My October Patreon Shout Out (And A Small Favor, If You Could?)

I'm starting to think that October is cursed. For the past 2 years every time this month rolls around, people important to me have to move. Not want to. Not start looking into it. Have to, because something has gone wrong, and their current living situation is no longer workable.

This year is, sadly, no different. But before we get into that, let me get my patron shout-out in, because you all are the ones keeping my numbers up, and ensuring I can keep the bills paid!

- Chris Dundon (To Valhalla, my friend!)

- Brenton Ayres (You're doing more than your part to keep the wheels turning!)

- Tracy Bailey-Mathews (Hopefully some of what I write is helping with the campaign!)

- Joy Von Holle (One of my oldest and most appreciated supporters on this list!)

My patrons are what make these blogs possible... so if you want to make sure I keep putting out fresh posts, consider heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page, and consider making a pledge today. Or, if you don't want a subscription, consider tossing a tip into my jar on The Literary Mercenary's Ko-Fi page instead!

For less than the cost of a cup of coffee a day, you can sponsor a creative of your very own!

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

The Small Favor (Which Is Sort Of Time Sensitive)

I talked about this a little while back in Author and RPG Designer Alice Liddell is Moving, And Really Needs Our Help To Make It Happen, but apparently there's been some confusion regarding that post, so I wanted to clear that up for readers. I thought I was clear at the time, but to re-iterate, Alice is not moving because she wants to. Her life circumstances have taken another downturn, and she has to move... worse, this move is happening unexpectedly, and without a lot in the way of preparation, so she doesn't have the budget saved up to just get new housing with a snap of her fingers.

She's working hard, but the math simply isn't mathing. As such, I'm asking folks who read my blog to please consider pitching in to help her land on her feet so she can get through this crisis.

The post I linked above has the exhaustive list of ways folks can help (both paid and free), but I wanted to narrow that list for this week to focus on 3 distinct things people can do.

 

- Buy her a Ko-Fi to help her pay for necessities (moving truck, administrative fees, etc.)

 

- Subscribe to The A.L.I.C.E. Files on YouTube (we need 95 more subs to start getting monetized)

 

- Pick up one of her existing supplements from Azukail Games (100 Stat Boost Potion Recipes, 100 Flowers and Trees Sure To Boost Your Stats, 100 Avian Beasts, 100 Witches, 100 Dangerous Plants)

Again, there are more ways you can help in the original blog link at the beginning of this section, but I wanted to narrow things down, and sharpen the call to action. Our hope is that we'll be able to handle this situation quickly, and get things settled into some kind of normalcy... but any help you could provide would be greatly appreciated in getting her through this unexpected challenge!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or the ongoing audio drama channel The A.L.I.C.E. Files! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

A Late Patron Shout Out (And 2 DTRPG Bundles For Good Causes)

I wanted to start off this Monday's post with an apology. August was one hell of a month, and a lot of stuff slid through the cracks... including my regular monthly shout-out for my patrons who are at the appropriate level! So I wanted to offer my apologies, as well as my continued thanks to:

- Chris Dundon (To Valhalla, my friend!)

- Brenton Ayres (You're doing more than your part to keep the wheels turning!)

- Tracy Bailey-Mathews (Hopefully some of what I write is helping with the campaign!)

- Joy Von Holle (One of my oldest and most appreciated supporters on this list!)

My patrons are what make these blogs possible... so if you want to make sure I keep putting out fresh posts, consider heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page, and consider making a pledge today. Or, if you don't want a subscription, consider tossing a tip into my jar on The Literary Mercenary's Ko-Fi page instead!

No pressure, though...

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

And Now, A Pair Of Bundles You Should Really Check Out!

An unfortunate trend we've been seeing a lot with RPGs lately is tragedy befalling many of our creators. And since we're surviving under late stage capitalism, there aren't exactly safety nets in place to help them get what they need, or stay on their feet. Which is why I wanted to highlight two bundles this week that you should definitely take a look at!

The first is the Ross A. Isaacs Emergency Fund, which is going to help support Ross, who is trying not to get swallowed up by expenses for his various life expenses (including, as I understand it, medical needs). There's supplements for Pathfinder, Starfinder, Icons, Call of Cthulhu, DND 5E, After Zombies, OSR systems like OSRIC, and more! Great value, and a particularly good cause that I recommend folks check out.

