# Questions about Commissioning for the Furry Fandom



## Crownflame (May 29, 2011)

Hello, all! 

There seems to be a lot of threads about new commissioners, but none of them really answer my questions. I've recently thought about opening commissions, and I'm also quite new to FurAffinity (I'm not a furry, but the community is great), and there are some things I just don't have a clue about. 

I would deeply, deeply, appreciate responses- I've tried asking elsewhere to no avail. 

So here are the general ones:

1. Paypal. I actually have one, but I have no idea how to use it- I'd really appreciate general advice. 
-Also, are there other recommended modes of payment?
-How do you recommend taking payment? I was thinking of taking a 25-50% deposit up-front, and then taking the rest when the commission is completed (deposit refunded or discounted if anything comes up)

2. Resolution. What are the general sizes deemed acceptable for commissions?- I understand there's generally a high-res version for the customer, and then a lower-res for public posting. What res should I generally be working in, for say, single character commissions, comic pages, or the like? 
-I'm also interested in how icon commissions tend to be sized. 

3. What formats will be in demand? I know pinups and icons seem to be common. There's also doodles and comics and such. 
-What is a badge? What size should it be? How is it executed?
-What is a "stream sketch?" (I do a lot of Livestream, and I would probably involve this a lot in the commission process)
-What is typically asked of artists in refsheet commissions?
-Any other trends as far as commission packages in the furry fandom?

4. What kind of types of requests am I likely to run into? (I probably won't be doing porn, but I'm already established in fanart, vore, and a bit of dabbling into TF, so I'm expecting a lot of fanart vore)
-What are major fetishes I need to account for when making a do/don't list?
-What is your opinion on fanart commissions? On one hand, I definitely would have a market for it. On the other, it's technically illegal, and sometimes I simply don't feel comfortable drawing copyrighted characters at someone else's will, especially if it involves crossovers. 

5. I've been doing a bit of research, and I've seen it suggested that one should do some requests before offering commissions. Opinions on this? 

I think that's all I have for now, but I'll probably think of more. 

Your responses, no matter how in-depth, are DEEPLY appreciated. Thanks SO much. 

(also, this is my first post here, so I'm sorry if it's in the wrong location or something)


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## Fay V (May 29, 2011)

I'll answer the stuff I actually know.



Crownflame said:


> 1. Paypal. I actually have one, but I have no idea how to use it- I'd really appreciate general advice.
> -Also, are there other recommended modes of payment?
> -How do you recommend taking payment? I was thinking of taking a 25-50% deposit up-front, and then taking the rest when the commission is completed (deposit refunded or discounted if anything comes up)


-Generally you have an email connected to the paypal account. People will transfer money by plugging in the email account into the transfer part. It's rather hard to explain and I suggest you take a look around the site's help section
-I just use paypal. Some people will mail in money sometimes
-That sounds fine to me. Personally I like to do a sketch then get payment after the sketch is done, but there's nothing wrong with the down payment method. 



> 2. Resolution. What are the general sizes deemed acceptable for commissions?- I understand there's generally a high-res version for the customer, and then a lower-res for public posting. What res should I generally be working in, for say, single character commissions, comic pages, or the like?
> -I'm also interested in how icon commissions tend to be sized.


-it depends on what it is, a highly detailed commission will need a higher resolution. I tend to make it 1000x1000 for refs and 800x800 ish for other stuff. I always draw my commissions at 4000x4000 then shrink it down. 
-Icons tend to be made large then shrunk down. Most people will make a small version 100x100 or 150x150 and a large version 500x500 for the customer. 


> 3. What formats will be in demand? I know pinups and icons seem to be common. There's also doodles and comics and such.
> -What is a badge? What size should it be? How is it executed?
> -What is a "stream sketch?" (I do a lot of Livestream, and I would probably involve this a lot in the commission process)
> -What is typically asked of artists in refsheet commissions?
> -Any other trends as far as commission packages in the furry fandom?


