My dislike of this whole patreon and writing commission thing* is that there should be somewhere in one’s life that is pure gift and without the expectation of money and advertising. Once profit comes into the mix, then power dynamics and motivations shift. Not that there isn’t power of other sorts in fandom, but the whole appeal for me is its off-the-grid, thumb-the-nose-at-the-Man, free agency, you-can’t-tell-me-what-to-do, subversive elements. Once it’s paid gig in any way, it just becomes part of the machine I want to get away from.
Fandom and its storytelling is taking power back and sharing it around a campfire. Once you start charging admission, you’re not only boring but also predictable.
If people want to create art and fic for money, feel free, but don’t do it on the backs of the original creators, and on your fellow fans. That’s hardly ground-breaking and subversive.
Source of the Quote: Fanlore: Fandom and The Gift Economy