The second bundle is Mutual Aid For Darren Pearce. Another RPG designer, he's experienced major familial losses, and is currently trying to keep his head above water while grieving, and trying to handle all of the expenses and changes that come with such losses. This bundle includes supplements for Fantasy Age, the world book for Punktown, OSR adventure modules, the RPG Bloodwraith and its follow up books, and a slew of other games and supplements. It's pricey, yes, but you get three times the value of the content in it, and it goes to help someone who is reeling right now.

So if you're looking to help out a good cause, and to get an absolute treasure trove of gaming materials, I'd recommend picking up these bundles if you can. And, of course, spread the word about them as as many folks as possible see them. Sharing this blog entry is a great way to make that happen, in case you were wondering!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or the ongoing audio drama channel The A.L.I.C.E. Files! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Avoid The Algorithm, And Follow Me Directly! (Troubleshooting Current Social Media Setbacks)

Folks who have been watching my saga recently (detailed in my post Another Social Media Struggle (Reddit Has Decided To Kick Me In The Teeth, And I Could Use Some Help)) have likely noticed that one of the major challenges that every creator in the world is dealing with is that we simply cannot reach our potential audience. And the reason we can't seem to reach people is because the social media sites and groups that used to help us connect are now throttling our signals, restricting our ability to post, and trusting to bots to determine what kind of posts are allowed, and when an account needs to be shut off... even when it's wrong.

And while I'm taking several steps at present (seeking out new Discords that might appreciate my work, coming up with a fresh Reddit strategy, trying to figure out why the hell Facebook stops me from making posts anywhere but my own personal pages, etc.), there is one thing that I would like all of you reading this to do for me. I would like you to please go to my Patreon and my Ko-Fi pages, and subscribe/follow me there.

 

If you want to tip me or support me for what I'm doing, I appreciate that. But mostly I'm going to be using those accounts a LOT more, because they seem to be some of the only places that I can actually let people who enjoy my work see what the hell it is I'm making.

Because a lot of what I'm putting out is getting lost in the screaming void, and I'd like you to see it.

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

You Get A Direct Feed (And It's Technically Free)!

The entire point of social media, from a creator's perspective, is to connect you with your audience, and your potential audience. As someone whose hair is more gray than not these days, I remember when it basically did this, too. I've quoted the numbers before, but a decade or so ago I could get hundreds of impressions from Facebook, thousands from Reddit, and tens of thousands on a good day from Digg or Stumbleupon (both of which have gone down into the dark depths of websites murdered by AI slop). These days, though, it feels like the same 17 people see all my posts on whatever social media I'm part of, and when I do manage to fly through the storm of algorithm interference it's like trying to get an emergency message to someone through a time machine.

Dearest Allies, I request your aid in this time of dire need...

Which is why I wanted to take this week's post to ask everyone who made it this far to follow me on Patreon and Ko-Fi. Because while both of those are crowdfunding websites, you can follow me for free on both of them, and get notified when I share things on them (it's usually once or twice a day in the evenings, so not a huge inbox stuffer). And I'm asking this because, just like my newsletter that I mentioned above, it's one of the only ways for you to actually see and hear what I'm doing without the algorithm getting in the way, waiting for moderators to approve a post (which can take hours, days, or weeks), or depending on your For You Page to decide that you get to see stuff that I've made, as opposed to your 19th advertisement of the day.

 

My hope is that if I can get enough folks onboard with this request that I can get direct feedback from people who want to be in my audience the way that I used to on the sites that have slammed all their doors, and which are burying creators under restrictions and inertia. Because I post dozens of things (sometimes as much as a hundred posts or more) every day... and there are a lot of people who have tried to follow me who just don't hear about it because the algorithm won't slide it into their feeds.

 

So get a direct line, and let me know what you think of my work today!

 

Lastly, speaking of Reddit, there are two subreddits that I moderate that I would like to invite folks to. I am the moderator of Tabletop Homebrew! So if you have things you'd like to share, or if you want to see the sort of things creators are making and sharing, stop in, get comfortable, and take a look around. We'd be happy to have you.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my additional audio dramas over on The A.L.I.C.E. Files! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Help A Creator Out On His 42nd Birthday?

It's been one hell of a year, and I've had a rough ride over the past decade or so. The wheel doesn't stop its grinding just because you have a milestone coming up, though, so I wanted to take a moment to both acknowledge my birthday this year (something I don't normally do), and to ask folks to help me out with a couple of projects I've been having trouble getting eyes and ears tuned in to.