It depends on who you are and what you are good at. I get a fair amount of character stuff, just single shot, basic background, character pictures. Some ref sheets. There are those that are great at backgrounds and get commissions for that. Basically whatever you are good at, expect that. People see your work and want something similar. 
-A badge is a small laminated picture worn at conventions. It has the character and the name. They are usually about 3x4 inches. Here's a ref of one of mine. Usually you print out a high res version, laminate, cut it out, and mail it to the customer. You can draw then traditionally too. Basically the idea is it is a laminated picture showing who the person is so they are identified at conventions. 
-A stream sketch is a sketch that someone requests in stream and you draw it as they watch.
-It depends on what the ref is for. For a suit ref you get front, side, back, and get the marks down for the fursuit maker. Often times if there is a specific mark like a tattoo you do a detailed shot of that. With character commissions you can do a lot of stuff, emotions, close ups of features like paws and mouths. 
-hmm i dunno for packages. character pictures, scenes, icons, badges, and refs seem to cover it.



> 4. What kind of types of requests am I likely to run into? (I probably won't be doing porn, but I'm already established in fanart, vore, and a bit of dabbling into TF, so I'm expecting a lot of fanart vore)
> -What are major fetishes I need to account for when making a do/don't list?
> -What is your opinion on fanart commissions? On one hand, I definitely would have a market for it. On the other, it's technically illegal, and sometimes I simply don't feel comfortable drawing copyrighted characters at someone else's will, especially if it involves crossovers.


-personally I run into a lot of requests to draw cute things. I'm good at that. I don't do a lot of adult art so I'm not asked for it. 
-honestly I think you should just have a TOS note that you can deny a commission from someone. That way if a new fetish comes up and you're uncomfortable you're covered. There's an infinite number of fetishes, you can't account for them all. I think the main ones are vore, scat, watersports, herm, micro, macro, giant genitalia, TF, and bondage.
-again it depends on how it's done and why. If it's a species I'm less wary of it, especially when drawn in your style, for instance I've drawn digimon and pokemon stuff, but in my style. If it's something like "draw simba" then I wouldn't really do it. If the fanart is an interpretation, like "draw the green lantern as a furry" or using something as a reference, then go for it.



> 5. I've been doing a bit of research, and I've seen it suggested that one should do some requests before offering commissions. Opinions on this?


I like this idea personally. I think that doing simple sketches is good for a person and gets their name out there, you build up a fan base. I don't think artists should really take random requests and give the same quality as commissions, and I think that once you do commission regularly you should stop doing requests often. If you request often then it will be hard to get commissions as people will just wait till it is request time again. 

I think that's all I have for now, but I'll probably think of more. 

Your responses, no matter how in-depth, are DEEPLY appreciated. Thanks SO much. 

(also, this is my first post here, so I'm sorry if it's in the wrong location or something)

Edit: looking at your work. I'm not sure you really need the requests. I think you have a distinct style and can get attention if you just start offering commissions.


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## Aaros (May 29, 2011)

I've only been taking commissions for about six months, but here are my thoughts.


Crownflame said:


> 1. Paypal. I actually have one, but I have no idea how to use it- I'd really appreciate general advice.
> -Also, are there other recommended modes of payment?
> -How do you recommend taking payment? I was thinking of taking a 25-50% deposit up-front, and then taking the rest when the commission is completed (deposit refunded or discounted if anything comes up)


I have so far always asked for payment up-front and haven't had a problem in doing that, but I understand if you want to do it differently. I've seen some artists who will take payment after they get a sketch approved by the commissioners, and after that they flesh out the sketch into a real drawing, which seems like a reasonable way to do it.
But if you take commissions for a little while and always deliver for your commissioners, people generally start to trust you enough to pay up front, as far as I've found.


> 2. Resolution. What are the general sizes deemed acceptable for commissions?- I understand there's generally a high-res version for the customer, and then a lower-res for public posting. What res should I generally be working in, for say, single character commissions, comic pages, or the like?
> -I'm also interested in how icon commissions tend to be sized.


This is probably a thing to ask your commissioner about for each commission. Once I checked with my commissioner to make sure it was alright to make the commission in a smaller size, and they were alright, so I did, but usually I go as large as possible just to be safe. Once I had a commission the commissioner really liked and wanted a big print of, which also happened to be one I made in 11,000x8,000 resolution, so I'm lucky I just happened to make that one huge so it could be a large print. It's easier to shrink things and not easy to blow things up, so it's always just safe to go big when you can 

I usually draw icons 150-200% the size of what I intend the icon to actually be, then shrink them down, but I'm guessing that's all personal preference. For deciding what the final size is supposed to be, that's something to ask your commissioner. Maybe they want to use the icon on deviantart, 80x80px, or on FA, 100x100px - different places have different sizes so ask what they're aiming for as far as size.


> 5. I've been doing a bit of research, and I've seen it suggested that one should do some requests before offering commissions. Opinions on this?


