Onyrica's Patreon Guide

ABOUT THIS PATREONOnyrica is a freelance illustrator and art mentor and this Patreon is how she keeps her tablet powered on to make art and bring up the newest generation of artists.This Patreon has been running since 2017 and as with most aging things, there's a lot to know. This guide will walk you through the most important key information - which you can find in the sections below.Additionally, all changes and updates will also be communicated regularly via Patreon, my website and the announcements section of the Discord, which will then be recorded into this live document so please keep this bookmarked for posterity.This Patreon currently has 5 main tiers:
Easy: 5$ | 5 points p/month
Intermediate: 10$ | 10 points p/month
Advanced: 20$ | 20 points p/month
Extreme: 50$ | 50 points p/month (limited to 25 slots)
Ultimate: 100$ | 100 points p/month (limited to 3 slots)And a special tier dedicated to mentoring other artists:
Mentor: 50$ | 20 points p/month + 50 min. monthly art session (limited to 10 slots)The benefits are the same for all main tiers and the primary difference is in the amount of points on StarStickers - my rewards portal - that each tier receives to later spend on things such as free art, discounts, merchandise and more.The Mentor tier is especially tailored for those specifically looking for a mentor to give them feedback or guide them through their own art journey. You can find specific information on this tier here.

Access StarStickers

Below you will find all the relevant information on each benefit you get with your pledge, as well as how to access it. Please go through each link and read it thoroughly. If you have any questions contact me via the details at the bottom of this page.

CONTACT AND SOCIALShould you have any questions not covered in this post and all the links above, you will always be welcome to contact me via any of the following methods:Discord
Patreon DM
[email protected]Additionally, I’m also on several social media channels, though please note I am a lot less likely to respond to a work enquiry on any of these channels as I have notifications muted.Twitter
Instagram
Bluesky
My website

This document will be continuously updated as the system changes so please check back frequently to see the latest version.[ Version: 2 | Last Updated: 4-January-2024 ]

STARSTICKERS (REWARDS)

StarStickers is the core of my Patreon offering: a reward shop designed and mainteined by me, that you get access to by pledging to this Patreon. Every month you’ll get points just for being a supporter, which you can then spend on rewards such as custom art, lessons, discounts, tokens and merchandise. You can also get more points by participating in monthly art challenges, referring friends or pledge anniversaries.You can access it (and register) here:

Access StarStickers

How it works:Every month you will get the equivalent in points of the tier you pledge to. The baseline used to calculate this is the tier cost in USD, as follows:Easy 5$ = 5 pts p/month
Intermediate 10$ = 10 pts p/month
Advanced 20$ = 20 pts p/month
Mentor 50$ = 20 pts p/month
Extreme 50$ = 50 pts p/month
Ultimate 100$ = 100 pts p/monthAdditionally, you might get additional points for participating in Art Challenges, referring a friend or during bonus events I host yearly.More details about the Mentor tier in the Mentorship section.

Reward type and availability:

Once you’ve collected enough points for a reward, simply go to the front page of StarStickers and click on the reward you wish to redeem. The process is fairly straightforward- if a little different depending on the reward you choose:

Illustrated rewards: This reward guarantees art made custom for you - just like a commission, but paid in points! When these rewards become available, there will be a window to apply between the 5th and the 8th of that month. During that window, active patrons with no currently booked illustrated rewards may apply to a single reward.
Token rewards: This reward gives you a token to apply to an existing commission or reward project. Tokens include the addition of an outfit, hairstyle or tattoo design to a pre-booked reward or commission, the option to make a reward or commission NSFW or discounts on pre-booked commissions, . These are always available.
Lesson rewards: This reward will allow you to book a private 1-to-1 50 minute mentoring session with me, regardless of your tier. These are always available but must be checked with me prior to booking to ensure I have time in the month to teach the session.
Merchandise rewards: This reward allows you to buy exclusive prints and merchandise using points, including the shipping cost! These are always available but shipping only happens at the end of the month. Should you require the parcel sooner, please make sure to discuss deadlines with me prior to booking. You can see all currently available prints here.

