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We read character introductions from several of our faithful and creative listeners, and chat about discovering a story as we write it. Nobody is called nasty names. Unsheathed #31 - Introducing...

This week on KnotCast, theres gratuitous amounts of YAFF YAFF. We talk about the search for love, the findings of mates, and what to do and not do in the searching. Also, YAFF YAFF. :V Don't take a shot every time you hear it or you'll die. This weeks music break is The Poetry of Reality by Symphony of Science http://symphonyofscience.com/ Use our coupon code "Knot" at checkout at AdamEve.com to save 50% on one item and more! Episode 86 - Spring is in the Air

Furry Stand in 2009 (photo: Reyres)

Zutharr ST (as know as Ceruno Wolf) is relinquishing his “Furry Stand” contract rights at Anime Friends to the community.

Anime Friends is an annual anime convention held in São Paulo, Brazil during July which attracted 120,000 attendees in 2009

Since 2007, Zutharr has been responsible for the Furry booth at Anime Friends by contract with its organizer, Yamato. Now he has decided to pass the booth along to any parties interested in continuing his work.

In Brazil, furry conventions are not yet common, and furs keep in touch via anime conventions. The Stand serves as a meeting point for the furries in attendance, and — more importantly — as an means to display furry philosophy and lifestyle to the public.

History

The Furry Stand has been the target of criticism, causing much discussion and dissent among furs who feel it features non-representative works or covers distasteful topics. Some have called it an “misrepresentation of the word ‘furry’.”

Members of Fauna Urbana have been there since the beginning to watch and observe. In 2007, most furs in attendance felt the booth gave a bad impression of furry fandom.

But Tanuki Gokuhi, who interviewed guests visiting the booth (including members of the police) as a member of the Anime Friends press team, said:

“The criticisms are unfounded – the Stand made mistakes as anyone would make, and those who repudiate the Stand just gave importance to what the Anime Friends’ trolls said; it is a battle of egos.”

Zutharr demonstrates his Guilmon fursuit at the 2007 Furry Stand (photo: Tanuki Gokuhi)

In later years, Zutharr lent the room to KoutaOni, who was banned from deviantART in 2008 for selling traced works of XianJaguar and other artists, raising further controversy.

Future

Now that Zutharr has relinquished the contract, it is open to the first person to claim it from Yamato. Fauna Urbana just hopes whoever does so is mindful of the responsibility they owe to the fandom in maintaining this public venue in São Paulo.

Revised by GreenReaper

Back in our regular studio, we answer questions about comics and laugh at obscure comics and talk about classic books. Plus: a challenge for our listeners! Unsheathed #30 - Questions and comics!

This week on KnotCast, the crew has survived Furry Fiesta! Fuzz, Savrin, Isty, and Shiva are joined by Tealfox and Rikoshi from the magical land of the #Knotcast IRC. :3 Con talk abounds as the con-staffers tell tales of their experiences, while Tealfox and Rikoshi tell of their con as attendees. We read a few emails, get an ad for PREMIUIM DICE, and have some very nice conversation... We're helping! Episode 85 - Still Alive with BONUS FOXES

This week we offer two flash stories with themes on inspiration.

"Missing" by Sean Silva

"Chasing Inspiration" by Will A. Sanborn

Read by Kiefer Skunk

Music cues by Infinity Squared

AD Flash 013 – Ideas and Inspirations - This week we offer two flash stories with themes on inspiration. "Missing" by "Chasing Inspiration" by Read by Kiefer Skunk Music cues by

Live from Dallas, Texas, we sit down with FurPlanet owner and famous podcaster Fuzzwolf to talk about publishing and stories. We take questions from the audience and make a corgi blush. Unsheathed #29 - Live from Furry Fiesta!

FurryBrasil (wiki), a well-known Brazilian furry discussion forum, took their initial steps outside the box and launched their first podcast, “Focinho a Focinho” (Snout to Snout).

Hwei Chow interviewed two lead members of Abando: Aniki Geelong and Ekevoo Guepardo on the topics of how Abando is planned, organized and performed, as well as problems and misunderstandings that used to haunt the team. The interview was made during Abando.

The podcast can be heard in MP3 format at the following link: http://www.furrybrasil.com.br/podcast
(website and podcast audio only available in Portuguese)

Revised by GreenReaper

Abando 2010 attendees

Each year the Abando family grows, and this year was no exception. They say “he who misses Abando, misses more every year.” This year Abando attracted 37 attendees (15 more then last year) leaving the staff surprised — and a little worried, as the current site can only hold 40 people.