That depends on how popular you are. If you advertise for commissions for a little while and don't get anyone commissioning you, then perhaps it might be a good idea to throw up a journal asking for requests and pick a couple to your fancy and make them.
But if you _do_ start getting commissions immediately, there's no reason to bother with requests. So it totally depends on whether you are popular enough for commissions or not.


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## FireFeathers (May 30, 2011)

Been in business for 3 years, but been doing this full-time for 1. I'll answer the ones not beaten to death yet:



Crownflame said:


> 2. Resolution. What are the general sizes deemed acceptable for commissions?- I understand there's generally a high-res version for the customer, and then a lower-res for public posting. What res should I generally be working in, for say, single character commissions, comic pages, or the like?
> -I'm also interested in how icon commissions tend to be sized.



I generally work at 3000 x3000 px with 300 DPI. When posting, I minimize my commission down to 30% the size of the original. Comic pages are generally around 11 x17 inches. Icons i do at 750 dpi and minimize it down.




> 3. What formats will be in demand? I know pinups and icons seem to be common. There's also doodles and comics and such.
> -What is a badge? What size should it be? How is it executed?
> -What is a "stream sketch?" (I do a lot of Livestream, and I would probably involve this a lot in the commission process)
> -What is typically asked of artists in refsheet commissions?
> -Any other trends as far as commission packages in the furry fandom?



I sell most on full background single-character commissions, I don't do many icons; basically people go for whatever you're posting the most of.  Stream sketch is a sketch done on livestream.  Typically asked of artists for a ref sheet is a front and back view, I put some expressions and a big effin' eye. Trends are often hard to pin down, there's no break-away thing that everyone's gotta do. People like stuff they can hold, people like unique stuff. Mix that up as you wish and you'll get something out of it. 



> 4. What kind of types of requests am I likely to run into? (I probably won't be doing porn, but I'm already established in fanart, vore, and a bit of dabbling into TF, so I'm expecting a lot of fanart vore)
> -What are major fetishes I need to account for when making a do/don't list?
> -What is your opinion on fanart commissions? On one hand, I definitely would have a market for it. On the other, it's technically illegal, and sometimes I simply don't feel comfortable drawing copyrighted characters at someone else's will, especially if it involves crossovers.


Babyfur, watersports, vore, inflation, TF, ...FFF they're all listed in the search, just go to them and burn your retinas for yourself. That'll tell you what you do and don't want to draw. As for fanart commissions, they're a good way to use your style to maybe change up something about them to make them less illegal. But that said, yeah, they're fairly controversial.


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## Thaily (May 30, 2011)

Crownflame said:


> Hello, all!
> 
> There seems to be a lot of threads about new commissioners, but none of them really answer my questions. I've recently thought about opening commissions, and I'm also quite new to FurAffinity (I'm not a furry, but the community is great), and there are some things I just don't have a clue about.
> 
> ...



- Don't use Paypal for porn, they have rules against that and might close your account/seize your funds/fine you. For adult work you can use Alertpay, but they have rules against illegal content. They consider cub porn to be illegal.
- I take 100% up front at â‚¬50 or less and 50% if it's over â‚¬50. Always get something up front, even from friends and repeat customers. They may not intend to stiff you, but life happens and you don't wanna ruin a relationship over money. Don't start on the sketch until you have at least a down payment, don't finish it before you have the rest. A lot of the problems artists have can be prevented this way.



Crownflame said:


> 2. Resolution. What are the general sizes deemed acceptable for commissions?- I understand there's generally a high-res version for the customer, and then a lower-res for public posting. What res should I generally be working in, for say, single character commissions, comic pages, or the like?
> -I'm also interested in how icon commissions tend to be sized.



Most people work on icon commissions at 500/600 pixels (on each side, square) and include the full-size version as a courtesy. Most icons are 100x100 pixels, if someone needs a custom size you can try re-cropping it, but it's better if they mention that up front. You can ask, but customers sometimes get confused by questions like that, but a 100x100 is a pretty safe bet.

For pin-ups and such I work at A4 (size of a legal document, for you non-Europeans, Photoshop has a list with EU paper sizes you can select A4 from when you create a new file) at 150 DPI, which is good enough for printing at that size (A4). Traditional work can be scanned at a 150 DPI.
I always tell my customers to keep the large file to themselves, they can only make prints for themselves. I haven't had any troubles with it, but you'll want a decent TOS (terms of service), a contract they bind themselves to, to prevent any trouble (selling prints of your commissions, as a freelancer you always retain the rights unless specifically agreed on otherwise).

