shadowfae

[shadowfae]

Two things, since I saw some people talking about it and I want it to be easy to understand. I went back and tagged things now so this sort of stuff should be easier to reference in the future.

Fictionfolk is a complete word. The -folk isn't really a suffix to be tacked onto other words. Fictionfolk is an umbrella that encompasses all beings with fictional origin. Fictionkind, fictives, people with fictional hearthomes, fictionhearted people, other fictional headmates, fictherians, hosts of fictional systems, etc. It came about on the Dreamwidth community because I needed a quick and easy way to address everyone there. There are so many fictional entities and connected people that it's ridiculous to try and list them out all the time. It is also an option for people who know they're fictional in some way, but either don't know in what way they are (kin? soulbonder? fictionflicker? idk man I'm just here?), or they don't want to disclose the details for privacy reasons.

In hand with fictionfolk was Fictomere, which also came about on Dreamwidth. Again, for ease of use- I needed a way to talk about the subject of one's fictionality without being too wordy. When I ask a question meant for everyone, I need a single word to denote their kintype/headmate/source/world/etc. Fictomere is the subject. This also allows for privacy and vagueness, since you don't have to explain the nature of what the subject is. Don't want to admit to being fictionkind just yet? Cool, just call the character your fictomere and all the audience knows is that you have a connection to them, done and done.

The revival of -kind works more like suffix. It's the earlier version of otherkin, before the -d was quietly dropped. It serves two purposes, the first being exclusive to the Tumblr environment of the time. 1) Differentiates you from KFF who don't know the history involved, and giving an alternative to "kin" which, thanks to kinnies, some people have come to dislike. 2) It is more broad. It takes the focus away from the origin of your identity. You can nitpick about being 'kin or 'hearted or involuntary vs voluntary/spiritual vs psychological all day if you want, or you can just say that you are "of that kind". Maybe you don't know, or you don't want other people to know - and maybe your identity is too complicated and multi-faceted to put neatly in any box - saying that you are dragonkind, birdkind, horsekind, whatever, makes the connection clear and dependent on your explanations rather than assumptions.

I can't take full credit for the last one because it was already a word, I just dragged it back out and put it in people's faces for long enough that they realized they liked it. The climate of this social media platform gave it more relevance and necessitated an expanded meaning.

[shadowfae]

Happy solstice.

[shadowfae]

Hey guys, I've recently run into the issue where LycanTheory has started stealing my art.

It'd be seriously awesome if y'all could hop onto Twitter and report the content for me in Report > It's abusive or harmful > Includes targeted harassment > Someone else.

Thanks for the help, guys.

[shadowfae]

@super-adventure-box

The factkin thing is. Not true? Even back when there was a rule about discussing it in the server I don't think anyone was banned over it? There was someone in the server trying to figure out whether or not they were factkin like three days ago and while the mods are still largely in the "harmful framework for valid experience" camp the community's stance definitely. Ranges.

Not that the rest of your post is wrong but like. If that's The Thing That Irks You The Most I? Guess you'll be glad to know it's probably a misunderstanding of a defunct and largely unenforced rule that I'm pretty sure was in place because the subject kept coming up?

That is... relieving to hear, although still irksome. I understand "this is apparently a topic you guys can't behave about, it's banned until you learn to be civil", but that was definitely not what I was told by some rather credible people. (I'll leave them anonymous, but if they want to step forward with sources, I would also welcome that for the sake of clarity.)

What I've been told was, paraphrasing, "We don't like them and they're not valid so if you support them, get out". Weird hill to die on. If we take that as true for the moment, then it makes their stance of being forced into saying something about bestialists pretty hypocritical. And if that isn't true or I've been given wrong information, then it's significantly less damning.

Which is good, because an organization like Alt+H could be very useful if done correctly, and I don't want to write it off as a total loss. I do want to clarify though that I'm speaking exclusively about the mods: the community has always been reasonably divided about factkin.

Still, always good to have someone else give an account of it, since I have no current or past affiliation with Alt+H, nor any interest in pursuing one. Those involved will have to let me know what's going on inside. I'm not there, and can only comment on what I know about.

It looks like Alt-H did decide to _actually_ deplatform zetas on their Twitter, so I guess the conversation wasn't a total loss, but...wtf

Yeah, I noticed. I found out uh, four minutes before LT reared his ugly head and went after Page here on tumblr. (Reminder to block and report him, while you're at it.)

