Just hit 15,000 pageviews! WOW!

I have some great news to commemorate the occasion. Due to the overwhelming success of IN GOOD COMPANY, I've decided to reopen commissions.

I will say it again: COMMISSIONS ARE NOW OPEN.

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Commission Info

Pricing Options:
$1.50 USD for 100 words

1) $15.00 USD for 1,000 words
2) $27.00 USD for 2,000 words - 10% OFF!
3) $36.00 USD for 3,000 words - 20% OFF!
4) Custom - Note me with offer!

Fetishes that aren't accepted
* Bestiality
* Direct Scat
* Male Pregnancy
* Unbirthing
* Vomit Play
* Vore

Terms of Service Agreement

I ("Lion Stories") provide story commissions for general, mature and adult audiences. Any commission offers that I determine pertain to an adult nature must be solicited by a party or parties over the age of 18.

Individuals interested in a commission must provide a detailed outline for the story they want me to write in a FA note ONLY.

The outline must include characters, character species and character descriptions (references are preferred, but not necessary); important plot devices, details that include a beginning, middle and end; a stated preference of writing style, which includes first-person, third-person, formal and informal style choices; a detailed description of sexual fetishism that commissioner plans to incorporate into the story. Any additional details would be appreciated.

I reserve the right to refuse any commission idea under any circumstances before an agreement is finalized.

Payment must be made in full via PayPal prior to the commencement of commission. Artists can negotiate a trade where I commission art from them.

Upon receipt of payment, the commissioner will have access to my contact information on chat clients, including but not limited to AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo!, Telegram and Skype; an actively updated WIP document on Google Docs (must have Google account to review and edit); a WIP document that is personally emailed to you for review.

Once the story is completed, you have the ability to suggest revisions and personally review changes with me. Unlike art, stories are easier to revise and update, but please be considerate of my time.

Turnaround for stories depend on several factors: word count, scheduling and personal commitments etc. By commissioning me, you will receive full disclosure of my schedule and availability. Average turnaround for stories under 1,000 words is one day. 2,000 words is two days. If a story requires 3,000 words or more, we'll need to discuss the turnaround and your flexibility as commissioner. Deadlines will not be expedited under any circumstances.

You are free to post the story in any online venue of your choice. In the description for the uploaded commission, link to my FA profile. If you are looking to monetize the story for commercial purposes, i.e. self or third-party publishing, contact me as soon as possible so we can discuss your rights, responsibilities and revenue-sharing opportunities.

Click here to read the released chapters of IN GOOD COMPANY.

I'm back with a brand new story called, "In Good Company," which is about the blossoming relationship between a scrawny, seventeen-year-old weasel named Chip and large, lovable, eighteen-year-old Jordan, an incontinent malamute. This story is a subtle departure from my previous work, as it's a drama. There's plenty of sexuality in the story, but it's more serious in tone with enhanced character development.

I'm very happy to report that I got a $20 donation earlier from an anonymous fan, so thank you, anonymous fan. If you like the story and have some change to buy a cup of coffee, consider a donation! Most of the donations will go to paying for bills, groceries and legal expenses. A portion of the proceeds will go to art that I will commission. Any support helps. +favs, watches, comments: I love it. Keep it comin'.

LS

Greetings,

Last night, I've tossed and turned in bed, completely wide awake, dealing with a raging torrent of emotions. It's an unsettling feeling: to struggle to get sleep for so long that you're able to see the sunrise out the window while remaining fully awake and alert. I only had two hours of sleep, which I was able to sneak in after sunrise. The fact of the matter is: I haven't been getting much shut-eye over the past week. I'm suffering the typical stress-related symptoms. Once again, crazy stalker bitch has returned.

The Art & Story promotion is still happening. Just not playing with a full deck right now.

I finally have something new to discuss regarding my stories.

I've been battling a few demons lately, which has kept me on the sidelines. I would write stories, work on commissions and really detested what I was doing because I felt the quality wasn't there. While I can honestly say that I'm not out of the woods yet, I have successfully compartmentalized my personal issues, recreational and professional work. I did this by merely removing myself from situations where I am vulnerable. In other words, drama still exists, but I can handle it.

