Last-Modified: Sat, 30 Nov 1996 10:52:27 PM EST
Changes: fixes Furry InfoPage URLs; deleted references to Brazillian
Dreams, which has gone down;
fixes Miavir's URLs
an Alt.Fan.Furry Frequently-Asked-Questions Sheet
originally by Jordan Greywolf
Updated
by Lynx (lynx@netcom.com) as of August 10, 1995
------------------------------
Subject: 1. Table of Contents and Introduction
1. Table of Contents
and Introduction
2. WHAT IS "ALT.FAN.FURRY"?
3. WHAT IS A "FURRY"?
4. CAN REPTILES BE
"FURRY"?
5. WHAT IS A "FUNNY
ANIMAL"?
6. WHAT IS A "PERSONAL
FURRY"?
7. WHAT IS "FURRYDOM"?
8. WHAT IS A "FANZINE"?
9. WHAT MAKES A STORY
(or MOVIE/SHOW/GAME, whatever) "FURRY"?
10. WHAT'S "ALBEDO"?
11. WHERE DO I GO TO FIND
THIS STUFF?
12. WHAT IF I WANT TO WRITE/DRAW
THIS STUFF?
13. WHAT DOES "IMHO" MEAN?
14. WHAT DOES =) MEAN?
15. MUDs, FTP Sites, and
Web Links
The following is Greywolf's attempt to answer frequently asked questions
about
furry fandom and is not endorsed by any major organization. It
reflects
observations and opinions held by Greywolf (and possibly by Lynx as
noted
below). Take the below with a grain of salt and the customary
disclaimer.
Of course, a fandom is defined by the fans, and it's practically impossible
for
such a diverse group to agree on a concise definition of much of anything.
[This doesn't stop them from trying. -- Lynx]
------------------------------
Subject: 2. WHAT IS "ALT.FAN.FURRY"?
Alt.fan.furry is a newsgroup devoted to the discussion of all
things "furry"
and/or of distinct interest to "furry fans". While this
leads to a rather
vague definition of what is truly "on-topic", the term "furry"
itself is
inherently vague. (See "What is a 'furry'?") In
general, the discussion of
artwork or fiction (including movies, TV series, game systems,
novels,
illustrations, etc.) involving "furry" subjects, theorizing
about "furry"
creatures, and even of the fandom itself or the definition of
"furry" is
commonly found on the newsgroup.
------------------------------
Subject: 3. WHAT IS A "FURRY"?
"Furry" when used as a noun seems to refer to one of two things:
a) An animal-like character known as a "furry"
b) A person who is a "furry fan"
The latter is easy enough (knock on wood) to define: A person
who
particularly enjoys stories, pictures, dolls, video games or
whatever
concerning "furry" creatures. Defining a "furry" creature
is somewhat
harder, though. There are several definitions depending
upon which "camp"
in furrydom, for lack of a better term, you might be in.
The basic definition for a "furry" is an anthropomorphized animal
character. In other words, an animal character given human-like
attributes, such as sapience and often a humanoid form.
The term "furry"
is a misnomer, as a creature does not need to have fur to be
"furry" in
this sense. Other terms sometimes interchangeable with
a "furry" in this
sense are "zoomorph", "morph", "anthropomorph" or (debatably)
"funny
animal".
The core definition of a "furry" seems to include basically humanoid-formed
creatures with animal faces, fur/scale/feathers/whatever, and
often
appropriate tails, wings, claws, etc., able to speak, and with
a human-like
personality, though quite often with "quirks" hinting at the
real-life
animal upon which the character is based.
A broader definition will sometimes include other odd creatures
that simply
have some sort of animal features in their makeup. Such
would include
mythical creatures such as centaurs, manticores, satyrs or harpies,
all of
which have human faces though more-or-less animal-like bodies.
This
broader definition might also include the human-like characters
that appear
in some Japanese animation that have an animal tail and ears,
but otherwise
look about as human as any other anime character.
One of the narrower definitions held by some is that in order
for a
character to be truly considered "furry", the character must
exhibit
animal-like characteristics in behavior. Optionally, the
fact that the
character is an "animal" must be a major ingredient to the story.
This is
exhibited in a frequent criticism of "furry" stories by those
who hold this
view: Many stories, while featuring characters fitting the core
definition
of "furry" given earlier are criticized as being "humans in animal
suits"
if their behavior isn't distinctly animal-like in some way.
