COMPREHENSIVE HOMESTUCK SALES FAQ
Q: Hey! Can I sell my Homestuck stuff?

A: That really depends on the type of stuff (see further questions)!

Q: Who do you think you are, telling me what I can and can't sell?

A: Well, we are in fact the rights holder (Andrew Hussie himself) and his duly appointed representatives. Under US law, any creative work is copyrighted - you don't need any fancy legal stuff, it's automatic! So the creative work (also known as "intellectual property") that Andrew Hussie created (Homestuck, in this instance) is automatically copyrighted, and the rights holder has not granted any blanket permissions for people to sell any items based on his work. So anyone doing so is doing something illegal. Lexxy, a member of the Homestuck art team, read through the actual text of the legislation and discussed it here. You can also read the laws for yourself or check out Wikipedia's article about copyright law in the U.S.

Q: Can I sell commissions?

A: Yes, under certain specific conditions. First of all, the "commissions" we refer to here are only unique, two-dimensional images. If you want to sell, on a commission basis, your two-dimensional art with Andrew's intellectual property in it, that's fine, as long as a) neither you nor your commissioner or any third party have any plans to reproduce, resell or make a profit off of the commissioned image and b) you do not promote yourself as a Homestuck artist. This means you would be creating single, unique images for a single commissioner who would not be using that image for any monetary or commercial reason. If you're all right with those conditions, go for it!

Q: What about different kinds of commissions (plushes, etc)?

A: Those are pretty much all no-gos. We don't allow any sales of Homestuck items.

Q: But what about conventions?

A: Sorry, all the same rules apply at conventions; please don't sell Homestuck items there!

Q: What about cosplay items?

A: Sales of cosplay items fall into "different kinds of commissions," above. It's true that we don't sell full costumes, but we do not allow their sale by third parties, either. Ultimately a cosplay costume is something that is so broad and can encompass so many items (many of which we are either selling or planning to sell) that the best move for us, legally, is to simply not allow any sales of any of those kinds of items.

Q: Will any of this ever change?

A: Maybe! We're examining our legal options.

Q: But I'm only charging enough for the costs of my materials! (or) But I'm going to give the profit to charity!

A: Legally, it doesn't matter how much money is exchanging hands or where that money ultimately goes--it's still use of another person's copyrighted material for commercial profit. Charity projects which bank on exchange of money, though they may be driven by good intentions, are still tricky legally and not something we can allow. (When it comes to great charity projects, check out the Can Town Project, which does plenty of good without getting into any tricky legal ground!) If you're feeling like you'd like to give some money to charity, then go for it! Just because it's not related to Homestuck doesn't mean you can't still give! Plenty of charities accept online donations, too.

Q: Doesn't What Pumpkin sell prints by other artists? How does that work?

A: Well, if you're interested in submitting to the print store, you can read the details of that process here. If you mean, how does it work legally? easy! The artists are creating work which uses Andrew Hussie's intellectual property, and he is giving them a legal way to make a profit on that work. Artists sign a contract and receive payment for every print of theirs that sells, and WP receives a portion of the profit too. Perfectly legal, and beneficial for everyone.

Q: If I have a question that isn't covered here, what do I do?

A: Go ahead and send your question here! Someone should get back to you within a week.