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A chill roundup followed by a discussion about NFC’s fursuiting policy after the break. Normally only our Patrons get the post-show recording but we’re making an exception and left it in this episode because it included many call-ins relating to the NFC topic. Thanks so much everyone!

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Link Roundup:

• Behind the scenes update video of our studio
• Cuddling is good for you who knew
• Half Life Alyx Release Date
• Anthrocon hosting student art competition
• Your Dentist can tell if you sucked a dick
• FA back up after a DDOS
• Awesome fursuit music video
• Beastars almost on Netflix!
  • Collider Article
  • Benjamin’s Tweet
  • Anime News Network Article
  • Netflix Tweet
• Twitch streamer dude gets kicked out of NFC
• Staples is opening podcast studios
• Boy Scouts files for bankruptcy protection
• More red wolves!
• Parody news website’s article about hunters with furries
• Murrsuiters on Valentine’s Day episode of Extreme Love
• @atta_boy writes about a photoshoot his fursuit was in
  • Tweet 1
  • Tweet 2
• Telegram updates
• Trump asked a lot of questions about badgers
• News article about Fur-Tha-More
• Shoutout to Marks Barks for raising money for ALS
• Live Action Lilo and Stitch announced
• Sinkhole near AC is still around
  • Article 1
  • Article 2
• Peta beats up a car with bad fursuits

[Live] Furginity Lost

It’s February, and in honor of Black History Month we would like to feature some of the black authors that are members of the Furry Writers’ Guild. Today we’ll be sharing an interview done with PJ Wolf! He’s soon to be featured in the NSFW anthology “Give Yourself A Hand” and has written many other stories. Without further ado, let’s get to the interview.

—

FWG: Tell the guild and our readers a bit about yourself.

PJ Wolf: Ah, hello everyone! I’m PJ Wolf and I’m actually a bit nervous to be doing this because, well, impostor syndrome is real and I’m dealing with it right now. Moving on, I’ve been in the fandom for a while, and have been toying around with ideas in various formats and hoping to put out a novel at some point. I don’t exactly know when or if I’ll get there, but until then, the words do demand I write them. And so I shall.

FWG: What is your favorite work that you have written?

PJ Wolf: I think it’s actually a tie between Secret and Swap Meat, both of which can be found on my SoFurry and FA pages. Secret because I know I absolutely nailed the character voice for the main character and narrator of the story, and he was so fun to inhabit, and Swap Meat because that story got me into RAWR (which was a fantastic experience that if you have the ability and wherewithal to go to, I highly recommend it) and also I took a negative reaction to something and made it into what I think is a pretty solid story.

FWG: What do you think makes a good story?

PJ Wolf: Characters. Characters, characters, characters. A half-done character will probably ruin a story for me, a character that’s a blank slate doesn’t have me intrigued.

FWG: How long have you been in the guild, and what changes have you seen with regards to how writing is handled since joining?

PJ Wolf: I don’t know! It has been a while and I honestly forget how long it’s been since I’ve joined. But if we’re talking in general, it’s been extremely gratifying to have such a helpful community that is writing-focused and also incredibly interested in helping out one another get better.

FWG: What does Black History mean to you?

PJ Wolf: I think it means perseverance in the face of great odds. My ancestors were rounded up from Africa, put onto crowded ships where some died due to starvation and disease, and sold off as slaves. And even though they lost their individual cultural history, they created one with one another in similar straits. Black accomplishment is often defined by what folks have had to overcome in order to be seen as people, and just about every Black child has heard their parents tell them that they have to work twice as hard for half the credit. Even so, Black folks have indelibly put their mark on history, and recognizing the specific achievements of Black folks this month, I hope, leads to our society being more whole.

FWG: Do you feel that your Blackness has affected your writing?

PJ Wolf: Yes, in ways great and small, in ways that I may not even be fully aware of. We all take ourselves into our creative works, since they are a method of self expression, and I think some of the stories that I want to tell are absolutely affected by my being Black.

FWG: Do you feel like the issues that affect the outside world affect your writing within the fandom or not?

PJ Wolf: I would be hard pressed to find a way that it wouldn’t.

FWG: Do you have favorite Black authors and has their literature affected your writing in the fandom?

PJ Wolf: I’m ashamed to say no, I don’t have a favorite Black author. If it’s one area of fiction that I’ve been neglecting, it’s that put out by Black writers.

FWG: If you could convince everyone to read a single book, what would it be?

PJ Wolf: Kismet, by Watts Martin. The world feels so alive, and particularly the politics in it. A (to my eyes) libertarian dystopia where if you don’t like the rules where you live, you can (assuming you have the money, natch) move somewhere else down a system of space borne platforms called the River that is supported by the openly more progressive and sustaining Ceres Ring that provides the water everybody else uses to live on? I would hate to live there, but I have read that book several times over and love it every time. I even actively hate one of the supporting characters’ political philosophies but I count it as a point in Kismet’s favor because it’s so fully developed.

FWG: Any last words for our readers and guild members?

PJ Wolf: It’s okay to not write everyday. But nor should you allow yourself to only write during ideal conditions. Sometimes you gotta force things, and even one word is one more word toward your goal, regardless of whether that word survives edits.

—

You can find PJ Wolf’s writing on both his SoFurry page and Fur Affinity page. He can also be followed on Twitter @pyrostinger. 

We hope you found this interview exciting and informative as we hope to feature more black authors this month! If you are a black member of the Furry Writers’ Guild and would like to be featured, please contact our public relations officer here. Until next time, may your words flow like water.