With the Hawaiian theme of “Aloha Abando!”, the site boasted beautiful ambient lighting, an outdoor projector screen, music and tiki torches, and was adorned with flowers and tiki masks.

Activities

Indoor or outdoor, there were games for all tastes! For the first time the staff ran the “Predator and Prey” game, very traditional at Camp Feral! (a Canadian con), as well as water balloon rugby. For those who were tired, board and card games (like Munchkin) entertained everybody. But this year, for those who weren’t tired but wanted to escape the strong sun, Abando had a “Pump it Up” video-game.

Talking of the sun, the greatest hero of this year was the lake. Swimming in the fresh water made everybody happy in the hot weather (almost 40ºC/104ºF).

Luau

Each year, Abando features a “campfire moment”, and this year was no different – I mean, YES! it was quite different: A Luau!

There was food, ambient lighting, a campfire, and music, as well as a limbo contest. Even the fursuiters took part in the contest!

Speaking of fursuits…

Ryan Wolf and Dusky

This year, two fursuiters attended the con: Ryan Wolf and Dusky. Their paws got a little dirty on the grass, but who said they cared about that? :)

They came from everywhere!

The campers came from all parts of Brazil: São Paulo, Pernambuco, Paraná, Goiás, Minas Gerais, Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro and Sergipe; some even came from Canada. Also, Hwei Chow hung a flag of Argentina during the event to honor our neighbors.

Final words

The first Brazilian furry con is proud to reach this level, and invites Furs from everywhere to attend the 2011 con. If you don’t speak Portuguese, don’t worry! Brazilians know English, and those who don’t know it are very good at miming :). Brazilians love to receive friends from abroad and are sure to make them welcome.

The 2011 edition of the website will contain more information for furries who live abroad and want to attend the con, like hotels, flights and passport requirements. If you already have questions, just email “tanuki-raccoon@hotmail.com”.

Thanks to all attendees and the staff who worked hard for this con!

Aloha Abando, and see you in 2011!

Abando occurs yearly during the Brazilian Carnival Holiday in February.
Article by Tanuki Gokuhi
Revised by GreenReaper

Commentary audio for the Zero Transformation review video. (Original video at http://blip.tv/file/2741233 Zero Transformation Commentary

This pair of stories was written for the Midwest FurFest convention conbook. Their theme of “10 Years of MFF” inspired ideas of anniversaries and reunions.

"Ten Years" by Will A. Sanborn

Read by Chris Hvidsten of the Outcast podcast novel

"The Reunion" by Will A. Sanborn

Read by Howler

Music cues by Infinity Squared

AD Flash 012 – Anniversaries and Reunions - This pair of stories was written for the Midwest FurFest convention conbook. Their theme of “10 Years of MFF” inspired ideas of anniversaries and reunions. "Ten Years" by Read by of the "The Reunion" by Read by Music cues by

We answer questions about inspiration, read some listener resolutions, charge Pyro with a new task, and look forward to Furry Fiesta! Unsheathed #28 - Questions and resolutions!

This week on KnotCast, its about Valentines. Zomg. Savrin, Fuzz, Isty, and Shiva hear tales of woe and awesome, are very silly, and generally put on a lighthearted show. This weeks music break is "You are my Happiness (Tom Jones A-go-go mix)" from Space Channel 5 Save 50% off one item and more with our coupon code "Knot" at Adam & Eve AdamEve.com Episode 83 - Valentines--Win or Fail?

With K.M. Hirosaki unavailable, Kyell chats about "The Seventh Chakra" with author Rikoshi, who returns the favor by talking about "Shadow of the Father." Not Tube provides valuable support for both interviews. Unsheathed #27 - Book reviews, with special guests Rikoshi and Not Tube!

This week on KnotCast, it's February... oh no! It's an open topic week, and when we say open we mean OPEN. We cover topics like FC2010, low self esteem, share a tale of creepy stalkers from both Fuzz and a writer, and get to clarify some things regarding our statements about the Masons. All this and more on episode 82 of KnotCast! This weeks music break is "I feel fantastic!" by Jonathan Coulton http://www.jonathancoulton.com/ Use our coupon code "knot" at checkout and get a great deal from Adam&Eve! AdamEve.com Episode 82 - February... Oh No!

Well, it's later than I really hoped, but it's still the first review up on furrybookreview.