Especially on large files for people on FA I include a version that's just below FA's upload limit; if they upload a large file and FA sizes it down, it's going to look like shit which makes the customer unhappy and is bad advertising for you.



Crownflame said:


> 3. What formats will be in demand? I know pinups and icons seem to be common. There's also doodles and comics and such.
> -What is a badge? What size should it be? How is it executed?
> -What is a "stream sketch?" (I do a lot of Livestream, and I would probably involve this a lot in the commission process)
> -What is typically asked of artists in refsheet commissions?
> -Any other trends as far as commission packages in the furry fandom?



- People prefer finished work (ink, coloured, maybe a background) over icons and sketches I find.
- Badges are worn at conventions, if you go to an office supply store you can find the plastic covers and clips and such required to make them. Size depends on what supplies you buy, but gives yourself some room to draw and for you to put the name in nice and clear so people can read it from a few feet away. Be careful using traditional media and sealing it, some will smear or bleed. Digital, printed work is really nice, pencils and paint are mostly safe to use.
- "Stream sketch" is a sketch people will watch you draw, but beware people who will try and get (more than) their money's worth and nitpick for hours if you let them. You can set a time limit and offer extensions if they're still unhappy at the end of their time slot, but in any case you'll need to be able to put your foot down even if they become confrontational in the chatroom.
- A front and back view, close-ups of the face or hands, special markings or features. Sometimes genitalia.
- Sometimes people offer whole sketchbooks, I dunno if (especially beginning) artists can charge enough for those to be worth it. Some people do Iron Artist commissions; a series of commissions where customers have minimal input but pay a reduced price. They're taken in batches.



Crownflame said:


> 4. What kind of types of requests am I likely to run into? (I probably won't be doing porn, but I'm already established in fanart, vore, and a bit of dabbling into TF, so I'm expecting a lot of fanart vore)
> -What are major fetishes I need to account for when making a do/don't list?
> -What is your opinion on fanart commissions? On one hand, I definitely would have a market for it. On the other, it's technically illegal, and sometimes I simply don't feel comfortable drawing copyrighted characters at someone else's will, especially if it involves crossovers.



- A lot of people don't do cub porn/bestiality/poop/pee sex/snuff/rape.
Some of the fetishes I see a lot? Muscles, fat, inflation, hyper genitalia, people getting stretched around aforementioned genitalia, multiple breasts/genitalia...
- It depends I guess? I'm not horrified if someone draws someone else's characters being in-character, like the TMNT eating pizza or Tom and Jerry chasing each other. But I'll admit I'm not keen on OOC "fanart", how much of a fan are you if you want to see the characters acting in a way they never would, like the Swatkats having gay sex or voring each other? :/
I'd never draw that, not even for money. Legal issues aside, it's kind of disrespectful. These characters have creators who are attached to them too.
Which is something else you're going to want to think about; there are people who try to commission artists for art involving fandom characters they don't own without the owner's permission, which can be quite hurtful to the original owner and possibly land you in a world of drama.
I don't take commissions without the owner's permission beforehand. You'll have to decide that for yourself though.



Crownflame said:


> 5. I've been doing a bit of research, and I've seen it suggested that one should do some requests before offering commissions. Opinions on this?



I think they want free shit.


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## Arshes Nei (May 30, 2011)

Just FYI,

The rules for adult art on Paypal is actually different in the US vs Europe.


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## Sax (May 30, 2011)

Is it in the usa that adult content is allowed? I had a look at the French version of paypal Acceptable Use, and it prohibits "obscene goods" and "sexual products and services". In the future I'll take commissions and I'm trying to see exactly what service can I use for what content and for which continent.


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## Tejas (May 30, 2011)

Thaily said:


> - Don't use Paypal for porn, they have rules against that and might close your account/seize your funds/fine you. For adult work you can use Alertpay, but they have rules against illegal content. They consider cub porn to be illegal.



This is why I really only have Alertpay right now. I see a lot of people taking adult commissions with paypal though, so I have to wonder if enough people actually have alertpay and are willing to pay with that instead?


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## Ilayas (May 30, 2011)

Crownflame said:


> 5. I've been doing a bit of research, and I've seen it suggested that one should do some requests before offering commissions. Opinions on this?