 

So, if you'd like to help me make sure that this Douglas Adams birthday of mine is a good one, please check the list below for how you can help!

 

 

It would really give me something to celebrate!

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

 

How Can You Help (Free Stuff)?

 

First and foremost, I know we're all on the struggle these days, and most of my regulars are on very tight budgets. So, most of the things I'm going to ask for are things that will cost you nothing but a bit of time, but it will still go a long way toward helping make my coming year a little easier.

 

I'm not getting any younger, after all.

 

 

At the top of the list is the new project I launched with Alice Liddell a few months back, The A.L.I.C.E. Files. This YouTube channel features audio book readings, as well as an ongoing plot involving the mysterious Carroll Institute, and the latest "Alice" who has signed on as a witness cataloger. And because this project is new, we simply aren't getting paid for it yet. It's a huge amount of time, effort, and energy, though, which is why I'd really appreciate folks going to the channel, and giving the episodes we have out a watch. If you like what you see (or you just want to help us reach our goals so YouTube will actually share ad revenue with us), subscribe to the channels, like the videos, and leave some comments on ones you enjoy the most.

 

We just broke 300 subscribers, and we've got less than 1,000 watch hours. Those numbers need to be 1,000 and 4,000 respectively for us to actually start getting paid... so even getting us a few steps closer would be great!

 

We also have an AMA planned for when we hit 350 subscribers, which I wrote about recently in Ask Me Anything For The A.L.I.C.E. Files... Our Next Stretch Goal!

The second thing you could do to help also involves YouTube! I've been making videos for the Azukail Games YouTube channel for some time, and we did manage to get the channel monetized (in no small part thanks to the surprise success of my video essay The Problem With Pentex). However, we're really close to hitting a new milestone over there as well! At time of writing we're about 30 people away from crossing over the 2,000 subscriber mark... it's a drop in the bucket by YouTube standards, but it would still be a pretty awesome finish line to cross.

 

Especially since the channel only had 300 and change folks subscribed when I first started making videos for it.

 

Second verse same as the first with this one. If you aren't subscribed, please do so. And whether you are or not, watch a couple of videos, and see if there's something here that you'd like! We've got advice for World/Chronicles of Darkness, discussions about my fantasy setting Sundara: Dawn of a New Age, crafting videos, previews of supplements, videos about my RPG Army Men: A Game of Tactical Plastic... and so much more!

 

And last on the free list, I want to let folks know about my Vocal.Media archive. I've got more than 300 free articles over there covering fantasy and sci fi, RPGs, fan and original fiction, and more... but more importantly, I get paid for every read! So consider bookmarking it, and reading through the archive. It's only a penny a read, but if you find something you really like, consider sharing it on your socials, telling your friends about it, etc. as well to help me grab some more eyeballs.

 

It really does help, when all is said and done.

 

If You Want To Throw Money At Something, Though...

 

If you're one of those people out there who wants to get me something to mark the occasion, and help me pay my bills at the same time, then you might consider becoming a Patreon patron. I recently switched to the monthly subscription model, and it's been tough to rebuild my earnings on that platform. Or if you just want to give me a little tip to help keep me going, you could just Buy Me A Ko-Fi.

 

Of course, buying a book or two is always great, as well...

If you want to actually get some of my work, though, then picking up a copy of Army Men: A Game of Tactical Plastic (or one of the mission modules I've written for it like A Night At Breckon's Beacon or Assault on Outpost 13) would also be great! And if you're more of a traditional fantasy RPG player (especially if you play either Pathfinder or DND 5E), then consider grabbing some of the books from my Sundara: Dawn of a New Age setting! You can find a full list of supplements for that setting in the post A New Year Is Coming For Sundara: Dawn of a New Age (What Would You Like To See)?

Of course, you can also check out my Amazon author page, or type my full name (Neal Litherland, for those who don't know) into Drive Thru RPG. You'll find a dozen or so books on the former site, and over 200 separate supplements on the latter to choose from!

However you choose to help, it's much appreciated! Thanks in advance, and I'm going to try to keep things going in 2026 to get even more stuff right in front of all of you!

 

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my additional audio dramas over on The A.L.I.C.E. Files! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

The Obligatory Patreon Shout Out (And Progress On A New YouTube Project)!

