The manga artist dream—it’s a beautiful one. It’s about more than just ink and panels; it’s about pouring your heart, your passion, and maybe a little bit of that Tsundere angst into a character until they feel real.
You’re not just chasing $100; you’re chasing the moment a stranger says, “I paid for your art because I love your vision.” That first $100 is proof that your passion can pay the bills (or at least buy you enough fancy ink to draw all night).
So, grab your stylus, let’s look at the plan to make that first hundred dollars, focusing on the world we love: anime and manga.
Chapter 1: The Passion Play and the Paperwork
First, we have to talk about the culture. You’ve probably noticed that the entire fan-art ecosystem, the beautiful “shadow cultural economy” we live in, thrives because people love characters like Natsuki or their favorite Tsundere (the character who is aloof and harsh on the outside, but gradually reveals a warmer, “lovey-dovey” side). You’re tapping into that emotional connection.
Your first step isn’t drawing; it’s making sure you won’t get into trouble.
When you draw a character you don’t own (like a character from a major anime), that’s called fan art. If you try to sell it directly for profit, you’re technically in a legal gray area. Don’t worry, most major IP holders don’t sue small artists. But you need to know the rules of the road:
- Rule #1: Take the Calculated Risk. Many artists operate under the assumption that the IP owner won’t notice or won’t care enough to send a cease and desist letter. As a newbie, your goal is to stay small but professional.
- Rule #2: Distinguish Support from Sale. This is the secret handshake of the fan economy, and it sets the stage for your first big income stream: commissions.
Chapter 2: The Fastest Cash Flow: Taking Commissions
The fastest way to hit $100 is to sell your time and skill, not necessarily the IP itself. This is where commissions come in. A commission is simply a custom art job for a client—they tell you what they want (usually a character or an original design), and you draw it.
Because your style is anime/manga, you should focus on the platforms where that niche thrives:
1. Niche Art Hubs (Your Target Rich Environment)
Forget massive, general marketplaces for a moment. Go where the anime and VTuber clients are already looking:
- VGen (The Specialist): This platform is literally built for the anime and VTuber (virtual YouTuber) art market. It’s a focused community, meaning clients who arrive there are already looking for your style.
- Artistree (The Friendly Option): This is a great choice for beginners because they have a killer policy: the artists keep 100% of the money you charge. They put the small platform fee on the customer, which is a huge bonus when you’re starting out and need every dollar.
- Skeb (The Introvert’s Dream): If you’re someone who just wants to draw and not deal with a million back-and-forth messages, Skeb is ideal. It’s a reliable platform, especially popular in Japan, known for facilitating fast, “no-contact” anime-style commissions. Once you get the brief, you just draw and deliver.
Pricing Your Work (Don’t Undervalue Your Time!)
Never just pull a number out of thin air. Even for your first $100, you need a strategy:
- Hourly Rates: Decide on a basic rate. If a character sketch takes you two hours, charge for those two hours. This ensures you’re paid for time spent.
- Complexity Tiers: Charge more for complicated work. A detailed, full-color piece with a background should cost more than a simple black-and-white sketch.
- Exclusivity Fees: If the client wants the art just for themselves, and you can’t share it or use it for promotion, charge a premium. This is an “exclusivity fee”.
By taking just a few small commissions (say, two full-body commissions at $40 each, plus a $20 sketch), you’ve already hit your first goal.
Chapter 3: The Steady Income: Patronage and Early Access
Commissions are great, but they are a constant hustle. The next step is building a recurring income stream—money that comes in every month whether you take a commission or not.
This is where you dive into the subtle art of the subscription model, primarily using Patreon.
Why Patreon Works (The Legal Loophole)
When you use Patreon to sell fan art, you’re not asking people to buy the final image. You’re asking them to pay a monthly fee to “support the artist”.
- The Gray Area: The money they pay is considered a donation to your effort, and the art itself is often seen as a “reward” or a privilege, like seeing the art a few weeks before you post it for free elsewhere. This clever framing helps you maintain income while sidestepping a direct, risky sale of copyrighted material.
This is the perfect way to turn that emotional connection you’ve built with your fans into reliable monthly income.
One-Off Sales (The Alternative)
For non-subscription digital goods (like brush packs, tutorials, or original character illustrations), Gumroad is a classic platform. It’s great for one-off digital sales.
However, if you plan to explore the spicier side of the market, you need to read the next chapter very carefully. Gumroad has strict policies because they follow the rules of their payment processors, like PayPal and Stripe, which do not allow the sale of sexually explicit content.
Chapter 4: The Advanced Niche: Hentai and Explicit Art
Look, we have to be real: a massive part of the art economy you’re entering involves content that is NSFW (Not Safe For Work)—or, specifically, Hentai (the term for pornographic anime and manga). If you want to tap into this extremely lucrative niche, you cannot use mainstream platforms.
Go Where the Rules Are Different
Since platforms like Patreon and Gumroad are too restrictive for truly explicit work, you need dedicated platforms:
- Fansly: This is one of the specialized hubs that is explicitly NSFW-friendly and built to handle mature content subscriptions and payments.
- The Hybrid Model: The most successful creators in this space often use a Free Page with Pay-Per-View (PPV) strategy.
- Free Audience: You keep your page free to subscribe to, which makes it easy to build a huge audience fast.
- Premium Content: You then send out your most exclusive or explicit art—your premium Hentai pieces—directly to your audience via private message for a one-time Pay-Per-View fee. This is an incredibly effective way to maximize income from a large subscriber base.
This is a business that requires planning and clear boundaries, but it is a business that pays. By successfully executing just one or two PPV campaigns, you can easily blow past that first $100 goal.
Conclusion: Be Everywhere, All at Once
Your first $100 isn’t a finish line; it’s a milestone. The true secret to long-term success isn’t relying on one platform; it’s being professionally present across multiple channels.
Think of it like this:
- DeviantArt is where you maintain your portfolio and build client loyalty.
- VGen/Artistree is where you accept commissions (your immediate income).
- Patreon is where you nurture your community and get that reliable monthly income.
- Fansly is where you handle your high-value, explicit content (if you choose that path).
Every piece of art you draw and share adds to your emotional capital in the community. Be consistent, be kind, and never stop drawing the characters and stories that make you feel passionate. The money will follow the heart. Now go get that first $100!