Tri-Galactic Trek features ten short stories that are re-imaginings of a certain episodic science fiction television franchise. The diverse furry crew of the Initiative travels though space on scientific and diplomatic missions, seeking out first contact with new species and opportunities to explore and advance their own knowledge of their universe. Now all their adventures are collected into a single volume for the reader’s enjoyment. Lowd’s Tri-Galactic Trek is equal parts love story to the original material and wildly original interpretation through a fully furry lens. It is an homage, both faithfully recognizable and delightfully original, and should appeal to any furry scifi reader, but most especially to those who are fans of the original material. Somehow each character is clearly identifiable and yet brilliantly translated into a furry counterpart. The plots are familiar and yet creatively shifted so as to be new and exciting, and the whole world has a unified, fully developed feeling that makes it a solid, independent entity in its own right. Though all the stories/episodes are well written and beautifully translated, a few that really stood out as spectacular to me were: "Fact and Myth," "Rapscallions," and "Encounter at Hoppalong." All the stories are expertly threaded together, referencing one another just enough to give continuity and a sense of a longer timeline. The only quibble I had with the whole collection was the story "Mewly" which felt incomplete and more like an opening scene than a full episode. Though the story’s resolution is mentioned in a later installment, the abrupt ending was jarring enough that I would have liked it to be its own complete episode. I highly recommend Tri-Galactic Trek to any furry reader, any fan of science fiction or of Lowd’s other works, but most especially to all the furry trekkies out there, for whom I believe this book is an absolute must read.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9Hb7AVLzvg&t=1557s Xander, Draggor & Pepper Coyote watch & react to the ninth democratic debate! for all things Dragget Show -- www.draggetshow.com support us on Patreon! -- www.patreon.com/draggetshow all of our audio podcasts at @the-dragget-show You can also find us on iTunes & wherever you find podcasts! Dragget Show telegram chat: telegram.me/draggetshow Furries Watch Dem Debate #9: SLUGFEST!! The Roast Of Bloomberg - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9Hb7AVLzvg&t=155…

for all things Dragget Show -- www.draggetshow.com support us on Patreon! -- www.patreon.com/thedraggetshow all of our audio podcasts at @the-dragget-show You can also find us on iTunes & wherever you find podcasts! Dragget Show telegram chat: telegram.me/draggetshow #228 Fur Squared 2020 LIVE! - Chris's Dog With Mayo - for all things Dragget Show -- www.draggetshow.co…

Furries return to San Francisco Pride – June 28, 2020 

Back in 2012, the weekend celebration of SF Pride didn’t have any activities with anthropomorphic animals. Maybe they would just stay in their dog houses, or sit on eggs and wait for their terns, or whatever they do alone. That seemed like a loss when the SF Bay Area had the worlds most dense population of furries.

Why shouldn’t they go to Pride? Companies, schools, and all kinds of interest groups do. Pride is a statement about love that any group can support. But they didn’t seem to have any activity since a parade contingent around 2002-2005. (It’s not well documented, but the original organizers told me about overcoming some of the most friction for it from other fans, in fear of fear itself.)

Whose job is it to make it happen? Everyone’s. That’s why in 2020, I can report 8 years of starting and helping to organize award-winning floats in the parade, with partners like @Zoren, @StevenTigeron and hundreds of supporters and members. They’re coming back with a newly purchased trailer to have for the future. Generous donations last year covered it, but now they need to build a float on it and give everyone an experience to remember.

You can help on GoFundMe. Donations are matched by Spottacus.

Fundraising has begun for 2020's SF Pride Parade NorCal Furries contingent! There's a new float this year and @Spottacus is matching donations, but they need your help to keep this thing going! (Thanks for tip @5p1ic3) https://t.co/B3RqknkJjl

— Dogpatch Press (@DogpatchPress) February 15, 2020

A new event for the SoCalPrideFurs 

Pride is everywhere, and a great place to see furries bring their magic is at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. That’s where they devote months of preparation and talent to build professional floats to blow your mind. I keep meaning to interview them, (including ones who did costume building for The Masked Singer, Australian edition). But that’s way farther south than I’ve had time for!

Back in California, a few hundred miles from the SF Bay, furries in San Diego are coming back for a second year at their Pride event. One of the biggest reasons is organizer Dave Hester, who engaged me about it last year and says more below.

Help the SoCalPrideFurs fundraiser here.

There's a GoFundMe to help SoCalPrideFurs appear at Pride in San Diego and LA. It comes from the organizer of their successful float last year. Support them here: https://t.co/Jw4QYQZg7P @fallingnoises #sdpride https://t.co/xYu43xb6QL

— Dogpatch Press (@DogpatchPress) February 19, 2020

Dave Hester overcame a difficult background to bring Pride for furries in SoCal and help show them support:

Last year, the reason I wanted to run it had to do with the environment I lived in for a few years. But once I started planning everything and getting others involved, I started to realize how many people told me that they wished they could go with everyone. Telling me the reasons why they couldn’t. Their families aren’t supportive, they haven’t come out yet. Not just for being in the LGBTQ+ community, but also being furries.

We are mixed between two wonderful and supportive communities. Every year I want nothing more than to give something to the communities I hold dear to me. I want the furries to be in as many Pride parades as possible, we are a large community that is mostly LGBTQ+ and supporters. I want the kids of this generation to see us up there and know that they aren’t alone, we have gone through the same thing. We know their pain and suffering of having to hide something that’s a part of them. I want them to know that one day, when I’m a graymuzzle, I’ll still be running this event and those kids will be a part of it with their friends and their furry family.

On top of what I want to do and my purpose for doing this. I’ve had a few people new to California and the Pride parade was their first fur meet. They met a lot of amazing people that day, they enjoyed themselves. Hearing how everyone had so much fun and loved walking in the parade, it makes me really happy to know that I gave my friends a hell of a Pride month and that they can look forward to it again and again.

What will the plans be for L.A. Pride? Let’s catch up about it closer to the time, but it’s part of the reason for the fundraiser. It can benefit many furs who have far trips to reach these events, while their own city has a big one ready to join. 