I really don't want to be a dick and say it isn't good enough (the wording isn't formal, it's not a real announcement and just a tweet, ~ooo let us know if we're interacting with anyone 'sus'~ instead of an actual statement), but honestly? My standards are a bit high, it's about damn time they made a statement.

I'm not happy with the "conversation" we had. I was all but ignored, and so was Sun. VS went straight for Noel's sharpness and insisted we were somehow breaking boundaries (what boundaries?? Only theory I have is 'boundary to not be questioned or criticized' which is kind of pathetic) and refused to engage further with those of us trying to play it civil.

I said absolutely nothing that wouldn't have been brought up in their discord before their initiative was even drafted. My tone wasn't accusatory, if anything it was "and how was this missed? Please don't miss it next time!" and I ended off on a rather optimistic note? So I genuinely can't see what I might have been at fault for. I'm open to someone pointing out what I might have fucked up, solely because I want to not have to write off the entire organization as a loss, but I can't see it.

But what irks me the most, and I didn't find this out until almost six hours ago, is that Alt+H has a very firm stance on "if you support factkin, you are banned from our discord". That's enough to make a statement about on its own, but they required significant pressure before they were forced to make a statement about bestialists, and it wasn't a great one either. One of these is actively harming all involved communities. The other is a weird philosophical debate that's fun to have every now and then but otherwise hasn't been an issue in at least four years.

I'm glad Alt+H made a statement. I really am. Took them long enough. But I'm not happy with how they handled any of this, and if immediately folding under any sort of critique and playing the victim is how their spokesperson is going to handle any sort of negative talk about them, well.

Let's just say I'm glad they at least made a statement, and I personally think there's room for improvement from here on out.

[shadowfae]

I'm from AQWorlds, and one of the things the game is known for is making references to popular music, having music acknowledged as a very powerful type of magic ingame, and also occasionally getting musicians to perform ingame as characters with actual songs.

Which means for me, a frankly amazing amount of current music can be translated almost directly into my canon with small name changes. Nightwish becomes Nightsong, Dragonforce becomes Dragon's Might, Edguy becomes the Edmen, you get the idea.

It also means that I'm waiting for Lorian music to show up in this world, because if it exists here, it existed there, and I'm hoping the reverse is also true. Featherfall my beloved let me listen to you one more time, the Champion loved you so much and I miss you.

But it was wonderful. Every time a new album comes out from a band I know that exists in both worlds, I wonder what all my friends back home think of it, and if we're listening to the same songs.

I think some of us feel a little uneasy scrolling through the community tags tonight so if you’re interested, share something fascinating, positive, or something you love about your alterhuman identity.

[shadowfae]

It looks like Alt-H did decide to _actually_ deplatform zetas on their Twitter, so I guess the conversation wasn't a total loss, but...wtf

Yeah, I noticed. I found out uh, four minutes before LT reared his ugly head and went after Page here on tumblr. (Reminder to block and report him, while you're at it.)

I really don't want to be a dick and say it isn't good enough (the wording isn't formal, it's not a real announcement and just a tweet, ~ooo let us know if we're interacting with anyone 'sus'~ instead of an actual statement), but honestly? My standards are a bit high, it's about damn time they made a statement.

I'm not happy with the "conversation" we had. I was all but ignored, and so was Sun. VS went straight for Noel's sharpness and insisted we were somehow breaking boundaries (what boundaries?? Only theory I have is 'boundary to not be questioned or criticized' which is kind of pathetic) and refused to engage further with those of us trying to play it civil.

I said absolutely nothing that wouldn't have been brought up in their discord before their initiative was even drafted. My tone wasn't accusatory, if anything it was "and how was this missed? Please don't miss it next time!" and I ended off on a rather optimistic note? So I genuinely can't see what I might have been at fault for. I'm open to someone pointing out what I might have fucked up, solely because I want to not have to write off the entire organization as a loss, but I can't see it.

But what irks me the most, and I didn't find this out until almost six hours ago, is that Alt+H has a very firm stance on "if you support factkin, you are banned from our discord". That's enough to make a statement about on its own, but they required significant pressure before they were forced to make a statement about bestialists, and it wasn't a great one either. One of these is actively harming all involved communities. The other is a weird philosophical debate that's fun to have every now and then but otherwise hasn't been an issue in at least four years.