So here's how my future stories are going to play out. There are a few scenarios at play here. I will be commissioning artists to draw scenes from my upcoming stories or an artist can draw art, and will draft a story around it. My recent story about Star Fox was directly inspired by artwork drawn by ZuAgO. I generated a significant amount of buzz from the babyfur community regarding that story. I believe that readers will connect to my work better if there was art that, at least, offered a visualization of certain scenes from my work.

Ideally, I would love to make some money from doing this (since I'm still unemployed and need to pay bills), but I don't think that it's possible. However, by wrapping my stories around new or pre-existing art, there is always the option of turning my work into a graphic novel or a novel with illustrations. We'll see.

So artists, if you follow me and you're interested in this proposition, note me ASAP or tweet me. Let's get in touch. I have some great plans in store.

LS

Everyone has an opinion. I'll throw mine into the mix.

For starters, I'd like to disclose that I'm interested in volunteering for RF next year. I'm considering a move to Seattle should my job and economic prospects not improve in the next couple of months, and I figure I could get a few things accomplished while I'm up there: check out the apartment market, get accustomed to the locale and attend a convention that I've always wanted to check out. I'd love to stay in California, but c'est la vie, I suppose.

I've been in the fandom for almost 20 years. Started cruising the furry newsgroups in 1997. At the time, conventions were happening and people were aware of them, but there wasn't much excitement or anticipation. "Hey, did you know [insert convention name] is coming up soon?" "Yeah, dude. Sounds like fun, but I have work and stuff to do. I won't be able to go." "It's cool. I can't go either. Maybe someday we can meet up." I saw a lot of conversations play out like that, and discussions about con attendance would fade into obscurity. From 2000 to 2006, furry conventions saw a significant increase in attendance due to growing interest in the fandom and the emergence of social media -- which made it a lot easier for furries to coordinate, arrange travel accommodations and make plans. As time went on, conventions got bigger and bigger to a point that organizers and volunteers had to seriously assess the risks.

There will always be a segment of the furry populace that will ruin the fun for everyone else. In RF, there were a few isolated cases that caused a lot of headaches for Hilton staff, con-goers and con organizers. Now the Hilton wants out of the contract for 2016, and I don't blame them. Furry conventions are a massive undertaking and having people behave badly --as in causing property damage, not emotional damage -- on top of that is a liability. But conventions are getting bigger in scope. By the laws of proportion, liability and the risk increases as well.

Conventions like RF need to figure out a long-term strategy for dealing with growth. Obviously they're going to have to enforce stricter rules. But wait! If their rules align more closely with the rules enforced by Eurofurence 2015, then people are going to cry, "Oppression!" But if the rules are too lax, people are going to behave badly. How do you strike that balance? I hope that I can initiate a conversation about RF, about furry cons in general, as far as dealing with the ramifications of having a big convention. A big convention that will only get bigger, not smaller. How can organizers adjust to growth and the increased demand for risk management?

Thoughts?

Lately I've gotten a few notes from people asking if I'm doing story commissions. I haven't been clear on this since my commission status is typically buried underneath long-winded paragraphs.

No, I'm currently not accepting commissions. I have two that are still outstanding, but I have not found the time to work on them.

I am writing again, though I cannot guarantee a release date or reveal any future plans.

Sorry for staying mum. When I have any updates, I'll let you all know.

LS

For the longest time, people have asked me to check out baddogdominick's story, which is very serious in tone; very dark, but it had a subtle fetish twist to it that was tastefully done. A lot of the stories I've written have always been cheerful or cartoony, but I'm always looking to mix it up a little.

Would anyone read a serious story with a fetish theme or subplot? Let me know!

LS

Greetings,

Things are finally, finally returning to normal. I'm still unemployed, which is a bummer, but all the other drama has faded into obscurity. Long story short, a detective has been assigned to my identity theft case and he's already made significant progress with the investigation. The stalker now has a restraining order. I decided against a defamation lawsuit against the stalker because (1) legal expenses suck, (2) I don't want to put the family through any more grief and (3) she's already on thin ice with several other people. As long as I don't directly engage her or write something that relates to her writings, it's all good. I've made a sincere effort to wipe the slate clean and move on with my life.

That said, I have some good news: I started writing again. YES!!!!