Requests are useful for three things, generating interest (cus nothing gets people's attention like "free"), practice, and providing examples.  It's very helpful to the person deciding whether or not to buy from you if you have examples of what they get at each price point. I've also noticed in  your gallery that you don't really have much "furry" stuff in there. If you want people to pay you to draw furries then you should draw some furries so they know what you can do and how you do it.  It's not necessary to do requests; you can just draw whatever you want, if it's quality it'll generate interest on it's own.  But taking requests is a quick and easy way to get ideas in case you have problems coming up with ideas of what to draw.  

Everyone else has covered the other stuff pretty thoroughly so I have nothing to add there.


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## Thaily (May 30, 2011)

I believe the US version disallows "obscene goods" etc.
So if the EU version mentions the same, not sure where the difference is.

I do know you can also pay via Alertpay in the same way as Paypal, not just account to account, but also creditcard to account etc.
So customers don't need to have an account per se.


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## Saeto15 (May 30, 2011)

Crownflame said:


> -What are major fetishes I need to account for when making a do/don't list?



Just write yourself up a Terms of Service and have each client look it over before you start.  I personally don't do anything sexual, and I have that in my TOS.  Thankfully I've never been approached to do any sort of fetish art other than transformation, which is usually pretty tame.


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## Crownflame (May 30, 2011)

Fay V said:


> I'll answer the stuff I actually know.


  Thanks so much! Every bit helps. 



Fay V said:


> -A badge is a small laminated picture worn at conventions. It has the character and the name. They are usually about 3x4 inches. Here's a ref of one of mine. Usually you print out a high res version, laminate, cut it out, and mail it to the customer. You can draw then traditionally too. Basically the idea is it is a laminated picture showing who the person is so they are identified at conventions.


  So the artist is expected to do the printing, laminating and mailing? Or is it acceptable to give them digital art to print? I assume itâ€™s generally practice to just send traditional badges. 



Fay V said:


> I like this idea personally. I think that doing simple sketches is good for a person and gets their name out there, you build up a fan base. I don't think artists should really take random requests and give the same quality as commissions, and I think that once you do commission regularly you should stop doing requests often. If you request often then it will be hard to get commissions as people will just wait till it is request time again.


  All right, that totally makes sense. I have a huge reputation for slapping â€œNO REQUESTS PLEASEâ€ on the bottom of everything, so when I do, itâ€™s special. XD
  That being said, I tried some simple stream sketches the other night (I wasnâ€™t 100% positive I could draw anthro, which, you know, could be a problem). Now Iâ€™m kind of way too excited to get started- thereâ€™s some fun stuff out there. 



Fay V said:


> Edit: looking at your work. I'm not sure you really need the requests. I think you have a distinct style and can get attention if you just start offering commissions.


  Yeah, I do have a niche. XD If I do any more freebies, itâ€™ll probably be for the sake of keeping my skill level up to par for pay stuff. 
  Thanks a ton for your input, Fay V. : )
  -


Aaros said:


> I have so far always asked for payment up-front and haven't had a problem in doing that, but I understand if you want to do it differently. I've seen some artists who will take payment after they get a sketch approved by the commissioners, and after that they flesh out the sketch into a real drawing, which seems like a reasonable way to do it.
> But if you take commissions for a little while and always deliver for your commissioners, people generally start to trust you enough to pay up front, as far as I've found.


  All right, that does sound reasonable, too. If people will pay up-front, thatâ€™s great- itâ€™s probably simpler that way. Iâ€™ll definitely consider it. 



Aaros said:


> This is probably a thing to ask your commissioner about for each commission. Once I checked with my commissioner to make sure it was alright to make the commission in a smaller size, and they were alright, so I did, but usually I go as large as possible just to be safe. Once I had a commission the commissioner really liked and wanted a big print of, which also happened to be one I made in 11,000x8,000 resolution, so I'm lucky I just happened to make that one huge so it could be a large print. It's easier to shrink things and not easy to blow things up, so it's always just safe to go big when you can


  Oh wow. ; I habitually draw WAY too small, then- evidently I should probably start drawing a fair bit larger. 
  Good to know! 
  Thanks for all your help, Aaros! : )
  -


FireFeathers said:


> I generally work at 3000 x3000 px with 300 DPI. When posting, I minimize my commission down to 30% the size of the original. Comic pages are generally around 11 x17 inches. Icons i do at 750 dpi and minimize it down.


