#aeslink

[randompolykin]

you know what? I'm gonna ignore my anxiety and post this

been procrastinating making this but "here goes nothing" as they say for some reason

worried this is obvious, or everyone has been subconsciously meaning what I fear they mean

But, it's true so...

Here's to the otherlinkers

Not just the copinglinkers

But the funlinkers

The aeslinkers

The supportlinkers

The otherlinkers who are in-between those labels

The otherlinkers who feel none of those labels can describe why they link/they link for another reason

To ALL the otherlinkers

It seems like (this could just be me, idk) in a lot positivity posts saying that otherlinkers are valid and no lesser then therians, otherkins and fictionkins, there is a switch between using the term copinglink and otherlink, as if they are synonyms. But they aren't. One is a subset of the other, which includes alot more in it's definition. If you only mean copinglink, and are excluding the rest of us linkers, then say so. And if you aren't, then be a bit more careful on your wording, please. I am losing it slightly with this, my anxious brain can't handle the fact I have no idea over where everyone stands on this, yet I want to know

Otherlinkers are extremely valid and awesome, and are no less then voluntary identities. No matter why they link, only the linker gets to decide if they are any less then, with there link types, just how polykins can have kintypes that are more important to them than others, etc.

[wildcatpaws]

I just wrote like two paragraphs on something I've felt for so so long and towards the end of writing I was like "am I literally just describing how kinning something feels like?"

I'm super not sure and I'm unsure whether I should post it or not since it feels super personal.

My closing was: "One thing all of these have in common is that I want/need/whatever to embody their "vibe" so much so that i want to be seen like all of them. Maybe knowing that I could never gives me the sense of longing and 'void' that needs to be filled, the part of myself I'm missing." (this is about utaite/vocaloid/anime, needy streamer overload, and a specific person)

Can anyone confirm or deny whether this sounds like kinning something (obviously not the real life person part tho, still dk wtf that is)

[neontinsstamps]

♡ Otherlink+ stamps ♡

in order:

otherlink, funlink, aeslink and fictlink, all with the otherlink flag.

[pantastic-jester]

Kokichi Ouma Userboxes!

These still feel unfinished, I'm probably still going to add more clutter

Any suggestions or requests are more than welcome

[sunheart101]

A discord server for Otherlinkers!

Join if you’re Otherlink!

Server was not created by me

If the invite doesn’t work comment or dm me asking for a new one

[cherishedverses]

nah fuck it 2 linktypes

[lucky-stick]

alterhuman terms

part 5 (otherlink)

(creds: i have no idea who made it)

otherlink - is mostly voluntary (sometimes involuntary) called a linktype is to identify as an animal, mystical being or fictional charater for various reasons

copinglink - can be voluntary or involuntary is a linktype to cope with things like mental health ect

supportlink - similar to coping formed to help traits or behaviours

paroulink - formed as a coping mechanism as a disconnect from humanity

funlink - is a voluntary linktype and is chosen for fun

aeslink - similar to funlink but for aesthetic reasons

fictionlink - otherlinks for fictional characters

otherfix - a hyperfixation becoming a linktype

otherspin - a hyperfixation becoming a linktypw

dropping a linktype

It is possible to drop a linktype if one does not need or want it anymore. There are a few reasons an otherlinker might drop a linktype, from it causing harm to personal preference. The process itself can range from easy affirmations to complex procedures.

[gremlin-therian]

Lista de termos #4: Tipos de otherlink

Eu não estava deixando definições no topo dos outros posts porque considerei os termos conhecidos o suficiente, mas por conta da menor representação do otherlinking, acho que não custa nada abrir uma exceção :)

"Otherlinker é um termo que descreve aqueles que se identificam como algum ser não humano, de maneira especificamente voluntária. Ou seja, por escolha. [...]"

Retirado da minha primeira lista ↑

Tipos de otherlink

Copinglink descreve um linktype formado como maneira de lidar com um trauma, grande estresse/dor emocional, ou alguma outra questão sendo enfrentada pelo linker.

Funlink descreve um linktype formado por diversão.

Aeslink descreve um linktype formado por motivos estéticos, como escolher se identificar como algo por considerá-lo muito bonito, ou para combinar com seu estilo, por exemplo.

Supportlink descreve um linktype formado como forma de apoio (por exemplo: emocional). Um supportlink pode proporcionar crescimento pessoal, ajudar a controlar suas emoções, entre outros possíveis usos, dependendo da experiência pessoal e das necessidades do linker.