More: 17 years of progress with the Norcal Furries at San Francisco Pride.

I also volunteered at SF Pride and my favourite group was the Norcal Furries, they give the best and tightest hugs pic.twitter.com/QYqcMDRbGE

— Rio (@Rioraptor) July 1, 2019

Like the article? These take hard work. For more free furry news, please follow on Twitter or support not-for-profit Dogpatch Press on Patreon. Want to get involved? Share news on these subreddits: r/furrydiscuss for anything — or r/waginheaven for the best of the community. Or send guest writing here. Also, NOMINATE GREAT FURRIES FOR THE GOOD FURRY AWARD UNTIL MAY 31.

Art by Alterkitten (Furaffinity / Twitter)

There’s so much news about politics lately. What kind of liberation will the next election bring? Does it make your mind wander?

At Animal Farm (formerly Wild Things), you can get liberated as heck. Get in that headspace where you’re a pup and let your paws wander on a furry friend. Consenting adults only of course. Come explore kink at a safe licensed club, with super cute furries, pet-players, trainers, and opportunity to go ALL the way.

In San Francisco, this is one of the only openly advertised, public-access furry fetish parties in the world. Shy newcomers are welcome! Dungeon monitors are there to help. Any curious visitor can get a healthy nonjudgemental sample, or go whole hog. Bring a partner into trying a new kink. Come find a new partner in the lounge where there’s just chatting, a counter full of snacks, and temptation beckoning you to the dungeon for a frisky good time.

Features:

• The Citadel’s dungeon has lots of toys and a light-up disco floor with DJ.
• Murrsuits and any animal costuming or gear are encouraged, with lockers and headless lounge.
• Safety supplies are provided (house rules discourage going raw dog unless with your SO.)
• The lounge has lots of couches and chill space with a full kitchen.
• Volunteers are needed for setup, cleanup, kitchen, and more. Want to help run demos?

Get involved, find friends, or volunteer to get in free:

• Fetlife event page
• Animal Farm Telegram Chat

also if you try to do anything in one of these clubs, these dudes will literally form one of those big snake mating balls around you

— every cool guy needs a popular girl (@bitterkarella) February 16, 2020

I thought about trying one of those places once but I figured I'd either be super uncomfortable the whole time or would become one of those dudes and neither option seems appealing

— Nightmare Rings (@RelaxingDragon1) February 16, 2020

Go to a furry one like @AnimalFarmSF, there are very few to none of those and if you see one they kind of stand in the corner looking totally perplexed. Also there are lots of nice cuties who will talk to you without creeping.

— Dogpatch Press (@DogpatchPress) February 16, 2020

Totally true, our next party is on Feb 22 and you won't be bothered by gawkers there, just cute furries, fursuiters, and pet players. There's a dungeon for any kind of play, and a lounge for safe socializing to hang out and make friends.

— Animal Farm party (formerly Wild Things) (@AnimalFarmSF) February 16, 2020

Like the article? These take hard work. For more free furry news, please follow on Twitter or support not-for-profit Dogpatch Press on Patreon. Want to get involved? Share news on these subreddits: r/furrydiscuss for anything — or r/waginheaven for the best of the community. Or send guest writing here. 

Indy comic magazine The Nib has a new issue out called simple The Nib: Animals. Twenty guesses what the subject matter is! Well, at their web site they have this to say: “Animals: we love them, we eat them, we meme them, we are one. In the Animals issue, cartoonists from around the world pack 112 full-color pages with original stories of graphic journalism, memoir, and satire. Contributors explore America’s roadside animal attractions, eating less meat, cat behavior, racist dogs, and pet cemeteries.” Among other things. Presenting the work of two dozen cartoon and comic book artists.

image c. 2020 First Look Productions

The Noah’s Ark of furry fandom has many ways to get on board. Friendly and toony characters you can hug bring me there. But others are drawn to a sleek, inhuman-but-warm latex sheen that takes them to their headspace. Headspace is a good word. Despite negative notions, pup-players say it doesn’t start below the belt, and adult topics need no mention for this story about a team of artists who craft their headgear. How about marketing it as useful? When it starts to rain, these animals can stay dry and wear one instead of an umbrella. No? Even if they aren’t for you, you may enjoy learning how the secret ingredient that floats this business is the brainstorming and collaboration that furry fandom provides. Pup players are part of a community of makers. (See also the recent article — Fursuit Animatronics: the future is now with Ocelynk of Feliform Labs.) –– Patch

WearWolf Creations is spinning off into two independent businesses for latex hoods to serve the pup community: @CreationsWear and @SnapJawForge.

FC 2019 art show entries

Behind the scenes with the team, shop, and creation process.

WearWolf Creations (@CreationsWear) is entering its second year and has spawned Snap Jaw (@SnapJawForge) recently in the process! In this exclusive story with Dogpatch Press, we wanted to share the story of the founding furs of this creative band and offer a bit of a peek into how everything came together!

The three founding artists have been friends for years: @NovaD0g (Bubba), @Jai_the_Jackal (Jai), and @M2tM (Devacor), but the seed of our collaboration for WearWolf Creations was sown in the weeks leading up to Further Confusion in January of 2019. Jai and Dev had been working on masks of various kinds for some time, and decided to enter the FC Art Show with a resin warthog skull mask Jai had sculpted, and Dev helped create the molds for. In preparation they created 3 variations of the skull for entry.

At the same time, NovaD0g/Bubba had been wanting to make latex hoods, but didn’t have the space at home to do it. He saw a perfect opportunity to join in with Jai and Dev, who were already making a beautiful and productive mess in their back room. He had some stone molds which hadn’t been put to use in a long time. Leading up to the convention, Bubba worked on his very first latex pup hood alongside Jai and Dev — as well as Rex (@TooMuchDynamite) — who was working on his own art for the art show along with us.