I'm glad Alt+H made a statement. I really am. Took them long enough. But I'm not happy with how they handled any of this, and if immediately folding under any sort of critique and playing the victim is how their spokesperson is going to handle any sort of negative talk about them, well.

Let's just say I'm glad they at least made a statement, and I personally think there's room for improvement from here on out.

[shadowfae]

LycanTheory is back on tumblr and going by the name mountainshep17. Don't interact with him. Don't give him the time of day. Just block him and move on.

LycanTheory is known to engage in bestiality and advocate for "zoophile rights". He is also known to act inappropriate with minors. For the full extend and evidence of his unethical and criminal behavior, check out the "beware" on this website: https://invisibleotherkin.neocities.org/Resources.html

[shadowfae]

Get out, LT. You aren't wanted or welcomed here.

-South

If anyone needs further proof that LycanTheory, current owner of Therian Guide, engages in bestiality/is pro-bestiality beyond just the screenshots from him in 2016 where he was seen on a bestiality-focused platform and openly admitted to losing his virginity to a dog--

--he's currently engaging in the staunch defense of bestialists, also known as "people who engage in bestiality," on his Twitter account. He's been calling people and platforms who engage in anti-bestiality and anti-bestialist rhetoric "bigot[s]," "authoritarian," and "[exercising] the threat of censorship and ostracism." He also publicly identifies as a "zoo[phile] therian," and so make of that what you will.

[shadowfae]

Also, joy of joys, LycanTheory, also known as "that guy who has provably committed multiple acts of bestiality and should be in prison", has cropped his head up on tumblr.

He's at @mountainshep17. Wouldn't it be a shame if he was mass-reported for bestiality and driven off-site?

I think it'd be funny.

-Southern Star

[shadowfae]

I’m barely awake right now, but I read VS’ answer, and that was... hm, pathetic, so I think I’m gonna write that off as a total loss despite the fact absolutely nobody was accusatory and everyone offered suggestions.

But taking a movie nobody cares about over the actual, major bestialist issue... yikes.

[shadowfae]

feel free to just delete this, i just wanted to suggest it, but maybe "on community issues"? or "on intracommunity issues" if you want to specify? do you have a tag similar to that? i did check your tags page but it didn't seem like the type of 'on blank' tags you use were on there. sorry to intrude, thank you for all the work you do.

I haven’t updated literally any of my blog pages since before the porn ban, none of my current tags are on my old tags page. :p Which I also haven’t bothered putting up on my blog so it’s totally fine you didn’t know.

You’ve got a point there - maybe ‘on community works’? Since I don’t really have a tag for surveys and zines and the like either, the closest thing I’ve got is my ‘on archives’ tag which would be a child tag of whatever this is. I’ll sleep on it and see.

Thanks, nonny!

[shadowfae]

Okay I’m gonna explain my “I don’t care about Wolf” post a bit more. Lemme copy some opinions I put up on my twitter yesterday over to here and summarize them a bit.

I think this reaction to Wolf is WAY overblown. The hashtag and community initiative response is just drawing attention to a film already recognized as pretty mediocre that I think is going to be forgettable either way. Of course I haven’t seen the movie but even aside from the piss poor excuse for representation it just doesn’t seem any bit entertaining or engaging of a concept. Yes, sit in a movie theatre for way too long watching medical abuse, sounds absolutely exciting.

I know the initiative response is about mitigating damage it can do. But what damage is it really going to do? Like, I think folks gotta ask themselves this critically before getting stressed out. It’s a mediocre movie that’s going to be forgotten so long as our community doesn’t make people remember it, we’re past the age of the “Jaws effect”.

Also for it to do any damage at all it needs attention to begin with - which it’s at a severe disadvantage for getting due to being scheduled to release right before a major Marvel movie that everyone is pre-occupied with and saving theatre money for. From what I can see Wolf is mostly irrelevant aside from very, VERY niche movie buffs. Like, I work in entertainment industry, and have connections to film. I’m also just friends with movie buffs and fanatics all around. I haven’t seen a single person outside our community give a damn about Wolf since the teasers dropped.

