I usually succeed at keeping my daily
"get called an asshole" count in single digits.


...


Not today.

There.

So some things went down a couple months back, which resulted in me getting conned out of a good hundred bucks of work.  I'm not particularly angry about it, because I have known for years that my trust in strangers over the Internet would inevitably bite me in the butt.  As an artist who does not require payment up front and maintains a no-questions-asked refund policy (up to sending the high resolution files), I take a huge amount of risk on myself and must trust that my work will be respected enough to be compensated accordingly.  Of course, the day was coming when this strategy of taking all the risk off the client would backfire, and lo it did.

It came.  It went.

While I'll be opening up the gates for more coloring commissions in a few days, I figured it would be best to give a heads up to my new clients so they know how the system works, and what they'll be needing.

Dropbox/Google Drive: I do all file transfers over Dropbox or Google Drive.  I will not send high resolution files via Mediafire, as they can corrupt or will frequently fail on upload.  I do not use file upload websites like Mediafire (size limitations and undependable uploads).  All files uploaded are temporary, and will be taken down eventually should I need to open space; make sure you copy them to your hard drive as soon as you get them.

PayPal: I only accept payment via PayPal.  I do not take check or money orders sent via mail unless the amount transferred is from a bulk order of several hundred dollars, and is sent from either a reputable company or an individual I have worked with in the past.  I do not accept royalties as compensation.  I do not accept spec work.

First Time Clients Get Watermarked Previews: If it's your first time commissioning me, you handsome dapper fellow you, you'll notice that I've got watermarks all over the preview images as I send them.  This is still way better for you than expecting any sort of up-front payment, as you don't have to risk me grabbing your cash and fleeing the Internet.  But on the flipside, I don't want you grabbing the image and fleeing either, so to ensure we're both good with one another and can deliver, I'm watermarking images with first-time clients.  To get a preview copy at full resolution with no watermarks, you still don't need to pay in full, just a half payment minimum to prove you're capable of actually compensating me and have the intent to do so.

Unless Specified, Deadlines Fluctuate: Life happens to all of us, and sometimes when I say "I'll be done by Wednesday" I meant Friday.  If it's absolutely imperative that I crunch hard and get an image done by a certain time, make sure you set that in stone.  Don't assume I'll get it back to you within a week, especially if it's a time sensitive commission.  Let me know immediately so I can bump it ahead and not forget to get it done.  I take deadlines extremely seriously, and would hate to screw somebody over because they didn't realize I had a pile of deadlines already present that pushed their's back too far.  Also, it helps to know what time zone you're in, because when you say midnight, well...just because I got it done on time in Los Angeles doesn't mean I got it done fast enough for Sydney.

Lastly, All Images are Appraised, and All Appraisals are Confidential: Appraisals are free, too.  Just send me a note to a lineart you want colored, and I'll give it a look-over.  To set up a ballpark estimate, single-character images go for $40-$60 USD depending on their complexity, comic covers go for $80-$120 USD, and sequential pages go for $50-80. However, I have plenty of discounts too.  If you already have proper flats for the image (high resolution, accurate, aliased edges, no dithering/compression), that's a major discount. Bulk commissions get discounts. Frequent customers and good friends (same thing) get discounts. I have a $5 "contains zombies" discount that I still maintain!  Point being, I can't give a definitive pricing graph that will give you an exact amount for the commission, so just send over the image for a private appraisal via notes.