FAQ:Can I get more than one reward if I have enough points?
You can only have one reward of each type booked at a time. If you choose a bust, mystery box, couple’s piece, etc, you will not be able to book another illustration until the current one is done.You can, however, book a token, a mentorship, an illustrated and merchandise reward at the same time! You will also be able to apply to new illustrated rewards once your current ones are marked as “Completed”.Do I need to pay anything on top of the points?Nope! All rewards are currently cashed in only in points - meaning that all the money you've put towards your pledge will have effectively paid for your commission.
If this should change for any particular rewards, it will be explicitly stated in the booking page.What happens if I change or delete my pledge?If you increase your pledge, you will get the difference in points applied to your account immediately!
If you reduce your pledge, the points you received at the start of the month will remain the same (i.e, no points will be deducted). Going forward, you will receive the lower amount of the tier you’re on.
If you delete your pledge, your account will be frozen but your points will remain untouched for 3 months before they reset.Will my rewards be honored if I delete my pledge?
Absolutely. However, your reward might be given less priority than those booked by active patrons.To ensure that I can deliver your reward, please make sure that you give me a means to contact you after your account is cleared from Patreon and the Discord server.I have another question!You can find more information in the StarStickers Guide (please note you must be logged in), including information on how to apply for rewards or how many points you can accumulate. Additionally, we have a dedicated StarStickers channel in our Discord server.

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MENTORSHIP

The mentorship is an intrinsic, yet optional, part of your Patreon membership. It’s designed for artists of all levels who either need someone to teach them fundamentals or to be a peer to lend a second eye over an advanced piece they might be stuck on.There’s several levels to the mentorship. The following are available to patrons on every tier:

In the Discord community, you get access to a feedback channel in which you can ask for comments from other artists in the server or myself (only if you @ me). There is also an Art Talk channel in which you can simply seek support or advice on other matters.
Once or twice per month, I will also livestream Q&As on Twitch where I’ll do paintovers and answer art questions in real time, as well as provide tips and insight based on individual needs and skill. Whenever this happens, I will give advanced notice in the discord via the Artling role.
I will regularly share WIPs and insights of my own art, with threads or room for questions and commentary.
Access to private lessons purchased via StarStickers with points.

Additionally, patrons on the special Mentor Tier also get access to the following:

A dedicated 50 minute private session each month where we can go over any art-related topic or feedback you need, including: art portfolio reviews, paintovers, help with anatomy or gesture, etc.
Preferential session booking (i.e, options to book a specific/fixed slot every month in advance to ensure I always have availability at your preferred time)
Follow up check-ins on any assignments or work produced in between sessions.

How to book a session:Between the final days of a month and the start of the next, I will make an announcement in the Discord server with the slots I have made available to book for the following pledge period. From there, people From there, people should post in their dedicated server channel and I will book them in myself.Please note that the times in the calendar are in UK time (GMT or BST) so it’s your responsibility to convert this to your time to ensure it fits within your available schedules.You can find and bookmark my calendar here: bit.ly/ony-calendar

How the sessions work:I currently offer two options for the session:

The most popular choice is a live voice chat session via the Discord server, in which we'll share a private voice/chat channel in which I share my screen and draw/paintover/make notes while discussing any topic you wish to talk about.
The second choice is for you to send me your work or questions, and for me to record a video discussing the topic which I’ll upload as an unlisted link onto Youtube.

Through either option, you will get the chance to ask questions in your private channel afterwards and in between sessions if you need further clarification.

What is the session like:That is up to you! As stated above, it’s all about you and your needs and I will be happy to tailor it to that.The first session is usually a general overview of your goals and expectations. For this, I require you to bring some of your latest work (even if that’s years ago) as well as some questions and topics you would like to cover, and a general idea of where you’d like to go from there.After that, we will establish the best way to proceed with your particular lessons according to your time, abilities and aims and then each ongoing session will be adapted based on your personal progress.

Conditions:There are several important things to note regarding the sessions:

If you’re in a tier that’s eligible for a session, but don’t have a need for it, you cannot swap this out for points or other rewards unless otherwise specified by me.
Sessions can’t be passed onto someone else. I will make exceptions for relatives or very close friends (18+ only) under the following conditions: you will be forfeiting your session on their behalf and they will be the only person that can benefit from your session - meaning that if they decide to quit, you will not be able to pass this onto someone else. They will also not be able to access the Discord or any of the other benefits that are inherent to you as a patron.
You can only book one session per month. If you have a session that was postponed for any reason, I'll be happy to discuss arrangements around your specific circumstances.
You must have an idea of what you want out of each session, whether that be a paintover, tips on a particular topic or general questions you’d like me to answer. I am here to guide and teach, but I cannot do either if I don’t understand what your expectations are - regardless of how long the sessions have been going on for.
You may change, postpone, cancel or rebook a session up to two hours before your allocated time. You can do this by sending me a DM on Discord at any point - even if I show as unavailable. Failing to do so in this time will mean forfeiting the session - including any extra time you may have booked through StarStickers.

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DISCORD COMMUNITY

The Discord server - lovingly called The Artroom - is a fantastic little community full of wonderful people who constantly support each other through general banter, games and, of course, art. It is highly recommended that you join us in order to receive the full benefits of your pledge, as well as to be part of something incredibly special and close.