  All right- great to know. Those all sound like reasonable adjustments from my normal routine. 




FireFeathers said:


> Typically asked of artists for a ref sheet is a front and back view, I put some expressions and a big effin' eye.


  I like big effinâ€™ eyes. XD I didnâ€™t think about that- Iâ€™ll keep that in mind. 



FireFeathers said:


> Babyfur, watersports, vore, inflation, TF, ...FFF they're all listed in the search, just go to them and burn your retinas for yourself. That'll tell you what you do and don't want to draw. As for fanart commissions, they're a good way to use your style to maybe change up something about them to make them less illegal. But that said, yeah, they're fairly controversial.



Oh, DUH. Iâ€™m such an idiot sometimes- Iâ€™ll definitely go read that list. XD  
  I guess Iâ€™ll have to see how sales go with fanart- itâ€™s possible it could be a non-issue, but if ALL my prospective commissions involve fan stuff, then that doesnâ€™t really sound like an ideal situation. XP 
  Unfortunately, the niche Iâ€™ve carved for myself is fan stuff, so I guess I need to deter that early on. 
  Thank you so much for offering your two cents, FireFeathers! 
  -


Thaily said:


> - Don't use Paypal for porn, they have rules against that and might close your account/seize your funds/fine you. For adult work you can use Alertpay, but they have rules against illegal content. They consider cub porn to be illegal.


  Okay, sounds like that may be a European restriction. XD Hopefully I donâ€™t have to worry much about that though, since pornâ€¦ I donâ€™t feel like I could really draw porn. 



Thaily said:


> - - I take 100% up front at â‚¬50 or less and 50% if it's over â‚¬50. Always get something up front, even from friends and repeat customers. They may not intend to stiff you, but life happens and you don't wanna ruin a relationship over money. Don't start on the sketch until you have at least a down payment, don't finish it before you have the rest. A lot of the problems artists have can be prevented this way.


  Ah, that is stuff to keep in mind. This is great advice. 




Thaily said:


> Especially on large files for people on FA I include a version that's just below FA's upload limit; if they upload a large file and FA sizes it down, it's going to look like shit which makes the customer unhappy and is bad advertising for you.


  Eesh, all right. Thatâ€™s like, 1200px, right? I know I have issues with my artwork all the time. XP




Thaily said:


> - "Stream sketch" is a sketch people will watch you draw, but beware people who will try and get (more than) their money's worth and nitpick for hours if you let them. You can set a time limit and offer extensions if they're still unhappy at the end of their time slot, but in any case you'll need to be able to put your foot down even if they become confrontational in the chatroom.


  All right. I have noticed that the live chat seems to be a mixed blessing. XD  Thatâ€™s probably a good idea, to do it with a time limit. 


Thaily said:


> - A lot of people don't do cub porn/bestiality/poop/pee sex/snuff/rape.
> Some of the fetishes I see a lot? Muscles, fat, inflation, hyper genitalia, people getting stretched around aforementioned genitalia, multiple breasts/genitalia...


  Ugh, yeahâ€¦. Iâ€™ll definitely keep that stuff in mind for â€œTHE LIST LISTâ€. 


Thaily said:


> - It depends I guess? I'm not horrified if someone draws someone else's characters being in-character, like the TMNT eating pizza or Tom and Jerry chasing each other. But I'll admit I'm not keen on OOC "fanart", how much of a fan are you if you want to see the characters acting in a way they never would, like the Swatkats having gay sex or voring each other? :/
> I'd never draw that, not even for money. Legal issues aside, it's kind of disrespectful. These characters have creators who are attached to them too.


  So in your perspective, itâ€™s more a matter of what the characters are doing- like, if itâ€™s a good tribute piece, itâ€™s fine, but if itâ€™s canon breakage, you avoid it. More of a moral thing than a legal thing- that makes a lot of sense to me.  Iâ€™ll definitely think about it. 



Thaily said:


> Which is something else you're going to want to think about; there are people who try to commission artists for art involving fandom characters they don't own without the owner's permission, which can be quite hurtful to the original owner and possibly land you in a world of drama.
> I don't take commissions without the owner's permission beforehand. You'll have to decide that for yourself though.


  Oh yeah. Iâ€™ll definitely ask permission in that case. 



Thaily said:


> I think they want free shit.


  XD Possibly. 
  Thanks so much for the advice, Thaily. Itâ€™s very helpful. 
  -

  Thank you all SO much for your replies- I definitely have a lot to think about here. 
  Here are a few more questions, then, Iâ€™ve thought of. 

