Just a reminder that you can become a subscriber to my Patreon and get a new poem exclusively for you every Sunday, access to free eBooks, workshops, and more for as little as $1 a month. More rewards at higher tiers, or course.
You can become a trial member at the $10 month tier — a week to decide if you wanna stay on. Pay for a year, get a discount. Etc.
Onward…here’s the link!
Thanks,
Tony
My 2023 anthology, “Handwriting Practice,” is now available to my paid members on Patreon. It will be available to the public in a month or two.
Every Sunday I transfer work from here to word processing for safe keeping, editing, etc. This week, I added 7 poems here; I also every Sunday do 1 exclusive poem for the folks who subscribe to my Patreon site.
Between them I’ve added 196 poems so far this year.
Also did one brand new music/poetry piece for Patrons only.
New solo album getting out there.
Patreon itself going well but always welcoming for new subscribers. the site is going to be overhauled soon in line with some changes they are making. It’s a good time to sign up if you want.
In other changes, starting new full-time work tomorrow AM. Likely will reduce my writing time/volume.
Melancholy is the word of the day. Feels like a failure to me, but it can’t be helped.
Onward, then
Let’s talk a little bit about Patreon — mine, in particular.
Patreon is a site that allows supporters to offer monetary help to artists, musicians, poets, etc. It give people a way to provide material support to folks out here working in the precarious world of creative pursuits.
Some people do very well and make the majority of their income from Patreon, offering incentives and exclusive rewards to folks at various subscription levels.
I do not, but I do try. And I think I do offer some things to my Patrons some of you might appreciate. Exclusive poems, video blogs, eBooks, etc.
If you go to the site you’ll find a guide to what’s available at what tiers of support. Right now, I’m also offering a 7-day free trial for folks signing up at the $10/month level. And if I reach $1000 of support I’m releasing a new solo album as an early release to Patrons.
In addition, sign up by Monday the 12th at the $10/month level and you’ll be eligible to attend a free online workshop I’m running in August.
Feel free to message me here for details. I look forward to hearing from at least a few of you.
Thanks,
T
This blog will always be free to read.
But if you like what I do here, you have a couple of options to support the Work.
First off, I have a Patreon site where I host exclusive readings and offer eBooks, recordings, and videos of and about the Work. As little as $1 a month will get you there. Any amount is appreciated.
https://www.patreon.com/TonyBrown
Second, I periodically run workshops for both Patrons and the general public. There were a lot of folks who wanted to attend my workshop on “Voice, Craft, and ‘the Line’ ” who couldn’t. I’ve decided to offer it again twice in August. Choose from:
Saturday, August 12, 1-3:30 PM EDT
Sunday, August 20, 4-6:30 PM EDT
Non Patrons — $35 via PayPal (tony.w.brown@gmail.com), Venmo (@Anthony-Brown-95), or CashApp ($DuendeProj).
Free to Patrons at the 10$/month tier or above who have been patrons at least two months prior (hence the very early announcement today).
I hope you’ll consider joining us for one or both. I’m working very hard to make my poetry a larger part of my life and a bigger part of my support income. If you like what I do, these are ways to help make it all happen.
Thanks,
Tony
Here is a link with information about the workshop I’m running on Sunday.
If you are interested, you may use one of the payment options outlined there to get to a link for the workshop itself. I’ll take payments through Saturday.
If you join my Patreon site at the $10/month tier or above, you get access to this and other workshops for free, along with other rewards.
I hope to see some of you there.
Thanks,
T
If you like what I do here, you have a couple of options to support the Work.
First off, there’s always the Patreon site where I host exclusive readings and offer eBooks, recordings, and videos of and about the Work. As little as $1 a month will get you there. Any amount is appreciated.
https://www.patreon.com/TonyBrown
Second, I periodically run workshops for both Patrons and the general public. Here’s a workshop I’m running to close out National Poetry Month…
https://www.facebook.com/events/616902663639634
I hope you’ll consider becoming a part of one or both. I’m working very hard to make my poetry a larger part of my life and a bigger part of my support income. If you like what I do, these are ways to help make it all happen.
Thanks,
Tony
I know I’ve posted all this before but I’m trying to consolidate info into one post and keep it current. So…here we go.
(Includes a new payment option for the workshops.)
1.
I’ll be releasing an initially exclusive album of poems and music to Patrons subscribed at the $25/month tier on my site whenever I reach the goal of $1000/month in contributions (less than $200 to go now).
If you join or upgrade to the $15 dollar/month or above level by end of Saturday, tomorrow, April 1 — you’ll get it too. Little incentive for all.
Link to join: https://www.patreon.com/TonyBrown
2.
I’m running Zoom workshops on: April 16 (The Poetry Of Place) and April 30 (Voice, Craft, and the Line)
that will be free to patrons of the site at the $10/month level and up.
Time for both: Sundays, 5 to 7 PM EDT.
I need payment for this first workshop by Saturday, April 15. Zoom link will be sent upon payment.
If you want to attend without being a Patron, it’s $35 for one, $50 for both, payable through PayPal or Venmo. Links to both are now available and will be sent upon payment.
PayPal: tony.w.brown@gmail.com
Venmo: @Anthony-Brown-95
CashApp: $DuendeProj
Thanks in advance.
T
I know I’ve posted all this before but I’m trying to consolidate info into one post and keep it current. So…here we go. Includes a new payment option for the workshops.
1.
I’ll be releasing an initially exclusive album of poems and music to Patrons subscribed at the $25/month tier on my site whenever I reach the goal of $1000/month in contributions (less than $200 to go now).
If you join or upgrade to the $15 dollar/month or above level by end of Saturday, tomorrow, April 1 — you’ll get it too. Little incentive for all.