Bubba working on his original stone mold Dobie

Everyone finished their work on time and the FC Art Show was a huge success all around. The first sale was great, but there was also a flurry of initial orders Bubba took. It proved there was a ton of interest, and a warm and welcoming community wanting more pup hoods and looking for new makers!

Based on Bubba’s success with his hoods, he decided to shift his career from full time furry commission work to pup masks. Jai was inspired by Bubba’s success and decided she wanted to try her hand at making a pup hood too. It had been an idle but present interest for a while, and this was really the catalyst that helped her make that decision and act on it.

Devacor had just purchased a 3D Printer a month prior. Dev has a good deal of experience with mold making and problem solving as a game programmer. He and Jai had additionally taken various SFX courses with Vancouver FX in pursuit of fursuit making skills over the years. Devacor thought that maybe they could 3D print molds, instead of the messy and space consuming stone molds.

A silicone bat dragon traditionally sculpted in monster clay and made by Devacor

With a 3D printer at their disposal, Jai decided to try sculpting in Zbrush instead of traditional Monster Clay, and see if they could make some original molds that resonated with the furry or pup communities. Jai already had a BFA in Illustration and some 3D sculpting experience with her game development work on Bindstone. She immediately fell in love with the process of sculpting hood designs!

It was the perfect storm to begin a new enterprise, with three passionate artists with complementary skills, all interested in the same thing: Making quality never-before-seen pup hoods.

Jai working on the first iteration of her original pitbull mask in early 2019

The art room in Jai and Dev’s home provided a great space for the creative group to get messy and explore with materials. It slowly evolved and transformed into a full-fledged art studio over the coming months. The addition of a comfy couch, adjustable table, and back room TV, and a fully stocked 3D printer room made this space perfect for mask production. As the art room evolved, so did the methods for pouring and finishing hoods. Each one is an individual hand made work of art. A lot of love and care is put into each hood.

There were some teachable moments as Dev clumsily learned how to do the pouring process.

A few weeks before making the very first mask, Bubba came up with the name WearWolf Creations. It was a perfectly appropriate, playful description of the very products he would be making. As they all learned and grew together, it made a lot of sense to share a social media account to help support each other in selling hoods. This is how WearWolf Creations came to be, and naturally evolved to combine both Jai and Bubba’s artistic work and mask labor, with Devacor serving a supporting role in developing the mold making process and learning the complexities of wrangling several 3D printers.

Throughout 2019, Bubba, Jai, and Devacor all spent time teaching and learning and growing as artists and creators. There were multiple re-designs of existing molds to get the perfect fit. The number one hit has definitely been the culmination of collaboration between Jai and Bubba: the Dobie. The Doberman was originally blocked out by Bubba, and fine details and anatomy were finished by Jai, with final touches on a second iteration to get the fit just right applied by Devacor. The response has been overwhelming. It really took a lot of focus to keep up with demand over the past few months!

A collage of many of @Jai_the_Jackal’s pups for the past year!

Focus on new hood sculpts was slow for a while, but the past few months has involved a ton of quiet R&D, fitting adjustments, and Zbrush practice. As Jai, Dev, and Bubba enter 2020, they all felt confident that many of the growing pains in the process have been hammered out. New unique designs are going to be coming out from Bubba and Jai, and everyone involved felt confident in running their own brand.

It is with this collaborative spirit, and continued support, that the trio continue to work in the same space, cross promote and support each other’s accounts. But they also maintain separate businesses to reduce confusion about which artist is responsible for which work, especially as Jai & Dev (who are married as of October 2019) begin to split their time between other passions, like their game project Bindstone. This allows Bubba to grow WearWolf Creations and focus on it full time.

2020 is going to be an exciting year for pups and furries alike, as the market for pup hoods expands to include even more unique and inspired designs from both WearWolf Creations *Bark!* and Snap Jaw *CHOMP*!

Wolf Dog by @CreationsWear

Big ol’ Chompers by @SnapJawForge

Like the article? These take hard work. For more free furry news, please follow on Twitter or support not-for-profit Dogpatch Press on Patreon. Want to get involved? Share news on these subreddits: r/furrydiscuss for anything — or r/waginheaven for the best of the community. Or send guest writing here. Also, NOMINATE GREAT FURRIES FOR THE GOOD FURRY AWARD UNTIL MAY 31.