Kyell's new book, Shadow of the Father, released this January at Further Confusion. Fans of Kyell have been following production for quite some time, starting with daily updated word counts on kyellgold's livejournal during initial writing phases, and some bonus content in the form of journal entries written from the perspective of yilon, the main character. There's also been a pre-release review posted on Weasel Wordsmith by jakebe.



At this point, there's quite a bit of back story established in modern Argaea, to say nothing of the historical events alluded to in the various novels and short stories. Jakabe felt in his review that Shadow is still a good entry point even if you aren't familiar with the history of Argaea, told in the novels Volle, Pendant of Fortune, Prisoner's Release and Other Stories as well as a few other short stories scattered here and there. I somewhat disagree. While you wouldn't by any means be lost in the book if you haven't read any previous work, the characters would make less sense. At minimum, I would recommend at least reading Pendant of Fortune and Yilon's journal before picking up this book.

Shadow starts up right away with Yilon, second son of Volle being named as successor to lordship of the country of Dewanne, and establishing Yilon's intimate relationship with Sinchon, a mouse, which sets up a wide range of conflict over the course of the book. As an aside, although the two characters are technically 'of age', that equates to roughly 16, which makes the few sex scenes ever so slightly uncomfortable to this aging reader. I hope no one calls the pedobear on me. In all fairness, the sex scenes are not written for the titillation of the reader, but to illustrate the relationship between the two characters.

The various tensions caused by Yilon's relationship with Sinch are mostly underplayed, subservient to the main plot of the book, something which could be described as a rip-roaring adventure yarn--At least those would be the word's you'd use to write a cliche back cover blurb for young-adult novels. While a tad too explicit to truly qualify for the young-adult stamp, in plot and structure, this really is a classic bildungsroman, a coming of age story wrapped around an adventure in a foreign land. The basic outline is that Yilon makes a few mistakes in the beginning due to inexperience, rashness, and impetuousness, i.e. youth, and spends the rest of the book learning why what he did was a mistake and trying to fix it.

The book is quite a departure from Kyell's other novels in that it has a much more active plot, and between Yilon's story arc and Sinch's story arc there is much less room for the characters to examine their motivations, to develop and grow organically over the course of the book as in previous books. The time frame of the narrative is so compressed that this sort of slow build and change is just not possible. I think that's part of why having the background from the previous Argaea novels and short stories is that much more vital to this book. Yilon is very much his father's son, and it holds up better if the reader knows it.

Overall, it's a very excellent book. The return to Argaea with a new generation revitalizes the setting for me, even as Volle's brief appearance cements in my mind that his narrative arc is coming to a close. I've read the book twice already, and I'll likely read it again in the coming months.

That said however, as a reviewer, I do feel I need to bring up a few points I had issue with. While this book has action and adventure, it feels a little bit like the rough edges have been trimmed up, the points filed off, the sharp corners sanded down. It's a bit like a roller coaster, which may have a thrilling design, but never puts you in genuine peril. The language of danger in this book is somewhat toned down. For those familiar with film terminology, the Foley effects are missing. Missing is the dull twock of an arrow hitting a body, the almost inaudible drip of blood from a wound falling into a puddle. It's almost PG-13. This comes from a couple different places, partially from the tropes of the coming of age novel, partially from the balance Kyell struck between plot advancement and character development, but it is also put into sharp relief by the contrast between Shadow of the Father and Seventh Chakra, which I reviewed earlier.

Both books are good in their own way, but they have a number of similar plot points, which invite rather direct comparison. Reading the two back to back (literally, as I sat on airplanes and in airports on the way home from FC) one can't help but make comparisons between the two. It was after I started re-reading Shadow that I was able to articulate why Chakra resonated with me more. This part has little to do with the quality of the book itself, but rather my own reactions as a reader. I pointed out a couple times already that Shadow is very much about young characters, as well as using some tropes common in fiction for young-adults, and I have premature old-man syndrome--I'm crotchety, cynical, and want you to get off my lawn. That makes it only natural that I wind up gravitating more toward the gritty and hard-boiled adventure.

In truth, none of the issues I had with the book can honestly be called faults of the book so much as a difference between myself and the intended audience. It certainly didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story as the pages flew beneath my fingers. This is definitely another solid piece from Kyell, the superhero. I seriously don't know how he manages to get all of this done and still have time for half the stuff he does in the fandom, much less having an actual job, too. If you weren't able to be at FC to pick it up in person, I highly recommend ordering it, or picking it up at first available opportunity.

Well, it's later than I really hoped, but it's still the first review up on furrybookreview.

