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Confuzzled Recap--somewhat exhaustive, part 2
Posted 11 years agoMonday
(Time slept not counting naps: ~5 hours)
I THOUGHT Monday was going to be a slower day because the Dealer’s Den wasn’t open. I was wrong.
That morning, after breakfast (MORE smoked salmon this time) I finished four badge commissions, slightly out of order from my list but it was easier to do them all at once than change mediums. After that, I wrote more notes I never got around to doing, for the Building Worlds panel I had with Kandrel, mainly so that I had my mind prepped for going in.
Building Worlds panel went well; we ere derailed a couple times when it got to the gray area of building worlds for your plot/building plots for your world but I think it was pretty good. In the meantime, in the middle of the panel, I received a note asking for, serendipitously, the four badges I’d just finished that morning, so I just handed them over to the runner.
It was lunch about that time but I was basically functioning from breakfast, so I just went back to my room and worked on the last two sketchbooks I was commissioned. I realized that what I’d told people on sunday—that the books would be ready by “pick up” was ambiguous. The art pickup listed in the book was for pickup for the art show/auction and not something separate for people receiving commissions from the dealer’s den that was running late. (Kinda obvious after I thought about it) so I needed to find some way to deliver these things to their respective owners by the time the afternoon pick up time rolled around.
Well, I’d finished sketching for both of them (one was a sketched sketchbook, then other was inked, so only the first was finished) it was time for the closing ceremonies, held a bit early because they had to give the stage back to the hotel after that. I puttered around there for a while until I was filed onto the stage, and thankfully I wasn’t required to say anything. The highlight was when the representative for that year’s charity (A big cat rescue charity) basically started crying because the con had raised £11,000 for them—which meant that they could start doing things they’d planned for next year next month instead. (The total charity figure ballooned to £13,000 by the time the con was actually over).
There was also the silly leg-waxing of the security personnel that was bid for in the auction but that was disappointing!
Anyway, after that, I just HAPPENED to run into the person who’d commissioned the sketchbook I’d finished around noon—just, in the hall. She was easy to spot because her character was a capybara obsessed with Doctor Who—she wore a Tom Baker scarf—and so I handed it off to her. She seemed rather upset by something (not the picture, just something) so I do really hope it wasn’t anything I caused …
Mixed Media panel was in an hour, and I still had to ink the one picture so I sat outside the panel room as people slowly started to congregate around it and chatted (people do seem to be able to find me better when my schedule is listed in the conbook).
The Mixed Media panel had me, Lex, Kandrel, Twll and Nidoconu and it was kinda nerve-wracking in the beginning—I tend to obsess over what I’m going to say but having to wait for it is hard.
Fortunately, the last sketchbook I had was commissioned by a guy who was sitting in the front row of the panel. Just … more serendipity, it was crazy. I handed it off to him, and after that panel I was DONE.
… or, well, erm …
Okay, I hadn’t eaten lunch so it was my intention to find somewhere to order dinner, then MAYBE attend a party later, when I suddenly got a text from Washu (or Silver) saying that I was supposed to judge the fursuit dance competition.
Which was starting about fourteen minutes ago.
I’m not the sort of guy that’d refuse these things on purpose—they didn’t EXPECT me to be knowledgeable of dancing at all, and neither was Lex.
Funnily enough, the conbook jokingly says that the panel of judges would be “hastily arranged”. I don’t think they meant that seriously but that’s what ended up happening. Actually, it was probably better they didn’t inform me ahead of time or I would have tried to do some research and failed.
The judge who WAS a dancer and won a lot (he was in suit on the panel, I can’t recall his name aaargh—black and red wolf with glowy clawtips) seemed like he had a hard time finding words for even stuff he was familiar with but it was kinda cute so we all gave him a pass on it. I eventually got the hand of what we were supposed to be doing by the third set, and by the sixth I’d sorta figured out how to “watch” the dancers and try not to form opinions in words until it was done (write down notes that popped into my head, that sort of thing) … so it was kind of a valuable learning experience?
So yeah, it was fun if completely unexpected, and I was STARVING by that point. Silver had graciously gotten me a sandwich before the event started so I wasn’t distracted, but I needed FOOD—I’d completely forgotten room service had existed, and thankfully it was (just barely) before 11 that night so I ordered penne with arrabiata sauce, garlic bread and coke … which ended up knocking me out cold with all those carbs.
Tuesday
(Time slept not counting naps: ~12 hours)
I didn’t have anything to do but I ended up waking up on Tuesday about 8, ate breakfast in the executive lounge, took a shower, and then went immediately back to sleep until about 1. I eventually shuffled downstairs to meet with Washu and a bunch of the other staff and their friends I hadn’t had the chance to meet during the con. Everyone was in cleanup mode, so eventually, Silver went with me over to the lounge and I sat down on the couch, which is where I ended up staying all day.
I am quite literal here: besides a few minutes where I got up to go to the bathroom or get something from my room I did not move from that couch. There was a dead dog party happening, I think, in the Miller’s Bar, but there ended up being an offshoot of it hovering around me as a lot of people came in and out, talking about whatever and drinking beer and/or cocktails.
Chicken/stuffing/cranberry sandwich for lunch, fish and chips for dinner, drank lots of coke. I wish I could remember the other people who’d joined besides Silver, Vasmeth and Washu, I do recall writing their names down at one point but the only one I recall off the top of my head was HyperRiffic who was a really giggly sort of guy (apparently he has passed out from laughing too hard before)
And that was basically it. I was too tired to do much else.
Wednesday
(Time slept: ~10 hours)
Wednesday was the buffer day that we’d originally planned where Washu and Tungro would take me someplace so I could actually say I’d seen England while I was there, but it ended up being that we just went into town for sushi.
Part of this was because the attendees were still filtering out so slowly; the “last day” (tuesday) there were still like half the attendees present, and Wednesday morning there were still at LEAST 200. Once again we sat around in the lounge talking with all sorts of people who just happened to congregate around as they were waiting for the opportunity to head home.
Our sushi party ended up being 10 people, and instead of lunch it ended up being dinner. I hadn’t eaten breakfast—slept through the cutoff time—and was expecting lunch so I was VERY hungry by the time we navigated the trains and walked through downtown Birmingham to the all-you-can-eat sushi place.
I ate like twenty plates. That was some good sushi.
(Aside—I’m pretty sure the eel is a lot different in the UK than in the US. US eel tends to be a lot more oily. On the other hand, it was the first time I’d eaten squid and it wasn’t rubbery.)
There is a lot of hugging that goes on when furries leave each other so it is rather kinda sad. Once we got back it was just me and Washu and Tungro, and I left for my room right after (yes, there were hugs) where I started being depressed because it was the last day and I was going to have to do traveling again in the morning.
Washu said I could use the rest of my allowance if I wanted, and as I’d used barely half, I did order room service, but since I was still STUFFED from the sushi, it ended up being tomato/red pepper soup and ginger ale.
Thursday
(Time slept ~5 hours)
There wasn’t anyone left to point me anywhere so I checked out at about 6 that morning and made my way toward the airport, which is quite a walk when you’re dragging a roller suitcase that’s nearly 50 lbs and a laptop bag filled with everything else.
I changed my cash for traveler’s checks at the airport when I was there. Exchange rate was rather brutal—if better than anything I could get outside of Amerex (they gave 1 to 1.5, most places in the US is 1 to 1.3 when the real rate is about 1.7)—so I was still rather depressed as I eventually found the place to check in so I could get rid of the luggage.
Birmingham airport was … odd. After you pass the security checkpoint, you MUST walk through the duty free shop as it’s smack in the middle of the hall. I’d paused briefly at the entrance and looked back to see if I’d missed the turn, but no, the airport turns into a glitzy wonderland of mostly jewelry for a few moments. After that, once again you walk in to an area like a mall before you actually start moving toward the gates.
I drank of bottle of the UK Fanta for, well, for breakfast basically. European Fanta is a lot better than the US stuff which is just like sunkist soda—THIS Fanta uses actual orange juice, so it’s like orangeade. I like orange soda, but I think I’d probably drink Fanta a lot more if that stuff was available in the US.
Got on the flight, watched almost four movies I never got around to seeing (Cloudy with a Chance Of Meatballs 2, Thor 2, Parkland, and most of Wolf of Wall Street). I think it helped stave off the depression but I was still wrestling with a lot during the 7 hours back …
Landed early in Newark. Eventually got through customs, felt like I was doing everything wrong (because I was, security officers kept directing me to do things like I was a child apparently), then took the plane to DC, then, after ~an hour delay due to rain, took the plane home.
So that was it. It was really, really fun, really exhausting, and I’m still sad that it’s over.
(Time slept not counting naps: ~5 hours)
I THOUGHT Monday was going to be a slower day because the Dealer’s Den wasn’t open. I was wrong.
That morning, after breakfast (MORE smoked salmon this time) I finished four badge commissions, slightly out of order from my list but it was easier to do them all at once than change mediums. After that, I wrote more notes I never got around to doing, for the Building Worlds panel I had with Kandrel, mainly so that I had my mind prepped for going in.
Building Worlds panel went well; we ere derailed a couple times when it got to the gray area of building worlds for your plot/building plots for your world but I think it was pretty good. In the meantime, in the middle of the panel, I received a note asking for, serendipitously, the four badges I’d just finished that morning, so I just handed them over to the runner.
It was lunch about that time but I was basically functioning from breakfast, so I just went back to my room and worked on the last two sketchbooks I was commissioned. I realized that what I’d told people on sunday—that the books would be ready by “pick up” was ambiguous. The art pickup listed in the book was for pickup for the art show/auction and not something separate for people receiving commissions from the dealer’s den that was running late. (Kinda obvious after I thought about it) so I needed to find some way to deliver these things to their respective owners by the time the afternoon pick up time rolled around.
Well, I’d finished sketching for both of them (one was a sketched sketchbook, then other was inked, so only the first was finished) it was time for the closing ceremonies, held a bit early because they had to give the stage back to the hotel after that. I puttered around there for a while until I was filed onto the stage, and thankfully I wasn’t required to say anything. The highlight was when the representative for that year’s charity (A big cat rescue charity) basically started crying because the con had raised £11,000 for them—which meant that they could start doing things they’d planned for next year next month instead. (The total charity figure ballooned to £13,000 by the time the con was actually over).
There was also the silly leg-waxing of the security personnel that was bid for in the auction but that was disappointing!
Anyway, after that, I just HAPPENED to run into the person who’d commissioned the sketchbook I’d finished around noon—just, in the hall. She was easy to spot because her character was a capybara obsessed with Doctor Who—she wore a Tom Baker scarf—and so I handed it off to her. She seemed rather upset by something (not the picture, just something) so I do really hope it wasn’t anything I caused …
Mixed Media panel was in an hour, and I still had to ink the one picture so I sat outside the panel room as people slowly started to congregate around it and chatted (people do seem to be able to find me better when my schedule is listed in the conbook).
The Mixed Media panel had me, Lex, Kandrel, Twll and Nidoconu and it was kinda nerve-wracking in the beginning—I tend to obsess over what I’m going to say but having to wait for it is hard.
Fortunately, the last sketchbook I had was commissioned by a guy who was sitting in the front row of the panel. Just … more serendipity, it was crazy. I handed it off to him, and after that panel I was DONE.
… or, well, erm …
Okay, I hadn’t eaten lunch so it was my intention to find somewhere to order dinner, then MAYBE attend a party later, when I suddenly got a text from Washu (or Silver) saying that I was supposed to judge the fursuit dance competition.
Which was starting about fourteen minutes ago.
I’m not the sort of guy that’d refuse these things on purpose—they didn’t EXPECT me to be knowledgeable of dancing at all, and neither was Lex.
Funnily enough, the conbook jokingly says that the panel of judges would be “hastily arranged”. I don’t think they meant that seriously but that’s what ended up happening. Actually, it was probably better they didn’t inform me ahead of time or I would have tried to do some research and failed.
The judge who WAS a dancer and won a lot (he was in suit on the panel, I can’t recall his name aaargh—black and red wolf with glowy clawtips) seemed like he had a hard time finding words for even stuff he was familiar with but it was kinda cute so we all gave him a pass on it. I eventually got the hand of what we were supposed to be doing by the third set, and by the sixth I’d sorta figured out how to “watch” the dancers and try not to form opinions in words until it was done (write down notes that popped into my head, that sort of thing) … so it was kind of a valuable learning experience?
So yeah, it was fun if completely unexpected, and I was STARVING by that point. Silver had graciously gotten me a sandwich before the event started so I wasn’t distracted, but I needed FOOD—I’d completely forgotten room service had existed, and thankfully it was (just barely) before 11 that night so I ordered penne with arrabiata sauce, garlic bread and coke … which ended up knocking me out cold with all those carbs.