I know my perspective is very much focused as a worker and industry professional. I hear about new movies a lot due to working in the industry. I’ve not seen anyone outside our community even mention the name. I think the blown up response is just going to make an otherwise completely forgettable and critic-disliked movie be remembered for reasons that will ultimately be more damaging to us than if it had just been left alone to fade into obscurity.

Now also extend consideration to the community initiative in practice. On the twitter #WolfGetsReal hashtag we’ve got full on pro-bestiality, zeta-donning folks joining in. How’s that any good of a look? Drawing attention not only to the irrelevant and mediocre movie but also to the input of the zeta squad sounds like a recipe for disaster and more dangerous to our community than the actual movie itself.

Don’t stress yourselves out over the movie. Stressing out is only going to make this shit worse.

[shadowfae]

This is a sharper way of saying a lot of what I was saying, but Page definitely did help me solidify my proper opinions so we're more or less on the same page.

It definitely should be ground-up over top-down, and honestly? It reminds me of the one twitter thread of someone taking the question "why won't anyone join our nonprofit" and concluding with "and what's your access ramp to make that easy to do?" since so much was based on "oh everyone knows it's actually over here, not where our documentation is".

The Wikipedia project, if it had panned out, and folks having questioning guides and personal essays and "you figured out you're alterhuman! Cool, now what?" articles make that a lot easier. It's a lot easier to just make actual info easier to find than it is trying to convince movie directors not to be ableist and sensationalist.

It's also got a higher chance of actually working, and there are ways of doing it. It just has to be discussed, put together, and done.

this is a post addressing some criticism #WolfGetsReal is getting. a good post, i promise. because people have made some good points. i’m not reblogging the post they’re from because there’s enough that i disagree with that i don’t want to just amplify it onto my own followers, but there’s also enough well-reasoned and productive criticism that it deserves a response. like, geuinely, i really want to emphasise that we do give a shit that some people think this was poorly executed (or a bad idea in general) and to enter into a dialogue about that, so we can do it better. tumblr is a fucking godawful platform for any kind of productive communication, but here goes.

cc @a-dragons-journal @spiritus-sonne @shadowfae, come get y’all juice.

Keep reading

[shadowfae]

Hope not, I wanna be constructive about it so we can improve and do better than this.

You're not the only one who's expressed serious concerns about the bestialists, and it's the most consistent criticism I've seen so far: that needs to be addressed, the sooner the better. If one thing is taken away from any of us, I want it to be that. Address it.

And honestly, my idea of prompts was halfway inspired by you (I want to slam out some prompts tomorrow after a website update I do, they're very good and I know eventually I'll open up about the pure, honest shitshow that's my Luteia kintype), and also that I have like... four different prompt posts in my drafts, waiting for me to have time to answer them. Someone going up and gathering them all in one place would be majorly helpful when I tell people to write essays and they immediately go "but about what".

So yeah, definitely go with some prompts, and people are more likely to do them if they get cool rewards for them. Flight Rising, when I played it, had user pushes for site bonuses and the organizers would give you little badge images you could display for participating and reaching certain goals. Would be great to get visibility and some cash towards those of us who draw, and this community loves small exclusive shinies they can use for bragging rights. And this really is off the top of my head, who knows what the other Alt+H folks would say?

this is a post addressing some criticism #WolfGetsReal is getting. a good post, i promise. because people have made some good points. i’m not reblogging the post they’re from because there’s enough that i disagree with that i don’t want to just amplify it onto my own followers, but there’s also enough well-reasoned and productive criticism that it deserves a response. like, geuinely, i really want to emphasise that we do give a shit that some people think this was poorly executed (or a bad idea in general) and to enter into a dialogue about that, so we can do it better. tumblr is a fucking godawful platform for any kind of productive communication, but here goes.

cc @a-dragons-journal @spiritus-sonne @shadowfae, come get y’all juice.

Keep reading

[shadowfae]

Gonna just do a bullet point addressing stuff because I just got out of my last final and my brain's still a bit frazzled, but.