It's a new month, and you all know what that means... time for my Patreon patron shout out! So, for all the folks who shoot me at least $10 a month, you can have a spot on this list as well. Before I move on, I wanted to offer my regular (and very heartfelt thanks) to:

 

- Joy Von Holle

- Brenton Ayres

- Phillip Litherland

- Tracy Bailey-Matthews

 

If you're a patron who wants a spot on this list, check my Patreon page and see if you can get up to that level! But even if that's outside of your current budget, you have my thanks as well. Big or small, everyone helps keep the wheels turning and the lights on over here!

 

 

Seriously... without you all, I couldn't do what I do.

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

 

I've Got Some Fresh Updates For Folks, As Well!

 

As I promised in the title, I do have one other update this week that I wanted to get folks in on. If you're a regular reader you might already know about this project, but in the event you aren't, I recently launched a YouTube channel with Alice Liddell called The A.L.I.C.E. Files, which is a sci fi reimagining of Alice in Wonderland. We follow Alice, a witness cataloger for the mysterious Carroll Institute as she sees the reports that agents have filed, and realizes exactly how many other dimensions there are out there.

 

 

The channel currently has 12 videos on it which follow Alice's encounters at the Institute, the files she's examined thus far, a chapter-by-chapter reading of the original Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (which may have some significance for folks who are looking for patterns), as well as our first behind-the-scenes video for folks who are curious about what it actually looks like to put together an audio drama.

 

And I bring this up at the start of this week because we've been straining to cross a certain threshold for a while. Because while the channel did very well for the first few weeks it was up, YouTube's algorithm quickly clamped on the chains to hold us back. We're currently at 296 subscribers at time of writing, and I wanted to get us at least to 300 before I offered a new incentive to get folks interested in helping us push forward.

 

So if you want to open up that door, and help me put together something new, please subscribe to The A.L.I.C.E. Files, and leave a comment on Episode 1 saying that you came there from Improved Initiative so we can track your arrival. Because while we're shooting for 300 subscribers, we need 500 before YouTube opens up some of the monetization options, and a full 1,000 subscribers before they share ad revenue, so we need all the help we can get!

 

I doubt we'll get there by the 12th of this month, which happens to be my birthday, but if you did want to give me a little present that won't cost you anything, a subscription to the channel and a nice comment will go a long way!

 

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my additional audio dramas over on The A.L.I.C.E. Files! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

To Ragnarok! (A Big Thank You To Several of My Patrons)

When I made the changeover to a monthly charge instead of a per-item basis over on Patreon, I had to come up with new tiers to try to get folks invested and involved. And like most folks who've been on the platform for a while, I made the first tier the $1 level (essentially just a way for folks to leave me a tip as a thank you). The second was the $5 tier, and that's where you actually get some kind of reward (free copies of my latest supplements when I get giveaway links). At $10 you get a shout out (thanks very much to Phillip Litherland and Tracy), and at $15 I'll put out a monthly query asking your opinion on future posts. There's a few more above that, but most folks have ignored those so far.

I put the $50 a month tier in mostly as a joke, because I didn't expect anyone to go that hard. But for both Joy Von Holle and Brenton Ayres, I salute you! When I find myself upon the field of Ragnarok, know that my battle charge shall be in dedication to your aid!

I will see you there, at the end of the cycle.

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

Any Other Takers?

I really cannot overemphasize how surprised I was when someone stepped up to the Ragnarok tier... but I figured I'd at least ask... do we have anyone else interested in that einherjar-level support?

Because I know I emphasize this fairly often, but my Patreon really has been a huge boon to me for the past decade or so I've been on the platform. And though there have been ups and downs, over the past several years I've come to depend on it for food and expenses during the month. I've never been well-funded enough that it was rent money... but hey, I can dream can't I?

It would be nice, not gonna lie.

I just wanted to take a moment to remind folks that the changeover has been rough, but I feel like I'm finally getting back on my feet a little bit thanks to the generosity of some of my patrons. If you're a regular reader who wants to help, though, consider tossing me an extra $1 a month or so... or if you want some free swag, $5 is my recommended amount. Heck, if everyone currently on my free subscription converted to that level, I really would be making rent money...

As always, don't go into debt to support me as a creator. I know money is tighter than ever for a lot of folks out there. But if you do have a bit spare, I can promise you that I'll be paying bills and buying tacos with it. No funny business over here... just fuel for the brain so I can keep the lights on and the wheels turning!

