The short version.

A shared support pool for creators. Your audience backs you with a Ripple, and one monthly amount from each supporter is shared across the creators they pay attention to — opening a layer of income that sits between a like and a membership.

A Ripple is how a supporter backs you — an act of support with money behind it that directs where their monthly contribution flows. One simple tap, wherever you post.

Supporters choose one monthly amount. At the end of each month it’s shared across the creators they backed, with more of it flowing toward the creators who received more of their attention.

By Ripples. Each time a fan taps your Ripple link to applaud something of yours, that’s an attention signal — and only the first tap per creator each day counts, so the split can’t be gamed by tapping in bursts. At month’s end, each supporter’s amount is divided across the creators they Rippled: more Ripples for you, a bigger share for you. Ripples are the main signal, but not the only factor — anchors (below) shape the split too, and the full formula is published before the first payout ever moves.

No — and the reason is simple: each supporter only divides their own money. Your Ripples decide where your monthly amount goes, and nothing more. A burst of taps doesn’t mint new money — only the first tap per creator each day counts — and no amount of activity, from anyone, can move support that came out of someone else’s pocket. There’s no algorithm to please and no leaderboard to hack. The only way to earn more of a fan’s month is the honest one: be the work they keep coming back to.

Yes — double. When a fan joins Tidepool through your Ripple link, they’re anchored to you: their attention on you counts twice toward your share of their month. You opened the door, so the tide starts at your feet — and for founding creators, that anchor runs five full years.

There’s no fixed rate — your share of each fan’s month depends on their attention. A sketch: a fan puts in $5 a month, and half their Ripples land on you — roughly $2.50 of that fan’s month flows your way, before the platform fee. If that fan joined through your link, their attention on you counts double, and your share climbs. Two hundred quiet fans like that adds up fast. Illustrative only — anchors and a few other factors shape the final split, we’re still tuning the levers in the open, and the formula is published before the first payout.

No. It sits alongside everything you already use, and it’s a bridge toward your deeper offers — never a replacement. Nothing changes about how you create today.

Your Pool — a light premium space with early releases, bonus extras, personal updates, and glimpses behind the work, open to everyone who backs you with a Ripple. One simple page, no separate paywall — an easy way to say thank you and bring supporters closer.

No. Tidepool works at any size — you need attention, not a subscriber base. A creator with a few hundred fans and one with hundreds of thousands tap the same layer.

Free to join, and nothing changes about how you create. Tidepool takes one platform fee on contributions — announced with your founding welcome, and locked at the founding rate for creators who join now — plus standard payment processing. The rest goes to creators, and your dashboard always shows what you earned and what you’ll be paid, side by side.

One of the first creators on Tidepool — with terms that stay founding-only: your handle held from day one, your platform rate locked for good, a five-year referral share on creators you bring into Tidepool, and the support of fans who arrive through you anchored to you for five years. Founding terms are spelled out in your welcome pack.

Yes — that’s the creator referral share. When a creator joins Tidepool through you, you earn a share of the Tide they raise — and for founding creators, that share runs five full years. And one thing that matters: your share is funded from Tidepool’s own fee — never from their payout. The creator you bring in earns exactly the same as every other creator here. Bringing in a voice you believe in costs them nothing, ever.

Then join for the signal, and send the money somewhere it matters. Some creators want proof their work lands — not another check. If that’s you, you can point your payouts at a cause or organization you choose, and we’ll arrange it with you personally — just write us at hello@tidepool.fm. Your Ripples still count, your fans still get your Pool, and the tide you raise flows where you send it.

Four quick fields on the founding form — handle, name, email, one link to where you post. That’s it. We hold tidepool.fm/yourname for you and welcome you in.