How to join:If you have your Discord account connected to your Patreon account, this will happen automatically. If you don’t, then you can go to patreon.com/settings/apps and somewhere in there you should be able to connect your accounts and join in automatically. If none of that works, then you’re welcome to DM me and I’ll see what I can do.

Why should you join:As per above, a large part of the mentorship aspect happens through the Discord - from the general feedback, to the stream feedback, to the private sessions. Additionally, we also organise events - such as art challenges (open to other crafts too, such as writing) and art parties, DnD and light roleplaying sessions - that everyone’s welcome to participate (or not) in. Finally, the vast majority of my announcements (such as when limited tiers open, when I run a survey or when I just have general PSAs to send out in the moment) also happen in the server.That aside, the community is exceptionally warm and welcoming as a whole. We have writing channels, cooking channels, FFXIV and gaming channels and also channels where you can promote your own commissions and work if you’re a creative. We’re generally active, but not overwhelmingly so, and I keep an open door policy for everyone to express themselves and suggest what they think would be best for the server.Finally, you’re also more than welcome to join and mute the server whilst leaving just a few notifications on. I very rarely use the @everyone tag and only ever do so if the matter is truly relevant to your subscription. That aside, we have selective roles that you can leave active should you wish to receive updates for those and nothing else.

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ART EVENTS

Art events are a general term for little activities that we plan within the community. Currently there’s two primary ones that happen approximately every two months. Here’s a breakdown of what they involve:

Art challenge:Art challenges are a casual way for everyone to get involved in doing something creative, with no pressure or need to do a perfect job. It's not a contest or competition- everyone is welcome and all patrons receive the same rewards. Furthermore, it's not just open to artists, but to writers, video editors, sculptors or anyone with two hands and a creative thought in mind.Every two months a blurb and a theme is given out for people to do whatever they come up with up until the deadline. Anyone who completes the challenge by that date, regardless of skill level or quality of the piece, will receive the point bonus mentioned in the event (usually 10 pts, but there’s often bonus for special occasions such as Christmas).This primarily centers around the Discord server, though it’s often posted on the Patreon timeline as well for those who do not care for it or have a Discord account

FFXIV Art Parties:Many of my supporters are also active players in the MMO Final Fantasy XIV. A few years ago, ‘Art parties’ became a common means to gather within the game while everyone was in lockdown and now, while less frequent, still exist as a way to foster creativity and engage with each other.During these events, you can bring your character (or an alt made in their image) to a specific location (which changes for every event) and either draw other people, take screenshots or simply stand pretty and hope others will do the same for you. You can also just chat, perform or simply lurk in silence while observing everyone else. There really is no other stipulation other than “pop by, chill out”.You do not have to be an artist to attend this event. As long as you're part of this Patreon you are welcome to attend, along with an external friend or two (though you should refrain from publicising the venue openly as this is meant to be exclusive to patrons).

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WORKLOAD AND QUEUES

If you've been through the rest of this guide, you know much is going on all the time! Given the expansive and very labour intensive offer of this Patreon, my workload is typically backed by a fair few months at a time and although my goal is to complete all my current orders by the end of 2024, there are currently still considerable delays to all bookings.The best way to keep on top of what's going on each month is through my Patreon updates which I make at the start of every month, as well as the announcements I make in the Discord community. These often include key information about what's going on and what changes are coming so it's important to keep an eye on them to stay in the loop.Additionally, you can also see everything that's currently in the works in the following pages:Workflow board
This is my task board for the 3-4 upcoming months, so it doesn’t reflect the entirety of everything that’s been booked (commissions or rewards); just those that are in close consideration.Commission queue
I last opened commissions in April 2022 to a total of 60 slots. This was the last time I opened commissions and I am still working through it. To find out more about that particular batch, please check here.Mentorship calendar
Towards the start of every month I make a post in Discord with the slots I have made available to book for the following pledge period. From there, people should post in their dedicated server channel and I will book them in myself. Please note that the times in the calendar are in UK time (GMT or BST).

CONTACT MEShould you have any questions not covered in this guide, you're also welcome to get in touch via:Discord
Patreon DM
[email protected]

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Merchandise

StarStickers is currently the only place where you can get prints of my art! Most art is available on A3, A4 and A5 prints, and a selection of pieces is also available as bookmarks.Standard shipping is included in the booking. Expedited shipping should be requested and will be charged separately. Parcels will be sent as soon as possible, but might be delayed due to external circumstances (such as mailing service issues). If the parcel is needed by a certain timeframe, please contact me to discuss your requirements.