I can't guarantee dates on when more work will be released, but I can say that my mojo has steadily returned. That said, my stance on commissions have not changed. Though I would love it if people sent me a few bucks my way, but I prefer to pull myself out of the fiscal rabbit hole and not get dependent on begging for donations or spamming ads for story commissions. Besides, I'm already accepting freelance work from furs who have graciously hired me for sex, I mean, services like web design, graphic design and social media marketing. So if any of you are interested in helping you in those areas, send me a note.

Let's get this show on the road!

LS

Greetings,

How is everyone doing?

Not a whole lot has changed since my previous entry from two weeks ago. The trail has gone cold with the identity theft, and no one is returning my calls. Not even law enforcement. I filed a police report, a signed and dated affidavit, and I communicated with all three credit bureaus that there was a problem. Nothing. Oddly enough, I'm not as furious as I was when I found out about my identity being stolen. The fact of the matter is that my stalker has gotten into some trouble on her own without my help, and she's paved her way to becoming a lifelong pariah in the community. She's trouble, and it's only a matter of time before she (1) gets arrested and/or (2) gets committed to a mental institution. If any one of those possibilities happen, that would be great. For now, I'm still monitoring the situation.

Still have not found the slightest inkling to write stories or write anything in general other than the occasional jotting down of lyrics. My creativity is thoroughly zapped. Still haven't made much progress on the job front, so it's been a fairly unproductive existence for the past several months. I keep chugging along, but man, I'm hoping that my luck turns around and soon. Being broke or breaking even every month is not fun. That doesn't stop me from living, but I could be living better if I had a steady income and I wasn't constantly looking over my shoulder.

Also, after I finish these two commissions, I'm not doing any more commissions. I am done with that. Not ruling out writing some original stories in the future, but not in the foreseeable future.

Thanks for your patience, support and encouragement!

LS

Greetings,

My adventures (or misadventures) have taken a ton of twists and turns. It's hard to keep up. There are days when I'm lucid and ready to take on the world. Other days I'm laying in bed, staring at the ceiling, waiting for the day to end starting at sunrise. I've gained weight and physically feel out of place, but I'm doing my best to stay mentally afloat. It's been challenging, especially what happened last week.

Recently, I became a statistic: a victim of identity theft. To make a long story short, I started receiving mail from companies I don't do business with, thanking me to submitting credit applications and asking me to confirm some personal details. Concerned, I made a few calls to these businesses and discovered that someone has been using my vitals to make thousands of dollars worth of purchases in my name. The more I looked into it, the more likely it was that this stalker person I've been dealing with is responsible for the damage. I knew this because the credit applications filed by the thief used nicknames that she personally assigned to me. I've decided to cooperate fully with the investigation, hoping that she will get caught, thrown in the slammer, and my life would go back to normal.

This situation has been a nightmare not only for myself, but my family and friends. I think my saving grace is my ability to openly talk about the issues I have instead of bottling them up inside and letting them incubate. I also have a great support network that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world. Even at my lowest point, I'm still able to crawl out from the rubble and find a silver lining thanks to the support I've received.

That said, let me address the elephant in the room: my stories and commissions. People have asked me if I'm going to continue, and for some reason I've gotten notes from people asking if I take story requests. I'm very, very preoccupied right now. Writing fiction, especially adult fiction, couldn't be further off the radar. When I was working on the commissions, I looked at what I wrote while I started dealing with these personal problems, and the quality just wasn't there. I was not happy with my job. People would tell me, "Let me see it. Show me what you have done so far," and I'd resist. I was embarrassed with the shoddy work. And it occurred to me that I can't force myself to write if the motivation clearly isn't there. I won't bother. So I'm taking an indefinite hiatus from writing until I can put these problems behind me.

Thanks for the support. And to those who have respectfully kept their distance so I can tackle these issues, thanks, but it's perfectly alright to IM or Skype me if you see me on. I won't bite. If I sound shifty or deflated, please don't take it personally!

LS

Greetings,

I'm not out of the woods, and I don't see the matter resolving itself in the foreseeable future. The good news is that I'm able to show people that this stalker of mine is batshit crazy. The stalker has become very self-destructive, and has made a litany of accusations against me that make people say, "You know what? You need to be in a 5150 hold."