Paroulink descreve um linktype criado como maneira de lidar com algum trauma, grande estresse/dor emocional, ou alguma outra questão (assim como copinglink), por conta de uma desconexão com a humanidade, ou como uma forma de expressar essa desconexão.

Voidlink (cunhado no aalt) descreve um linktype criado com a intenção de suprir a sensação de vazio em relação a "algo que deveria ser um type, mas não é".

Nota: Por mais que todas essas definições existam, não há nenhuma obrigação de afirmar porque um linktype foi adotado. Além disso, nada garante que haverá um rótulo, ou desejo de cunhar um rótulo, que será certo para toda motivação possível. Você pode sempre optar por referir as suas experiências apenas como "otherlinking", caso não considere uma especificação relevante :)

Fictionlink é um linktype de algum ser ou personagem fictício.

Cladolink é um linktype de algum grupo inteiro de animais, ao invés de uma única espécie.

Paleolink é um linktype de algum animal que já foi extinto.

Choicekin é o nome dado a um linktype que se tornou involuntário, se comportando como um "kintype normal". As linhas entre o que é voluntário e involuntário podem ser borradas, e há quem prefira se referir a esse tipo de type como um therio/kintype, ou seguir usando o termo "otherlink".

Nota: Choicekin é considerado um tanto controverso. Alguns rotulam a experiência como inválida, enquanto outros se preocupam com a possibilidade da palavra causar a impressão de que a theriantropia e a otherkinidade são simples escolhas, e que isso possa reduzir a seriedade com que a comunidade é tratada. Mas por favor não deixe ninguém dizer o que a sua identidade pode ou não ser, e sinta-se à vontade para utilizar o termo se considerá-lo aplicável a você :) Apenas mantenha essas possíveis ressalvas em mente, e esteja disposte a informar as pessoas sobre a sua experiência, caso venha a ser necessário.

[khazvotzl]

SUPER AWESOME INTRO POST WOOO!!!

✨ HELLOO we're a queer, plural, alterhuman creator with AuDHD :3

Collectively queerian, greyromantic, non-binary, and cathearted. Catch-all name and pronouns would be Heresy / The Heretic System and xe/they/he, or just our username. Cats are our biggest special interest (+ weather) so that's a lot of what you're gonna see here!! Along with all our other fixations :P

🌈 CARRD ✨

🌈 ART COMMISSIONS (CLOSED) ✨

🌈 SUPPORT US ON REDBUBBLE!! ✨

🌈 MAIN ART ACCOUNT ✨

🌈 SYSTEM DOC (WIP) ✨

✨ ABOUT THE HOST

call me Wafflez or Karkat! (or any other names on my carrd) agnostic misotheist / dystheist and Bastet worshipper! karkat introject but also waffle (catscratch) and khazvotzl (oc) fictionkin. schrödinger's cat conceptkin. scourge (warrior cats) and glaggle aeslink demonhearted, zombiehearted, and plushhearted. :3 non-binary transmasc/transneutral polycatgender, PLURgender, rainbowboyic, neuroboy. polyamorous greyromantic, achiliean (nblm & nblnb). very very very queer <3

✨ DO NOT INTERACT

ANYONE UNDER 13 GO AWAY. Other than that, basic DNI, I block as I please. Endos don't interact with my plurality posts thanks <3

✨ OTHER BLOGS OF OURS

🎨 @khazkat - main blog 👽 @otheryn - alterhumanity & cat centric content 😻 @everywarriorsboard - warrior cats stimboards project 🪐 @kittygraphicz - personal graphics hoard 🧸 @plvshworld - comfort / age regression account

[a-dragons-journal]

I am so so sorry to bother, but is it ok to link (am I saying that right) something because you like the aesthetic or vibe they have? Like can I link(?) a ghost because I love the aesthetic they have and the personality I think of when I think ghost? You can’t have to answer if you don’t want to, tho!

/lh /gen

Disclaimer: I'm not a 'linker, I'm not an authority on this subject in any way xD

As long as it's not doing harm to you, I don't think there's really a not okay reason to link something (unless we want to talk about, like. linking real people, in which case there's a whole debate there, but let's not go down that road). If you think the link would be beneficial to you, then there's nothing stopping you. (I've even heard the word aeslink a few times, specifically to describe a linktype like what you're describing.)

@chordata-on-alterhumanity, @archiealterhuman, sorry for the pings, but - thoughts? Since I know y'all've written resources on 'linking before.

[otherlinks]

Otherlinks is Back [+ Looking For Mods]

We have no posted on this blog in almost 10 full months wow. 