------------------------------
Subject: 4. CAN REPTILES BE "FURRY"?
Yes. So can birds. Having fur is not a prerequisite.
The term is not
necessarily literal.
------------------------------
Subject: 5. WHAT IS A "FUNNY ANIMAL"?
A "funny animal", in practice, is an anthropomorphized animal,
though the
usage tends to lean more toward more "cartoony" characters, and
does not
carry the same wide, sweeping connotations that "furry" seems
to have.
(e.g., I don't usually hear centaurs and anime cat-girls referred
to as
"funny animals")
Some writers and artists who claim the term "funny animals" for
their
subject matter don't necessarily consider themselves "furry",
though on
the surface this might seem to be almost a synonym. This
is largely
because of the baggage the term "furry" carries with it, as a
number of
people see "furries" obsessed with the sexuality of their fictitious
characters. A "funny animal" is not necessarily a character
in solely
humorous situations, and not necessarily restricted to Saturday
morning
cartoon antics. The "funny" part of the term seems to more
apply to the
fact that these characters are not like *real* animals.
------------------------------
Subject: 6. WHAT IS A "PERSONAL FURRY"?
Definitions range widely, but the common answer seems to be that
a
"personal furry" is someone's anthropomorphized animal "alter-ego".
This
can mean a number of things:
a) It could be a "furry" character that the person roleplays on
FurryMUCK
(or some other roleplaying environment/game) that
the person considers
to be a representation of him/herself.
b) It could be an anthropomorphized animal character that represents
the
person in cartoons or drawings.
c) It could be a person's "totem" or favorite animal type.
One's attachment to and attitude toward one's "personal furry"
(if at all)
varies greatly.
------------------------------
Subject: 7. WHAT IS "FURRYDOM"?
Furrydom is a rather vague term, usually used to refer to "furry
fandom".
"Furry fandom" is an abstraction of the loose collection of people
who are
fans of various "furry" publications. In a broader sense,
the term may be
used to refer to the general "furry scene", such as the collection
of
publications (particularly small-press or amateur "fanzines")
devoted to
them, and the assortment of "furry" conventions.
------------------------------
Subject: 8. WHAT IS A "FANZINE"?
A fanzine is a usually small-press publication catering to fans
of a
particular genre. (As M. High pointed out, "furry" is more
a *vehicle*
than a *genre*, but that's a technicality.) There are several
"furry
fanzines" which publish an assortment of stories, artwork and
sometimes
articles submitted to the 'zine.
Other publications that may pop up in "furry" discussion are APAs:
These
are limited-circulation publications meant for a collection of
artists/writers to share their work with *other* artists and
writers.
Usually each contributor pays his share of the production costs
depending
upon how much of each "issue" consists of his work, and copies
of the
collected publication are only circulated among the contributors.
A variation on this is the APA'zine, which is an APA that non-contributors
can also subscribe to. At this writing, some of these furry
fanzines and
APA'zines include such titles as "YARF!", "Gallery", "Bestiary"
and a ton of
others that come and go, often with some sort of "fur" pun in
the title. =)
------------------------------
Subject: 9. WHAT MAKES A STORY (or MOVIE/SHOW/GAME, whatever) "FURRY"?
This is a matter of debate, varying as much as the definition
of what a
"furry" is in the first place. The definition that seems
to be most
applicable is that in order for a story, movie or show to be
considered
"furry", a primary character (or a significant number of the
primary
characters) must be a "furry".
Another definition is that simply whatever stories tend to be
popular among
furfen (furry fans) that they consider to be "furry" are furry.
But that's
hardly helpful, is it? =) Cartoons with animal characters
are often
accepted as being "furry", for one thing. Steve Gallacci's
"Albedo" is
usually considered "furry", unless you're from the group that
believes that
his characters are merely "humans in animal suits". Many
Disney movies
might be considered "furry", such as their animated "Robin Hood".
Even
though "Bambi" isn't an anthropomorph in shape, the characters
in the movie
talk with each other and have human-like emotions, and thus are
considered
"furry" by some.
In a more recent Disney movie with a prominent "furry", "Beauty
and the
Beast", this is particularly a grey area; some consider it NOT
to be furry,
since the "Beast" was just a human changed into an animal-like
form for
most of the movie. "The Little Mermaid" is another one
of those fringe
"furry" films if you want to use the broadest definition (since
Ariel's
body is part fish? =.)