Also, If You Enjoy Free Stuff, Check Out This Channel

Regular readers already know this, but if you enjoy all the free stuff I'm putting out (and you're looking for more gaming and gaming-related entertainment on a budget) I'd highly recommend checking out the YouTube channel The A.L.I.C.E. Files! An ongoing fiction channel I launched with Alice Liddell a little while back, it tells the story of a young woman given a job by the mysterious Carroll Institute... but in between installments of that story, we get tales of alternate dimensions where you hear about weird west card sharps, literal avenging angels, deals with devils, and more!

And if you're wondering how those two plot lines merge, check out the first episode below... and if you want to help me keep this project going, please subscribe to The A.L.I.C.E. Files, and watch the videos we're putting up. We need 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 view hours, but at time of writing we've got 271 people, and about 205 hours.

It's a long way to go, but you could help us get there!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my additional audio dramas over on The A.L.I.C.E. Files! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

The Literary Mercenary's (And Improved Initiative's) Recent Newsletter Change

The chaos of the year keeps on shifting, and over here on Improved Initiative I'm doing my best to roll with the punches. Which is why, first off, I want to give my monthly shout out to my patrons Phillip Litherland and Tracy for being my VIPs over on The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page. I'm still reeling from the changeover (I lost more than half of my Patreon earnings switching from a per-item account to a single, monthly fee account), so if you want to help me keep my bills paid while working on stuff like this blog, please consider becoming a paid member this month!

However, as if that wasn't enough to deal with, it seems that a certain Digital Ape wanted more bananas from myself, and a bunch of other creators who were just trying to get the word out about our work. Which is why I recently had to switch my bi-weekly newsletter to a new service. So, keep an eye out for Email Octopus, if you haven't seen it yet!

Come, friends. Let me tell you the latest happenings!

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

So... What Happened (And What This Will Change)

For folks who haven't been with me for a while, a few years back I took the advice from various folks, and put together a newsletter to keep all my interested readers updated on all my recent releases. The idea was that people who like my work could get personal, up-to-date content round ups coming straight from me, rather than depending on social media algorithms to see my posts (since these sites have been blocking, strangling, and silencing creators across the board). I never had a big following (10,000 is generally the number you need for a newsletter to be a money maker), but there were 300-500 folks subscribed to my newsletter at any given time.

And for all the time since I started this newsletter, I was a Mail Chimp user. You could send out up to 1,000 emails or so a month on your free account, and since I never really grew large enough to worry about going over that (as long as I did bi-weekly newsletters), it was a business arrangement that worked for me.

Until last week, when I settled in to send out the latest, and found the monkey with his hand out, demanding that I pay to play.

Your subscribers are waiting... what's it gonna be?

It seems that when I wasn't looking that Mail Chimp changed their policy so that anyone with over 250 subscribers on their list (I believe that was the number, at least) now had to pay to use their service. Well, given that only about 20% of my list actually reads their messages, and I don't really make any money from sending out these two newsletters a month, I wasn't going to just start tossing cash into a hole.

So I decided to use a different service... and that was why I've migrated my service over to Email Octopus (and you can sign up for the new location right here)!

I was fortunate in that all my previous users were downloaded and slotted right into the new service (so if you were already on the newsletter, you don't have to sign up again), but I'm going to be changing over links and trying to make sure that new folks don't end up on the old service as best I can. Sadly, that's a LOT of posts, so it's possible a few will slip through the cracks. My apologies in advance, but having to go through and change everything individually is going to take me a bit of time.

On A Final Note...

Speaking of going back through and swapping out links, I'm going to be replacing a lot of video links in both this blog, and over on The Literary Mercenary. For folks who haven't seen any of the updates, I recently launched a new YouTube channel with Alice Liddell called The A.L.I.C.E. Files, which is going to have a lot of my older RPG audio dramas on it, in addition to all the fresh content we're going to be making for it!

You'll see videos like this latest Deadlands-inspired tale Dead Man's Bluff, which appeared in my collection The Rejects. So stop on in, give us an extra view, subscribe if you like what we're doing, and consider sharing it around so I can keep making more stuff just like this!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my additional audio dramas over on The A.L.I.C.E. Files! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

My First Patreon Shout Out (And A Big Thanks For All The Help!)

February has been a busy month so far, and unfortunately it doesn't look like that's going to change any time soon. I was at Capricon this past weekend (my first time there since 2020, now that they're in a more accessible location), and now that I'm back I've got dozens of projects to pick back up.