From discussing with other otherlinkers who liked this blog and from us personally wanted another blog like this, we’ve decided to bring this back from our hiatus. 

What we have done: 

Changed the theme. 

Redid our about, FAQ, and mods page. 

Updated the scope/wording of this blog to include all voluntary identities, ‘link or not. 

Moved our system under one mod (note: we will not be editing our old post for archival purposes). 

What we plan to do 

The one request in the ask box right now. 

Get a queue going mostly with requests from our system. 

Possibly create a Discord server for this blog. 

In order to keep from going on hiatus again, We are open to new mods. If you are interested please DM us on here or on our blog @team-anomaly​. Our main requirements are of course that you have a voluntary identity and that you have a Discord for easy communication. 

Thank you for sticking with us, we hope that this run around with this blog will be more successful! 

[otherlinking-bye]

read DNI in bio before interacting

𓏲 An introduction to Otherlink, along with debunking claims about the term

Otherlink : someone who identifies voluntarily as any nonhuman or fictional being/thing. What they identify as is called a Linktype. A shortened version of Otherlink would be a 'linker / a 'link. Feeling more like your Linktype on purpose is called being in a Linkshift. Contrary to possible misunderstanding, it does not «fall under being an Otherkin identity» (more about this later on). Alterhuman is the Umbrella term it falls under, which is defined as a person who has a subjective identity which is beyond the scope of what is traditionally considered ‘being human’.

'Linkers commonly 'link with their linktype for one or more purposes that can differ/overlap from linktype to linktype if they have many.

The most common purposes are : for Coping, for Fun, for “Support”(=advantage yourself with one or more of your linktype's qualities, for example being eloquent or daring), and Aesthetically. There doesn't need to be a clear purpose though.

Since a linktype could have many different purposes, many terms have been coined to identify which is the purpose you 'link for! They are: Copinglink ; Funlink ; Supportlink ; Aeslink.

There also exist Otherlink terms that refer to Otherlinking in a what the linktype is way : Fictionlink (Otherlinks who have or more linktype that is a fictional character) ; Plantlink ; etc., can be any word which has “link” as a suffix.

Debunking some things from now on!

𓄴A linktype =/= something an Otherlink relates to in itself. It's a choice to adopt being a linktype, could be influenced by how the linktype could tie with their needs(purpose, for example if the Otherlink links in order to cope with a specific thing) if they do have that kind of purpose. Since it's a choice, you could very well identify as anything you'd like, regardless of how “similar” the linktype is to you!

𓄴 Otherlink =/= Otherkin. Contrary to popular misunderstanding among the people less informed about Otherkin/Otherkind and other existing Alterhuman labels, it is not Otherkin at all since Otherkin means —you can look up Otherkins' posts and the very rich and old history of the term for more info— Someone who involuntarily identifies as something nonhuman and/or fictional.

Though someone could have trouble resolving (or can not care to know) whether or not what they identify as is a conscious choice or an involuntary thing/an inbetween, Otherlink is definitely not Otherkin!

𓄴 This is “just being too much into roleplaying”. Now I saw a post that were strongly invalidating identifying as things(implied voluntarily) because of this very “point”. Roleplaying could be compared to doing theatre and having fun acting as a specific character. Once the plays stop, they aren't the character anymore and probably wouldn't adopt any of the character's traits in their separated life/out of the theatre.

Otherlinking would be more like actually identifying as one of the play's characters (voluntarily you know it). It could be for fun as well, and it could be for however long too. Like with roleplaying, they don't have to relate to the character. However, it becomes part of the Otherlink's identity. It's not pretending to be the character.

'Linking is voluntarily adopting the linktype's characteristics / identity: it affects 'linkers' identity. Roleplaying doesn't play into / interact with the roleplayer's personal identity in the same way since they separate themselves from the character way more(talking about non-alterhuman roleplayers, it's possible to roleplay as your linktype since *it'd be putting yourself into the linktype's shoes and act 100% like them instead of adopting their characteristics along the foundation that your own being were beforehand?*).

So in response to this! Otherlinking = part of your identity and can be taken as seriously/lightly as you'd like. Roleplay = can be important to you as well but (unless Alterhuman or anything else that could come into play) you'd drop being what you roleplay as once the roleplay ends and wouldn't adopt the thing you rp as' traits in possibly everyday/some days life.

