having to manually remove art I had on my account - some of it on there for 15+ years with NO ISSUE before April 2024 - to avoid possible LEGAL ACTION from dA nearly broke me. Even now, just typing about this makes me mad. I legit wouldn't be surprised if someone on deviantART was out to get me.

So what does it mean for the future of In-Tune Studios itself? Well, like I mentioned on my deviantART account already, the deviantART side of In-Tune Studios is going down May 31st, 2024, and all subscriber-only content on there will be nuked along with it. Which sucks, because deviantART was a consistent revenue stream for me, and it was the reason I kept going after the first year of In-Tune Studios at all. (Especially after Hoshi 1x10 bombed. I don't typically talk about sales numbers publicly on here, but Hoshi 1x10 is, bar none, the worst selling comic in the six year history I've been selling comics.) While I can't do anything about most of the art I axed recently on dA, everything In-Tune Studios will continue to be on Patreon for the time being.

But without the deviantART revenue stream, updates will be far, far fewer. I still want to continue my Mini Girls Redesign series, though, as well as commission new pictures of Tune. But it's very unlikely I'll ever commission/sell a new comic ever again, at least not without a crowdfunding campaign. (If I ever do crowdfunding, please note anyone subscribed to this Patreon will get access to any art/comics made from it immediately after they're completed.)

So this isn't so much an end as it is...a pause. I need to be very careful moving forward, because Patreon could do the same thing as deviantART did and strike down stuff on here as well. For the moment, all paid comics can currently be found on my Gumroad account on https://intunestudios.gumroad.com.

I do have a new art piece to post today, though. It was originally intended to launch into a sequence, but it never went anywhere. It will be a Patrons-only piece.

Have a good day, everyone.