Tuesday
(Time slept not counting naps: ~12 hours)
I didn’t have anything to do but I ended up waking up on Tuesday about 8, ate breakfast in the executive lounge, took a shower, and then went immediately back to sleep until about 1. I eventually shuffled downstairs to meet with Washu and a bunch of the other staff and their friends I hadn’t had the chance to meet during the con. Everyone was in cleanup mode, so eventually, Silver went with me over to the lounge and I sat down on the couch, which is where I ended up staying all day.
I am quite literal here: besides a few minutes where I got up to go to the bathroom or get something from my room I did not move from that couch. There was a dead dog party happening, I think, in the Miller’s Bar, but there ended up being an offshoot of it hovering around me as a lot of people came in and out, talking about whatever and drinking beer and/or cocktails.
Chicken/stuffing/cranberry sandwich for lunch, fish and chips for dinner, drank lots of coke. I wish I could remember the other people who’d joined besides Silver, Vasmeth and Washu, I do recall writing their names down at one point but the only one I recall off the top of my head was HyperRiffic who was a really giggly sort of guy (apparently he has passed out from laughing too hard before)
And that was basically it. I was too tired to do much else.
Wednesday
(Time slept: ~10 hours)
Wednesday was the buffer day that we’d originally planned where Washu and Tungro would take me someplace so I could actually say I’d seen England while I was there, but it ended up being that we just went into town for sushi.
Part of this was because the attendees were still filtering out so slowly; the “last day” (tuesday) there were still like half the attendees present, and Wednesday morning there were still at LEAST 200. Once again we sat around in the lounge talking with all sorts of people who just happened to congregate around as they were waiting for the opportunity to head home.
Our sushi party ended up being 10 people, and instead of lunch it ended up being dinner. I hadn’t eaten breakfast—slept through the cutoff time—and was expecting lunch so I was VERY hungry by the time we navigated the trains and walked through downtown Birmingham to the all-you-can-eat sushi place.
I ate like twenty plates. That was some good sushi.
(Aside—I’m pretty sure the eel is a lot different in the UK than in the US. US eel tends to be a lot more oily. On the other hand, it was the first time I’d eaten squid and it wasn’t rubbery.)
There is a lot of hugging that goes on when furries leave each other so it is rather kinda sad. Once we got back it was just me and Washu and Tungro, and I left for my room right after (yes, there were hugs) where I started being depressed because it was the last day and I was going to have to do traveling again in the morning.
Washu said I could use the rest of my allowance if I wanted, and as I’d used barely half, I did order room service, but since I was still STUFFED from the sushi, it ended up being tomato/red pepper soup and ginger ale.
Thursday
(Time slept ~5 hours)
There wasn’t anyone left to point me anywhere so I checked out at about 6 that morning and made my way toward the airport, which is quite a walk when you’re dragging a roller suitcase that’s nearly 50 lbs and a laptop bag filled with everything else.
I changed my cash for traveler’s checks at the airport when I was there. Exchange rate was rather brutal—if better than anything I could get outside of Amerex (they gave 1 to 1.5, most places in the US is 1 to 1.3 when the real rate is about 1.7)—so I was still rather depressed as I eventually found the place to check in so I could get rid of the luggage.
Birmingham airport was … odd. After you pass the security checkpoint, you MUST walk through the duty free shop as it’s smack in the middle of the hall. I’d paused briefly at the entrance and looked back to see if I’d missed the turn, but no, the airport turns into a glitzy wonderland of mostly jewelry for a few moments. After that, once again you walk in to an area like a mall before you actually start moving toward the gates.
I drank of bottle of the UK Fanta for, well, for breakfast basically. European Fanta is a lot better than the US stuff which is just like sunkist soda—THIS Fanta uses actual orange juice, so it’s like orangeade. I like orange soda, but I think I’d probably drink Fanta a lot more if that stuff was available in the US.
Got on the flight, watched almost four movies I never got around to seeing (Cloudy with a Chance Of Meatballs 2, Thor 2, Parkland, and most of Wolf of Wall Street). I think it helped stave off the depression but I was still wrestling with a lot during the 7 hours back …
Landed early in Newark. Eventually got through customs, felt like I was doing everything wrong (because I was, security officers kept directing me to do things like I was a child apparently), then took the plane to DC, then, after ~an hour delay due to rain, took the plane home.
So that was it. It was really, really fun, really exhausting, and I’m still sad that it’s over.
Confuzzled Recap--somewhat exhaustive, part 1
Posted 11 years agoI apologize in advance for not having links to anyone's accounts--most people I don't even know if they have FA accounts or what they are.
Confuzzled 2014
Thursday AND Friday
So okay, I arrived to Confuzzled 24 hours later than I’d intended.
I was originally slated to arrive Thursday afternoon, but there was a problem with the weather over here that ended up cancelling original flight out to DC. So, instead of leaving at 6 PM, I left at 6 AM the following morning. That gave a me a LITTLE more time—and was SLIGHTLY fortuitous because in my rush (I did EVERYTHING room-related at the last minute) I’d forgotten to pack my laptop. While it was not strictly necessary, having the laptop did make things easier …
Also instead of going to DC, I was going to Houston. Which is in the opposite direction. And it had a four hour layover.
Now this wouldn’t be a significant problem save for the fact that the storms over the week ended up meaning that the NEXT connecting flight, to Newark, was delayed coming in and I’d just BARELY missed the connecting flight to Birmingham UK. Even though it was sitting on the runway for another hour and a half because the storm was preventing takeoff, AND YET the flight itself was not delayed.
So after fretting about getting there AT ALL that night for about an hour as I stood in line (Seriously, United only ever seems to staff customer service desks minimally even during problem times) I was placed on a flight to Edinburgh in about an hour that would THEN connect to Birmingham with another 3+ hour layover.
It was slightly better than the other plan of making a flight to London and having someone pick me up, as that would have been more effort and probably not saved any time especially since I needed to get through customs and all that.
ESPECIALLY since once I arrived in Edinburgh (Explaining Confuzzled to the customs agent was fun, I got to sit while she made some calls) I learned that my luggage did not arrive with me.
Now this was confusing ESPECIALLY since I presumed that for incoming international flights I was to claim luggage and then re-check it once I arrived in the country. This did not happen, and so I had to call Washu, the GOH liaison for the con. I had already been calling him and texting him basically nonstop through the whole getting-there ordeal but the luggage thing was a huge HUGE HUGE problem and United still steadfastly refused to give any sort of compensation for the major delays.
So, Edinburgh. (EH-din-bur-ro, in Scotland, so you don’t have to look it up). Despite not having originally planned to arrive there (original Itinerary was Huntsville>DC>Dublin>Birmingham) that ended up being my first impression of the UK. And … it was actually pretty nice. I had window seats all the way over so seeing UK land from the air it’s instantly recognizable as not being America—farm plots make NO attempt at being square. They’re only sometimes square outside of the midwest in the US, but you’d instantly notice farm plots are tangent by way of straight lines … in the UK, that is the case only by accident. Also, and I was aware of this but it’s still new to see it up close, that houses are built really close together in the UK—again new after living in the US and being among ranch-style homes with acre lots even in crowded suburbs.
UK airports seem to be arranged a bit more like shopping malls than do US airports. A lot of shops congregate upfront just after the security check, and at Edinburgh they seemed to crowd around the gates in the front section of the building. (In the US, shops are more staggered throughout, clustering at near-random points into food courts) I’d see about the same thing when I left again through Birmingham—more on that later.
I changed out most of my on-hand cash and drank a bottle of orange juice that cost £2.50. I was exhausted, and the connecting flight I made with Flybe attempted to locate my luggage without success. The flight over was actually pretty good too, my first time in a prop engine plane. I think I prefer small prop engines to small jets—it just sounds better despite it being louder inside the cabin.
So I arrived in Birmingham almost exactly 24 hours later than intended. After futilely waiting for my luggage again, I met up with Silver (he was holding the conbook so I could recognize him) and we walked over to the trains to meet with Washu who’d just arrived at the airport.
Washu went out of his way for basically EVERYTHING. I was exhausted and tired and disappointed and looked it, and he told me to go on ahead to the hotel. I handed him my baggage tags, he went to go make lots of an followed Silver to the hotel (It was raining! British weather!). He helped me check into my room, which was SUPER fancy with a dining table and everything, and I dragged myself into my bed and fell asleep.
When I woke up, my luggage was in my room.
I texted Washu to get up there IMMEDIATELY as I started gleefully unloading everything as though the last 36 hours were just a minor annoyance. He’d found out that, through a series of phone calls to departments that were completely unaware of what had gone on, the bags had actually arrived in Birmingham before I did—they were on the original plane out even though I never rechecked them on the way out. And nobody had told anyone who was IN Birmingham, and no attempt was made to contact me, but once Washu found them he had the hotel deliver them up straight away.
All my stuff was in perfect condition. Washu was basically my savior.
So ANYWAY, after that I bothered some more people about the hotel WiFi (we eventually got the password), I took a much-needed bath AND shower, ate some desserts that the hotel provided to me by way of their apology for my ridiculously terrible flight, I poked around in the internet to try and restore my anchor with back home, then I went to sleep because I’d been running on only 8 hours over the past 48 or so.
Saturday
(Time slept besides naps: ~7 hours)
Okay so there was something else I did the night before: I had a lot of preorders I’d made for badges before the con began. The original plan was I was going to get there and them do these badges so they’d be available right when the con began. I didn’t have any of them ready, and the fact that I arrived 24 hours late was kind of a problem. Noetheless, I did a dry run on a badge for myself so I’d know if I was making a terrible mistake or not. That was the only thing I’d had ready when the Dealer’s Den was open.
Oh also I didn’t actually get to prepare for the Dealer’s Den opening the night before, as I was too tired to do it then.
So I woke up at about 7:30 and ate breakfast in the Executive Lounge, which was really nice because it meant I only had to walk about fifty meters from my room door to get breakfast and could walk right back. I took my time in there because there were only a few people each day who ate breakfast in the same lounge I did who also wore the Confuzzled name badges and that always makes me feel conspicuous.
On the other hand, English Full Breakfast is basically always filling and has a lot of variety. No beans on the table though, but there was smoked salmon. I eat that and I’m like “Why am I not having this every day”
Also I learned that the British definition of a cappuccino is closer to the actual Italian one—all milk with only a shot of coffee. I drank my coffee black after that.
So there was a lot of other preparation after breakfast, trying to get the preorders done, and also sitting and staring at the notes I’d written for my panel on Cartooning and wondering how in the world I was going to do that. Then it was almost 10, and I texted Washu about the dealer’s den stuff, so I was down there about 20 minutes to opening trying to set everything up so my table didn’t look like a mess like it always does. (My table looks like a mess).
In the meantime, I’d also managed somehow to bring three pieces of art for the art show—the original for Hunter’s Lodge, plus the two originals that went to making this year’s Confuzzled t-shirt. (All three of them would end up at auction—more on that later)
Den opens, I’m immediately swamped. I’d brought down about 10 copies of each book since I couldn’t fit EVERYTHING in my duffel bag and was sold out by noon. I also realized I’d forgotten to bring the forms for commissions down, so I just wrote down everyone’s details on the back of the Dealer’s Den TOS papers.
I also got to meet the other GOH the, Lex, a puppet-maker. We didn’t have a lot of time to chat UNTIL it was almost 1 o’clock and we went to do the GOH panel.
Save for passion for our respective fields of art I think Lex is basically the opposite of me—Washu would later describe how different managing each of us was as I’m rather quiet and reserved and Lex is get-out-there-do-everything. I work independently, Lex has a long career working with TV, especially with Jim Henson’s Television Workshop productions. Her stuff is REALLY good.
After that, I ran up to my room, grabbed more books and ran back down, nearly sold out of those. I told a lot of people I might be opening for commissions again on Sunday but the way things were going I was mostly “just saying” that; I wasn’t this busy with multiple things at MFF and presumed I could at least make a dent into a backlog of 14 items.
Washu made me go get something to eat, so I had the British approximation of curry for late lunch, grabbed more books and dragged them downstairs, then fretted over my cartooning panel notes until I basically had to go do that thing. By then I had brought down all my books and hand nearly sold out of everything.
Then the Cartooning panel. That was soooo intimidating.
Originally I had planned to have a powerpoint so I didn’t have to go through the trouble of doodling crappy stick figures on a whiteboard, but the powerpoint never coalesced. Instead I ended up doing a lot of reading of notes from my screen, drawing some demonstrations of the whiteboard, moving clumsily from one topic to the next without having practiced, and in general being a total nervous wreck. I was really glad the dealer’s den was closed after I was done because I felt really super terrible about it afterwards and just needed to lay down.