However, it's also the first time I've posted in a new month since my Patreon page shifted to a monthly tier system, instead of a per-post system. And since I promised to give a shout out to my supporters who have moved to at least the $10 a month level, I wanted to take a moment to do that.

To Phillip Litherland and Tracy Bailey-Matthews, my thanks for putting yourselves on this level!

Seriously, thank you!

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

All Support Is Welcome (And Very Much Needed At This Point)

For folks who don't get all of my updates on their For You Page, at the start of the year I officially transitioned my Patreon from a per-item account (where followers were charged for every blog I wrote) to a monthly account (where it's a flat fee every month). I have the full details in my recent post Improved Initiative's Patreon is Now Monthly (And I Could Really Use Your Help), but the short and sweet of it is that I made this transition because there had been rumblings that soon there would be limitations placed on the per-item account option and I wanted to get ahead of that as a creator.

The issue I've run into is that Patreon just left everyone at whatever their previous amount was... the issue for me is that instead of someone paying $1 per blog I put up (so $10 to $12 a month), it's now $1 a month. So my Patreon has gone from earning between $180 to $200 a month (which was my grocery and utility money) to about $65 a month.

So in addition to shouting out the folks who have stepped up to help in this time of transition, I wanted to take a moment to ask others out there to help me get back on my feet. Whether you're already a paid patron who hasn't upgraded their tier yet, or you're someone who wants to toss your coin in the cup, I definitely need all the help I can get right about now.

Any and all help is appreciated!

While this is a new step on a new path, it's also proving to be a treacherous one full of spikes! Which is why I wanted to ask those reading this a couple of questions:

- Do you find any of the current tiers on my Patreon appealing?

- Is there something else I could offer as a creator that would get your interest?

- What is stopping you from supporting me as a patron?

There are no wrong answers to any of these questions, I'm just trying to get a sense of where my audience is at, and if there is anything I could do to make my blogs (and other projects) even more appealing and/or helpful and useful for my readers!

As I've said more times than I can count, creators live and die based on audience support. So if you're here and supporting me, in whatever form that takes, thank you. I'm going to keep pushing on, and I hope you'll come on this new journey with me!

On a final note, those who want to give me a one-time tip rather than committing to becoming a monthly patron, please consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi! Thank you.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Improved Initiative's Patreon Is Now Monthly (And I Could Use Your Help!)

It was last summer when I first announced that the Literary Mercenary's Patreon page, which is where folks support both Improved Initiative as well as my writing blog The Literary Mercenary, was going to transition from a per-item rate to a per-month rate for membership. Well, between then and now there were several delays and miscommunications, but the change finally went through.

Which is why, this month, I wanted to ask for help from all my regular readers and old patrons alike. Because there's already growing pains, and I'm hoping to get past them.

Seriously, folks... if you've been thinking about pledging, now is the time!

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

What Led To This Change

I've been on Patreon for over 15 years now, and there are some folks who've been supporting me on there for the entire time my account has been active. And when I first signed up I chose the per-item payment option because that way I felt that my readers would get what they were paying for. If I didn't write a blog that month, well, they wouldn't have to pay for it. Not only that, but my Monday posts on this blog were always free-of-charge, because I wanted to make sure I didn't overcharge folks.

And, generally speaking, I was pretty happy with this setup. However, in the summer of 2025 there was some chicanery that rocked the boat.

We have altered the bargain. Pray it is not altered further.

As I understand it, Apple's payment platform was threatening to no longer support the per-item rates on Patreon. I don't know the full story behind that, but Patreon issued an announcement that as of Fall 2025 those who were using that payment structure would no longer be able to grow their audience. I thought it over for a week or so, and decided that I should make the change. So I sent an email, and asked to start migrating my account from a per-item payment structure to a monthly membership structure.

There was some miscommunication, though, and Patreon didn't actually put through my request at the time. Then the site went back on the warning, stating that per-item accounts were going to be allowed to go forward, and no changes would be made. The problem was that I'd already made my decision, and put some things in-place to try to make the jump. So during the Fall of 2025, once I noticed the transition hadn't taken place, I reached back out to Patreon support. This time a date was set for January 5th for the transition to go through.

So, new year, new account style, but the same old content on the same schedule everyone has come to expect!

Here's Where The Problem Comes In...

Ideally, this would have been a simple sidestep... but there's a bit of an issue with the migration. It's one I knew about, and tried to prepare for, but I can only do so much.