Restless Town is a collection of stories written by Madison Scott-Clary. Published in various anthologies and places, they all cover different themes, ideas, and lives of different people. A quick warning before we get onto the full review: many of the stories contain moments of sexuality among other themes that may be difficult for certain readers. All of these are mentioned in the book itself before you start reading which is a wonderful touch. For this review, I’ll give a short content warning before the mini-review of each story for the readers here. With this in mind, let’s get started!"The Fool" There are a lot of ways to potentially learn some deep truths around oneself. One of the more mystical options could be through tarot cards. The protagonist of this story walks in to get a reading, or, to be more accurate, is led through reading the cards and what they might mean. A lot of meaning can be drawn from the art on the cards, and the protagonist walks out not only with a better understanding of themselves but also a person who can listen and help them on their way."Disappearance" - CW: Sex, Body ModificationWhat would life be like if you left everything you knew behind? Your name, your clothes, your car, everyone you ever knew, gone where you could never return? This story takes a look at what that might be like and the motivations someone might have to want to do so. Sometimes after you read a full book you need time before starting the next to take in the enormity of what you just read. This short story packs in more of a punch than some novels I've read prior. If you bought this collection for this story alone, you'd have your money's worth. Absolutely phenomenal to read!"Fisher"This story is short and to the point so we'll do the same for this part of the review. A walk a day keeps anxiety at bay, or so this fisher thinks. A good examination of emotions surrounding grieving and anxiety."Centerpiece" - CW: Sex, BondageFrom a purely analytical standpoint, this story is a marvelous examination of kink communities. It describes setting a scene, includes lots of consent checks, and is an excellent look at what sub-space is like.From the standpoint of wanting a saucy story to read? By the end, you'll be left shivering, wanting to see the whole scene play out only to be left with a tease. This is a perfect example of what adult writing should look like."You're Gone" - CW: Death, Abuse, MedicalThis examination of grief and letting someone go who has passed away is powerful. It puts the reader into this position powerfully by being written as if it's through text messages. It makes it feel so real and immersed to the point where empathy becomes easier. Be prepared to cry when reading this one. I know I did."Overclassification" - CW: SexAn otter learns what life is like for those that don’t color inside the neat tidy lines they often covet. Sometimes all it takes is one person, one meaningful interaction, to change the way you view life. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and won’t say anymore to keep the surprises fresh. Make sure to read it!"Acts of Intent"I’m unsure if it was the unique writing style that cut the story up into flashbacks and current time in almost every other paragraph, but I had a harder time following this story. It seemed interesting, about an artist trying to bring a pyro art piece to life, but I couldn’t entirely figure out what was being drawn or the exact reason why. This was the weakest story for me in the anthology, but to be fair all of the other stories were quite incredible, so it had tough competition."Every Angel Is Terrifying" - CW: Sex This story follows a collie struggling to understand life and himself all the while battling against bipolar disorder. Like most of the stories in this anthology, the writing draws you in, giving glasses to witness what that life must be like through a lens of empathy. A powerful and emotional read with a hopeful ending."What Defines Us"This story is told through a series of emails as a son talks to his mother about issues facing his relationship with his wife. They both don't want a repeat of the past, how divorce ended up being with him as a young boy. As a Mom myself, reading this struck a cord, especially when they talked about how children react during divorces. A worthwhile read for sure!"A Theory Of Attachment" - CW: SexThis story looks at navigating a complicated relationship structure like polyamory while dealing with obsessive compulsive disorder. The intersectionality of mental health and polyamory isn’t something I’ve seen properly explored in a story before. Not to mention seeing such a frank and honest look at what the beginnings of a poly relationship can look like. It was refreshing reading something so different and approached so well. ---I expect that I will be carrying these stories in my heart and mind for quite some time. While not as heavy on anthropomorphic themes as some books I’ve read, the characters that drive these stories forward are all vibrant and fantastic. Restless Town gets a recommendation from me for anyone that wants to deeply examine emotions and understand the world from a different perspective. These stories have so much to offer, I look forward to reading more works from Madison Scott-Clary in the future!

This week, American furcon Anthrocon has announced they will be hosting a citywide children’s art competition, in collaboration with the city of Pittsburgh. According to the furcon, the event will only be open to active students living in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, and participants are divided by age; Division A will be for any students […]

It’s February, and in honor of Black History Month we would like to feature some of the black authors that are members of the Furry Writers’ Guild. Today we’ll be sharing an interview done with Carmen K. Welsh Jr. who is also known as Copper Sphynx! Without further ado, let’s get to the interview.

—

FWG: Tell the guild and our readers a bit about yourself!

Copper Sphynx: I’ve been a fan and consumer of anthropomorphized media most of my early childhood. When I watched a movie, cartoon, or finished a TV show or book, I would draw/write the story to continue it. 

I currently write Fantasy/SF, Furry, essays, and comics. 

FWG: What is your favorite work that you have written? 

Copper Sphynx: I would like to say my most recent publication, but, in honor of Black History Month, I have to bring up my first and only published poem ‘Only Hound dogs up in Harlem’. It was first printed in a furry convention book and later officially published by the literary journal Typewriter Emergencies and is one of my favorite pieces. It’s based on poetry rooted in 1920s Harlem Renaissance but using canines. 

FWG: What do you think makes a good story?

Copper Sphynx: I’m definitely a character-driven writer. Incredible plots I still enjoy, but the stories I take to heart are those where the cast resonates with me, whether they be protagonist(s) and antagonist(s). 

FWG: How long have you been in the guild, and what changes have you seen with regards to how writing is handled since joining?

Copper Sphynx: I’ve been with the guild since 2011. I’ve seen more efforts in diversifying stories, who can tell what kind of stories, the awareness of differing culture, and more metadata references. Also, online courses and more conferences being offered are all newer changes and exciting.

FWG: What does Black History mean to you?

Copper Sphynx: To know that Black History and other history months is the true and total history of the United States. I have more to say but that’s for my blog and Twitter.

FWG: Do you feel that your Blackness has affected your writing?

Copper Sphynx: It definitely does! Blackness has been made into a visibly negative image at all levels and has been presented to me as a subtraction that I feel the need to show it in all its positives but to show that Blackness is fully faceted. Blackness also affects my furry writing. For example, I refuse to use certain animals in my stories as these very animals are used in real life and historically to denigrate not only people with my skin color but other groups of color as well.

FWG: Do you feel like the issues that affect the outside world affect your writing within the fandom or not?

Copper Sphynx: It certainly has that I’m feeling bolder in my writing and taking more risks with what material and subjects to tackle. And feeling the confidence in which style will serve that particular topic better. Before, I would’ve struggled as a writer and artist because I lacked confidence, but not anymore. Not saying I no longer struggle as a writer, I still do with story mechanics, world building, and the like. I just don’t struggle as much as before in how to present certain topics and subjects.

FWG: Do you have favorite Black authors and has their literature affected your writing in the fandom?

Copper Sphynx: Octavia Butler, Samuel Delaney, Steven Barnes, Tananarive Due and these are just a handful within speculative fiction. But I’ve read Sharon Mathis, Nikki Giovanni, Midred D. Taylor, and Virginia Hamilton as a child. Reading Black authors of other genres has given me more freedom in the ideas I can explore: about race, ethnicity, on social justice, how politics can illuminate or oppress, and how someone can change their fate through conscious and consistent choices.