Washu delivered my cash box back to my room after that and even though I felt really cruddy about the whole thing, Washu said, to my utter surprise, that everyone LIKED the panel even if it didn’t seem so at the time.
I had a little bit of time after that—everyone and especially Washu INSISTED I go see the Pawpets show that evening (It had been delayed an hour) I thought okay, I’d never seen one of these things before, I have a reserved seat up front, and I really want to try to make more events after feeling like I was a bit disappointing at MFF in 2011, so I went thinking it was going to be about an hour and a half.
It was closer to two and a half hours.
And it was AMAZING.
Besides a bunch of technical glitches that couldn’t be helped, I utterly, thoroughly enjoyed the production (despite not even having touched a drop of alcohol, to boot!) One of the writers (Nidonocu, VERY awesome guy) is a huge fan of mine and they managed to get in TWO REFERENCES TO ME in the show—once in the opening animation, once during an interstitial where a character was resisting brainwashing and was babbling nonsense. Even without the embarrassing references to me, the writing was top-notch, the interstitial gave it a good pace so they could do setup between scenes, and it was hilarious.
I will be posting that everywhere once they have it online. (I presume they’ll be doing some redubbing since the mics cut out for a moment at one point)
AFTER THAT … I absolutely had to get the rest of my preorders done, which I did that night and the following morning JUST SO I’d be where I was supposed to be when I arrived.
Sunday
(Time slept not counting naps: ~6 hours)
Breakfast in the Executive Lounge again. Learned a bit about current UK politics from TV, namely that the UK Independence Party (UKIP) gained far more seats than is comfortable in the EU Parliamentary elections. They’re a single issue party—anti-EU. My take on it is, even if there are problems with the EU (and there are always problems with political bodies), why is being obstinate and burning bridges a preferable choice to better communication? But that doesn’t have anything to do with the convention.
I had a lot more time in the Dealer’s Den. I DID finish all the preorder badges and eventually got those handed out and was starting on the commissions I took on Saturday. I also sold out of the rest of my Housepets books very quickly, which was good because I didn’t have display space for the Housepets posters I’d brought, so those could get sold!
On the other hand, I had another panel right after lunch (I did not eat lunch—though I think I grabbed a muffin from the executive lounge) called Finding Ideas which I was COMPLETELY unprepared for. I’d originally conceived of the idea for the panel during a time when I had this AMAZING insight that I’d completely forgotten about by the time the con rolled around, so I basically pieces something together from my own experience and a lecture given by John Cleese. After that it turned into a Q&A which went pretty well as there was talking and not a lot of dead air.
I had a LITTLE bit of time after that until the Flash Fiction contest, which I was slated to judge. I was the ONLY judge in fact, so I ended up asking Kandrel to help because sometimes my brain skips out on what I’m listening to and I have to yank it back to pay attention. He was very helpful here (And in the Building Worlds panel the next morning) because he can actually talk with confidence without being prompted like I have to sometimes. I think it was more engaging with the both of us. In any case, I have to draw a picture for the winner, who said that he wrote the thing while he was drunk in a pub. I’m a sucker for verse, and robots. (I wish I had the thing so I could post it for you, I really loved its flow)
The Dealer’s Den closed for good pretty much after that, though I suddenly had the revelation I had not gone around to meet anyone and that made me sad. I hope I can go again sometime because I was just so busy.
I ate at the food court on Sunday which was cheap and kinda disappointing—hamburger and chips (fries for Americans, remember). I usually do eat alone, I just felt kinda conspicuous about it there because the tables were so large.
Later that evening, I decided to sit in on the live auction because all three of my pieces had made it in—two automatically since I set their charity percent to 100, and the other because it’d received the maximum number of bids at the silent auction. I sat in the back corner on the far side because I just had everything out so I could do sketches for owed badges.
Sometimes I really wonder what someone accidentally walking in on that sort of thing would think.
I did more work that night on badges, thank goodness the internet was back up or I might have gone crazy … okay I should have gone to the Artist’s Alley but I needed some unwind time too.
Confuzzled 2014
Thursday AND Friday
So okay, I arrived to Confuzzled 24 hours later than I’d intended.
I was originally slated to arrive Thursday afternoon, but there was a problem with the weather over here that ended up cancelling original flight out to DC. So, instead of leaving at 6 PM, I left at 6 AM the following morning. That gave a me a LITTLE more time—and was SLIGHTLY fortuitous because in my rush (I did EVERYTHING room-related at the last minute) I’d forgotten to pack my laptop. While it was not strictly necessary, having the laptop did make things easier …
Also instead of going to DC, I was going to Houston. Which is in the opposite direction. And it had a four hour layover.
Now this wouldn’t be a significant problem save for the fact that the storms over the week ended up meaning that the NEXT connecting flight, to Newark, was delayed coming in and I’d just BARELY missed the connecting flight to Birmingham UK. Even though it was sitting on the runway for another hour and a half because the storm was preventing takeoff, AND YET the flight itself was not delayed.
So after fretting about getting there AT ALL that night for about an hour as I stood in line (Seriously, United only ever seems to staff customer service desks minimally even during problem times) I was placed on a flight to Edinburgh in about an hour that would THEN connect to Birmingham with another 3+ hour layover.
It was slightly better than the other plan of making a flight to London and having someone pick me up, as that would have been more effort and probably not saved any time especially since I needed to get through customs and all that.
ESPECIALLY since once I arrived in Edinburgh (Explaining Confuzzled to the customs agent was fun, I got to sit while she made some calls) I learned that my luggage did not arrive with me.
Now this was confusing ESPECIALLY since I presumed that for incoming international flights I was to claim luggage and then re-check it once I arrived in the country. This did not happen, and so I had to call Washu, the GOH liaison for the con. I had already been calling him and texting him basically nonstop through the whole getting-there ordeal but the luggage thing was a huge HUGE HUGE problem and United still steadfastly refused to give any sort of compensation for the major delays.
So, Edinburgh. (EH-din-bur-ro, in Scotland, so you don’t have to look it up). Despite not having originally planned to arrive there (original Itinerary was Huntsville>DC>Dublin>Birmingham) that ended up being my first impression of the UK. And … it was actually pretty nice. I had window seats all the way over so seeing UK land from the air it’s instantly recognizable as not being America—farm plots make NO attempt at being square. They’re only sometimes square outside of the midwest in the US, but you’d instantly notice farm plots are tangent by way of straight lines … in the UK, that is the case only by accident. Also, and I was aware of this but it’s still new to see it up close, that houses are built really close together in the UK—again new after living in the US and being among ranch-style homes with acre lots even in crowded suburbs.
UK airports seem to be arranged a bit more like shopping malls than do US airports. A lot of shops congregate upfront just after the security check, and at Edinburgh they seemed to crowd around the gates in the front section of the building. (In the US, shops are more staggered throughout, clustering at near-random points into food courts) I’d see about the same thing when I left again through Birmingham—more on that later.
I changed out most of my on-hand cash and drank a bottle of orange juice that cost £2.50. I was exhausted, and the connecting flight I made with Flybe attempted to locate my luggage without success. The flight over was actually pretty good too, my first time in a prop engine plane. I think I prefer small prop engines to small jets—it just sounds better despite it being louder inside the cabin.
So I arrived in Birmingham almost exactly 24 hours later than intended. After futilely waiting for my luggage again, I met up with Silver (he was holding the conbook so I could recognize him) and we walked over to the trains to meet with Washu who’d just arrived at the airport.
Washu went out of his way for basically EVERYTHING. I was exhausted and tired and disappointed and looked it, and he told me to go on ahead to the hotel. I handed him my baggage tags, he went to go make lots of an followed Silver to the hotel (It was raining! British weather!). He helped me check into my room, which was SUPER fancy with a dining table and everything, and I dragged myself into my bed and fell asleep.
When I woke up, my luggage was in my room.
I texted Washu to get up there IMMEDIATELY as I started gleefully unloading everything as though the last 36 hours were just a minor annoyance. He’d found out that, through a series of phone calls to departments that were completely unaware of what had gone on, the bags had actually arrived in Birmingham before I did—they were on the original plane out even though I never rechecked them on the way out. And nobody had told anyone who was IN Birmingham, and no attempt was made to contact me, but once Washu found them he had the hotel deliver them up straight away.
All my stuff was in perfect condition. Washu was basically my savior.
So ANYWAY, after that I bothered some more people about the hotel WiFi (we eventually got the password), I took a much-needed bath AND shower, ate some desserts that the hotel provided to me by way of their apology for my ridiculously terrible flight, I poked around in the internet to try and restore my anchor with back home, then I went to sleep because I’d been running on only 8 hours over the past 48 or so.
Saturday
(Time slept besides naps: ~7 hours)
Okay so there was something else I did the night before: I had a lot of preorders I’d made for badges before the con began. The original plan was I was going to get there and them do these badges so they’d be available right when the con began. I didn’t have any of them ready, and the fact that I arrived 24 hours late was kind of a problem. Noetheless, I did a dry run on a badge for myself so I’d know if I was making a terrible mistake or not. That was the only thing I’d had ready when the Dealer’s Den was open.
Oh also I didn’t actually get to prepare for the Dealer’s Den opening the night before, as I was too tired to do it then.
So I woke up at about 7:30 and ate breakfast in the Executive Lounge, which was really nice because it meant I only had to walk about fifty meters from my room door to get breakfast and could walk right back. I took my time in there because there were only a few people each day who ate breakfast in the same lounge I did who also wore the Confuzzled name badges and that always makes me feel conspicuous.
On the other hand, English Full Breakfast is basically always filling and has a lot of variety. No beans on the table though, but there was smoked salmon. I eat that and I’m like “Why am I not having this every day”
Also I learned that the British definition of a cappuccino is closer to the actual Italian one—all milk with only a shot of coffee. I drank my coffee black after that.
So there was a lot of other preparation after breakfast, trying to get the preorders done, and also sitting and staring at the notes I’d written for my panel on Cartooning and wondering how in the world I was going to do that. Then it was almost 10, and I texted Washu about the dealer’s den stuff, so I was down there about 20 minutes to opening trying to set everything up so my table didn’t look like a mess like it always does. (My table looks like a mess).
In the meantime, I’d also managed somehow to bring three pieces of art for the art show—the original for Hunter’s Lodge, plus the two originals that went to making this year’s Confuzzled t-shirt. (All three of them would end up at auction—more on that later)
Den opens, I’m immediately swamped. I’d brought down about 10 copies of each book since I couldn’t fit EVERYTHING in my duffel bag and was sold out by noon. I also realized I’d forgotten to bring the forms for commissions down, so I just wrote down everyone’s details on the back of the Dealer’s Den TOS papers.
I also got to meet the other GOH the, Lex, a puppet-maker. We didn’t have a lot of time to chat UNTIL it was almost 1 o’clock and we went to do the GOH panel.
Save for passion for our respective fields of art I think Lex is basically the opposite of me—Washu would later describe how different managing each of us was as I’m rather quiet and reserved and Lex is get-out-there-do-everything. I work independently, Lex has a long career working with TV, especially with Jim Henson’s Television Workshop productions. Her stuff is REALLY good.
After that, I ran up to my room, grabbed more books and ran back down, nearly sold out of those. I told a lot of people I might be opening for commissions again on Sunday but the way things were going I was mostly “just saying” that; I wasn’t this busy with multiple things at MFF and presumed I could at least make a dent into a backlog of 14 items.
Washu made me go get something to eat, so I had the British approximation of curry for late lunch, grabbed more books and dragged them downstairs, then fretted over my cartooning panel notes until I basically had to go do that thing. By then I had brought down all my books and hand nearly sold out of everything.
Then the Cartooning panel. That was soooo intimidating.
Originally I had planned to have a powerpoint so I didn’t have to go through the trouble of doodling crappy stick figures on a whiteboard, but the powerpoint never coalesced. Instead I ended up doing a lot of reading of notes from my screen, drawing some demonstrations of the whiteboard, moving clumsily from one topic to the next without having practiced, and in general being a total nervous wreck. I was really glad the dealer’s den was closed after I was done because I felt really super terrible about it afterwards and just needed to lay down.
Washu delivered my cash box back to my room after that and even though I felt really cruddy about the whole thing, Washu said, to my utter surprise, that everyone LIKED the panel even if it didn’t seem so at the time.
I had a little bit of time after that—everyone and especially Washu INSISTED I go see the Pawpets show that evening (It had been delayed an hour) I thought okay, I’d never seen one of these things before, I have a reserved seat up front, and I really want to try to make more events after feeling like I was a bit disappointing at MFF in 2011, so I went thinking it was going to be about an hour and a half.
It was closer to two and a half hours.
And it was AMAZING.