To really smooth out this rough road, I need the help of all the folks reading this. Because, in short, Patreon basically put everyone down in the $1 a month pledge and expects you all to up yourself to a new tier if that's what you intend to do.

Seriously, every pledge, post, and tip helps.

In terms of hard numbers, what this means is that I go from making between $180 - $220 a month (since some months had more paid blog installments than others) to making about $45 a month or so. That is a massive change in my personal finances, and it's not a hit I can just tank. That's "pay my utilities" money, and more than once it's been "cover the rent" money. I cannot overstate how important my Patreon patrons are to me, and to my ability to keep doing what I do.

That's why I wanted to ask all my current patrons to please check out my new Patreon, have a look at the tiers, and consider choosing something above the $1 a month level if you're able to. And if you're someone who isn't currently one of my patrons (or is a free patron) I'd appreciate any help you can give while I get my feet back under me after this change! And if you're someone who wants to help, but doesn't know if you can commit to the full Patreon sign up, feel free to leave me a tip by buying me a Ko-Fi... those little gifts go a long way, as well, I can tell you that as a fact.

However, if you don't have the spare dosh lying around, but you still want to help, then please consider doing the following (all of which cost you no money):

- Read Articles in my Vocal Archive (I earn 1 cent per every 3 articles read)

- Follow My Facebook

- Follow My Blue Sky

- Follow My LinkTree

- Sign Up For My Weekly Newsletter

- Subscribe to The Azukail Games YouTube Channel (where I contribute video content)

All of these things help, and honestly the more people that subscribe, read, watch, etc., the more likely it is I'll be able to beat the algorithm, and actually make some progress. Give how restrictive the algorithm as been of-late, though, it's been tough to even reach my actual subscribers... so if anyone reading this likes my work, and wants to see my blogs keep going forward, I'd appreciate any help you could give!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Changes Are Coming To My Patreon In August!

Improved Initiative has been running for something like 12 years now, but what a lot of folks may not know is that I started this blog at basically around the same time that I got on Patreon. The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page has been a literal lifesaver for me, and it is one of the major reasons I'm able to stay afloat as a professional writer. There's no ads on this blog, or on my sister blog The Literary Mercenary; all the money I earn from these platforms is either from patrons who help pay my bills, or people who buy things through my affiliate links in my articles.

That's it.

However, there's going to be a change in my Patreon starting this August. So if you're one of my patrons, you'll definitely see this post shortly. And if you're not, but you've been considering it, well, this might be good news for you!

Especially if you only have a little bit of cash to spare.

But before I get into the meat of today's post, remember, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

Finally Swapping To A Per-Month Structure

So, when Patreon first started, creators on the platform had the option to charge patrons either a flat fee per month (basically a subscription), or a fee per item they created. I opted for a per-item cost, so I charged my patrons for 2 blog entries a week, and I made my Monday posts free of charge. I chose this structure because it generally kept me on-task, and I feel like it kept me accountable to my patrons because if I didn't write a blog entry in a given week, then I didn't get paid for that week... pure and simple.

However, all good things have to come to an end. It seems like this Fall Patreon is giving creators a choice. You can stick with a per-item payment structure if you want to, but if you do that then you won't be able to get new patrons until you shift to a monthly payment structure.

And while I love every single one of my patrons... I don't have enough of them to make that kind of decision. So to get ahead of the curve, this August I'm going to shift my Patreon over to the monthly subscription model.

Needs be when the devil drives, sadly.

At time of writing, this is the only thing that should be changing. I fully intend to keep my regular posting schedule, and to include extra content for my paying patrons when I have it (particularly free copies of my latest TTRPG supplements when they drop). However, I want to ask a favor from anyone who is currently a patron, or who is considering becoming a patron.

I'd appreciate any and all help you can give.

I know times are tough, and budgets are tight. But a big reason I didn't make this change sooner is that I only have 30 or so paying patrons, and I only bring in about $200 a month or so. I didn't want that to drop to under 100 because folks didn't notice the change, and I suddenly had an even harder time making ends meet for bills.

So if you enjoy my work, and you want to help support me, then please consider dropping in and becoming a Patreon patron. My plan is to make this change in August 2025 as soon as the July patronage clears, and my balance returns to zero.

And, of course, if there are other things you would like to see me add to my Patreon, feel free to let me know that down in the comments below!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!