I really like the concept of Patreon, but I resisted starting a Patreon account as I was worried that I wouldn’t find any patrons. After a few months on the platform I have gained the support of one person – which reminds me, I must ask her how she discovered my music? I have no idea who she is, which makes me appreciate her support even more!
Below is my latest post to Patreon, shared to my social media… but alas, as my twitter and facebook posts only get seen by a small number of people, I doubt many people will read it. If you are reading this on my site, thank you for taking an interest and I hope you’ll stick around for the journey. You can also read the post on my patreon page here:
https://www.patreon.com/posts/mission-update-53971202
Posted to Patreon earlier:
I’ve never liked money. I started with nothing, left home and school at the age of 15. I worked hard for many years – including 12 years with the ABC – and have somehow ended up alone and with very little. It’s a long story…
I’ve been housesitting for a friend for the last few months, while he’s away caring for a family member. I have had virtually no paid work this year and I refuse to go to centerlink as I just don’t want to get caught in the welfare system! I’d rather work, but as I lost my license for no good reason (another long story) and I’ve been depressed from a broken heart (another long story *sigh*), it makes it hard to feel confident to apply for work.
Also, after so many years of working for others and getting nowhere, I’d prefer to work on my own creative output and create music and content to hopefully leave a legacy for my 2 amazing children, who deserve far more than I can give them. The hardest thing about ending a relationship of 20+ years is not seeing my kids everyday… like I said, it’s a long story. I won’t go into all the details as it’s all too much.
So many horrible things have happened lately! Back in May I lost my brother. I was holding his hand while he passed away after a year long battle with cancer. I’m not sure how much more bad luck I can deal with? I’ve been unable to ask for help as I feel overwhelmed by my situation and don’t really know where to start or who to ask?
All I’ve really been able to do, is what I love… making music and being creative. But it’s not easy doing it all alone with no money, support or suitable tools. I’m now getting back into serious debt and while I’d love to be able to survive by selling albums and art, the reality is that after 4 years I just haven’t been able to reach enough people. I could setup an online store and manage all the different social platforms, release new albums – but it costs money and I just don’t have any! And that’s just to run things online… my web hosting is coming up for renewal, I can’t really afford to renew it. I also can’t afford the $30US per month for shopify and I’m worried I’ll have to cancel my Adobe subscription. I also really need a good bass guitar, microphone and decent mac for recording, basic stuff *sigh*
And really that’s the least of my problems… I haven’t been contributing much towards my children and I still need to eat and eventually find somewhere to live! I’m doing my best under difficult circumstances, but it hasn’t been enough. I feel like I’ve failed.
I’m not sure what’s going to happen, or how I’m going to survive… but what ever happens, I’ll keep trying to work on my music and art and I’ll continue to try to reach more Earth folk.
Please know that if you support this project, it will contribute towards rebuilding my life and will make a difference. I’ve got so many ideas for songs, stories and more. Please help me realise some of those ideas here on Patreon.
I’ve made some good progress on EP 02 of 05: Earth which will be my next album release. I will also be making more videos. I just don’t feel very confident at the moment which makes it hard to get motivated to film myself. Like I said, it’s not easy doing it all completely alone.
Sorry for the long and miserable update, Please listen to some of my music, check out my recent posts here on Patreon or twitter, instagram or facebook and consider becoming a patron of Population of Mars from $3 per month.
I recommend listening to my most recent release ‘EP 01 of 05: Physics’ on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/4BXRsEtST3oyYhNrheGbmb – and be sure to follow on Spotify or your favourite streaming platform… I think I’m on most of them?
I’m going to have to find work to survive, but I will continue to try and grow the Population of Mars – wish me good luck – I need it!
If you need a creative producer with 20+ years of experience in all things digital media or if you know someone looking for a composer for film, tv or games or if you need some gardening done – let me know!
Thank you for reading and for your support. The best is yet to come… I’ve only just scratched the surface!
Cheers
Dan | Population of Mars