Besides a bunch of technical glitches that couldn’t be helped, I utterly, thoroughly enjoyed the production (despite not even having touched a drop of alcohol, to boot!) One of the writers (Nidonocu, VERY awesome guy) is a huge fan of mine and they managed to get in TWO REFERENCES TO ME in the show—once in the opening animation, once during an interstitial where a character was resisting brainwashing and was babbling nonsense. Even without the embarrassing references to me, the writing was top-notch, the interstitial gave it a good pace so they could do setup between scenes, and it was hilarious.
I will be posting that everywhere once they have it online. (I presume they’ll be doing some redubbing since the mics cut out for a moment at one point)
AFTER THAT … I absolutely had to get the rest of my preorders done, which I did that night and the following morning JUST SO I’d be where I was supposed to be when I arrived.
Sunday
(Time slept not counting naps: ~6 hours)
Breakfast in the Executive Lounge again. Learned a bit about current UK politics from TV, namely that the UK Independence Party (UKIP) gained far more seats than is comfortable in the EU Parliamentary elections. They’re a single issue party—anti-EU. My take on it is, even if there are problems with the EU (and there are always problems with political bodies), why is being obstinate and burning bridges a preferable choice to better communication? But that doesn’t have anything to do with the convention.
I had a lot more time in the Dealer’s Den. I DID finish all the preorder badges and eventually got those handed out and was starting on the commissions I took on Saturday. I also sold out of the rest of my Housepets books very quickly, which was good because I didn’t have display space for the Housepets posters I’d brought, so those could get sold!
On the other hand, I had another panel right after lunch (I did not eat lunch—though I think I grabbed a muffin from the executive lounge) called Finding Ideas which I was COMPLETELY unprepared for. I’d originally conceived of the idea for the panel during a time when I had this AMAZING insight that I’d completely forgotten about by the time the con rolled around, so I basically pieces something together from my own experience and a lecture given by John Cleese. After that it turned into a Q&A which went pretty well as there was talking and not a lot of dead air.
I had a LITTLE bit of time after that until the Flash Fiction contest, which I was slated to judge. I was the ONLY judge in fact, so I ended up asking Kandrel to help because sometimes my brain skips out on what I’m listening to and I have to yank it back to pay attention. He was very helpful here (And in the Building Worlds panel the next morning) because he can actually talk with confidence without being prompted like I have to sometimes. I think it was more engaging with the both of us. In any case, I have to draw a picture for the winner, who said that he wrote the thing while he was drunk in a pub. I’m a sucker for verse, and robots. (I wish I had the thing so I could post it for you, I really loved its flow)
The Dealer’s Den closed for good pretty much after that, though I suddenly had the revelation I had not gone around to meet anyone and that made me sad. I hope I can go again sometime because I was just so busy.
I ate at the food court on Sunday which was cheap and kinda disappointing—hamburger and chips (fries for Americans, remember). I usually do eat alone, I just felt kinda conspicuous about it there because the tables were so large.
Later that evening, I decided to sit in on the live auction because all three of my pieces had made it in—two automatically since I set their charity percent to 100, and the other because it’d received the maximum number of bids at the silent auction. I sat in the back corner on the far side because I just had everything out so I could do sketches for owed badges.
Sometimes I really wonder what someone accidentally walking in on that sort of thing would think.
I did more work that night on badges, thank goodness the internet was back up or I might have gone crazy … okay I should have gone to the Artist’s Alley but I needed some unwind time too.
Confuzzled Badges! CLOSED
Posted 11 years agoOkay, I know I said I'd open earlier but I have been utterly swamped with prep work for Confuzzled. However, once I board the plane on wednesday I will not have any more time for prepping anyhow, so this is what we're going to do.
IF you are going to be at Confuzzled, I am doing Black And White inked badge preorders for pickup. These are not in color but I will be doing as good an ink job as I can; they will be 3x5, come with a badge holder and cost $35 (or £20 if you pay in person).
When I get back from Confuzzled, I'll be providing some digital coloring slots for said badges for an additional $20 IF you can provide me scanned versions.
This is currently only open to people who will be at Confuzzled and they will be available for pickup at the booth. If you are interested, please comment below and then email me at rickpgriffin@gmail.com. You can either pay me now vie paypal (ASK for my paypal address please) or in person at my booth at confuzzled.
1.
Saethwr
2.
Silvermoon_Armanis
3.
blackphantom1412
4.
darky
5.
Nidonocu
6.
Zetta
(Sorry I don't have any examples ATM, but it should be comparable to the Iron Artist stuff I did last year, but with names)
IF you are going to be at Confuzzled, I am doing Black And White inked badge preorders for pickup. These are not in color but I will be doing as good an ink job as I can; they will be 3x5, come with a badge holder and cost $35 (or £20 if you pay in person).
When I get back from Confuzzled, I'll be providing some digital coloring slots for said badges for an additional $20 IF you can provide me scanned versions.
This is currently only open to people who will be at Confuzzled and they will be available for pickup at the booth. If you are interested, please comment below and then email me at rickpgriffin@gmail.com. You can either pay me now vie paypal (ASK for my paypal address please) or in person at my booth at confuzzled.
1.
Saethwr2.
Silvermoon_Armanis3.
blackphantom14124.
darky5.
Nidonocu6.
Zetta(Sorry I don't have any examples ATM, but it should be comparable to the Iron Artist stuff I did last year, but with names)
What The Crap Is Even Furry 3: Revenge of the Furs
Posted 11 years agoThe definitions I put forth in the original post http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5640372/ seem to themselves be arbitrary, and given that they're arbitrary everyone gets to decide for themselves what they like, but I don't know if them simply acknowledging these points are arbitrary is the end goal.
Usually, we have a premise of expectations when it comes to our definitions. This is going to be more conjecture than the original post, which was closer to direct reporting.
So what do we believe furry IS when we say something is furry or not furry? I think I ended up making three larger distinctions with smaller gradients inside each, because each of these will usually vary widely between people.
A. Furry-As-Fandom-Membership
Furry is almost always treated like a fan definition rather than a professional one. Someone can then claim membership or non-membership, but to a certain degree, one can also deny membership despite having all the other hallmarks. Hallmarks usually include, as its premise of the fandom membership, being a fan of anthropomorphism (usually of animals, depending on your other definitions). I think some people drag this a bit too far--if you ever liked Bugs Bunny at all you MUST be a furry (in which case my dad would be a furry and you'd have to stretch that definition REALLY REALLY HARD).
I think most people in the fandom would reasonably assume that if you're a fan of a property DUE TO the presence of anthropomorphism, and that said presence could reliably predict your enjoyment of other properties, then you are probably a furry, as in, IF you were to seek out a fandom that covers your interests, this one would be it. Creating a new fandom just to avoid the word "furry" is in this case redundant, despite what one might believe to be its inherent flaws. After all, one can be a gamer and not associate AT ALL with the abuses that go on in tournament play fanbases even if they're the largest fanbases that gaming currently has--it doesn't make one LESS of a gamer to do things differently.
B. Furry-As-Fandom-Clusivity
Clusivity is the distinction between being either inclusive or exclusive. This means whether or not we call works made outside the fandom "furry". Since furry is a fan-definition, unless somehow furries creep into the professional world, occasionally when people say "Furry" they mean fan-created work only, and not professional work that happens to have fans in the furry fandom.
Fandom-centric work, that is, media specifically made for furry consumption and not general public, is often seen as pandering. But most furries first established their interest in the furry fandom from work that was not fan-media (Sonic, Lion King, Star Fox, D&D, TMNT, Rescue Rangers, werewolves, Looney Tunes, MLP, a random character from any media that doesn't even focus on anthro, etc). While each of these usually have their own fandoms that are not furry--that is, fans of these properties for reasons other than their anthropomorphic fixation--it seems odd that membership in the furry fandom ought to instantly exclude the non-fandom properties that attracted their fans in the first place.
But as I have said it is a fan definition only--the furry fandom is sizable but not so much that it's a demographic with considerable buying power, or else the market would be more sustainable than it currently is. So, most properties, unless they are made by people who identify with the fandom, would not be considered to be geared for the furry market in particular, but would nonetheless find fans in the furry fandom who will think of it as furry, regardless of whether or not it's "furry" in this sense of the word.
(Also, this occurs whether or not they appreciate the considerable amount of porn they're invariably going to generate.)
C. Furry-As-Fandom-Composition
This is the one that is more up-in-the-air because we're usually running on definitions of furry that are simultaneously paired and also exclusive from one another. This is not to say these definitions do not have crossover demographics--they do, and to a considerable degree. But it has caused consternation and confusion in the past when, say, How To Train Your Dragon AND Toy Story 3 were both nominated for an Ursa Major Award in 2011.
When we say "furry" there's almost no question whether a fox person who stands on two legs and talks is counted as a furry or not. It's almost the literal definition, as any definition of furry would be hard-pressed to exclude a bipedal fox character from the definition. So, this one is usually easy--it's when we move out from this into the more vague areas of the definition that it gets harder for some people to agree whether it is "furry" or not.
For instance, is the movie Cars "furry" (if we were to speak inclusively)? As in, would you really expect it to appeal to the exact same demographic that sees the bipedal fox as the most basic ideal? When put up like this, it's easier to see where one might and might not agree to these being in the same fandom, because to an extent they are not.
Besides the narrower technical definitions (machines with human bodies, taurs, whether lizards should be furry or "scaley") there's often a divide in the fandom I have noticed, and it starts from basic premises. None of these premises are "more right" than any other because, just like the narrower technical definitions, they rely entirely on the taste of the individual.
We COULD mean 1)"furry" is JUST the house style of anthropomorphic animals and animal-like things, 2)"furry" is all animals-in-media regardless of degree of anthropomorphism, or 3)"furry" is the same as anthropomorphism of any kind so long as it's not 'just human' (or sometimes even 'just animal') and therefore shouldn't favor premise 1 over any other.
These are all radically different premises. Nominating How To Train Your Dragon confuses both 1 and, to a degree, 3, because the movie goes out of its way to make sure its dragon characters are seen as animals, even if they're a BIT idealized for humans. It confuses 1 all the way because there's not even a BIT of funny-animal going on, even if they LIKE the movie (though they'll usually show their appreciation by MAKING the animal characters sufficiently furry). People who start from definition 2, because they see the fandom as a base for appreciation of any animals in media whatsoever, wouldn't see any problem with the nomination.
Nominating Toy Story 3 confuses both 1 and 2, even though by all technical accounts it fits into premise 3 which we PRESUME to be the full scope of the fandom. Even if Lotso might technically push the definition, he doesn't make it a furry story by premises 1 and 2 any more than Alan Rickman makes Die Hard a British film.
Now, this is mostly conjecture on my part of where I think a lot of confusion and dissension crops up in the fandom based on my analysis of how the word furry is used--that is, what we think we're saying when we say "furry" and the sorts of expectations we have of the fandom as a result. You might not even think of furry as being premise 1 2 OR 3 exclusively, but if you find something "off" when something like Cars is brought up in discussion of furry, it MIGHT help to understand which definition you're basing your assumptions off of.
Personally, I think that there's a large part of the fandom that runs off of premises 1 and 2 and are bothered that 3 always needs to be dragged in even when they're not interested, but they can't go off and play with their own definitions because we have to acknowledge 3 all the time, like we're nodding and saying "yes, I suppose I'm part of the fandom thatfinds Lightning McQueen sexy thinks anthropomorphic cars are inherently neat" and actually thinking maybe they belong somewhere else.
Usually, we have a premise of expectations when it comes to our definitions. This is going to be more conjecture than the original post, which was closer to direct reporting.
So what do we believe furry IS when we say something is furry or not furry? I think I ended up making three larger distinctions with smaller gradients inside each, because each of these will usually vary widely between people.
A. Furry-As-Fandom-Membership
Furry is almost always treated like a fan definition rather than a professional one. Someone can then claim membership or non-membership, but to a certain degree, one can also deny membership despite having all the other hallmarks. Hallmarks usually include, as its premise of the fandom membership, being a fan of anthropomorphism (usually of animals, depending on your other definitions). I think some people drag this a bit too far--if you ever liked Bugs Bunny at all you MUST be a furry (in which case my dad would be a furry and you'd have to stretch that definition REALLY REALLY HARD).
I think most people in the fandom would reasonably assume that if you're a fan of a property DUE TO the presence of anthropomorphism, and that said presence could reliably predict your enjoyment of other properties, then you are probably a furry, as in, IF you were to seek out a fandom that covers your interests, this one would be it. Creating a new fandom just to avoid the word "furry" is in this case redundant, despite what one might believe to be its inherent flaws. After all, one can be a gamer and not associate AT ALL with the abuses that go on in tournament play fanbases even if they're the largest fanbases that gaming currently has--it doesn't make one LESS of a gamer to do things differently.