FWG: If you could convince everyone to read a single book, what would it be?

Copper Sphynx: Just ONE? In honor of Black History Month, perhaps Octavia Butler’s Bloodchild short story collection. Short stories have been my first step into literature, which is why I write short fiction now. Also, those same short stories lead to new novels to read and new authors to love.

FWG: Any last words for our readers and guild members?

Copper Sphynx: I was struggling to belong somewhere in the writing community at the same time I was changing direction in my job life. I learned about FWG at the right moment when I needed the guild. Furry has given my art and writing direction, purpose, and a platform. I don’t regret any of it.

 

—

To learn more about Copper Sphynx and their writings please visit their website here alongside links to their other writing and art accounts. A complete list of their publications is also available on The Angry Goblin Blog. They can be followed on Twitter @KayFey.

We hope you found this interview exciting and informative as we hope to feature more black authors this month! If you are a black member of the Furry Writers’ Guild and would like to be featured, please contact our public relations officer here. Until next time, may your words flow like water.

It’s a bit late for Halloween-y stuff, we know… but maybe we’re just getting the jump (pounce?) on next October! Fab Press have brought us The Frightfest Guide to Werewolf Movies. “The crimson eyes of the werewolf have stalked us across the centuries. We are now most familiar with the wolfman courtesy of Hollywood. Over the past century, a diverse pack of lycanthropes has manifested on the silver screen – in big-bucks blockbusters and zero-budget B-movies – each revealing a little more of the nature of the beast. Within these colorful pages we encounter reluctant wolfmen and shape-shifting sadists, big bad fairy tale wolves and lycanthropic nymphomaniacs. Our guide is acclaimed author, broadcaster, occult historian – and lifelong werewolf obsessive – Gavin Baddeley. By finding fresh perspectives on established classics, uncovering neglected gems, and even examining a few howlers among the definitive selection of werewolf movies reviewed, Baddeley shows how the myth has adapted and transformed: Whereby werewolves become analogies for alcoholism or adolescence, or ciphers for sexual awakening or serial murder. Providing our foreword is the award-winning director, writer and producer Neil Marshall, whose brilliant debut feature Dog Soldiers reinvigorated the werewolf movie for the 21st Century.” The book is available now in trade paperback.

image c. 2020 FAB Press

Here’s a guest article from Sy Sable, AKA Mark Merlino, a founder of furry fandom and its first convention ConFurence. Sy, Rod O’Riley and Changa Lion host monthly parties at their house (The Prancing Skiltaire) in Southern California. The parties screen animation like Animalympics. It became popular at 1980’s fan parties, where furries adopted it as their own cult favorite like Rocky Horror and kept it alive when it might be forgotten. Last week I hosted a furry movie party where the furry-made version (C/FO Cut with rare lost scenes) got a fresh look as an original fandom root. The Youtube video is at end of article. – Patch

To go with the story, Changa Lion provided his scans of a vintage TV Guide from when Animalympics first aired (Jan 26 – Feb 1, 1980). “NBC was at the time in the dumps in ratings and very desperate. It had been this way for some time. They would not dig themselves out until the Cosby Show.” (full issue on Archive.org.)

Animalympics: The “Rocky Horror Show” of furry fandom – by Sy Sable

In 1980 I had my video setup in our family room (pool hall and HiFi sound-room). A Sony (analog) tuner-timer unit connected to an industrial Sanyo V-cord II VCR (not a Betamax, and VHS was not a thing yet). The TV was a 13” color portable rigged with a lens and a curved screen (a crude projection TV). I had seen an ad in the TV Guide for an animated TV special called Animalympics, and decided to watch (and record) it…

It totally blew me away!

The opening sequence of various animals bearing the torch (which was lit by a sleeping dragon), the somber professional narration, great theme music and the striking graphics were not what I had expected, being used to 80’s Saturday morning and (slightly better) Holiday specials. The transforming graphic of the traditional Olympic rings becoming a paw-print, with the glowing script of the logo written boldly across the screen… and the line “Now, Live via satellite, Animalympics!” made a shiver run up my spine (it still does, after watching it hundreds of times)! This was obviously something very special.

This half-hour special was part of NBCs 1980 Olympic coverage. Steven Lisberger (yes, the creator of TRON), with a grant from The American Film Institute/NEA, had made a 7-minute short about the animal version of the Olympics. NBC commissioned Lisberger Studios to create two specials, the 30 (22) minute Winter games and a 90 (66) minute Summer games, to be ran in summer of 1980.

Sadly, with the Russian invasion of Afghanistan and US boycott of the games, US TV coverage was cancelled. This included the Animalympics Summer games.

TV Guide’s editorial from the Olympics boycott.

That May my partner Linda hosted a birthday party for me at my apartment in Garden Grove. My good friends Kay and Nicolai Schapiro showed up with a special gift, an unmarked VHS tape. “We want you to watch this right now.” Nicolai insisted. OK, so I put it in the VCR and sat back… completely unprepared for my second encounter with Animalympics… the feature! After the disappointing cancellation of the summer games, Lisberger and his associates edited together the two specials into a 90 minute feature. They premiered it in Florida at a distribution convention, but were unable to interest anyone in a theatrical release. The film was eventually licensed to screen on cable TV, and in Southern California (which had no cable service in the 80’s) on the subscription “scrambled” broadcast service Select TV, which the Schapiro’s subscribed to. They recoded it and presented it to me at the party, but they wanted to be there when I watched it, because…

A Mink sports commentator! A Russian sable gymnast! A river otter swimmer/diver! Really? Needless to say my reaction was what they had wanted to see and I did not disappoint. I am a huge fan of the weasel family; I’m a pine marten, after all. It was the Animalympics I loved, but More! Amazing characters, great voices and music, trippy graphics and clever writing parodying the “close up and persona” TV sports coverage that was becoming popular. The celebrity voice and character impersonations and humor for all ages just worked. The show became a regular at the Cartoon/Fantasy Organization screenings, and one of the influential films that helped start the furry fandom.

