indornaga

[indornaga]

im a little stuck on the whole tiktok therian consensuses ive been seeing -

on one paw, i 100% see and understand why we should approach misinformed children with gentleness and education, and i see why it’s important

but on the other paw, i hold personal experiences on the app that the former claim just can’t shake. tiktok, as a platform, is mean. everyone is mean and they teach others to be mean. if you don’t have the exact same hivemind opinions, you’re getting cancelled. and yeah, i did get cancelled. not for, as an ex., educating about unpopular terms, not for attempting to give physical therianthropy a good rep, no…

‘theriantok’ (hold my collar while i puke) cancelled me because i told them labelling yaelokre’s work as ‘therian vibes’ is wrong. to sum it up, my points were that such a vast and complex identity should not have a ‘vibe’ assigned to it, and out of all the vibes, masks?, and that it’s unfair to the creator to do so, because they were throwing away the beautiful storytelling and art the creator made and just slapping the word ‘therian’ over it.

i barely poked at the odd obsession with masks and tails defining therianthropy and got ripped to shreds by these children. and to make it worse, i have other similar experiences. so, sure, they’re kids, but that means something different to me than it does to the other beings on here. it doesn’t mean i’m going to approach them and try to educate them, it means i’m staying the fuck out of it. i moved to tumblr and covered my ears, letting them grow and discover who they are truly by themselves. i’m mad at tiktok, not the kids.

[indornaga]

Mini-zine transcript below:

Blob by Nova

I used to described myself as a blob. A mess of squiggles I didn't know how to define.

When I tried to fit into the boxes everyone else used... I didn't fit like they did. They were too square. Too small. Too big.

Always "too" something.

Setting for something that doesn't fit doesn't last. Eventually, slowly, overtime... I started to define myself.

Challenge yourself. Throw out preconceptions on what is “okay” to be. I am an owl. Guardian of Ga'Hoole. From the Great Tree. Now I type this from an "Other" - excuse me - human device.

Niche species. Niche labels. But so what?

I found my shape. A custom one that fits well.

Alterhuman made, not AI-generated. Created for the 2025 Alterhuman MiniZine Jam. @/Nova-Dracomon.

Edit: Forgot to tag @oceaniccourt ^v^

Printable Version:

[indornaga]

An important reminder to the alterhuman community: expressing aspects of your identity is only “weird” if you make it weird. You know who and what you are.

So embrace it — and be.

[indornaga]

HowlCon Staff Applications NOW OPEN

You must be physically 18 or older to apply for staff.

Duties include:

Assist with planning the convention.

Monitoring chat channels and panel chats.

Working collaboratively with other staff members to resolve conflicts that arise.

Troubleshoots tech issues during panels.

Help record panels for archival purposes.

Our convention would not exist without our dedicated and amazing volunteers. Thank you for helping to make this event a success!

Apply now

[indornaga]

"You can't be a system only 1% of the world is" Yeah well only 1% of the world has green eyes and they are fucking everywhere

[indornaga]

if you live somewhere that has guns, ESPECIALLY america, and especially in the suburbs or more remote, people are awful with guns.

you dont even have to be mistaken for an animal in hunting season for someone to shoot at you--people hate and fear coyotes and wolves enough that if they see something that looks similar, they WILL shoot!

please dont gamble with your life. others in the reblogs have offered great alternatives; please check those reblogs out!

i worry some of you will be shot the way you wear your masks and tails in the woods at night with no like hunter orange or reflective strips…

[indornaga]

One thing they don't tell you about being an adult therian is that much of the online community gradually feels more and more alienating. Posts about wearing gear to school or writing about your theriotype at college stop feeling relatable. And it's admittedly hard not to get grumpy about it. Sure, occasionally you see some insights about working a 9 to 5 when you're a dog, or managing your appointments when you're a bird, but most of the short-form writings you come across feel less like the relevant ramblings of your peers, and more like looking through a window at a life you had to leave behind. I don't miss school, good gods, nothing could ever make me wish I was 16 again. But I do miss the relative simplicity of it, and the ease with which I related to other school-age therians.

[indornaga]

no, you don’t need to wear your mask/tail to school.

i wish young nonhumans didn’t feel compelled to be ‘out’ at school, especially when it’s a dangerous environment. i keep seeing posts along the lines of “wore my tail/mask to school! people berated/teased/put their hands on me, but it’s ok”.

no, it’s not.

like.. i understand a mask or a tail can be a very validating thing for some people. and i’m not saying NO ONE should wear them at schools. but i just keep watching this mounting trend of young therians insinuating you need some physical accessory or to do quads to be a ‘real’ nonhuman. and then it leads to things like this and it makes me incredibly sad.

i’d known i was alterhuman since late elementary school, actually. it’s a huge part of my life even now, years after graduation. there wasn’t a reason for it to be brought up, so i never did. it was a closely guarded secret to me, but it didn’t feel like a weight i was carrying. i always thought “no one needs to know i’m an animal if it jeopardizes my safety. so, oh well”.