1) You didn't actually address this at any point, which automatically puts it at the top of the list. I said, and it was actually brought to my attention a couple days ago in a server from folks more on twitter, but your hashtag was already co-opted by bestialists (LycanTheory is the big one, but I know there's been at least two) trying to push the narrative that therianthropy is inherently linked to bestiality, which it isn't. Alt+H also remains one of the few big spaces for alterhumanity that hasn't addressed this problem whatsoever, and they clearly think you're allies. These people need to be convicted and put in prison for animal abuse. You need to make it clear, before anything else right now, that they are not welcome in your spaces. By neglecting to do so, you are making it unsafe to be in your spaces if you're not pro-bestiality. Now, if I'm wrong and you actually want that, I'd like to know, because I'm under the optimistic impression that you don't. Either way, make that clear. It's not a question that should be left unanswered, especially right now.

2) It was brought to my attention that you opened discussion for this initiative for a total of two hours before posting. That is... unreasonably fast. I've worked and managed projects before, and for smaller projects I would have given no less than 48 hours before even drafting the post. I'm not a part of Alt+H, but I find it hard to believe you didn't have a single person who was either a) asleep or b) at work, who didn't have the chance to give any input. Every single criticism and critique that I've seen (barring most made today, since I've been very busy) were obvious ones that I'd be very surprised wouldn't have been brought up if this were thoroughly discussed. It's obvious that it wasn't, and that's a serious issue as well.

3) Furthermore on that point, you said you actually weren't aware of the Grimes thing earlier this year. Had you held discussion for longer, I'm certain someone would have brought it up, and also goes to show that Alt+H isn't very active on twitter: I'm not either, but it was impossible to miss. If you're going to do initiatives on platforms, it stands to reason that you should have folks who are native to those platforms, and can advise you how to proceed. To not do that is setting yourself up for failure.

4) Re emotional exhaustion, which was your first point: species dysphoria is not a kind topic. Writing about it, especially when your foundation is so negative, is absolutely exhausting. There's a reason I don't really do it unless asked directly. There was absolutely no acknowledgement that people would have this issue (again, how was this not brought up in discussion before posting?) and no support was linked in advance. It was a clear "show up, tell these people who don't care and have no reason to not be utterly cruel to you about the things that hurt you the most, boost others' misery and posts about it, and then uhhhh have fun I guess". That is incredibly ill-thought-out, and kind of obvious.

5) Which means I have to ask something that should have been one of the first questions you asked yourself(ves?) when you proposed this idea: what, Mercy of the Fire tell, did you expect to happen? Did you expect rainbows and sunshine and pulling the movie from the box office and apologies from the director? Obviously not. Did you expect to just be ignored? Did you expect the Washington Post to apologize? Did you expect to be shut down and mocked? Genuine question, because "worst case / best case / most likely scenario" is an essential part of drafting up any sort of initiative where you're getting people to do things. The fact that this was evidently not asked is a glaring issue, and if I can get you to listen to a second piece of advice from me, even if just two (the first is obviously point #1, deal with that first please and thanks), is that you need more planning when you're doing things like this. This was not enough.

6) This is slightly related, but you mentioned that you expected people to stop and read through interviews and journal posts before making calls, and I want to know... where have you been on the internet where everyone does that. Actually, where have you been that more than about 15% of people do that. That's a bias you should have known and accounted for from the start, because people will read headlines and that's about it. Sensationalism and out-of-context-headlines and half-true ideas are what the internet runs on. I'm not sure how you didn't notice that one, and I don't mean to insult you, I genuinely don't, but you need to start accounting for that. You can make it work for you, but you have to acknowledge it first.

And finally, your two big questions.

1) I said we don't have any power to say literally nobody is going to take us seriously. Because they have no reason to. We are the internet's punching bag when we're relevant, and entirely forgotten about when we're not. What makes you think you can take on the Washington Post and all these big-shot journals when they don't think cis trans or gay people should be treated with any humanity? We don't have any power because the only ways to get it are to break things until people listen, or be respectful enough someone decides to give it to us. We will never be the latter, and I will not be apart of any respectability politics that the latter requires. We don't have the numbers for the former. Right now, we're mentally ill people who need to be fixed at best in their eyes, and at worst we're transphobic jokes and should be stripped of human rights because of what we believe ourselves to be. How do you intend on changing that mindset in people who won't change it for cis gays or anyone who isn't a fucking Christian, who are leading the charge in terms of privilege among marginization? You aimed way, way too big, and it's going to fail about as hard, if we're lucky, and harder if we're not.