It was great that we now could watch the rest of Lisberger Studios anthro masterpiece. What could be better than that? At the time I was helping a friend, Tim Peters, who worked at the audio-visual company that supported the Disneyland Hotel and Convention Center. McCune Audio Visual had a small studio and video editing bay (Umatic ¾” “broadcast” quality cassette) on the second floor of the convention center, which we had access to. At one point, we created a (terrible) talk show called “Who Cares” where I interviewed several members of the local C/FO chapter to send to the New York chapter. Tim handled the camera and I did the intervies, Carson-style. Later we edited in several commercial for local tourist attractions to complete the farce. It was during the editing that an idea hatched in our collective brains (?).

The Animalympics feature combined the Winter and Summer games, with some material from the Winter games left on the cutting-room floor. Having never seen the original Summer games, we had no idea if there were scenes missing from that special. But… I had my copy of the Winter games recoded from the original broadcast, and we had a copy of the combined feature… and an editing bay at your disposal. So, we proposed, what if we carefully removed the clips from the winter games from the feature. Would the material remaining make a credible Summer games?

Luckily the title card at the beginning of the feature was tagged “Summer Games”. We started the project by converting our VHS copy to 2 Umatic cassettes (each tape was only 60 minutes long) then we carefully removed all the Winter game sequences and scenes from the feature, using the scene breaks and adding a couple of additional ZOO bumpers. When we finished, the remaining show was 58 minutes, long enough to be a “90 minute” special (66 minutes maximum with commercials). And it looked good! We then made a “mother” VHS copy with the C/FO color bars (featuring the skiltaire mascot Fanta with her magenta stripe), the complete Winter games, and our recreated Summer games.

That was the birth of the C/FO version of Animalympics. We made copies from the VHS “mother” and began showing them at C/FO meetings and at the 1985 Westercon science fiction convention in Sacramento, CA at the Prancing Skiltare room party, the first “furry” party. From then on, we would screen the C/FO version of Animalympics at science fiction conventions, including World Con in the US and the UK, at comic conventions, including San Diego Comic Con International, and in room parties we hosted at every fan convention we attended.

Music by Graham Gouldman of 10CC

The show was extremely popular with fans. It included well designed characters of more diverse species than any other animated film made for decades. So many had watched it so often that some of the audience began reciting lines of dialog, making jokes, and singing along with the catchy Graham Gouldman songs. Our special version of Animalympics became an important icon in the development of the furry fandom. We literally played the tapes until they had worn out and could not be shown. The show became forgotten.

Originally Steven Lisberger turned his back on Animalympics. It was a lot of hard work that amounted to nothing, thanks to the Olympic boycott. He would not even acknowledge that it existed for many years, though it did show often on cable networks, HBO and even Disney Channel (with some scenes edited out), and various distribution companies got the rights to produce limited VHS releases. Steven Lisberger had relocated to Germany, and it happens that Animalympics has a very strong fan following in that country. When a well preserved film print was discovered, fans approached Lisberger and convinced him that the show was a masterpiece that he should be proud of. Their dedication and reverence convinced him, and he allowed them to arrange a DVD to be made (2007) and eventually a Blueray (2016) for limited release.

In 2014, my video guru partner, Changa Lion, found the DVD on Amazon.de and purchased it. He suggested that he could reproduce the summer games, using modern non-linear editing systems, and I agreed enthusiastically! Changa also managed to coax a copy of the Winter games off of the aged “mother” VHS tape and set about to clean it up using advanced video enhancement software. He finished the project in April and we planned to premier the remastered version at CaliFur. On a whim I contacted Michael Fremer, the co-writer/director, voice actor and music editor of Animalympics through his audiophile website Analog Planet. (I’m an audiophile myself, having designed and manufactured a line of HiFi speaker systems in the 80’s and 90’s.) An amazing stroke of luck had Mr. Fremer attending a HiFi show in Southern California the same weekend of Califur. He said he’d be delighted to attend the premier and he enjoyed himself immensely, answering questions and telling stories about the production. One tale he told explained the inclusion of a coati mundi (Pepe Rubanosa) in the marathon lineup. The character was based on a pet coati he had at the time!

Once again the C/FO special addition of Animalympics was available to show to furry fans around the world! But the story doesn’t end there… this year Changa obtained the German Blueray of the Animalympics feature, and though it was digitized from the same film print (and missing the same scene) the overall video and audio quality was superior to the DVD. We also had a fresh digitized VHS copy to provide the missing material. So, once again the process began: Cleaning up the Winter games copy (with improved video processing software) removing all Winter games content from the Blueray feature, adding the missing scenes from other sources, and putting it all together: The C/FO Special Addition (4.0) of Animalympics!

Saturday, February 1, 2020 was the 40th anniversary of the broadcast of the Animalympics Winter Games. On that day, Changa made the new version of our special edition available on the Prancing Skiltaire YouTube channel so everyone can enjoy this classic film, and experience an important part of the history of furry fandom!

“…and now Live, via satellite, Animalympics!”

UPDATE: this video about the making of TRON talks about putting together the animation studio and making Animalypics from around 5:00-7:00.

Like the article? These take hard work. For more free furry news, please follow on Twitter or support not-for-profit Dogpatch Press on Patreon. Want to get involved? Share news on these subreddits: r/furrydiscuss for anything — or r/waginheaven for the best of the community. Or send guest writing here. NOMINATE GREAT FURRY CREATIONS FOR THE URSA MAJOR AWARDS UNTIL FEBRUARY 15, and THE GOOD FURRY AWARD UNTIL MAY 31. Let creators know they count!