B. Furry-As-Fandom-Clusivity
Clusivity is the distinction between being either inclusive or exclusive. This means whether or not we call works made outside the fandom "furry". Since furry is a fan-definition, unless somehow furries creep into the professional world, occasionally when people say "Furry" they mean fan-created work only, and not professional work that happens to have fans in the furry fandom.
Fandom-centric work, that is, media specifically made for furry consumption and not general public, is often seen as pandering. But most furries first established their interest in the furry fandom from work that was not fan-media (Sonic, Lion King, Star Fox, D&D, TMNT, Rescue Rangers, werewolves, Looney Tunes, MLP, a random character from any media that doesn't even focus on anthro, etc). While each of these usually have their own fandoms that are not furry--that is, fans of these properties for reasons other than their anthropomorphic fixation--it seems odd that membership in the furry fandom ought to instantly exclude the non-fandom properties that attracted their fans in the first place.
But as I have said it is a fan definition only--the furry fandom is sizable but not so much that it's a demographic with considerable buying power, or else the market would be more sustainable than it currently is. So, most properties, unless they are made by people who identify with the fandom, would not be considered to be geared for the furry market in particular, but would nonetheless find fans in the furry fandom who will think of it as furry, regardless of whether or not it's "furry" in this sense of the word.
(Also, this occurs whether or not they appreciate the considerable amount of porn they're invariably going to generate.)
C. Furry-As-Fandom-Composition
This is the one that is more up-in-the-air because we're usually running on definitions of furry that are simultaneously paired and also exclusive from one another. This is not to say these definitions do not have crossover demographics--they do, and to a considerable degree. But it has caused consternation and confusion in the past when, say, How To Train Your Dragon AND Toy Story 3 were both nominated for an Ursa Major Award in 2011.
When we say "furry" there's almost no question whether a fox person who stands on two legs and talks is counted as a furry or not. It's almost the literal definition, as any definition of furry would be hard-pressed to exclude a bipedal fox character from the definition. So, this one is usually easy--it's when we move out from this into the more vague areas of the definition that it gets harder for some people to agree whether it is "furry" or not.
For instance, is the movie Cars "furry" (if we were to speak inclusively)? As in, would you really expect it to appeal to the exact same demographic that sees the bipedal fox as the most basic ideal? When put up like this, it's easier to see where one might and might not agree to these being in the same fandom, because to an extent they are not.
Besides the narrower technical definitions (machines with human bodies, taurs, whether lizards should be furry or "scaley") there's often a divide in the fandom I have noticed, and it starts from basic premises. None of these premises are "more right" than any other because, just like the narrower technical definitions, they rely entirely on the taste of the individual.
We COULD mean 1)"furry" is JUST the house style of anthropomorphic animals and animal-like things, 2)"furry" is all animals-in-media regardless of degree of anthropomorphism, or 3)"furry" is the same as anthropomorphism of any kind so long as it's not 'just human' (or sometimes even 'just animal') and therefore shouldn't favor premise 1 over any other.
These are all radically different premises. Nominating How To Train Your Dragon confuses both 1 and, to a degree, 3, because the movie goes out of its way to make sure its dragon characters are seen as animals, even if they're a BIT idealized for humans. It confuses 1 all the way because there's not even a BIT of funny-animal going on, even if they LIKE the movie (though they'll usually show their appreciation by MAKING the animal characters sufficiently furry). People who start from definition 2, because they see the fandom as a base for appreciation of any animals in media whatsoever, wouldn't see any problem with the nomination.
Nominating Toy Story 3 confuses both 1 and 2, even though by all technical accounts it fits into premise 3 which we PRESUME to be the full scope of the fandom. Even if Lotso might technically push the definition, he doesn't make it a furry story by premises 1 and 2 any more than Alan Rickman makes Die Hard a British film.
Now, this is mostly conjecture on my part of where I think a lot of confusion and dissension crops up in the fandom based on my analysis of how the word furry is used--that is, what we think we're saying when we say "furry" and the sorts of expectations we have of the fandom as a result. You might not even think of furry as being premise 1 2 OR 3 exclusively, but if you find something "off" when something like Cars is brought up in discussion of furry, it MIGHT help to understand which definition you're basing your assumptions off of.
Personally, I think that there's a large part of the fandom that runs off of premises 1 and 2 and are bothered that 3 always needs to be dragged in even when they're not interested, but they can't go off and play with their own definitions because we have to acknowledge 3 all the time, like we're nodding and saying "yes, I suppose I'm part of the fandom that
What The Crap Is Even Furry Addendum
Posted 11 years agoAKA What We Talk About When We Talk About Furry
Prev - http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5640372/
Something else I feel that I need to mention in order to contextualize my journal better is that, I did not intend for the list to contain every exhaustive permutation of subcategories for anything I mentioned. Point 4 by itself contains all sorts of variations on anatomy etc--the thing is, with each definition, what it means is that when someone says "furry" they don't MEAN to drill down to an exact picture in their head (This is not the Furry Code after all).
But, nonetheless they usually mean something when they use the word, especially when they use it to exclude other things. Let me give a few examples. (These are all paraphrases of things I've read on the internet at one point or another)
"I'm not a furry, I only draw anthro art."
"LOL that's not furry, it has scales :P"
"Ugh, CAT Bowser? Now the furries will want him" (To which the response was, "Uh, furries are already hot for Bowser")
"Does an anthro fighter jet count as furry?" (Yes, but narrowly/broadly depending on if it fell to definition 4a (treat as superficially an animal) or to definition 8)
"I don't understand why centaurs don't count as furry." (Nostalgia Critic said this in one of his commentaries--technically it falls under broad definition 7, but furry is more well-understood by definition 4 . . . so this confusion doesn't help matters at all)
"Why do you furries have to ruin everything!? He's NOT a furry because he's an action character, he's not sexualized at all, and YOU have to go and add sex to it" (Speaking of main character from Dust. JUST the character being categorized as furry, no porn of him was in context.)
"Drawing dirty pictures of Simba (or Rainbow Dash) can't count as furry because they don't have a weird human body"
And likewise there are some definitions which are more example than anything--like how there are plenty of artists in the fandom who like doing human-faced furries that we don't want to exclude but at the same time aren't exactly what we're talking about when we refer to the broad definition, especially since it confuses outsiders "Well, if that IS furry then why don't you do more of that?" etc.
Sometimes these definitions do have opposites, such as "furry OR feral", but problematically while this works as a differentiation for definition 4, it is simultaneously folded into definition 5
Which is why that ambiguity is usually stepped around MORE--"anthro"/"bipedal" or "feral"/"quad". Also note that these differentiating words are only categorized as such in relation to definition 4--if you use them on their own, "anthro" is a shortening of anthropomorphic and can technically go all the way to definition 8, while the others are common words in their own right.
Feel free to comment with other ways you've heard "furry" being used.
Prev - http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5640372/
Something else I feel that I need to mention in order to contextualize my journal better is that, I did not intend for the list to contain every exhaustive permutation of subcategories for anything I mentioned. Point 4 by itself contains all sorts of variations on anatomy etc--the thing is, with each definition, what it means is that when someone says "furry" they don't MEAN to drill down to an exact picture in their head (This is not the Furry Code after all).
But, nonetheless they usually mean something when they use the word, especially when they use it to exclude other things. Let me give a few examples. (These are all paraphrases of things I've read on the internet at one point or another)
"I'm not a furry, I only draw anthro art."
"LOL that's not furry, it has scales :P"
"Ugh, CAT Bowser? Now the furries will want him" (To which the response was, "Uh, furries are already hot for Bowser")
"Does an anthro fighter jet count as furry?" (Yes, but narrowly/broadly depending on if it fell to definition 4a (treat as superficially an animal) or to definition 8)
"I don't understand why centaurs don't count as furry." (Nostalgia Critic said this in one of his commentaries--technically it falls under broad definition 7, but furry is more well-understood by definition 4 . . . so this confusion doesn't help matters at all)
"Why do you furries have to ruin everything!? He's NOT a furry because he's an action character, he's not sexualized at all, and YOU have to go and add sex to it" (Speaking of main character from Dust. JUST the character being categorized as furry, no porn of him was in context.)
"Drawing dirty pictures of Simba (or Rainbow Dash) can't count as furry because they don't have a weird human body"
And likewise there are some definitions which are more example than anything--like how there are plenty of artists in the fandom who like doing human-faced furries that we don't want to exclude but at the same time aren't exactly what we're talking about when we refer to the broad definition, especially since it confuses outsiders "Well, if that IS furry then why don't you do more of that?" etc.
Sometimes these definitions do have opposites, such as "furry OR feral", but problematically while this works as a differentiation for definition 4, it is simultaneously folded into definition 5
Which is why that ambiguity is usually stepped around MORE--"anthro"/"bipedal" or "feral"/"quad". Also note that these differentiating words are only categorized as such in relation to definition 4--if you use them on their own, "anthro" is a shortening of anthropomorphic and can technically go all the way to definition 8, while the others are common words in their own right.
Feel free to comment with other ways you've heard "furry" being used.
Part 3 - On What The Crap Is Even Furry
Posted 11 years agoI think sometimes it gets confusing when we're discussing "furry" because the word covers several different definitions and literally nobody wants to be left out of including their Doom cyberdemon fancharacter and who are you to judge, anyhow?
Being an english major with an interest in linguistics, I find this is simultaneously a boon--as the lack of solid definitions for any of these prevents people from being shoved out the door for failing to meet that definition . . . but at the same time, it causes an enormous amount of confusion when we're talking past each other saying two (or fourteen) entirely different things with the same word.
Furry as it is used commonly means:
1 - The furry fandom in general. What this necessarily encompasses is hard to pin down; to some people you have to actually accept yourself as part of the fandom, but it's also possible to be a big fat geek about it and clearly be in denial of whether or not you are a furry.
1a - People who have freaky sex at conventions in costume. Usually the definition by people who literally have no idea what furry is and want something to ridicule, usually considered the unfair categorization inside the fandom as it reduces the breadth of the fandom to a few outliers. (people who do have freaky costume sex at conventions do not do so because they are furry so much as they like freaky costume sex and also furry seems to dovetail with that. They might "own" this definition but it's not any more correct/exclusive than others)
1 corollary - People who believe in an animal/nonhuman spiritual side to themselves--otherkin, totemists, skinwalkers, actual werewolves, etc. EXCEPT that very often the people who fall under these categories do not belong to the fandom in any other aspect. This does not exclude them from being furry, but it's usually incorrect to assume that it's invariably associated with furry. This is not a common definition because most people who make this confusion, I think, merely don't know there IS a distinction. Very few people INSIST on this definition.
2 - An anthropomorphic character made in the fandom, speaking exclusively. For some definitions, since furry is a fandom, furry characters are only encompassed by the fandom, and characters outside the fandom are not furry.
3 - An anthropomorphic character, speaking broadly. The fox version of Robin Hood was never intended for the fandom but still appeals to the fandom, as does the mythological god Anubis, etc; although some might argue the point, a completely identical fancharacter WOULD be considered furry, so . . .
3a - An anthropomorphic character that is sexualized AND NOT funny animal characters. People outside the fandom that perceive it as full of undesirables will usually insist on this definition, although it usually reduces to "Stay away from my childhood you perverts!" Not usually taken as a real definition inside the fandom as a basis for exclusion, only to differentiate the house style from classic funny animals. (see 4 corollary)
4 - An anthropomorphic character that sticks to the mode of the fandom. That is, the "house style" as I've been calling it, where you have a animal face put on a human body first, then usually comes body covering, a tail, animal feet, claws instead of finger nails, etc. to varying degrees depending on the taste of the artist. Basically this sticks to one kind of animal, but there's also nothing stopping hybrids or fictional species from getting the anthro treatment.
4 corollary - This has literally nothing to do with what some people draw as a dividing line between "furry" as in fandom-appealing, and their personal "not furry" category, such as werewolves. Within the fandom, if the werewolf fits the house style (wolf head AND NOT classic movie style, although see 7), it's usually furry whether you want the association or not. Any specific division of definitions here are on a per-person basis and are not usually accepted by the fandom at large.
4 corollary 2 - The degree to which any given character is described or detailed in hard sci-fi explanations, "realism", NON-realism, "tooniness", any kind of created-world explanations or lack thereof, ties to mythology, folklore, literary precedent, etc. also has very little to do with defining "furry" itself.
4a - Said mode of the fandom including non-animal objects being treated like they were superficially animals. Again, this usually starts with altering the face in order to fit the "house style" rather than pasting a ladyface onto the front of an aircraft carrier. (see 8)
4b - Said mode of the fandom including additions of sci-fi biology/mythology such as centaur bodies, etc. This is just an extension of "hybrids"; I'm only mentioning it to make sure it's covered even though it starts to get distant from "human".
