This project runs on donations. Here is an honest account of where things stand — what has been spent, what has been received, and how much of my time has gone into it. I'll update this page as the numbers change. If you'd like to help, a contribution is always welcome.
| Domain — piercetheshadow.com Registered via Cloudflare, May 2026. Renews annually. | ~€10 / year |
| Cloudflare Pages & Workers Hosting, API proxy, database (D1). Free tier — no cost while traffic stays within limits. | free tier |
| Resend Magic link email delivery. Free tier — up to 3,000 emails/month. | free tier |
| Anthropic API — production Powers the Dig Deeper experience. Charged per use; cost grows with usage. | €3.95 (May) + €1.16 (Jun) = €5.11 |
| Claude Pro — development My AI development partner, used to build the product. Charged to the project at full monthly cost. | €21.96 / month × 2 = €43.92 |
| Claude Pro — extra usage Usage beyond the monthly subscription limit, billed by Anthropic. | €4.99 |
| Total to date | €64.02 |
Pierce the Shadow was built over 27 sessions between 18 May and 5 June 2026, averaging around two hours per session. That's roughly 55 hours of design, development, writing, and thinking — all by one person, with AI as the only collaborator.
Formal hour tracking begins now. The number will update as work continues.
This is what the project is currently paying me. It will update honestly as the numbers change — up or down.
No external contributors yet. If and when creative work is commissioned — illustrations, writing, design — it will be listed here with the contributor's name, what they produced, the amount paid, and any personal relationship to me.
If Pierce the Shadow is worth something to you, a contribution — however small — covers costs and tells me it's worth continuing.
Every contribution is noted here within a few days.
Last updated: 5 June 2026