Movies where "furry" creatures are merely the villains which the
humans
must fight are almost certainly not considered "furry".
=, Also, stories
where an animal-like character may appear but is not one of the
primary
characters are not usually considered "furry", either.
For instance, Gnort
doesn't make the Green Lantern comics "furry", even though he
himself would
fit the technical definition of a "furry character".
------------------------------
Subject: 10. WHAT'S "ALBEDO"?
Albedo is one of the most recognized titles in furry fandom, a
comic book
that features stories from several different writers and artists,
but most
notably being "Erma Felna of the EDF", a science fiction story
set in a
"furry" universe, drawn and written by Steve Gallacci.
------------------------------
Subject: 11. WHERE DO I GO TO FIND THIS STUFF?
[Lynx has this to say:]
For comics, try your local comic store. While you can often
order back
issues directly from publishers like Antarctic Press or Mu Press,
or from
mail-order distributors like Mailbox Books or United Publications
(UK),
if you ask for issues at a comic store, they will be more likely
to
recognize that a demand exists, will order more comics, and will
in
general create more support for anthropomorphic material.
Back issues
of many furry comics can often be gotten from the companies that
produced
them as well.
Fanzines like YARF! and Gallery are not frequently available through
comic stores, so you'll either have to order them through the
mail, get
a subscription, or attend a con where people sell these fanzines.
The
biggest convention for the sale of furry material is ConFurence,
held
every year in January or February, in the Anaheim area.
APAs like Rowrbrazzle and Huzzah! and FNC are members-only, and
very
infrequently have extra copies available.
Many furry artists are available for commissions, at rates ranging
from
five dollars to literally hundreds and thousands of dollars,
for pencil,
ink, color, and 3-d artwork. This FAQ does not supply addresses,
but a
FAQ listed below gives artist addresses. It's recommended
that when
one writes to an artist, one includes an SASE (self-addressed
stamped
envelope) to speed the response.
------------------------------
Subject: 12. WHAT IF I WANT TO WRITE/DRAW THIS STUFF?
[Lynx has this to say]
Feel free.
Anthropomorphic fandom sports many fanzines that are quite interested
in
the works of fledgling and not-so-fledgling artists and writers,
and even
if you don't feel ready for prime time yet, you may find people
on the
network appreciative of your work.
If you post a story or artwork, then expect criticism ranging
anywhere
from 'it's terrible' to 'it's good but...' to simple silence
that makes
you wonder if your art or story made it out to the network.
Remember
to put copyright notices on your stories and artwork; while the
current
copyright conventions automatically protect creative works, it's
better
to have that certain amount of protection, and if someone is
interested
enough by what you've done, they may want to find more of it.
Remember also that anything posted to the network is 'out there'
effectively and thus beyond your control. The best you
can do is to
put some sort of request on your art or story to request people
avoid
redistributing it or modifying it in any way. Even then,
you may find
your stories or artwork from years ago haunting you as well-meaning
people repost them.
Question: can I post stories to alt.fan.furry?
Answer:
Yes, provided the story involves furry (anthropomorphic) characters.
There is some doubt about the appropriacy of posting erotic
stories
to alt.fan.furry, however; some suggest that these stories would
be
better posted to an erotica newsgroup such as alt.sex.stories.
In
addition, you might have some luck with alt.prose and alt.prose.d.
Question: what other resources are there for furry writers?
Answer:
There is a list of anthropomorphic novels posted fairly regularly
to
alt.fan.furry-- see the FAQ pointers below. Writing is
discussed (not
anthropomorphic writing in specific) on misc.writing as well,
so if
you're looking for specific tips, you might ask there.
Several MUDs
hold writing circles. If you're interested in seeing your
story
in print, look up the 'zines list. In addition, there
is now a Web site
that points to various furry stories around the World-Wide Web.
(see
below list of links)
Question: can I post artwork to alt.fan.furry? And how?
Answer:
No. Artwork must commonly be posted in binary format,
a practice which
is frowned upon in any primarily-text newsgroup. Artwork
is better
posted to the newsgroup alt.binaries.pictures.furry (or for
risque art,
alt.binaries.pictures.furry.erotica) and should preferably be
uuencoded
GIFs or JPGs. For more information on uploading or downloading
art,
please see the appropriate FAQ (pointers are given below).
Question: what other resources are there for furry artists?
Answer:
There are some excellent FAQs on art materials and techniques
for the
preservation of artwork.