4c - Invented fictional species that are not intended to be "human" or any particular animal or mythological creature, but nonetheless bear traits similar to that of the fandom mode, especially if they were invented inside the fandom (sergals, etc)
5 - The mode of the fandom plus "feral" characters. Anthropomorphism can literally be reduced to something having ANY human traits applied to it, so you only need to meet that minimum requirement. Or not. Some furries are very interested in non-human things, so they don't want their real-animal characters excluded. (Because "furry" brings to mind animals, not anthropomorphism). May include characters like, say, Godzilla, who are ambiguously anthropomorphic.
6 - The mode of the fandom only if they have fur. I find this one needlessly pedantic, even though I'm perfectly fine with the term scaley (settle on a spelling please) or avian.
7 - Any character with any degree of animal traits whatsoever, including aliens with animal traits, regular centaurs, mermaids, all sorts of mythological beasts that fall outside the fandom "mode", Naruto, etc. I find this one too broad not because I want the people who like this out of the fandom or anything, but usually it's because it's not what I'm talking about when I talk about furry . . . but really, what the crap do I know
8 - Any character with any degree of nonhuman traits whatsoever. This includes non-animal-like aliens, fey, humans with skin made of rock, Lumiere from Beauty and the Beast, etc. Which this technically all fits the definition of anthropomorphism, it's so far away from common "furry" that I have no idea why people need to muddle the definition on this point. Should they be excluded from the FANDOM? No, of course not; besides just "animals" furry is often about an appreciation for human traits applied to nonhuman things. In the most broad sense, furry IS just an extension of sci-fi and fantasy, it's just a reaction to the human-centric mainstream.
But if definition 8 covers the possible extent of the entire discussion, then why is it that we're using the same terminology for it and much, much smaller subcategories?
Being an english major with an interest in linguistics, I find this is simultaneously a boon--as the lack of solid definitions for any of these prevents people from being shoved out the door for failing to meet that definition . . . but at the same time, it causes an enormous amount of confusion when we're talking past each other saying two (or fourteen) entirely different things with the same word.
Furry as it is used commonly means:
1 - The furry fandom in general. What this necessarily encompasses is hard to pin down; to some people you have to actually accept yourself as part of the fandom, but it's also possible to be a big fat geek about it and clearly be in denial of whether or not you are a furry.
1a - People who have freaky sex at conventions in costume. Usually the definition by people who literally have no idea what furry is and want something to ridicule, usually considered the unfair categorization inside the fandom as it reduces the breadth of the fandom to a few outliers. (people who do have freaky costume sex at conventions do not do so because they are furry so much as they like freaky costume sex and also furry seems to dovetail with that. They might "own" this definition but it's not any more correct/exclusive than others)
1 corollary - People who believe in an animal/nonhuman spiritual side to themselves--otherkin, totemists, skinwalkers, actual werewolves, etc. EXCEPT that very often the people who fall under these categories do not belong to the fandom in any other aspect. This does not exclude them from being furry, but it's usually incorrect to assume that it's invariably associated with furry. This is not a common definition because most people who make this confusion, I think, merely don't know there IS a distinction. Very few people INSIST on this definition.
2 - An anthropomorphic character made in the fandom, speaking exclusively. For some definitions, since furry is a fandom, furry characters are only encompassed by the fandom, and characters outside the fandom are not furry.
3 - An anthropomorphic character, speaking broadly. The fox version of Robin Hood was never intended for the fandom but still appeals to the fandom, as does the mythological god Anubis, etc; although some might argue the point, a completely identical fancharacter WOULD be considered furry, so . . .
3a - An anthropomorphic character that is sexualized AND NOT funny animal characters. People outside the fandom that perceive it as full of undesirables will usually insist on this definition, although it usually reduces to "Stay away from my childhood you perverts!" Not usually taken as a real definition inside the fandom as a basis for exclusion, only to differentiate the house style from classic funny animals. (see 4 corollary)
4 - An anthropomorphic character that sticks to the mode of the fandom. That is, the "house style" as I've been calling it, where you have a animal face put on a human body first, then usually comes body covering, a tail, animal feet, claws instead of finger nails, etc. to varying degrees depending on the taste of the artist. Basically this sticks to one kind of animal, but there's also nothing stopping hybrids or fictional species from getting the anthro treatment.
4 corollary - This has literally nothing to do with what some people draw as a dividing line between "furry" as in fandom-appealing, and their personal "not furry" category, such as werewolves. Within the fandom, if the werewolf fits the house style (wolf head AND NOT classic movie style, although see 7), it's usually furry whether you want the association or not. Any specific division of definitions here are on a per-person basis and are not usually accepted by the fandom at large.
4 corollary 2 - The degree to which any given character is described or detailed in hard sci-fi explanations, "realism", NON-realism, "tooniness", any kind of created-world explanations or lack thereof, ties to mythology, folklore, literary precedent, etc. also has very little to do with defining "furry" itself.
4a - Said mode of the fandom including non-animal objects being treated like they were superficially animals. Again, this usually starts with altering the face in order to fit the "house style" rather than pasting a ladyface onto the front of an aircraft carrier. (see 8)
4b - Said mode of the fandom including additions of sci-fi biology/mythology such as centaur bodies, etc. This is just an extension of "hybrids"; I'm only mentioning it to make sure it's covered even though it starts to get distant from "human".
4c - Invented fictional species that are not intended to be "human" or any particular animal or mythological creature, but nonetheless bear traits similar to that of the fandom mode, especially if they were invented inside the fandom (sergals, etc)
5 - The mode of the fandom plus "feral" characters. Anthropomorphism can literally be reduced to something having ANY human traits applied to it, so you only need to meet that minimum requirement. Or not. Some furries are very interested in non-human things, so they don't want their real-animal characters excluded. (Because "furry" brings to mind animals, not anthropomorphism). May include characters like, say, Godzilla, who are ambiguously anthropomorphic.
6 - The mode of the fandom only if they have fur. I find this one needlessly pedantic, even though I'm perfectly fine with the term scaley (settle on a spelling please) or avian.
7 - Any character with any degree of animal traits whatsoever, including aliens with animal traits, regular centaurs, mermaids, all sorts of mythological beasts that fall outside the fandom "mode", Naruto, etc. I find this one too broad not because I want the people who like this out of the fandom or anything, but usually it's because it's not what I'm talking about when I talk about furry . . . but really, what the crap do I know
8 - Any character with any degree of nonhuman traits whatsoever. This includes non-animal-like aliens, fey, humans with skin made of rock, Lumiere from Beauty and the Beast, etc. Which this technically all fits the definition of anthropomorphism, it's so far away from common "furry" that I have no idea why people need to muddle the definition on this point. Should they be excluded from the FANDOM? No, of course not; besides just "animals" furry is often about an appreciation for human traits applied to nonhuman things. In the most broad sense, furry IS just an extension of sci-fi and fantasy, it's just a reaction to the human-centric mainstream.
But if definition 8 covers the possible extent of the entire discussion, then why is it that we're using the same terminology for it and much, much smaller subcategories?
Part 2 - On Deliberately Sidestepping Reality
Posted 11 years agoFirst journal here http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5637365/
This thought is less of a rant but I do want to lay out some thoughts for consideration.
Because there's two things that come into play whenever anyone builds a world in which to tell stories. When it comes to worldbuilding I personally like to get *insanely* detailed. Not necessarily in small things, but in big overarcing things--mechanics of government, economics, the way people interact with one another. And, in fact, I personally get bothered if other peoples' settings aren't sufficiently detailed in certain ways, MOSTLY if small details leave huge gaping plot holes in the larger setting.
This sounds kinda funny coming from the guy who made the Housepets world, which has a zillion billion world plotholes, but I'm getting to that!
The first thing to keep in mind is--nobody's model of reality will ever match the real thing one-to-one. We're constantly interpreting reality.
The second thing to keep in mind is, we're all personally attracted to some things and repelled by others. If we were to stick to one unified vision of reality, we'd never get to a point where we have the fun stuff--where we're playing off certain ideas we find in reality, but the way we play off them don't need to be built from the nucleus up like reality itself is.
When we're worldbuilding or reading stories, we're usually not playing in a true alternate reality with true realistic consistency, but in a realm of ideas. These ideas key off of reality, but are not beholden to it, because in the end they are simply interpretations.
Constructed worlds are variants on the theme of reality OR other ideas/myths/stories.
So when I create something like Housepets, to construct the world from the ground up would be one way to maintain consistency, but the physical consistency of the world is not nearly as important as its situation-as-commentary. Housepets plays on the idea of funny animal worlds, which are a less-realistic idea that already exists, and imposing some elements of reality to them. This creates a deliberate dissonance, especially in the areas of the world that I purposefully do not explore (but do poke at, because it's funny) because doing so would reveal the man behind the curtain.
The question then is, why was it interesting to impose any reality at all? Because, from my viewpoint, whenever I read funny animal stories growing up, I always wanted to dig just a LITTLE deeper. It's a fixation on anthropomorphism that, admittedly, we all have, otherwise we wouldn't be here.
But to impose a little reality is not to impose all of it. The truth I wanted to poke at was more of a social truth, not a scientific one. Certainly, some sciencey handwaving can make certain aspects of the setting more palatable, but they're not the point--if I were to impose scientific reality in order to evolve all species from the ground up in order that they may talk, I'd have to compromise a HUGE part of the world--American suburbia, owner/pet and man/animal relationships--which is kind central to KEEPING so that I can riff on the same kind of society that most funny animal stories also riff on.
In the end, the worldbuilding is messy and not entirely precise, and sometimes I ignore specifics of my own invented world in order to tell a certain story, and it probably raises MORE questions than the seed ideas ever had. But it still does pretty much what I intended it to--tell the kinds of stories in this setting that explore the ideas that I'm drawn to, and do so in such a way that the audience doesn't need chapters and chapters of primer in order to "get it".
Because the only reality I NEED to adhere to is a social one--everything else is deliberately artificial. But if everything can be made up, what real use is it to have ANY reality?
It's because when we have those ideas we recognize as applicable, we recognize them as applicable no matter where they are. The unreality of anything else is usually just for fun.
Similarly, with A&H Club, I have a very simple world bible that, if you were to apply reality to all of it, would fall apart almost instantly. That's because the world bible mostly consists of ideas that I'm deliberately imposing which are a mixture of realistic and non-realistic in order to create the look I want for the situations I'd like to explore. A&H is not about world realism--but it IS about economic and class realism.
So, in order to tell a weird fantasy story that can actually make comments on real economic and class issues, the non-real elements, which are otherwise just for fun, only need to stay out of the way. If they can't, they either should be handwaved, justified, or winked at. The only reason this NEEDS to be done is so that the verisimilitude can be maintained, even if it's not in any way realistically plausible to get here in the first place.
If, for instance, I tried to tell this same story in a world where everyone could magic cupcakes out of the air, the entire basis for economic reality would screw with people. Because even if the world itself is not rational, those we identify as people ARE rational--it's kinda impossible to be starving when you can create all the food you need.
Would it be possible to tell a story with this setting? Yes, but there's a huge dissonance going on simultaneously--it looks like everyone is acting like an idiot instead of behaving rationally given their circumstances. It's hard to overlook--and in general, any setting that has unreal elements, something or other like this is going to be a dealbreaker.
But if it's what you WANT, then there's not much stopping you otherwise. However, I wouldn't tell a story of hunger when people can magic cupcakes from nowhere--but such a system wouldn't get in the way of other stories.
TL;DR Deliberately sidestepping reality when building settings and worlds doesn't mean you're only ever going to make pointless or self-indulgent stories--it's allowed to be just for fun, or to play on other ideas you can't otherwise justify organically. It's okay to sometimes paint an area vaguely and say "the justification happens here" and then never speak about it--if the ideas you do focus on are sound, we can usually play along anyhow.
This thought is less of a rant but I do want to lay out some thoughts for consideration.
Because there's two things that come into play whenever anyone builds a world in which to tell stories. When it comes to worldbuilding I personally like to get *insanely* detailed. Not necessarily in small things, but in big overarcing things--mechanics of government, economics, the way people interact with one another. And, in fact, I personally get bothered if other peoples' settings aren't sufficiently detailed in certain ways, MOSTLY if small details leave huge gaping plot holes in the larger setting.
This sounds kinda funny coming from the guy who made the Housepets world, which has a zillion billion world plotholes, but I'm getting to that!
The first thing to keep in mind is--nobody's model of reality will ever match the real thing one-to-one. We're constantly interpreting reality.
The second thing to keep in mind is, we're all personally attracted to some things and repelled by others. If we were to stick to one unified vision of reality, we'd never get to a point where we have the fun stuff--where we're playing off certain ideas we find in reality, but the way we play off them don't need to be built from the nucleus up like reality itself is.