But the way the laws work, there's not much you can do unless your stalker shows up on your property and won't leave or makes a direct threat of imminent harm to you. The cops only care if a crime has happened or if there's a clear probability that a crime will take place in the near future. At times I feel like sitting duck. Sometimes I think to myself, "Well, there's always that chance she'll hire someone to do me in," since she's made friends with former law enforcement officials that have spotty track records. Right now I'm safe, and objectively I believe that this stalker is not that stupid to go through with something like that. She has some sort of a reputation to uphold.

As far as court goes, I can't comment on that. All I can say without incriminating myself is that it's going to be a long and drawn-out process. I'm conserving my stamina and mental fortitude for the rest of the year, and I'm doing so while trying to have a normal life. I told my family that eventually I'll need to consult a psychiatrist and get some counseling, but the need does not arise from depression. I don't feel depressed per se. I feel lethargic. Always sleepy. Without much motivation, I tend to sleep a lot and my days turn to nights much faster than usual. I want to kick that habit cold turkey, but my anger and resentment keeps me curled up in bed in a fetal position.

Good news is I'm slowly making my way back on IM and Skype, but I won't discuss my personal situation beyond what I've written in these journals. I don't mind a little conversation...... zZzZzZz...

LS

Greetings,

It's 1:35 a.m. and I'm dead exhausted. I don't even know how I'm still awake, honestly. While I'd love to talk about my case in detail, I can't. What I can say is that I'm managing. There's still a lot of drama in my life that has my undivided attention. Received some harassing messages, texts. My personal social media accounts have been reported, blocked or deleted entirely. I've received a poorly written lawsuit threat from the person who's stalking me. A friend of hers recently trespassed on my property, and absolutely had no business being there. It's gotten wild, and the stress has kept me despondent. Being unemployed for months doesn't help either.

I've had no motivation to write any "naughty" stories lately. It's just not there, and I'm not going to force it it doesn't come naturally to me. I've been meaning to stay in touch, but it's difficult because I've been having trouble really talking to, you know, anyone. I've more or less become a paranoid hermit that peeks through his window blinds once every five minutes every time he hears a peculiar noise outside, expecting the worst to happen. At least I have alcohol and certain green plants that give me the giggles. Despite all of this, I'm hopeful I'll eventually come out of this alright, but the emotional toll is significant.

I'll keep in touch whenever I can.

LS

For reasons stated in my previous journal, I'll be unavailable for a while. Not forever, I hope.

I won't be on IM or Skype, and I won't be on to check FA notes for a while.

Regards,

A tired, neurotic feline

Greetings,

I'm really having trouble getting anything done lately, and a lot of these problems are out of my hands. So the deal is: I have this stalker person who doesn't like me. So yesterday, I log onto my personal Facebook account. Lo and behold, Facebook informs me that my account is disabled. Why? Apparently, this person flagged all my publicly made Facebook comments for abuse and violating Community Guidelines. Facebook does not do their due diligence to see if my comments are obscene, threatening or defamatory -- which they're not. Then I'm suddenly logged out of my personal Twitter account. Again, same thing. My tweets, which mostly pertain to music-related stuff, were also reported. Account disabled. This is one of many forms of harassment I've received from this individual and her friends, and frankly I'm sick of it. So I'll be filing a civil restraining order against her and will be taking her to court for defamation.

The silver lining in all of this is that I remain centered. My stress levels get high maybe ten, twenty minutes after I make the initial discovery of these problems, but then I calm down. However, for the life of me, I have the hardest time concentrating on anything productive. Eating, drinking, sleeping is all I'm capable of doing -- that and seeking new employment. But this ordeal has consumed my life more than it should have, and my family is sick over it. We're all sick over it. But I have to defend myself at great expense with money I don't have, and I am definitely not used to being in debt. This is going to suck, but I have to do this. Otherwise, this person is going to keep attacking me, my family, friends, acquaintances and former co-workers. I'm pretty bummed about everything, but I keep telling myself that this is just a bump in the road; I'll get through this eventually.

Humans suck.

LS

Greetings,

I've managed to pull a 180 and get back to a normal routine: socializing, job interviews, spending more time being productive. Though the humidity is weighing me down to an extent, mentally I'm doing a lot better. I'm no longer having uncontrollable "shaking" episodes, no seizures, anxiety attacks or insomnia. That said, I'm not out of the woods just yet -- and I don't want to be. I have a problem when I let my guard down too much, and then something bad happens. That's what triggers my anxiety episodes. I'm also staying active so it's easier for me to bounce back from whatever obstacle is thrown my way.