Link to join: https://www.patreon.com/TonyBrown
2.
I’m running Zoom workshops on: April 16 (The Poetry Of Place) and April 30 (Voice, Craft, and the Line)
that will be free to patrons of the site at the $10/month level and up.
Time for both: Sundays, 5 to 7 PM EDT.
If you want to attend without being a Patron, it’s $35 for one, $50 for both, payable through PayPal or Venmo. Links to both are now available and will be sent upon payment.
PayPal: tony.w.brown@gmail.com
Venmo: @Anthony-Brown-95
CashApp: $DuendeProj
Thanks in advance.
T
I wanted to take a minute or two — this won’t be a short post, so be forewarned — to explain a lot of my recent “hustling, money- grubbing” tenor here and elsewhere. I am usually pretty embarrassed by talking about this and I’m not a big believer in the reverence people have lately for “hustle culture” or “the grind” so having to do it is really hard for me.
Read on, if you’re interested…
Right now, I’m working a fair amount in my usual “day job” as a freelance trainer/facilitator etc. And it appears — fingers crossed — that there’s for the first time in a while a lot of continued, prospective work ahead.
When it’s good, the money is good but not great. When it’s terrible — and it’s been mostly terrible for a while — it’s terrifying that things get as bad as they do. I did get some recent grant money that helped to pull us out of the hole for the most part, but I am desperate about not getting there again. And if another car emergency or something happened, it would SUCK.
By creating workshops and pushing lately for new Patreon subscribers I’m trying to build some more sustainable side income that will help build a cushion to fall onto.
I’m also trying to find out what works before the next slow season for my contracting work, which is usually a brief stint in mid summer and a more sustained one from the end of November to February/March.
Because of vacations, companies tend not to book sessions in the summer, and the holidays and end of the fiscal year concerns make the second slow season more serious. ( I did no work in that field from mid-November till March this year. It HURT. Still recovering, slowly.)
Add in the increasing amount of time I have to give to family issues. Mom is 95, mobility and hearing are terrible, and has moderate dementia. My sister has moved in with her and has her own health issues; of late I’ve been spending time there 3-5 days a week, sometimes more. I run my training session via Zoom from there as one way of ensuring I’m around pretty often. It’s 20 miles one way so gas has added an expense i’m not used to having since I’ve been working from home for years before this.
I really don’t get much time or energy to go out to readings, and I’m usually “Zoomed-out” by night so even online readings are sometimes too much. Frankly, the stress is killing me. I’ve got other longstanding health issues too, of course, which I’m leaving off of this post beyond saying that.
So…when I post about workshops coming up, ask people to join Patreon, put out Venmo and PayPal requests, etc., to try and raise $, it’s not greed. It’s fear driving that. It’s pain and the like. And it’s a desire to not just ask but to give something back to those who donate or contribute.
I hate doing it. Hate it. I would prefer to just do my job, write, and make music. But…
I think that’s enough.
Next month is National Poetry Month, an occasion I usually celebrate by doing the same damn things I always do.
This time, it’s gonna be different.
I will be offering TWO poetry workshops for patrons of my Patreon site who are the at the $10/month level or above…TWO!!
One will be a repeat of “The Poetry Of Place,” and the other (already tentatively scheduled for April 30) will be a sorta-kinda generative session I’m calling “Voice, Craft, and the Line.” Still under construction, but I think you’ll like it.
April is going to be a test case for an ongoing series of these.
I’d like to start offering a workshop a month (that’s the plan anyway) as a perk for higher tiers with a public option. I’m not sure exactly what this will look like yet and I’d welcome your input.
The current plan is to look at weekend afternoons for these as I think that will afford us the most accessible time for anyone. But…Saturday, Sunday? Early PM, mid, early evening? Certainly I can do a mix but I’d like to hear from y’all.
My current thinking is to develop three or four and then rotate them, bringing in new ones now and then, phasing out old ones, etc. Evolving curriculum. That sort of thing.
There will be an option for non-patrons to attend. Keep reading…I’m thinking a $30 charge for non patrons for one workshop. Payable through Venmo, Paypal; send me a message for the details. I’ll start taking them now if you like for the April 30 session and will let everyone know when the other date is set.
Remember, if you join my Patreon at the $10/month level or above you will get FREE ACCESS to anything I do in this vein. Speaking of which…
On February 22 at 7:30 PM EST I’ll be doing a live via Zoom reading of a special set of poems. (You’ll have to be there to understand why it’s special.)
I’d planned this to be a Patrons-only event but am opening it to the general public on a pay per view basis.
It will be $10 USD for the performance, payable through one of the online functions. Message me here and we can work through the details. I’d love to have some of you attend.
Would also like to extend, once again, an offer to become a patron of the site, which in many months is my only reliable income source. The link provided above will get you to the site for more information.
Thanks,
T
A reminder that my Patreon site is a major source of my monthly income, and I try to offer live readings, eBooks, workshops, and more through the site to Patrons at all levels.
Would love to have some of you there.
Thanks,
T
Yesterday’s Zoom workshop on “The Poetry Of Place” had twelve participants and was, I thought, pretty successful. I’ll likely do it again in the summer or fall, with some tweaks to timing of activities (and maybe some prework…) but overall I thought the conversion of a live session into a Webinar was OK.
Next time I’ll include the use of a couple of interactive tools I use in my corporate work to gain some more immediacy in practice sessions. I wanted to keep things simple this time around.
Thanks to those who attended, and I’m certainly going to add more topics to the menu over time. If you have any ideas you’d like to see, you can put them in the comments…
T
Dark Matter 