When we're worldbuilding or reading stories, we're usually not playing in a true alternate reality with true realistic consistency, but in a realm of ideas. These ideas key off of reality, but are not beholden to it, because in the end they are simply interpretations.
Constructed worlds are variants on the theme of reality OR other ideas/myths/stories.
So when I create something like Housepets, to construct the world from the ground up would be one way to maintain consistency, but the physical consistency of the world is not nearly as important as its situation-as-commentary. Housepets plays on the idea of funny animal worlds, which are a less-realistic idea that already exists, and imposing some elements of reality to them. This creates a deliberate dissonance, especially in the areas of the world that I purposefully do not explore (but do poke at, because it's funny) because doing so would reveal the man behind the curtain.
The question then is, why was it interesting to impose any reality at all? Because, from my viewpoint, whenever I read funny animal stories growing up, I always wanted to dig just a LITTLE deeper. It's a fixation on anthropomorphism that, admittedly, we all have, otherwise we wouldn't be here.
But to impose a little reality is not to impose all of it. The truth I wanted to poke at was more of a social truth, not a scientific one. Certainly, some sciencey handwaving can make certain aspects of the setting more palatable, but they're not the point--if I were to impose scientific reality in order to evolve all species from the ground up in order that they may talk, I'd have to compromise a HUGE part of the world--American suburbia, owner/pet and man/animal relationships--which is kind central to KEEPING so that I can riff on the same kind of society that most funny animal stories also riff on.
In the end, the worldbuilding is messy and not entirely precise, and sometimes I ignore specifics of my own invented world in order to tell a certain story, and it probably raises MORE questions than the seed ideas ever had. But it still does pretty much what I intended it to--tell the kinds of stories in this setting that explore the ideas that I'm drawn to, and do so in such a way that the audience doesn't need chapters and chapters of primer in order to "get it".
Because the only reality I NEED to adhere to is a social one--everything else is deliberately artificial. But if everything can be made up, what real use is it to have ANY reality?
It's because when we have those ideas we recognize as applicable, we recognize them as applicable no matter where they are. The unreality of anything else is usually just for fun.
Similarly, with A&H Club, I have a very simple world bible that, if you were to apply reality to all of it, would fall apart almost instantly. That's because the world bible mostly consists of ideas that I'm deliberately imposing which are a mixture of realistic and non-realistic in order to create the look I want for the situations I'd like to explore. A&H is not about world realism--but it IS about economic and class realism.
So, in order to tell a weird fantasy story that can actually make comments on real economic and class issues, the non-real elements, which are otherwise just for fun, only need to stay out of the way. If they can't, they either should be handwaved, justified, or winked at. The only reason this NEEDS to be done is so that the verisimilitude can be maintained, even if it's not in any way realistically plausible to get here in the first place.
If, for instance, I tried to tell this same story in a world where everyone could magic cupcakes out of the air, the entire basis for economic reality would screw with people. Because even if the world itself is not rational, those we identify as people ARE rational--it's kinda impossible to be starving when you can create all the food you need.
Would it be possible to tell a story with this setting? Yes, but there's a huge dissonance going on simultaneously--it looks like everyone is acting like an idiot instead of behaving rationally given their circumstances. It's hard to overlook--and in general, any setting that has unreal elements, something or other like this is going to be a dealbreaker.
But if it's what you WANT, then there's not much stopping you otherwise. However, I wouldn't tell a story of hunger when people can magic cupcakes from nowhere--but such a system wouldn't get in the way of other stories.
TL;DR Deliberately sidestepping reality when building settings and worlds doesn't mean you're only ever going to make pointless or self-indulgent stories--it's allowed to be just for fun, or to play on other ideas you can't otherwise justify organically. It's okay to sometimes paint an area vaguely and say "the justification happens here" and then never speak about it--if the ideas you do focus on are sound, we can usually play along anyhow.
On Anthro Anatomy
Posted 11 years agoThis just bothers me but I'm going to outline what my deal is and why being a pedant doesn't usually help all the time with me.
Anthros have a mix of human and animal traits.
Technically, for aesthetic purposes, there are SPECIFIC traits that they possess in order to blend between human and animal pleasingly.
A lot on non-furries who joke about what they think furries must be into, for example, don't seem to grasp that it's usually the face that's #1 importance. Now, I completely understand there are people who actually go for something completely different, but my experience seems to indicate that if the animal face isn't on the character, it's up in the air whether it's furry or else some kind of fey/elf (especially if you keep the ears, have a lower half animal like a satyr, etc) If it's an alien, especially an alien based on a particular property, well then that's an alien.
These things might have crossover with furry but they themselves are not, I don't think--but they DO have the very similar goals of crossing the human with the nonhuman because that is awesome.
(In short, I don't think it should be too much of a stretch to circumscribe a specific demographic that frames this the way I do--almost any given icon you highlight on this site is some variation of a given animal face, so that's where we're starting)
After this, we've established that the person has animal features. We have a kind of idea of purity to this too--unless a character is specifically a hybrid, then the animal features are derived from a single species.
. . . unless we have an idea of biological purity, in which case, any addition to a given species needs to make concrete biological (or even evolutionary) sense, even if they depart from the original intention.
Or, god forbid, we think both of these are compatible 100% of the time.
So, on the topic of say, my character Adrian, who you may realize simultaneously has breasts and pouch teats, will tend to kick off some people who say that it's redundant to do so, that Adrian shouldn't have breasts at all if she's going to have pouch teats.
Really.
It's kinda/sorta the same track of complaining whether or not anthro reptiles should have breasts or not, because "mammal" means "mammary" and I took high school biology you dummies, I know exactly what I'm doing.
The thing is, like I took pains to establish at the beginning of this essay,the basic presumption of anthro is a blending of human and animal traits, and humans ARE mammals.
Whether or not Adrian is reproductively marsupial doesn't itself mean that her entire reproductive system is exactly the same as a kangaroo, because that's not the POINT.
Yes, it's annoying when people call a character a kangaroo and give them canine feet because those things are not from kangaroos--but it does not subsequently follow that anyone is BARRED from developing a kangaroo character with humanlike hands without having to be called out "You know, kangaroos don't have human hands"
If I were going to draw a kangaroo, I'd draw a kangaroo. I'm not drawing a kangaroo, I am drawing an anthro kangaroo, a human-kangaroo hybrid that begins and ends where I believe the physical traits make the most sense for what I'm attempting to accomplish with them (telling a human story with anthro characters, usually). Sometimes the purpose is to make biological sense, other times it's only for the aesthetics.
I appreciate the anatomy lessons, I'm always on the lookout for new things to integrate in the future. I just also think it's perfectly acceptable to ignore those things, especially when the "error" is on the side of human.
It doesn't always have to make literal sense, otherwise everyone would be stuck having to justify the biology of all of their fantastic creatures.
Anthros have a mix of human and animal traits.
Technically, for aesthetic purposes, there are SPECIFIC traits that they possess in order to blend between human and animal pleasingly.
A lot on non-furries who joke about what they think furries must be into, for example, don't seem to grasp that it's usually the face that's #1 importance. Now, I completely understand there are people who actually go for something completely different, but my experience seems to indicate that if the animal face isn't on the character, it's up in the air whether it's furry or else some kind of fey/elf (especially if you keep the ears, have a lower half animal like a satyr, etc) If it's an alien, especially an alien based on a particular property, well then that's an alien.
These things might have crossover with furry but they themselves are not, I don't think--but they DO have the very similar goals of crossing the human with the nonhuman because that is awesome.
(In short, I don't think it should be too much of a stretch to circumscribe a specific demographic that frames this the way I do--almost any given icon you highlight on this site is some variation of a given animal face, so that's where we're starting)
After this, we've established that the person has animal features. We have a kind of idea of purity to this too--unless a character is specifically a hybrid, then the animal features are derived from a single species.
. . . unless we have an idea of biological purity, in which case, any addition to a given species needs to make concrete biological (or even evolutionary) sense, even if they depart from the original intention.
Or, god forbid, we think both of these are compatible 100% of the time.
So, on the topic of say, my character Adrian, who you may realize simultaneously has breasts and pouch teats, will tend to kick off some people who say that it's redundant to do so, that Adrian shouldn't have breasts at all if she's going to have pouch teats.
Really.
It's kinda/sorta the same track of complaining whether or not anthro reptiles should have breasts or not, because "mammal" means "mammary" and I took high school biology you dummies, I know exactly what I'm doing.
The thing is, like I took pains to establish at the beginning of this essay,the basic presumption of anthro is a blending of human and animal traits, and humans ARE mammals.
Whether or not Adrian is reproductively marsupial doesn't itself mean that her entire reproductive system is exactly the same as a kangaroo, because that's not the POINT.
Yes, it's annoying when people call a character a kangaroo and give them canine feet because those things are not from kangaroos--but it does not subsequently follow that anyone is BARRED from developing a kangaroo character with humanlike hands without having to be called out "You know, kangaroos don't have human hands"
If I were going to draw a kangaroo, I'd draw a kangaroo. I'm not drawing a kangaroo, I am drawing an anthro kangaroo, a human-kangaroo hybrid that begins and ends where I believe the physical traits make the most sense for what I'm attempting to accomplish with them (telling a human story with anthro characters, usually). Sometimes the purpose is to make biological sense, other times it's only for the aesthetics.
I appreciate the anatomy lessons, I'm always on the lookout for new things to integrate in the future. I just also think it's perfectly acceptable to ignore those things, especially when the "error" is on the side of human.
It doesn't always have to make literal sense, otherwise everyone would be stuck having to justify the biology of all of their fantastic creatures.
Will be opening for badge commissions soon
Posted 11 years agoGiven that I am going to be a Confuzzled and RCFM this year (!) I am going to have a number of slots open for badges. I haven't settled on what kind--my index card badges went over well but I want to try something a bit different, so sometime after I get an example ready (and probably after I've finished taxes) I'll open up for X number of commissions slots for badges.
I will NOT be doing badge commissions at the conventions themselves; as much as I like doing it, they're very time consuming, especially compared to sketchbook commissions
You won't HAVE to be attending Confuzzled/RCFM for badge pick-ups (I can mail) but attendees will probably get priority
I will NOT be doing badge commissions at the conventions themselves; as much as I like doing it, they're very time consuming, especially compared to sketchbook commissions
You won't HAVE to be attending Confuzzled/RCFM for badge pick-ups (I can mail) but attendees will probably get priority
Patreon
Posted 12 years agoSo I did post that thing http://www.patreon.com/rickgriffin
Another thing I've been thinking about and I wonder if Patreon is better suited toward people who produce context weekly/bi-weekly or monthly or what have you. Producing content 4x/week means that the "minimum" I have to charge is both really small and difficult for a potential patron to get a handle on--do they have to do the math in their head? Can they be sure that they know exactly how much they're pledging per month?
What I'm saying is, do you think it'd be better if I just forewent charging per item and instead charged by the week or month so the pledge amount is easier to handle?
Another thing I've been thinking about and I wonder if Patreon is better suited toward people who produce context weekly/bi-weekly or monthly or what have you. Producing content 4x/week means that the "minimum" I have to charge is both really small and difficult for a potential patron to get a handle on--do they have to do the math in their head? Can they be sure that they know exactly how much they're pledging per month?
What I'm saying is, do you think it'd be better if I just forewent charging per item and instead charged by the week or month so the pledge amount is easier to handle?
Art anxiety, A&H Club
Posted 12 years agoSo I have anxiety a lot
It's not like, how I imagine people who have crippling anxiety to be; it's not always paired with depression, but depression can certainly be a result. It's not quite about ability anymore--I've gotten to a point where I can at least feel vaguely professional about my work, but I have this issue where I feel like I don't even remotely deserve to be able to be an artist. This is despite the fact that I'm trying to figure out how to make a living without selling my soul or whatever--and the source of this anxiety often comes from other artist (webcartoonists mainly) who are all "If you don't want to be a salesman you don't deserve to be an artist, nobody who seriously creates actually does it for the art"
I don't believe in art for art's sake, and I also don't believe that art needs to be dilettante in order to be its ideal. I believe in art as a powerful tool of communication. And communication requires being able to meet your audience halfway--but if said communication contains nothing of me and is simply pandering to an audience JUST to sell, then what am I doing?
(It does say something that said cartoonists who can make such proclamations already make a living off their art)
When I say I believe in art I believe in it the same way one expects a journalist to be beholden to the truth and is not just in it to sell papers be being pandering. Some pandering is involved yes, but that's just because communication requires us to reach halfway--slap people upside the heads and get their attention. But the attention-grabbing part is there to say something important, sometimes, or perhaps nothing that seems all that important, just so long as it has a piece of us and a piece of the truth. Maybe it will be useful to someone.
