Steemit, I don't believe in thee
When I first joined this platform, I was pleased it came with a system that would allow creators to make money. I didn't understand the concept of bitcoin, and, guaranteed, I still don't grasp it completely, but all those dollars popping up next to my posts looked really good. And then, time came to turn that virtual money into actual money and the pain began.
For one thing, if you earn 100 Steem dollars, that's not 100 CAD or 100 USD or even 100 Euros. Okay, that's expected. You need to convert them to your own currency. So I did, after opening countless accounts and creating a link to my own bank account. It took a while, but all was set to cash in my first real money. Well, between the wildly-fluctuating exchange rate and the crazy fees popping up all over the place, I ended up pretty much with peanuts, which, of course, now I have to pay taxes on and that will reduce my earnings to zero (or go in the negative? I'll find out when I see my tax guy).
Lesson learned, I wasn't going to cash in anything anymore. The Steemit dollars I accumulated, I turned them into Steem power. I figured that would give me the chance to feed my own content with more efficacy, but, lo and behold, this platform is so full of awful and stolen content that... what's the point? In a sea of no original content, everything else is drowning. You have to really believe in this platform to power through it, but how many people are going to read comics here, especially in a long form? It's nearly impossible to navigate from page to the next, and, let's face it, Steemians are much more interested in seeing single pieces of art, with the possible exceptions of humor stories with no actual storyline - just look at the number of upvotes or comments of single pieces, and compared them to the very few people here who publish actual stories. There's no comparison.
This is why I will leave this platform as soon as Ngiamwise is over. It's been fun, but this is not a place for me. Starting tomorrow, I will release my last page of Infected Blood and invite any reader to follow me on my own website. And then, I will phase out Ngiamwise and will wave goodbye.
No hard feelings!
Can you please talk more about your experience? Like what exchange site did you use and stuff like that.
Also it sucks you're leaving. Where should I follow your work now?
Sure, I followed the instructions from this post: https://steemit.com/tutorial/@beanz/how-to-get-my-usdteemit-money-into-my-bank-account Sites are Bitrex and Kraken. I converted bitcoins to CAD. PayPal also leeched ridiculously high fees at the very end.
I am thrilled you are going to follow me outside of here, thanks! I have my own website at this link: http://www.infectedbloodcomics.com/ Navigation is much easier (and mobile-friendly, if you're on a smartphone or tablet) and content is larger.
Take care and thanks for your great support :)
Thanks for sharing. I wonder if my friend thecastle can give us better advice that the one on that article.
@thecastle Hey man, what do you think about the article posted above? I know that bitcoin charges ridiculous fees. Did you talk about a different way to convert steem dollars? Thanks man.
So sorry to see you go. I really enjoyed your artwork and your reviews. Good luck with your new location. I've been feeling the same way about Steemit. Stopped doing regular posts because my time was better spent elsewhere.
Thank you for your understanding and your kind words on my work. I hear you about stopping doing regular posts... I started dropping the frequency with which posting, at first, and now I just realized it really isn't wort my time. Take care and good luck!
So sorry to see you leave. I do understand why though. Honestly I haven't searched much on how to withdraw into cash but I would change the funds into bitcoin/ethereum then send it to a site called Bity (europe) linked to my bank account.
At the moment I'm investing in various tokens waiting for an increase of value.
Yesterday I did manage to buy an Amazon gift card with bitcoin which is pretty cool for punctual gifts.
You are right, the plateform is not meant for long form comics. But it stills is pretty new. Who knows what the audience would be further on. Also I'm sure it will be more user friendly in the future.
I did notice the reward getting smaller recently. I'm trying to make sense of it. But it might just be luck in the end.
I'll continue posting consistent content. This has been for now my largest (And only) stream of revenue for my art.
I have hope.
Let's keep in touch. I'll be sure to go check your content wherever you're going! Probably on the "Avenue" pretty soon ;-)
We will definitely keep in touch, my friend, and good luck on Steemit! Who knows, maybe it will work really well for you. I wish you all the best. And yes, the "Avenue" is happening and we';; see each other there for sure ;)