As for how to change that? Simply put, we're not. That isn't me being pessimistic, that's me being realistic. If there is a time when you'll be able to change your legal species and retain your human rights, or have neopronouns on your driver's license, it's decades off at best, and will require a lot more work. We're not going to get the Washington Post to respect us. Best case scenario, those journalists didn't even see the comments. Because if they did, the odds are against them being charitable about it. We're too damn weird. We're beyond teenagers using neopronouns, which are also very weird (regardless of what I personally think of that, it's still weird to society at large). There's no changing it, not that high.

To change it at all? Ally ourselves with furries, maybe. They've got financial power and a chokehold on the IT industry. Or go up to academia and fund their studies. I recall one of Alt+H's original goals was to fund studies. Being able to cite those would go a long way into being able to say "we're here, we exist, and you're going to damn well acknowledge it".

2) How do we strike a balance between bringing up issues and not making everyone hate being alterhuman?

This is a question that I think you should've asked right when you made the organization. Although, to be fair, this does seem to be the first community initiative, so it's understandable why it got missed until now.

Be a positive force, so that when it's time to have to be serious and negative and stir up the community, people actually want to work with you to see the goals complete. Give us more notice for things like this, for one. Don't just "oh write essays right now" us, more like "ayyy therianthropy day's in a month, we'll be holding a raffle for this cool sticker set, five bucks for a ticket to fund studies, and if you want more than so many tickets, you get an extra one for every piece of personal writing or art you do over 500 words / 20 minutes of work that you also tag us in!".

People ask a lot on what to write, because they don't know where to start, and yet the 30 Day Otherkin Challenge is still popular. Maybe host several prompt lists and personal challenges on your website, and link them frequently on your socials so people know they exist. Boost zines and surveys and whatnot and be a community hub, so that folks know you, and they like you, and when it's time to do stuff, word actually gets out.

Do more positive stuff, and get people happy to do this sort of stuff. Simple as that, really, and there's so many ways to go about it that aren't mutually exclusive that I'm sure your organization could come up with some really good ones, given a week or two to brainstorm.

Hope that helps, at least.

this is a post addressing some criticism #WolfGetsReal is getting. a good post, i promise. because people have made some good points. i’m not reblogging the post they’re from because there’s enough that i disagree with that i don’t want to just amplify it onto my own followers, but there’s also enough well-reasoned and productive criticism that it deserves a response. like, geuinely, i really want to emphasise that we do give a shit that some people think this was poorly executed (or a bad idea in general) and to enter into a dialogue about that, so we can do it better. tumblr is a fucking godawful platform for any kind of productive communication, but here goes.

cc @a-dragons-journal @spiritus-sonne @shadowfae, come get y’all juice.

Keep reading

[shadowfae]

What with my health up to no good and needing to focus on that, I quit my 2nd job, so I'm back to my far more manageable 32 hours a week routine. That means the Fictionkind Dreamwidth community will be much more active again, also in thanks to @tanadin, who was the only brave soul to offer to help administrate the place.

I haven't advertised here in a minute and this was as good a time as any to do that. So, for anyone who hasn't seen it - or saw it before and forgot to jump on it then - Fictionkind is a Dreamwidth community that exists for all fictionally identified individuals and systems. Not just 'kin and 'kind, but fictives, fictionhearted, soulbonds and their hosts, fictherians, fictionflickerers- really, you name it. If a fictional species, person, or world has significantly impacted or altered your identity, you're welcome there.

More about it can be read here, which is required to see and agree to before you even join. If it suits your fancy then get in here and liven up the place! Right now we're very prompt-oriented and we need way more than that. Even the content that you think is cringe or annoying is 100% wanted.

[shadowfae]

I hope this isn't too much of a nuisance, but I'm trying to introduce my friends to being kin, and as someone who is spiritual kin I'm having trouble explaining the psychological kin side of things. Do you have/know about any resources I could use to help explain things??

No worries if it's too much to ask, don't even worry about answering it if you don't have the energy.

It's not a nuisance at all, but you've definitely got the wrong person for this, I don't source anything unless there's a gun to my head. :p Go ask Poppy aestherians, he's psych 'kin and between him and HoC liongoatsnake, there will be sources aplenty.