Kyell's new book, Shadow of the Father, released this January at Further Confusion. Fans of Kyell have been following production for quite some time, starting with daily updated word counts on kyellgold's livejournal during initial writing phases, and some bonus content in the form of journal entries written from the perspective of yilon, the main character. There's also been a pre-release review posted on Weasel Wordsmith by jakebe.



At this point, there's quite a bit of back story established in modern Argaea, to say nothing of the historical events alluded to in the various novels and short stories. Jakabe felt in his review that Shadow is still a good entry point even if you aren't familiar with the history of Argaea, told in the novels Volle, Pendant of Fortune, Prisoner's Release and Other Stories as well as a few other short stories scattered here and there. I somewhat disagree. While you wouldn't by any means be lost in the book if you haven't read any previous work, the characters would make less sense. At minimum, I would recommend at least reading Pendant of Fortune and Yilon's journal before picking up this book.

Shadow starts up right away with Yilon, second son of Volle being named as successor to lordship of the country of Dewanne, and establishing Yilon's intimate relationship with Sinchon, a mouse, which sets up a wide range of conflict over the course of the book. As an aside, although the two characters are technically 'of age', that equates to roughly 16, which makes the few sex scenes ever so slightly uncomfortable to this aging reader. I hope no one calls the pedobear on me. In all fairness, the sex scenes are not written for the titillation of the reader, but to illustrate the relationship between the two characters.

The various tensions caused by Yilon's relationship with Sinch are mostly underplayed, subservient to the main plot of the book, something which could be described as a rip-roaring adventure yarn--At least those would be the word's you'd use to write a cliche back cover blurb for young-adult novels. While a tad too explicit to truly qualify for the young-adult stamp, in plot and structure, this really is a classic bildungsroman, a coming of age story wrapped around an adventure in a foreign land. The basic outline is that Yilon makes a few mistakes in the beginning due to inexperience, rashness, and impetuousness, i.e. youth, and spends the rest of the book learning why what he did was a mistake and trying to fix it.

The book is quite a departure from Kyell's other novels in that it has a much more active plot, and between Yilon's story arc and Sinch's story arc there is much less room for the characters to examine their motivations, to develop and grow organically over the course of the book as in previous books. The time frame of the narrative is so compressed that this sort of slow build and change is just not possible. I think that's part of why having the background from the previous Argaea novels and short stories is that much more vital to this book. Yilon is very much his father's son, and it holds up better if the reader knows it.

Overall, it's a very excellent book. The return to Argaea with a new generation revitalizes the setting for me, even as Volle's brief appearance cements in my mind that his narrative arc is coming to a close. I've read the book twice already, and I'll likely read it again in the coming months.

That said however, as a reviewer, I do feel I need to bring up a few points I had issue with. While this book has action and adventure, it feels a little bit like the rough edges have been trimmed up, the points filed off, the sharp corners sanded down. It's a bit like a roller coaster, which may have a thrilling design, but never puts you in genuine peril. The language of danger in this book is somewhat toned down. For those familiar with film terminology, the Foley effects are missing. Missing is the dull twock of an arrow hitting a body, the almost inaudible drip of blood from a wound falling into a puddle. It's almost PG-13. This comes from a couple different places, partially from the tropes of the coming of age novel, partially from the balance Kyell struck between plot advancement and character development, but it is also put into sharp relief by the contrast between Shadow of the Father and Seventh Chakra, which I reviewed earlier.

Both books are good in their own way, but they have a number of similar plot points, which invite rather direct comparison. Reading the two back to back (literally, as I sat on airplanes and in airports on the way home from FC) one can't help but make comparisons between the two. It was after I started re-reading Shadow that I was able to articulate why Chakra resonated with me more. This part has little to do with the quality of the book itself, but rather my own reactions as a reader. I pointed out a couple times already that Shadow is very much about young characters, as well as using some tropes common in fiction for young-adults, and I have premature old-man syndrome--I'm crotchety, cynical, and want you to get off my lawn. That makes it only natural that I wind up gravitating more toward the gritty and hard-boiled adventure.

In truth, none of the issues I had with the book can honestly be called faults of the book so much as a difference between myself and the intended audience. It certainly didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story as the pages flew beneath my fingers. This is definitely another solid piece from Kyell, the superhero. I seriously don't know how he manages to get all of this done and still have time for half the stuff he does in the fandom, much less having an actual job, too. If you weren't able to be at FC to pick it up in person, I highly recommend ordering it, or picking it up at first available opportunity.

Talking Film reviews the latest Disney animated feature The Princess and the Frog©2010 Tanuke Media Talking Film - The Princess and the Frog