If you're looking for tips on drawing anthropomorphics, however,
you
will certainly do best to ask for help on alt.fan.furry with
your
particular drawing style. Who knows? You may make
new friends in
the process of learning. In addition, you may want to
find books in
the library or your friendly neighborhood art store on figure
drawing,
and on drawing animals.
Lycan maintains an excellent archive of furry pictures sorted
by
artists, title, and date. See the pointer below.
Question: how do I get started writing/drawing?
Answer:
Write or draw.
No, seriously. Begin practicing immediately, remember that
it won't be
perfect the first time, and keep on writing or drawing until
you get
better. Then keep doing it. You'll be able to ask
questions more
effectively and get better answers if you have some idea what
you want
to improve.
When you feel you're ready for criticism, comments, or support,
then you
can post your art or story, or send it to any of a number of
fanzines
that may be interested in your work. Good luck!
Be sure to ask for
criticism, if you want it, but you should be prepared for negative
as
well as positive comments.
------------------------------
Subject: 13. WHAT DOES "IMHO" MEAN?
There are a few different acronyms that will pop up frequently.
IMHO: In My Humble Opinion (i.e. this is just
my opinion)
IMNSHO: In My Not-So-Humble Opinion
YMMV: Your Mileage May Vary (i.e. this works for
me, but might not for you)
BTW: By The Way
FYI: For Your Information
F'ex: For example (e.g.)
RL: Real-Life
IC: In Character [referring to roleplaying]
LOL: Laughs Out Loud
ROTFL: Rolls On The Floor Laughing
{g}: {grin} -- Another system of expressing
emotion involves abbreviations
like this...
{g,d,r}:{grin, duck and run}
------------------------------
Subject: 14. WHAT DOES =) MEAN?
This is a 'net smiley face. Turn it sideways. =)
See? Of course, furfen
often get creative with animal smileys, such as:
=) {cute smiley face with big expressive
eyes}
:) {beady-eyed, generic smiley
face}
:-) {Oh no! It's a HYOOMAN smiley
face! Aieee!}
^_^ {alternative smiley}
=^_^= {alternative critter smiley with whiskers}
=, {smirky face}
=. {unsure face}
=/ {really perplexed face}
=( {frowny face}
@ >=( {really steamed frowny face}
=U {howling wuff}
-=) {unicorn}
-=*) {unicorn with root beer foam on his nose}
O-=) {angelic unicorn, or a unicorn playing
donut ring-toss}
> > -=) {unicorn in love with little hearts above its head}
=3 {otter smiley}
=:) {rabbit smiley}
:=) {equine smiley face}
}=) {miscellaneous critter with ears}
(=3 {upside-down mouse}
>=x) {cat, complete with whiskers}
=} {friendly dragon}
S=) {smiley with one ear flopping down}
d=> {pigeon wearing a baseball cap}
>Bo) {furry with big nose wearing shades}
o/~ }=o {furry whistling -- that's a musical note over
its head! =) }
Okay, so this section wasn't COMPLETELY serious. =D
------------------------------
Subject: 15. MUDs, FTP Sites, and Web Links
Due to the changing nature of the network, network resources and
gatherings
such as multi-user chat systems (MUDs), file transfer/storage
areas (FTP
sites), and World-Wide Web pages are always subject to change;
hence, the
below information is likely to be obsolete very quickly or subject
to
change without notice.