Roo is joined by Nuka and Zarafa to discuss a topic recently debated hotly on the show's Telegrim chat: Ageism in the Fandom. Is there ageism at play? Is it better or worse than other scenarios? What's it like to be on the other end of age discrimination? We explore these questions and more!








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SHOW NOTES
SPECIAL THANKS

Zarafa, our guest.
Timid Grizzly
Skylos
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Lokimutt and Guardian Lion and Dusky and Katchshi and August Otter and Koru Colt (Yes, him)
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Skylos
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MUSIC

Opening Theme: RetroSpecter – Cloud Fields (RetroSpecter Mix). USA: Unpublished, 2018. ©2011-2018 Fur What It’s Worth. Based on Fredrik Miller – Cloud Fields (Century Mix). USA: Bandcamp, 2011. ©2011 Fur What It’s Worth. (Buy a copy here – support your fellow furs!)
Space News Music: Fredrik Miller – Orbit. USA: Bandcamp, 2013. Used with permission. (Buy a copy here – support your fellow furs!)
Fifty Sheds of Grey: Kevin MacLeod – Spy Glass. Licensed under Creative Commons: by Attribution 3.0. Visit Incompetech for more.
Patreon - The Tudor Consort, Inflammatus, Creative Commons, 2010
Closing Theme: RetroSpecter – Cloud Fields (RetroSpecter Chill Mix). USA: Unpublished, 2018. ©2011-2018 Fur What It’s Worth. Based on Fredrik Miller – Cloud Fields (Chill Out Mix). USA: Bandcamp, 2011. ©2011 Fur What It’s Worth. (Buy a copy here – support your fellow furs!) S8E23 – The Age Gap - Roo is joined by Nuka and Zarafa to discuss a topic recently debated hotly on the show's Telegrim chat: Ageism in the Fandom. Is there ageism at play? Is it better or worse than other scenarios? What's it like to be on the other end

What have we been missing?  Well apparently it’s Oggy and the Cockroaches, an animated YouTube series that has racked up millions of views. Well now American Mythology have brought us Oggy and the Cockroaches as a full-color comic book series written by S.A. Check and Jordan Gershowitz. “Oggy is a cat that just wants to watch TV but those pesky cockroaches, Joey, Dee Dee, and Marky aren’t happy until they drive poor Oggy crazy! Illustrated by Dean Rankine, these new comic tales deliver non-stop hilarity for Oggy fans worldwide!”

image c. 2020 American Mythology

We dive into an intense story hour, followed by a surprise call with Boozy.

This episode is sponsored by Twin Tail Creations. Use coupon codes REDWOLF or BLUEFOX to save 15% on silicone products during checkout.

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Link Roundup:

• Spotify getting increasingly controlling over podcasting ecosystem
• Spotify is buying The Ringer to boost its sports podcast content
• Viral Tweet about large boulder
• Game Grumps fursona shelter
• Xerxes experiences furries make the internets go at his job
• Play as a fox in Spirit Of The North
• Overcast has a big update
• BBC Bweaking News
• Durov rants about WhatsApp
• @pandoras_fox talks about their influence on recent new emoji
• Bojack’s Finale signals the end of a Netflix era

News:

• If Listening to Music and Unique Brains
• Winter Wonderland Is A Spring Nightmare For New Hampshire Woman

[Live] Powder Bottom

In an effort to provide more outreach to the anthropomorphic writing community and feature new writers within it, the Furry Writers’ Guild is excited to announce a new initiative: Microfiction Mondays! Microfiction stories can be some of the most challenging to write, with strong restrictions on word and character counts. However, they are also incredibly rewarding and can help us develop new skills. 

Starting March 2nd, we will be featuring one microfiction story through the Furry Writers’ Guild Twitter account every Monday. Where will we be getting these stories? Well that’s where you come in! Any author may participate; Furry Writers’ Guild membership is not required. We are seeking to highlight stories from writers that fit these guidelines:

• Your story must fit in a single tweet with room for us to give you credit as the author (i.e. your Twitter handle has to fit as well).
• Feature anthropomorphic characters. We are willing to loosely interpret this one with how few words are available, but try to keep things furry!
• Stories must be PG 13. We will not be publishing adult works. If your story needs a content warning for other reasons, it must be included in the one tweet limit. 

With all of this in mind, here’s our submission form!

FWG Microfiction Monday Submission Form

Submissions are open now, and will remain so for the foreseeable future. We are also open to multiple submissions, even if you’ve already been featured. We want to include as many stories as we can, so do not be afraid to submit!

Our main goal here is to allow authors to flex their creativity and give them an outlet to show it off while connecting anthropomorphic writers to each other. This is a non-paying market. Please note, these submissions will not count as publishing credits towards joining the Furry Writers’ Guild. The authors of these stories maintain full rights to their work.

We hope you enjoy and take advantage of this new FWG initiative! If you have suggestions for other initiatives like this one that could be good for the guild please contact a guild officer or send a DM to our Twitter account. Happy writing everyone!

Creator Charles Brubaker let us know about their current Kickstarter campaign for The Fuzzy Princess Volume 2, the second collection of strips from this popular web comic. “The Fuzzy Princess centers on Katrina, the adventurous feline princess of St. Paws, watched over by Chiro (a batty bat) and Kuma (whose love for haiku is only matched by his love of eating). Now they’ve been stranded in our world! Can Kat’s new human friend Jackson help them survive? Will Jackson be able to survive his new friends? Continuing off from where the first book left off, join Princess Kat on a voyage of self-discovery in this sec, as she explores her new talents such as: Urban exploration! Crimefighting! Attempting to make Christmas dinner! Surviving a surprise visit! Babysitting! Witches! And enduring Kuma’s slam poetry!” What more do you need to know?  The campaign is running now through the beginning of March.

image c. 2020 by Charles Brubaker