--
The other part of it is that, in attempting to ramp up my production this year and to start making the stories I've always wanted to make, I hit this wall where I'm terrified of what I'm saying just because I don't know how it'll be received. The artist in me usually says "That's how you know it's probably worth making" but I still can't really know for sure until it's over, and that'll take months.
This is especially true for A&H Club which I'm just on the cusp of beginning work on (Once I make headway into the next arc of Housepets) and I can come up with all sorts of reasons why I shouldn't do this. It's female perspective, you're not even a female. It's lesbian, there's going to be all sorts of disapproval from people you attach your ego to. It's pandering--even if it's only a weird quirk you built in just because it makes you smile--it'll only be perceived for undertones of sexuality. It's not Housepets, nobody's really going to care.
I keep going anyway. I think that's what being an artist is, it's what being a creative individual is--always wanting to take that next leap even if you're positive your soul's going to be crunched up like an empty coke can when it hits. You don't always do something that's a "sure thing". This is one of the least sure things I've ever done and it's not going to be the last.
It still makes me awfully anxious though.
In case you wanted to know or were curious, I do have a Patreon page set up; it's not quite complete yet but it's going to be geared toward all sorts of projects I want to do and hopefully I can do them with some confidence that people are actually interested, even if I facefault from time to time.
It's not like, how I imagine people who have crippling anxiety to be; it's not always paired with depression, but depression can certainly be a result. It's not quite about ability anymore--I've gotten to a point where I can at least feel vaguely professional about my work, but I have this issue where I feel like I don't even remotely deserve to be able to be an artist. This is despite the fact that I'm trying to figure out how to make a living without selling my soul or whatever--and the source of this anxiety often comes from other artist (webcartoonists mainly) who are all "If you don't want to be a salesman you don't deserve to be an artist, nobody who seriously creates actually does it for the art"
I don't believe in art for art's sake, and I also don't believe that art needs to be dilettante in order to be its ideal. I believe in art as a powerful tool of communication. And communication requires being able to meet your audience halfway--but if said communication contains nothing of me and is simply pandering to an audience JUST to sell, then what am I doing?
(It does say something that said cartoonists who can make such proclamations already make a living off their art)
When I say I believe in art I believe in it the same way one expects a journalist to be beholden to the truth and is not just in it to sell papers be being pandering. Some pandering is involved yes, but that's just because communication requires us to reach halfway--slap people upside the heads and get their attention. But the attention-grabbing part is there to say something important, sometimes, or perhaps nothing that seems all that important, just so long as it has a piece of us and a piece of the truth. Maybe it will be useful to someone.
--
The other part of it is that, in attempting to ramp up my production this year and to start making the stories I've always wanted to make, I hit this wall where I'm terrified of what I'm saying just because I don't know how it'll be received. The artist in me usually says "That's how you know it's probably worth making" but I still can't really know for sure until it's over, and that'll take months.
This is especially true for A&H Club which I'm just on the cusp of beginning work on (Once I make headway into the next arc of Housepets) and I can come up with all sorts of reasons why I shouldn't do this. It's female perspective, you're not even a female. It's lesbian, there's going to be all sorts of disapproval from people you attach your ego to. It's pandering--even if it's only a weird quirk you built in just because it makes you smile--it'll only be perceived for undertones of sexuality. It's not Housepets, nobody's really going to care.
I keep going anyway. I think that's what being an artist is, it's what being a creative individual is--always wanting to take that next leap even if you're positive your soul's going to be crunched up like an empty coke can when it hits. You don't always do something that's a "sure thing". This is one of the least sure things I've ever done and it's not going to be the last.
It still makes me awfully anxious though.
In case you wanted to know or were curious, I do have a Patreon page set up; it's not quite complete yet but it's going to be geared toward all sorts of projects I want to do and hopefully I can do them with some confidence that people are actually interested, even if I facefault from time to time.
Do you want an inexpensive toony icon? Jonas is selling
Posted 12 years agoThe awesome 
jonas is in need of a new computer and is selling LOTS AND LOTS of ultra-affordable icons here: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5206198/
They are pretty adorable: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/11963341/
(As an aside, I put Jonas's name in the title because I dislike it when people advertise for their friends but don't say so upfront. I hope you appreciate this!)
jonas is in need of a new computer and is selling LOTS AND LOTS of ultra-affordable icons here: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5206198/They are pretty adorable: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/11963341/
(As an aside, I put Jonas's name in the title because I dislike it when people advertise for their friends but don't say so upfront. I hope you appreciate this!)
Iron Artist Cancellations
Posted 12 years agoI've got one slot cancelled and two slots have not responded after one week despite some fairly extensive digging to get a response, so . . .
Two people on the bump list please contact me ASAP
wolf-moon
ZephyrTobiasWolf
And there is ONE other slot open, first come first serve. $50 one character $75 two character. I'd really like this all finished by next week; I have comics to draw at the moment, BUT there are only five slots left to go.
aresues Thaaank you
Two people on the bump list please contact me ASAP
wolf-moon
ZephyrTobiasWolf
aresues Thaaank youFinishing Iron Artist--if you have a slot please read
Posted 12 years agoI'm finishing Iron Artist this weekend . . . or I would if I had *any* emails for the last 12 slots.
The following people please email me as soon as possible, and if you are cancelling the slot, tell me and don't just assume I know somehow
convel
alphazion
KitNabarii
pirate-fox
larz101
Challenger01
KarouWS
Rouken
TigerClaw_WI
The following people please email me as soon as possible, and if you are cancelling the slot, tell me and don't just assume I know somehow
convel
alphazion
KitNabarii
pirate-fox
larz101
Challenger01
KarouWS
Rouken
TigerClaw_WII made another tumblr
Posted 12 years agoTo put up crappy pictures of my in-progress work, and other things that don't make it to galleries
http://ricksketchbook.tumblr.com/
http://ricksketchbook.tumblr.com/
Because everyone's doing it: Where else you can find me!
Posted 12 years agoI am most active on my twitter
https://twitter.com/RicksWriting
I also have deviantart
http://rickgriffin.deviantart.com/
And a tumblr nobody cares about
http://alabastermenagerie.tumblr.com/
Be sure to visit my storenvy!
http://rickgriffin.storenvy.com/
https://twitter.com/RicksWriting
I also have deviantart
http://rickgriffin.deviantart.com/
And a tumblr nobody cares about
http://alabastermenagerie.tumblr.com/
Be sure to visit my storenvy!
http://rickgriffin.storenvy.com/
Housepets Book 4 now on Amazon!
Posted 12 years agoHousepets on Facebook!
Posted 12 years agohttps://t.co/lQFbxORAYt
Housepets now has a facebook page! It is also going to have a lot of early and exclusive content. I don't have a personal facebook page and still don't plan on getting one, but since a facebook page has been a commonly requested feature for housepets, I decided to go ahead an have one put together.
Housepets now has a facebook page! It is also going to have a lot of early and exclusive content. I don't have a personal facebook page and still don't plan on getting one, but since a facebook page has been a commonly requested feature for housepets, I decided to go ahead an have one put together.
A follow-up on noodies
Posted 12 years agoThe poll again in case you missed it http://rickgriffin.deviantart.com/j...../poll/3704201/
And said example pic http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10701918/
The thing I'm generally getting is there are quite a few people who consider my work a "safe spot". And I get that, I really do appreciate the fact that I can make the kind of artwork that can be shared with everyone, and not just furries.
But I have to ask, how are the following artworks completely "safe" in that regard?
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/6745560/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10135192/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/9017146/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/7821996/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/6745555/
https://www.furaffinity.net/view/6057683/
Aside from the fact that not having nipples or genitals tends to allow plausible denial as to whether or not a picture is sexual, and in some/most cases their nonpresence might take the "edge" off (I'm not necessarily saying any of these pictures would be BETTER for being more naked or having nipples/genitals) they're still of the degree that it's a display of the human body (with animal heads and features). So I'm just wondering what makes this more/less safe than my example pic, which has nipples present but is not even remotely as pinuppy as some of my PG-rated nudes?
(As for the question proper I still think I'm leaning toward keeping most of my pinups in PG-13 territory but allowing myself the option of nudity if a picture seriously calls for it)
And said example pic http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10701918/
The thing I'm generally getting is there are quite a few people who consider my work a "safe spot". And I get that, I really do appreciate the fact that I can make the kind of artwork that can be shared with everyone, and not just furries.
But I have to ask, how are the following artworks completely "safe" in that regard?
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/6745560/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10135192/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/9017146/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/7821996/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/6745555/
https://www.furaffinity.net/view/6057683/
Aside from the fact that not having nipples or genitals tends to allow plausible denial as to whether or not a picture is sexual, and in some/most cases their nonpresence might take the "edge" off (I'm not necessarily saying any of these pictures would be BETTER for being more naked or having nipples/genitals) they're still of the degree that it's a display of the human body (with animal heads and features). So I'm just wondering what makes this more/less safe than my example pic, which has nipples present but is not even remotely as pinuppy as some of my PG-rated nudes?
(As for the question proper I still think I'm leaning toward keeping most of my pinups in PG-13 territory but allowing myself the option of nudity if a picture seriously calls for it)
Just a poll (live nude sex shows)
Posted 12 years agoSeeing if you're paying attention. I posted a poll on deviantart
http://rickgriffin.deviantart.com/j...../poll/3704201/
If you don't have a DA account feel free to give me some thoughts on it
EDIT: Example to let you know what I mean http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10701918/
http://rickgriffin.deviantart.com/j...../poll/3704201/
If you don't have a DA account feel free to give me some thoughts on it
EDIT: Example to let you know what I mean http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10701918/
I've kinda changed
Posted 12 years agoThe last two weeks have been a massive emotional upheaval for me. I feel like I've moved so far so fast, and I can finally say the things I've wanted to say but didn't know how. And it didn't have anything to do with haters or people who despise me but from inside first, and also by the people I care about.
I've been hesitant with a lot of things in my art for the past several years, and while I still don't think I'd start shifting into erotica (there are some depths of a man's mind that was not meant for public consumption, even if this is furry) I do think I can actually be upfront about things I have always been fine with--ie, depicting gay couples, without the massive block of trepidation sitting in the back of my head about whether or not I'm drawing the wrong kind of attention. It's stifled me, and I'm pretty sure was ruinous to my health.
I've never really thought that gender should be that big of a deal. That thought had been wheeling around in my head since at least middle school and probably before and I've never found a reason reason to dispute it in all that time. So I figure, maybe it's time to start believing it.
There have been more changes than that, I just figured that one was the most pertinent to you guys.
I've been hesitant with a lot of things in my art for the past several years, and while I still don't think I'd start shifting into erotica (there are some depths of a man's mind that was not meant for public consumption, even if this is furry) I do think I can actually be upfront about things I have always been fine with--ie, depicting gay couples, without the massive block of trepidation sitting in the back of my head about whether or not I'm drawing the wrong kind of attention. It's stifled me, and I'm pretty sure was ruinous to my health.
I've never really thought that gender should be that big of a deal. That thought had been wheeling around in my head since at least middle school and probably before and I've never found a reason reason to dispute it in all that time. So I figure, maybe it's time to start believing it.
There have been more changes than that, I just figured that one was the most pertinent to you guys.
Sorry for the delays
Posted 12 years agoI've had kind of a blah past two weeks along with attempts to overwork myself again. I should be getting back to Iron Artist next week, thank you for your patience
Ask Me Questions on Tumblr
Posted 12 years ago"You Forgot Something" Is now a print!
Posted 12 years agoGo here http://www.deviantart.com/print/32326656/
Check out my other prints here http://rickgriffin.deviantart.com/prints/
And remember my original sketches store is here http://rickgriffin.storenvy.com/
I am still open for Iron Artist commissions http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/4199205/
And um, buy Housepets
Check out my other prints here http://rickgriffin.deviantart.com/prints/
And remember my original sketches store is here http://rickgriffin.storenvy.com/
I am still open for Iron Artist commissions http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/4199205/
And um, buy Housepets
New prints for sale! Also: Sketches for Sale!
Posted 12 years agoI think I just need someplace where I could collect EVERYTHING I have for sale. I was hoping Storenvy could do that, but nope, is just for things I actually have and ship from my house.
Anyway, here is the new print for Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay http://www.deviantart.com/print/32318860/
Also one of Adrian and Hildegarde: http://www.deviantart.com/print/32319060/
And remember this is my new storefront for selling sketches: http://rickgriffin.storenvy.com/
Anyway, here is the new print for Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay http://www.deviantart.com/print/32318860/
Also one of Adrian and Hildegarde: http://www.deviantart.com/print/32319060/
And remember this is my new storefront for selling sketches: http://rickgriffin.storenvy.com/