  -How do you go about laminating/assembling badges? What are your favorite materials and such? 

  -Whatâ€™s the general sequence of events for stream sketches? I guess like, a walk-through would be immensely helpful (if, Iâ€™m sure, a little redundant for you. XD) Iâ€™m dumb, sorry. 

  -What kinds of things do you include in your TOS? What does your personal one look like?

-How much is usually charged to the customer for shipping costs for traditional art?


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## Crownflame (May 30, 2011)

Ilayas said:


> Requests are useful for three things, generating interest (cus nothing gets people's attention like "free"), practice, and providing examples.  It's very helpful to the person deciding whether or not to buy from you if you have examples of what they get at each price point. I've also noticed in  your gallery that you don't really have much "furry" stuff in there. If you want people to pay you to draw furries then you should draw some furries so they know what you can do and how you do it.  It's not necessary to do requests; you can just draw whatever you want, if it's quality it'll generate interest on it's own.  But taking requests is a quick and easy way to get ideas in case you have problems coming up with ideas of what to draw.



Yup, I'm going to do a fair bit of this stuff before I open up, of course. XD I'm already dabbling, and for sure when I get a price sheet up, it's going to have furry examples available. 

Thanks so much.


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## Crownflame (May 30, 2011)

Saeto15 said:


> Just write yourself up a Terms of Service and have each client look it over before you start.  I personally don't do anything sexual, and I have that in my TOS.  Thankfully I've never been approached to do any sort of fetish art other than transformation, which is usually pretty tame.



Yeah, I'll definitely keep that in mind! 

Thanks a lot.


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## Thaily (May 30, 2011)

Crownflame said:


> Okay, sounds like that may be a European restriction. XD Hopefully I donâ€™t have to worry much about that though, since pornâ€¦ I donâ€™t feel like I could really draw porn.



I read the same in the US TOS and heard about US people getting into trouble over it, but if you don't do smut anyway it's not a big issue for you either way.



Crownflame said:


> Eesh, all right. Thatâ€™s like, 1200px, right? I know I have issues with my artwork all the time. XP


 
 # Accepted formats: jpg, gif, png, jpeg
# Max. file size: 10Mbytes
# Max. image dimensions: 1280x1280

It's mentioned on the "select a file to upload" page, I always keep forgetting.



Crownflame said:


> So in your perspective, itâ€™s more a matter of what the characters are doing- like, if itâ€™s a good tribute piece, itâ€™s fine, but if itâ€™s canon breakage, you avoid it. More of a moral thing than a legal thing- that makes a lot of sense to me.  Iâ€™ll definitely think about it.



Myself, I don't accept any commissions with characters unless I have permission from the owner, including copyrighted character. I have drawn a little IC fanart, but that's for my own enjoyment as a tribute and I make no money off it at all.
It is a moral thing for me, I wouldn't want people to abuse my characters like that, much less pay a third party to make pictures of it, so I extend that courtesy to others in the (naive, probably) hope they'll do the same for me.



Crownflame said:


> -How do you go about laminating/assembling badges? What are your favorite materials and such?



Office supply stores often carry small lamination machines, as do some hobby and art supply stores. You buy a packet of plastic sleeves, put art in sleeve, run through machine which warms the glue and seals the artwork in the plastic sleeve. If you do laminate things you should make some test badges with different art supplies and leave them for a few weeks, some bleed, really slowly and that will make your customer pretty unhappy.



Crownflame said:


> -Whatâ€™s the general sequence of events for stream sketches? I guess like, a walk-through would be immensely helpful (if, Iâ€™m sure, a little redundant for you. XD) Iâ€™m dumb, sorry.



Sign up for a streaming site, I recommend Livestream. Ustream has a thing about nudity supposedly being porn and banning people for drawing "porn". Set up your channel and your streaming software, TEST YOUR STREAM before you start advertising it. People don't wanna watch you fuss with setting for 15 minutes after you invite them. I see this happen a lot 
If you have a set time of day/week it sometimes increases your audience, as they can anticipate the streams. Advertising them some time before the actual stream, and not just minutes before, also helps. Plus it gives you a chance to advertise your commissions beforehand and sell out some timeslots before you jump in.



