The Pepper&Carrot project is entirely supported by the generosity of patrons from around the world. By contributing financially, each patron plays a vital role in enabling the creation of new content, and in return, they have the option to receive a special credit at the end of future episodes. Thanks to this system, Pepper&Carrot can stay independent and never have to resort to advertising or any marketing pollution.
Alt innhaldet eg lagar om Pepar & Gulrot på denne nettstaden og på bloggen min, er fritt tilgjengeleg for alle. Eg respekterer dykk alle like mykje, anten de har pengar eller ikkje. Alle bonusane eg lagar for sponsorane, vert òg lagde ut her. Pepar & Gulrot vil aldri forlanga betaling eller abonnement for tilgang til nytt innhald.
Eg ynskjer å gje alle retten til å dela, bruka, byggja og til og med tena pengar på det eg har laga. Alle sidene, teikningane og innhaldet er laga med fri programvare på GNU/Linux, og alle tilhøyrande kjeldefiler er tilgjengelege her på nettstaden (sjå «Kjeldefiler» og «Lisens»-knappane). Eg oppfordrar til kommersiell bruk, omsetjing, teikningar av figurane, trykte bøker, filmar, dataspel og anna vidareformidling. Berre hugs å kreditera opphavspersonane (teiknarar, korrekturlesarar og omsetjarar som har vore med på å laga materialet du ynskjer å bruka), oppgje lenkje/adresse til lisensen og opplys om du sjølv har gjort endringar. Alle rimelege måtar å gjera dette på er greitt, men du kan ikkje gjera det på ein måte som gjer at det verkar som at opphavspersonane støttar deg eller måten du har brukt materialet på. Du finn meir informasjon her:
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International-lisensen.
Pepar & Gulrot er ein humoristisk teikneserie for alle, uansett alder. Teikneserien inneheld aldri vakseninnhald eller vald. Som ein fri teikneserie med opne kjelder er Pepar & Gulrot eit flott eksempel på kor kul fri kultur kan vera. Eg legg mykje vekt på kvalitet, etikk og profesjonalitet, sidan fri bruk og opne kjelder ikkje tyder sekunda vare – tvert imot!
Utan nokon mellommann mellom serieskaparen og publikum betalar du mindre og eg får meir. Du støttar meg direkte. Ingen forlag, distributørar, PR-team eller noko motepoliti kan tvinga meg til å endra Pepar & Gulrot til å passa deira syn på «marknaden». Kan ikkje ein einskild suksess forandra ein heil bransje i krise? Me får sjå …
As I look back on the lines I wrote on the homepage ten years ago − "A free(libre) and open-source webcomic supported directly by its patrons to change the comic book industry!" − I'm struck by how much the industry has changed. Was Pepper&Carrot a catalyst for some of these shifts? The internet was a vastly different place back then. Webcomics relied on a single business model: selling merchandise and accepting one-time donations via PayPal. The concept of recurring patronage was still in its infancy.
I'm proud to say that Pepper&Carrot was one of the first webcomics to join the Patreon initiative, pioneered by YouTubers who sought to revolutionize the way artists were supported. Today, patronage platforms are the norm, and it's rare to find an artist without one.
However, not all of my innovations have taken off. My decision to use only free, libre, and open-source software licenses, and to create the entire comic using these tools, remains a rare approach. Many artists have opted for a more traditional model, where they create copyrighted materials and rely on patronage to support their work. While this model often provides "free access" to content, I believe it's a flawed system because it doesn't guarantee it.
In my model, readers don't just fund the creation of content – they also gain guaranteed, irrevocable access to it, along with the right to reuse and modify it, even commercially. This approach ensures that the work remains free and open, rather than being locked behind paywalls or proprietary licenses. In short, what is funded by the audience should belong to the audience.
As I look around at the current state of the industry, I'm more convinced than ever that my approach was the right one. Proprietary software is increasingly plagued by privacy issues, and features (eg. Blockchain/NFTs/AI) that nobody wants except investissors. Meanwhile, artists are struggling with copyright issues, being owned by publishers, platforms, and facing restrictions on where they can publish their work.
That's why my philosophy remains unchanged. I still believe that using Creative Commons licenses and free, libre, and open-source software is the key to true freedom and creativity. My tagline − "A free(libre) and open-source webcomic supported directly by its patrons to change the comic book industry!" − remains a guiding principle for me, even if it's still a minority view.
I know that I'm just a drop in the ocean, but I'm committed to continuing to push for a more open, more free, and more creative industry. I'm proud to be part of a movement that's slowly but surely making progress, and I'm grateful to my patrons for supporting me on this journey.
− David Revoy