I'm carving out some time later tonight to finish my work. I'll be on IM and Skype for most of the day, and then I'll log out sometime this evening to take care of the stories throughout the Fourth of July weekend. Honestly, I'd rather be writing smut than eating hot dogs. Do you know what hot dogs are even made of?

LS

I got 12 new followers today and over 300+ views for my new story.

Quick explanation for my new story, Fox and Falco, Together at Last:

I'm a fan of ZuAgo because his art has a unique, pastel-toned playfulness with a hint of naughty, which I appreciate. Once in a while, he'll upload a Star Fox-themed submission, but he had a different spin on it. He often puts Fox McCloud and Falco Lombardi in diapers. It's an unusual, but stimulating combination. Then I checked around to see if anyone has done any babyfur/diaperfur fiction involving Star Fox characters. Turns out, it's never been done before. About a month ago, I started writing the story. I was originally going to release it with the commissioned stories, but I figured this would hold people over before I release two gigantic commissions -- which are now as mythical as a real-life unicorn or a good Guns 'N Roses album.

So I hope you guys enjoy, and thanks for following me! :)

LS

Greetings,

I'm happy to report that I'm doing a lot better mentally, physically and spiritually. When you read my FA journals over the past few months, you'll notice I've gone through many ups and downs.

Let me see how I can talk about this without sounding overtly dramatic... I've been dealing with someone who's a stalker. Someone who doesn't like the professional work I've done outside the scope of the fandom. This person has gone to extraordinary lengths to ruin my reputation among my friends, co-workers, business associates and non-profit volunteers that I've occasionally worked with. Now it's come to a point that I will have to pay money -- money that I don't have, mind you -- to sue this person for libel and slander. This has taken a lot out of me. One moment, I'm all cheerful and productive. Then something happens involving this person, and I'm completely thrown out of wack. I've been doing this war dance for more than a year now, and I've been on edge. I lost a few jobs over this stalker's harassment.

So why am I better? Because I'm beginning to remind myself regularly, "The truth is on my side." I've also learned to disengage from this stalker to the point that I give them no reason to harass me. The stalker had become a stalker because I confronted them in the first place by literally criticizing the ways she harasses people and coins it as "activism," or legitimate. I'm learning to step away from bad people and people with bad vibes. It's a psychological form of detox, which has led me to be less combative, more open-minded. Inhale, exhale. Breathe in, breathe out. It's working. Thank the imaginary man in the sky! This is working.

That said, I will resume my naughty work once my feet are firmly planted on the ground. IM and Skype have been turned back on.

Onward and upward.

LS

Greetings,

So here's the deal. I'm going to need a few more days to recoup. Without getting into excruciating, personal detail, I'm not feeling well. I've been stressed out lately. As a result, my body is experiencing some issues even though my mind can rebound fairly quickly. There's no death in the family or anything like that. But there are matters that have distracted me, and when I'm less distracted, my body is like, "Hold up, dude. You're not going anywhere." There are periods of calm when I'm like, "Let's wrap things up and upload some cool stuff!" but then certain events, certain issues come up and it completely stifles my focus.

Once again, bear with me. I deprived my good friends of some weekend reading, and I apologize for that. Life gets in the way. I can't control that. The stress is something I can control, but I have to make a solid effort to reduce that stress so my parents don't have to bury their only son.

LS

Shared from my Twitter account - @pervertlion

Since my account is awaiting activation and I don't want to lose my train of thought, I'm going to post my statement to eurofurence here.

Babyfurs: they are the furry subculture that everyone loves to hate. They were onesies. They suck pacifiers that not at all resemble pacifiers people toy with at EDM parties. They dress in infantile clothing -- so pedophilia, naturally. And worst of all, some wear diapers. Not the "Oh look! It's the New Years baby!" kind. More like the "Your fursona isn't a skunk, but somehow you smell like one" kind. For all intents and purposes, babyfurs are your worst nightmare.

But so are zoophiles who bring their "seeing eye" canine companions to the convention when they're not blind.