It'd be nice if anti-alterhumans/other people who don't try to understand what 'linking actually is and why it's done quit spreading misinformation about Otherlink and insulting their identity with suddenly no empathy. Otherlink is very valid and some's possible shame is a result of this kind of people being invalidating on the daily as they do with so many other Alterhuman subsets they do not try to understand as well, but they do not speak the truth and being Otherlink can be a great help / be great fun and help someone explore what feels true to themselves more.

Terms that I recommend checking out for other kind of identities and experiences that may be similar or linked to this one: Otherkin, Otherhearted / Otherkith, Othervague, Synpathizer(?) / having Synpaths, and Alterhuman.

𓂅if you have any remarks/anything to add or anything to critique about this post feel free to speak up! I would not like to spread misinformation but this is my knowledge of it as a 'linker. Thank you for reading!

[pupyzu]

I'm literally just asking how being prince kin would work. if it's not spiritual then use a different label than kin like aeslink or otherhearted /nm

i don’t have to explain my identity to anyone :) but for your information it is spiritual /lu

[who-is-page]

Honestly yo I'm getting the exact same feeling as you on the funlink thing so you aren't alone. Must be a time seeing all this and being the one who coined copinglink.

It IS a time. Sometimes we think about a lot of the backlash we got when we first coined copinglink-- getting called ableist, racist, exclusionary, even anti-otherkin (lol)-- and look at what it’s sort of spawned into now in a variety of forms, such as otherlink, alterlink, funlink, aeslink, etc., and it’s just like. Hm. Well. The unintended consequences of our actions have arisen yet again. There’s Some Adjacent ThingsTM now, that people have went ahead and made. Good for them if it helps them even if we don’t get it, don’t experience it personally, or fucking hate it as a new term, I guess.

But at the same time, not our monkey-link, not our alter-circus. So we try not to feel too personally invested as we watch various alterhuman communities inch slowly and slowly closer to just being more associated with roleplay than forms of alternate experiences of humanity.

[shadowfae]

There's gotta be people who lie in the middle ground between otherkin and copinglinkers, right?

This just reminds me of the "can people choose to be trans" discourse and personally I've never found the value in trying to find a clean dividing line between people who "choose" to be trans and people who "are" trans, like obviously some people feel dysphoria much more than others and it's important to recognize that, but that doesn't mean theres some "how miserable would you be if you were forced to be cis" test that can decide who is a Valid Trans Person or not. It feels to me like it might be the same with the broader otherkin spectrum, but admittedly I don't know much about the community?

That said, the otherkin community has been really cool and like, when I go digging in early internet history I often find beautifully preserved histories and narratives from otherkin blogs about communities and sites that people frequented. And that's something I'm forever grateful for. I'm glad that there are still folks out there who pass on that history and find value in those communities.

Okay so I waited until I’d officially gotten out of bed (yes, everything I’ve done today was on my phone in bed) to answer this properly.

The thing that I’ve never much mentioned in my place of this argument - and I feel that if I’m going to, I should have a few personal essays to publish first in order to make my point clearly - is that at least for me, my kintypes and my linktypes feel so different there is absolutely no way I could mistake them for each other.

That’s why I’m not calling whatever’s going on with the Xweetok stuff a linktype, because there’s no choice there, it’s just me getting hit in the face with Xweetok animality and trying to figure out what it all means.

My kintypes are intrinsic to my personality. If you leave me alone for a bit, or put me somewhere where I feel totally, completely safe, I go so feral it’s not even funny. I growl. I hiss. My ears, tail(s), and wings do all my body language for me. I walk as digitigrade as a human is capable of. I settle into the mentality of an animal, except for when I slide into dignity and divinity, or when you hand me a piece of technology and then I’m as gruff as a pirate and humming to lyrics nobody else can hear.

My linktypes? Something happens. Panic, anger, fear, terror. I am [insert linktype here], here is what it is correct for me to do, here is what I will do, I navigate my way out of it with grace, I handle it as my linktypes would. Things hurt and I settle into their skin, if only for a little while. When their skin is hard to settle it, I simply change it. Being Kiyoteru was a way for me to understand my own sexual awakening when I’d never been safe enough to recognize my own animality, until I fused it with Luteia kinfeels into the world’s worst coping mechanism (don’t do that, kids) and did some things I’m very much not proud of.

Being Yukari was an answer to dysphoria and social ostracization that served me for quite a long time, and that I no longer need, because I am slightly more comfortable in my own skin. It was a matter of personality and aeslinking: she was a moon-girl who liked warm tea on snowy days and pretty poetry and rabbits. I never had her connection to rabbits, they’re just pets to me, but when I needed it I could pretend to be near a bunny the way she probably was bunnyhearted, and I could be a moon-girl until the sun came up for me.

