So far I’ve only mentioned it to a handful of close friends but here’s the plan: next week I’ll be leaving a job I’ve held for seven years, as a tutor in the English department at Miami-Dade College, but instead of doubling down at the bar, and picking up enough shifts to make it full-time, I’ll be trying, for at least a month, to make a part-time job out of Thousand Movie Project Podcast.

Sounds impetuous and idealistic, I know, but I’ve been planning the shift for a while; I’m only divulging it here, finally, cuz I’m gonna go ahead and tell everyone on social media with a formal announcement (and pledge for dollars) next week.

I’ve saved a small bit of cash for the venture, and the restaurant is so short-staffed that I can always just pick up a shift if I need money on the fly, but my hope is that, with the ongoing development of my Patreon page (and an impending announcement on Instagram), I can generate a good enough tide of support, a few $5 donations from friends at least, that podcasting can generate the same few hundred dollars I would earn each month from working at the college. 

Here’s how I’ve mapped out the patron membership:

There are currently four tiers for supporters: $5 a month, $8, $12, and $25–each with an incrementally larger reward; handwritten thank-you note, access to regular bonus episodes, a BUSYSHEET, and a REDBOOK.

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In the next few days I’ll put the finishing touches on a video that announces the whole thing and, at some point in all that preparation, I’ll work my final shift at Miami-Dade College. 

It’s a big leap, and a public one, so if I fall on my face I’ll be doing so in front of friends and family.

Which’ll suck.

But, at the same time, I don’t really have anything to lose. And, having just turned 30, I do feel kinda changed. I’ve been reading more widely, thinking differently; my life just seems to be getting kinda simpler, as I lean toward the things that I care about, and also more complicated, as I become more aware of the world around me, its hazards, its demands.

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I’ll try it out the risky venture for a month or two, do my best to swing it, and if it doesn’t work out I’ll just pick up a few extra shifts at the restaurant, and post a little less often. What I’ve noticed, though, is that, apart from genuinely loving every part of podcast production, the show’s audience has grown pretty steadily. Upward in number and sideways in geographical scope. 

The one thing that hasn’t really developed is the consistency of my output. 

To hit more consistency with the show, I need more time to work on it. 

Which is what I’m shooting for here. 

If you’re a regular reader of the blog, or listener to the podcast, I hope you’ll be willing to throw a few bucks my way; for the monthly price of a coffee, as the commercials often say, you can help feed a struggling artist.