Crownflame said:


> -What kinds of things do you include in your TOS? What does your personal one look like?



http://www.myriadofmagpies.com/index.php?page=commissions
Four important things: 
- General disclaimer, you reserve the right to decline any commission for any reason without having to explain yourself. This'll keep really persistent perverts off your back.
- Rights. Unless specifically agreed upon otherwise by both parties, freelance artists retain ALL THE RIGHTS to their work; reposting, editing, commercial. A lot of furries don't understand that rights are expensive and not automatically included in a $20 commission. If artists did automatically include and charge for rights, there'd be precious few people who could afford commissions. 
- Additional work = additional pay. If someone asks for lots of changes, charge them extra or you'll be nitpicking at some people's commissions 'till the end times (in October now I believe).
- Refund policy, protects both you and the customer. If you're at the point where a refund is required, things can be messy and emotional and a clear refund policy is essential.



Crownflame said:


> -How much is usually charged to the customer for shipping costs for traditional art?



Depends on where you are and how heavy the package/envelope is; especially originals deserve to be packed up really well.
Slip it into a plastic protective sleeve, then sandwich it between two pieces of cardboard. Tape those together and put it into the envelope.
Tape off the corners of the envelope and maybe the edges so they don't accidentally get torn in transit, which happens a lot with large envelopes, especially if they're wet from rain.
I also write on "Please do not bend" on the envelope; I've yet to have any issues with this, possibly because I use the magic word (in addition to cardboard). Mail carriers are people too and susceptible to manners.
Get tracking whenever possible. Costs a bit extra, but it's ever so handy.


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## Thaily (May 30, 2011)

Oh, and you didn't ask about this, but I should mention it; communication.
The most common complaint I hear from customers (about other artists ) is "He's taking a long time and I can't get into contact with him."

Most customers will understand if the commission takes a while or is delayed, as long as you stay in contact with them.
- Don't keep all your customer information (including contact information) in notes on FA. Sometimes FA goes down, you don't want your business to grind to a halt because of another server failure.
- Try and respond within 48 hours.
- If there's a delay, tell the customer. Don't just mention it on your FA/blog/twitter for customers to find, contact them directly.
- And don't go into detail. They don't need to know your aunt Eddy went insane and shaved 14 hamsters in a pet store dressed in 3 socks and 2 hats, just tell them there's a family emergency.
- Be careful when handing out IM information or phone numbers and such. Some customers will get the impression you've become friends over the course of a business transaction, especially if they can contact you easily and directly and will contact you often for non-business related things. It's kind of uncomfortable because these are often really nice people, just a little awkward and can be hard to let them down without hurting their feelings. If you get the impression they're reading more into the professional communication than you intended, try and keep non-commission chatter to a minimum and don't give them your phone number/AIM/Yahoo/ICQ/etc. info.


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## Arshes Nei (May 30, 2011)

Paypal changed the US conditions a bit back about sexual items. They basically don't want for pay adult sites selling through paypal. That and you don't want a Craiglist prostitute using paypal for services either. If all sexual or adult oriented items were prohibited, Second Life would encounter a big problem. That isn't to say that there weren't past issues with artists getting in trouble for sexual content, but the terms did change several years back regarding adult items.

What people are getting in trouble for the most these days are people using free paypal accounts as premiere account "lite".

Remember, there are two types of paypal accounts.


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## Taralack (May 30, 2011)

Arshes Nei said:


> What people are getting in trouble for the most these days are people using free paypal accounts as premiere account "lite".
> 
> Remember, there are two types of paypal accounts.


 
What's the difference? I've had a premium account for years (don't even remember how it got that way) so I don't know otherwise.


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## Arshes Nei (May 31, 2011)

Premium accounts are made for business use. People were using their personal paypal accounts to try to avoid fees when receiving money. There is also a 500 a month cap limit on personal paypal accounts for how much money you can use/receive


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## Crownflame (Jun 1, 2011)

Wow, Thaily, thank you SO much for all the thoughtful advice. It's REALLY helpful stuff- you've elucidated a lot of things for me. I really appreciate it.  



And isn't it like, really easy to get a premium PayPal account? I mean, I just gave them some information, and I think the $500 has been lifted on mine.


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## Arshes Nei (Jun 1, 2011)

Yes, and you can have 2 paypal accounts.
You would however need 2 different accounts or numbers it goes to, as well as 2 email addresses

example, a debit card number and a savings/checking account

So you could do one account under your savings account and the other under your checking.


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## Crownflame (Jun 1, 2011)

Oh, that's good to know, Arshes. That could be useful.


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