My kintypes are deeper than that. Ranisson and Pale do seem a matter of personality, being as they are the closest to human, except for all the places where their experiences built them from the ground up. As Pale I was a Devil without his powers that didn’t quite know it enough to stop reaching for more power. As Ranisson, I was a girl in a war that was going to end with everyone I cared about dead, and I almost didn’t care, because we’d all be in the hivemind and I’d never be alone again.

Kiyoteru and Yukari were not that way. They were blank canvases that I could change as I needed to, for the purposes of saving me from myself. Even if they’d had actual stories, even if they were more than pretty faces and aesthetics, I would have made them do as I pleased to get me through.

From the inside, linktypes and kintypes seem so fundamentally different to me that I honestly find it hard to see a middle ground there. I’m not everyone, for some there absolutely is a middle. For some, they really can just ignore their own nonhumanity and walk away unscathed. There will always be a gray area, a fringe case or seven, a middle ground where nobody can define where it stops. And I’m not going to be the one to lay down what that middle ground is, because it is antithetical to my entire existence and experience, and it’s something I will never understand for my own.

I insist that everyone be clear about the terms that fit them to the best of their ability because I don’t like being lied to, especially after I’ve placed my trust in people to tell the truth. I don’t trust a salesman, but I’ll try any answer on StackOverflow once. You give me an answer on SO to a complex problem that fucks up my computer, I’m going to be pissed. You lie to me knowingly about your nonhuman/fictional identity in our tags, I’m going to be pissed.

If people say “this is an identity and I don’t know how voluntary it is” I go “yeah okay fair enough.” If they say they’re one or the other, I say the same. If they say they’re one and their experiences match the other, I’ll point that out. If they proceed to insult me and tell me I’m a gatekeeper, I am going to be pissed.

And then if they proceed to throw death threats in my face, I will be furious. I think I have every right to be in that case, and I have no use for those who would side with that sort of person. That’s all anyone’s been asking. Be where you are but be honest about your experiences, and we’ll find a place for you. Even if you say “I’m a linker, but I feel better in this space for otherkin, are we cool with me being here?” the answer will be yes, and then we’ll probably bring you our questions about your experiences. That’s what we do. We ask about others’ experiences and we nitpick how they work because they’re fascinating.

We preserve our history because we have to know where we come from. We have to know we’re not alone. I don’t understand why anyone wouldn’t want to read the history of the community they’re from. Now maybe it’s that I have no ties to my own heritage by blood, and those who do aren’t so interested, but if anything happened to our history I don’t know what I’d do. We need it to say no, if we’re crazy it’s not for this, that this is truly what we are, that we are not the first to have walked this path, and that those who came before us survived to tell the tale.

I am what I am. Everyone else is what they are. So long as people say that, then I have no issues with anyone about it.

[fromfiction]

Hey! Is it possible to identify as a place ? I always feel nostalgic when I look vintage circus pictures and the ambivalence between cheerfulness and eeriness fascinate me. As a disabled and autistic girl, I have a very strong connection with freak-shows (maybe I was in one of them in my past life, who knows ?) . I know it sounds a little ridiculous, but it remind me of my own mind: full of whismy, wonder and playful chaos. What do you think about it? :Does "Circuskin" exist ? :/

Please do not take this response as a criticism of your feelings or emotional connections. What you are feeling is completely valid and awesome, the only thing I will be critiquing is your vocabulary/word choice.

In order for something to be a kintype, it pretty much has to have at least a  rudimentary identity and perception of itself (be sentient or have a soul/spirit/consciousness.)

A kintype is not the same thing as an aesthetic. You in generally can’t call something a kintype if its something like, a time period, a type of clothing or fashion, a style or piece of music, a location, etc.

The exception is if you personally believe that the location/time period/etc in question DID/DOES have a sense of self awareness and identity.

For instance if you believe that your kintype is a particular magical circus that had a personality and awareness, or you believe that circuses in general are self-aware, then yes, it could be a kintype.

However, otherwise, the avenues I would explore if you believe your identification as a circus is linked to being kin, would be: did you perhaps have a kintype that spent their life involved with a circus? For example, a ringmaster or someone from a freak show? Someone for whome the circus would feel familiar and ‘right?’.

Don’t get me wrong, it is totally possible for you to feel like you identify ‘as a circus, clowns, tents, freakshow and all, but it wouldn’t be a kintype. 

I believe that some people use the word ‘aeslink’ or aesthetic link, for this kind of relationship and identity! I hope that helps!