So are fursuiters who spend days walking around the convention lobby, sweaty and grimy without the occasional and totally reasonable shower.

So are businesses who table a booth between age-appropriate vendors, bust out a box full of horse dildos, and wonder to themselves, "How come the outside world thinks we're a bunch of freaks?"

So are the people who dress down to revealing swimwear, jump into a pool with oversized, animal-shaped pool toys with suspiciously fuckable holes.

So are people who walk into a convention dressed head to toe in rubber, walking their scantily clad "pup" on a chain leash because it's clearly the same "clothing" they wear to church.

These people have appeared at Eurofurence, and will continue to appear at Eurofurence for years to come. But heavens forbid if a babyfur defecates in one of your imaginary elevators.

In America, we call this phenomenon "Tuesday."

But in Eurofurence, it should be called "SOMEONE behaving badly." That's because everyone from every fetish or interest subculture within the furry fandom has the capability of jeopardizing a furry convention's reputation. The mainstream media has spent years trying to dissect the reasons why furries bother dressing up in animal costumes. Why would a bunch of adults dress up in silly costumes at a designated period of time? Suck it, Halloween! Screw those awkward costume parties at work where your boss dresses up as Bilbo Baggins, and you're forever resisting the urge to call him a name that distinctly rhymes with Bilbo.

But that's exactly the point. There are a lot of misunderstandings about the furry fandom and why certain furries derive pleasure from certain activities. Similarly with babyfurs, there is the notion that babyfurs have a complete disregard for societal norms. Wear a diaper? It's definitely going to be dirty when they drop their bass, wink-wink nudge-nudge. It's not like people recognize that there are severe ramifications for not adhering to standard hygiene practices, including but not limited to being expelled from a convention that they were looking forward to attending for months; after clearing their work and personal schedules to spend one week with friends, partners and other con-goers. It's more likely than not that any babyfur who violates the convention's code of conduct would be in the absurdly slim minority. If they behave badly, they would unceremoniously be placed in the "fucking stupid" category with every other furry that has ever behaved badly at a convention.

So why the hate? I'll answer this clearly rhetorical question with a simple trick answer: It doesn't make any fucking sense.

While you're urging your staffers restraint when people civilly rebuff your asinine bullshit, perhaps you should recognize that it is your professional responsibility to ensure that all attendees are welcome -- and that they all abide by the same rules. And that those rules are enforced for everyone. It's not hard, and saying, "We're sorry!" -- without making any remarks that further undermine the apology -- doesn't hurt either. And if you think you're being unfairly targeted for being a bunch of whiny, self-serving twats, run a good convention. Prove us wrong. Hide the dildos and bring some changing tables.

Then we'll talk.

Starting July 2015, I'm expanding the type of commissions that I'll be offering, and I'm also adding a new payment method: BitCoin. I'll still be using PayPal, but Bitcoin gives me a little more flexibility because payment is more instantaneous for smaller jobs and coin mining.

Here are the commission/job types that will be available:

Graphic Design
Additional charges for customizable PSD or AI formats
- Banner Ads
- Brochures
- Business Cards & Stationary
- Flyers & Posters
- Photoshop Editing and Retouch
- Professional Book Covers
- Professional Logo Design
- Signs
- Social Media Design

Online Design & Marketing
- Articles & Reviews
- Digital Branding
- Proofreading & Editing
- Press Releases
- Search Engine Optimization
- Social Media Marketing
- Software Technical Support
- Technical Editing
- Traffic Generation
- Website Design Consultation (NOT design)
- WordPress Customization
- WordPress Troubleshooting

My services are ideal for any furries that want to start their own business (i.e. artists that want to be recognized on a more national level, or anyone interested in forming a new convention).

Rates are affordable and negotiable. You can note me anytime to discuss your project!

LS

I'm back in action this week.

"The Baby Business Pt. 3" is coming out around the end of the week, and I'm working on commissions. IM and Skype are turned off until I proofread and finish them. There, I said it. Finish. I think my commissioners waited for a year now? Can't believe it's taken that long for me to get my shit together.

So my webhost managed to "fix" the malware issue with my files, however their "fix" also destroyed any ability for me to access the administrative backend of my content management systems. Great. Tech support is digging their heels in and not helping me deal with this issue, despite paying $200 to restore my sites back to normal. Really hate these people. Really do. Will give my readers and commissioners a thumbs up once the issues are taken care of, and I can get back to writing.