Here are some web links where you are likely to find the latest
information
available:
Linkname: PeterCat's Furry InfoPage
URL: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/
(you should be able to find most furry-related FAQs here)
Linkname: The Lynx/Greywolf FAQ
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/furfaq.txt
Linkname: R'ykandar Korra'ti's Art Materials FAQ
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/art.txt
Linkname: Terry Whittier's Artwork Preservation FAQ
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/art-pres.txt
Linkname: Lynx's Incomplete Listing of Zoomorphic
Publications
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/zines.txt
Linkname: How to Connect to FurryMUCK (and elsewhere)
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/muck/faq.html
Linkname: Descriptions of Various Furry MUCKs
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/muck/desc.html
Furry Novel List (3 parts)
Linkname: Part 1: Animals Behaving Intelligently;
Intelligent Animals
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/novels1.txt
Linkname: Part 2: Anthropomorphic Species
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/novels2.txt
Linkname: Part 3: Changes, Forthcoming Novels and
Kudos
Filename: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/novels3.txt
Linkname: THE "WHAT/WHERE/WHY/HOW" FOR PICTURES
Filename: ftp://infolane.com/pub/picutils/index.html
http://mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu/~deej/index.html
http://spodbox.ehche.ac.uk/~abpu/
ftp://harley.pcl.ox.ac.uk/pub/picutils/index.html
Linkname: Mia's Collection of Furry Stories
Filename: http://www.dfki.uni-kl.de/~ramsey/stories.html
Alternate: http://www.cyberspace.com/reynard/miavir/stories.html
(use this one if you are in the States)
Linkname: Furry Image Index
Filename: http://www.furry.com/lycos/
Some MUDs and FTP sites:
FurryMUCK is a phenomenon found on the 'net -- a MUCK devoted
to
furry fans. If you want a definition of a MUCK, check out
the FAQ on
rec.games.mud.misc. =) Basically, it's a multi-player
text adventure game
where the "game" element has been pretty much removed, replaced
with a
mostly social environment (even though there are smaller games-within-a-
game on the MUCK). If you have telnet, you can connect
to FurryMUCK at
199.201.68.101 port 8888 (furry.org 8888 for those who need named
addresses).
Check the Avatar.snc.edu ftp site in the pub/furry/mud/furrymuck
directory
for help files. A FurryMUCK FAQ is also posted weekly to
the newsgroup
alt.fan.furry.muck ... Web pages are now available: an
Official FurryMUCK
Web Page at <URL:http://www.furry.com/> and help files at
<URL:ftp://avatar.snc.edu/pub/furry/mud/furrymuck/guides/>
Sociopolitical Ramifications (SPR) is one of FurryMUCK's `children'
- a
MUCK that was founded when FM became too big and lagged.
Therefore,
many furries known from FM can be found on SPR too. There
is no rigid
theme, the general flair is a bit more high-tech oriented than
in FM.
SPR is one of the few MUCKs without a building quota (you can
build as
much as you want). Also, SPR does without explicit rules
for non-
wizards. You can log in as guest and get a character immediately
from
any wizard. The current address is svansmoj.ctrl-c.liu.se 23
(130.236.252.42 23). (yes, 23) For more information,
check the WWW
pages at the URL http://www.tigerden.com/~unci/spr.html
FurToonia is another child of FurryMUCK, populated mostly by furries
and
toons who wanted to escape the lag and crowding of the larger
MUCK, and
also have the chance to do some creative public building projects.
The
porting of characters from FurryMUCK is made much easier by a
very similar
software base, with the most popular program for character descriptions,
#6800, having the same object number in both MUCKs. FurToonia
can be
connected to at red_panda.tbyte.com (198.211.131.13) port 9999.
There is
also a WWW homepage at http://www.loach.org/~ftadmin .
Avatar.snc.edu is an ftp site where there are several "furry"
gifs
(digitized picture files) available for downloading. Once
connecting to
avatar, you can login as "anonymous" and give your email address
as your
password. The gifs are available in the "pub/furry/images/downloads"
directory, divided into further subdirectories organized alphabetically.
These are pictures of "furry" characters or of scenes and characters
related somehow to "furry" settings or FurryMUCK.
As an alternative to Avatar, you may enjoy 'SCFA', a no-erotica
furry
image section at http://rat.org/furry/ (FTP: rat.org, /pub/furry)...
Features include thumbnails for every image, descriptions, a
search
facility, organized by artist, artists have direct upload access
to the site
and control over their files, and any artist is welcome to sign
up and have
their files displayed. There is even a mirror of avatar, but
it may come down
someday.
If you hear about the "Tezuka" site, that *used* to be the furry
ftp site,
but that is no longer the case as of this writing.
Help files for FurryMUCK users can be found in the "pub/furry/furrymuck"
directory. This includes the Beginners-Guide, the Building-Guide,
the
Commands-Global-Help, the Gen-Desc help, an article on Getting-Clients,
as
well as the MUFReference and MUFTutorial.
Accompanying text that catalogs some of the gifs found on the
Avatar site can
be found in the "pub/furry/misc" directory. A copy of this
FAQ file can also
be found in that directory.
Stories can be found in the "pub/furry/stories" directory.
--
Automatic posting done by <infopage@furry.fan.org> -- notice of
posting
problems (headers, etc.)
should be sent there.
The Furry InfoPage! http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/
Just The FAQs: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/faqs.html
This FAQ: http://www.tigerden.com/infopage/furry/furfaq.txt