“but, how will people know that i’m an animal?”

they probably will. they probably already do.

i was the designated ‘animal’ person my entire school career despite not ever handling animals in front of anyone. if there were pets, lost wild animals (baby rabbits, birds, lizards), or sometimes even loose livestock that got onto campus, it was always me who had to go tend to them.

everyone wanted me in their group in environmental science. if a project called for animal illustrations, the same thing would happen. it was certainly weird because i was also a ‘weird kid’ and not especially desired to be around outside of that, lol. but i was never harassed for it. it made me feel very validated, actually.

i had fun during gym running and fiercely destroying the opposing team in field hockey. i taught everyone which plants were okay to forage (and we snacked on them when we had to sit on the lower field for practice). every day i was hyperaware of the limbs i had that weren’t quite there. friends noticed my ears twitch and my nose wiggle at certain stimuli. i felt nice walking on two legs. i felt nice because i felt animal and i didn’t have to prove it to anyone.

really like… just do what makes you happy. i admire the bravery it takes to so earnestly wear your identity on your sleeve like that. that’s very impressive. however, there is NO obligation to do anything like that if you understand that there will be a reaction that poses a threat to you.

i want our kids to be safe, too. you don’t have to feel dysphoria over being discreet. sometimes it’s the safest option. and sometimes, that can be really fun, too.

study everything you can about your ‘type. wikipedia and animalia are good resources. ramble about them to anyone who will listen. jokingly refer to yourself as one in friend spaces. wear discreet clothes that remind you of your ‘type. find a nice private place outside where you can run and explore and look at plants and smell the air and feel like yourself. but by no means do you have to prove yourself. you know you.

[indornaga]

alterhuman minizine jam ✨

a zine jam for alterhumans. we’ll be making minizines inspired by the prompts below focusing on being alter/non human :)

rules:

must be a mini zine (learn how to fold one HERE!)

be alter/non human or adjacent

have fun!

ideally (but not required): post the scan/flat image of it so others can print & share it!

tag it with #alterhuman minizine jam !!

jam ends on: 7/3, the first friday of march

^ tho you can post em whenever, even after this date! have fun & be creative, this is just for those of us who enjoy a deadline

the prompts!

things that make you feel like yourself

what brings you joy as an alterhuman

fun facts about being alterhuman (kintypes, or just your experiences)

how you found out about being alterhuman

alternatively, make it about whatever you’d like!

thanks for reading & EXTRA thanks if you participate! im excited to see what gets made :D

edit to add: tag me in your creations & ill reblog them! ill also be keeping an eye on the tag, but just to make sure i grab everything, tag me!!

& if you are new to zines entirely, heres some useful links:

what is a zine?

a brief history of zines

ZCMAG (resources)

zinewiki

[indornaga]

One thing they don't tell you about being an adult therian is that much of the online community gradually feels more and more alienating. Posts about wearing gear to school or writing about your theriotype at college stop feeling relatable. And it's admittedly hard not to get grumpy about it. Sure, occasionally you see some insights about working a 9 to 5 when you're a dog, or managing your appointments when you're a bird, but most of the short-form writings you come across feel less like the relevant ramblings of your peers, and more like looking through a window at a life you had to leave behind. I don't miss school, good gods, nothing could ever make me wish I was 16 again. But I do miss the relative simplicity of it, and the ease with which I related to other school-age therians.

[indornaga]

Not Foxes Unite

17. Create a club for your kin (or those close) and describe the objective of the club Niche Kin Appreciation Challenge

I'm mixing it up this time and showcasing my Ethiopian wolf vaguetype instead of my Ga'Hoole owl one. I've had this joke club already cooking - Not Foxes.

By the nature of being a canine and orange-ish colored everyone immediately assumes fox. This happens to other critters too, like dholes. However, we're not foxes!

If you are also not a fox feel free to use this little pin drawing I threw together. Join us.

Hortense

Also, yeah I have no plan to go in order for this challenge. I'm just going with the flow.

[indornaga]

I probably posted this before but I can't remember atm so... I am a dragon=I am a dragonkind=my kintype is a dragon=I identify as my dragonself=I am my kintype=I am myself.

These are all the same and equal to each other.

[indornaga]

Someone needs to study how kemonomimi is becoming trending among otherwise "normal" people who also hate on people like furries, petplayers, nonhumans, therians, otherkin, etc-- when the reality of it is that it's all so similar but under a different name. Everyone going "I want to meet more kemonomimis!" but hate on furries and furry gatherings, not knowing that the majority of OG kemonomimis were furries. Honestly a major chunk of the furry community is folks who can't afford a fursuit or simply don't want to fursuit, and instead wear things like ears, paws, tails, collars, etc. Or they'll say "I want to be called puppy and sleep in a doggy bed and make cookies shaped like bones" and then be like "Eww petplay so gross" that's...... what you're doing dude! It's just frustrating to see how not only are these historic communities* becoming sanitized/erased but also just hated on or attacked.

*Petplay, furry, and therian/kin communities are historic in their queer, sexual, artistic, and spiritual worlds and often overlap. They aren't just hobbies!

[indornaga]

good morning. i made a meme.

[indornaga]

random poll time! i was curious about the gender distribution of the alterhuman community so i made this. please only answer if you are otherkin, therian, fictionkin, otherhearted, holothere, archetrope, plural, or any other label under the umbrella

(im very sorry about the lack of options, i hit the maximum which is 12. again, if you are not alterhuman please refrain from voting on the poll. thank you :])

[indornaga]

Do you ever feel like an animal that's been held in close contact with humans for too long? Like you'd never be able to be released into the wild again due to how accustomed you are to living within human society? You wouldn't survive out there anymore, you're too used to being fed. You haven't been amongst the trees or within the waves or in the skies for so long, they've started to feel foreign.

Do you ever feel like you're stuck between being domesticated and being wild, in some sort of limbo where both extremes somehow feel wrong at the same time?

[indornaga]

I beg to hear of thee, which of you fuckers are both attracted to monsters and see yourself as one? Because, man. I've felt that way since I was capable of feeling attraction. For me, I'm attracted to monsters that are vampyric/demonlike/alienlike while I view myself as a monster of a similar sort of ilk. If this resonates with you, let me know what you're attracted to and what you see yourself as!