Grumble, grumble.

LS

It's nearly one in the morning, and I haven't slept for an entire day. As soon as I finish this journal entry, I'm going to get some sleep. So you may be wondering, "Why haven't you been sleeping?" The short answer is: I've been fighting with my webhost who didn't tell me my website was hit with a massive XSS injection, which corrupted a lot of my personal and professional files, including backups. Apparently I forgot to update one of the CMS on my server to the latest version, therefore I'm fiscally responsible for all the damage done even though they were aware my site was being attacked (at the time) and didn't tell me a goddamn thing. So $200+ later, site has been restored. Somewhat good as new. Spent all day and night fighting with technical support to dispute the charge. They compromised and gave me a discount. Now I'm low on money for the next few weeks and I'm concerned about it.

If my family was financially better off, I wouldn't be so stressed out about money right now. But my webhost and I are good now, and that's what matters in the interim. This is why I'm a few days behind with the third chapter of "Baby Business" and the commissions.

Over and out.

LS

Update on Outstanding Commissions

Yes, yes. I know. I'm almost a year behind on these. A lot was going on. But the good news is that my head is no longer up my ass. I got my creative mojo working again, which means I'll work on commissions while I work on my "Baby Business" series. Actually, I've made a lot of progress on both commissions within the past week. Feel free to IM me and I'll give you an update on when my WIP drafts will be ready for viewing. There haven't been any significant changes from the previous drafts, but I have to say: It's kind of fun to read and edit unfinished work from months ago. It gives me a lot of perspective. So yes, things are coming along.

New Commissions?

Just looked at my bank account, and holy shit! I'm really running low this month. That said, I'm motivated to retool my commissions system so that people have a better idea of what they're buying into. In other words, I'm going to answer the question, "Why should you commission a story?" However, I won't be taking any commissions until I finish my two outstanding ones. Be patient, grasshoppers!

I can say that I'm in talks with a couple of artists to turn my stories into comics and/or graphic novels. People who commission me can opt into this program. Basically, you are credited for the original concept. I write the story. Artist turns the story into art. The art becomes a book that is sold online and revenue is split evenly among you (the idea maker), me (writer) and the artist. It's a significant undertaking, sure, but I believe there's definitely a market for AB/DL comics and stories, especially furry-based ones.

So we'll see! Note me if you're interested in doing something that crazy.

LS

FA +watchers, Twitter followers and friends:

I want to talk to you about something really important, which is drama, obviously. Duh. When there are furries, there is drama. When furries gather together in one place at one point in time, drama will be there; it's simply impossible to avoid. There are times when, yes, even I am susceptible to it and let my emotions get the better of me. Last year, I actually mocked a young female FA user who kept writing "ew [insert fetish] is gross" under one of my friend's submissions when she could have easily not clicked on the submission thumb or bothered to comment at all. I was frustrated that people continue to express how they dislike seeing a certain type of submission on the actual submission -- as if the artist is going to say, "You know what, random user I don't know? I like the cut of your jib, so I'm going to stop creating art you personally don't like, therefore depriving myself of creative expression." That's a load of horseshit, and I mocked this person quite severely. The user complained, and Dragoneer pulled me aside. He told me I went over the top. He was right. He was absolutely right. I didn't want to admit to it at first because I was upset, but he was right. I fed into the drama without taking into consideration how everyone else felt about it.

Fast forward to tonight: I see on my Twitter feed a bunch of tweets from someone claiming that a person they spoke to on Skype had accused him of faking his mental illness. Everyone has one, whether it's real or completely imaginary like the leprechaun that told me to write this journal and burn down the nearest orphanage. But in all seriousness, mental health is one of those subjects that's difficult to talk about without offending someone involved in the conversation. But there it was: someone was accused of faking their mental illness and was supposedly playing "victim" after being called out for bad behavior. So a lot of tweets were going back and forth. Tonight I saw some tweets that were rather threatening and violent; many of those tweets came from people I know and people who read my work. That's why I ultimately decided to pen this FA journal to say the following:

Knock it off.

Seriously.

Please? Step out of the drama. Step off.

Thank you.

LS