Furry author and editor Kirisis Alpinus passed away in a Swedish hospital on March 5th, following a visit to NordicFuzzCon.

Also known on Twitter as DaRhedDol, and as member of the Furry Writers' Guild KC Alpinus, she leaves behind a legacy of work and her mate and fellow furry author and guild member Ocean Tigrox.

As well as her writing and editing, Kirisis shared her activism and admiration for her fellow women of color, and supported furries of color by helping to organize gatherings and sharing experiences and history using her degree in political science.

Furries have been sharing fan art that features her dhole and dire wolf hybrid in her memory.

Bad Dog Books is celebrating her life by offering CLAW Volume 1 for free through March - a lesbian anthology released in 2018, inspired by the FANG series focused on male/male partnerships - as well as ROAR Volume 9 and Dogs of War II Aftermath in which she had stories. Her work also featured in Inhuman Acts and Bleak Horizons, and she won the 2020 Cóyotl Award for Best Anthology with A Selection of Anthropomorphic Regalements, Vol 1.

Joe Strike is back with his second book exploring the world of Furry Fandom — after the award-winning Furry Nation, this one is appropriately called Furry Planet. “Furs are the creative subculture of people who identify with animals. You can find them at furry conventions, furfests, around the world—tens of thousands of people donning their most elaborate fursuit. In costume, at conventions, with friends or alone, furries unleash the animal within, letting their inner beasts roar and their inner cats purr, aware of the power—and joy—to be found in bringing forward one’s animal side and encouraging others to do the same. In Furry Planet, long-time furry Joe Strike dives deep into this compelling subculture to share its appeal and rewards. Strike and a wealth of interviewees trace the history of the subculture and its various iterations today, in the process covering conventions, media, art, storytelling, community resources, costume creation, and advice for newcomers, and addressing stigmas and misconceptions head on.” Look for it coming soon from Apollo Publishers.

image c. 2023 Apollo Publishers

When you look up library books on a computer, typically you get a description that goes something like this:

As previously covered, furry author Peter S. Beagle has been in the throes of the American court system for nearly two years now, fighting his former publishing agent Connor Cochran for damages and restitution for 15 causes of action including fraud, defamation, and elder abuse. I won't rehash all the details, but Cochran's history of sharp practice is long and appalling. Mr. Beagle deserves an end to these proceedings as quickly as due diligence will allow, but Cochran would rather drag things out in a war of attrition.

One example of the Conlan Press founder's meandering through convoluted legal roadblocks was his filing of a Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings, on the basis there were no issues of fact to support the allegations in not just one, or a few, but in all 15 causes of action. Initially given a tentative ruling on October 24, this was contested by Cochran. After arguing the matter, the tentative ruling was affirmed. The result? All but one of Mr. Beagle's causes of action were sustained.

CatTimothy House is a small science-fiction press in the dimension of Camestros Felapton. There's no connection to furry fandom - unless you count Pete, the magic walrus. But its website, run by CEO/editor Timothy the Talking Cat, should become better known!

As noted in January, Archie's Sonic the Hedgehog comics (including Sonic Universe and Overdrive) have been delayed for unspecified reasons, with suspicion falling on a renewed contract dispute with SEGA.

Today, the official Sonic the Hedgehog Twitter account announced that SEGA of America were "parting ways" with Archie; promising that it was not "the end of Sonic in comics", but a "decision to take a different direction for the series that will be announced at a later date".

Not just fans, but current and former staff of the series were stunned by the news.

At the end of April, I posted a Newsbyte regarding a charity art drive to benefit “lifelong furry” and renowned fantasy author Peter S. Beagle, in order to fund his legal costs and living expenses as he litigates a suit against his former agent.

That was the first I had heard of the troubles of The Last Unicorn’s author. Upon seeing that Uncle Kage had tweeted about this situation in 2016, however, I learned this suit had been going on for longer than I realized, and I took the time to look deeply into the situation.

What I found was horrifying, and the rabbit hole seemed to go deeper the more I looked. Today I'm going to go into more detail about this shameful situation, bringing it to light in the hopes that the more people who know, the more help Beagle will receive.

Get ready, this is gonna be a long ride. If you don't want to read every single detail, I implore you to scroll down to the "How you can help" section, or at least spread this message as far as you can. Beagle needs as many friends as he can get right now.

Peter S. Beagle is suing his former agent for elder abuse, fraud, defamation, and breach of fiduciary duty, among other related allegations, which you can read in full here [PDF].

Mainstream outlet Publisher's Weekly ran a recent spotlight on author M.C.A. Hogarth that includes a nod to furry small press SofaWolf and the novel Flight of the Godkin Griffin.

In 2004, she offered “Flight of the Godkin Griffin,” a sword and sorcery fantasy diary, directly to her audience via LiveJournal, then a popular social blogging platform. (Hogarth still actively connects with fans there, at haikujaguar.livejournal.com.) Each entry ended with a question about a minor thing that could happen next, and readers who donated could vote and have an effect on the upcoming scenes. Years later, once prior publication on the Web no longer necessarily jeopardized a project’s print prospects, Hogarth sold this piece to the small press Sofawolf as a two-volume novel. Although Hogarth may have chosen to blaze the self-publishing path as a response to a traditional publishing industry that did not want her on her terms, she’s well-suited to a flexible, entrepreneurial approach to authorship, combining perfectionism with drive and marketing and management skills honed in the corporate world. “Self-publishing is more agile,” she says. “You can put things out faster, make decisions faster. It’s very rewarding for people like me, who write quickly and respond to change very quickly. There’s no set path anymore, even if you are traditionally publishing. You have to find weird opportunities and try them.”

Publisher's Weekly has been published continuously since 1872 and bills itself as the "International News Magazine of Book Publishing and Bookselling," with a circulation of over 25,000 publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents.

The cost of printing and distribution combined with minimal or non-existent sales always made fanzines a marginal proposition. But the format, if not the medium, is still popular with those seeking to try their paws at publishing.

Tag by Felix Greypaw and Hashiko Whitepaw offers an example of what you can do in just a few days; the first – so far only – issue was published May 16, including in-depth (and, alas, uncredited) articles about Dust: An Elysian Tail, Furcadia, and Wolf's Rain from Wikipedia, as well as furry-themed horoscopes and art.

Furry N' Fuzzy Magazine has made it to two issues, although it's overdue for the third. Featuring artists, t-shirt reviews, interviews, personal histories, the syndicated column Ask Papabear, photos of things that look furry, and copious ads, there's something for everyone.

Lauri and Jaakko Ahonen created an Indiegogo campaign for their darkly comic full-color graphic novel Jaybird. Evidently it was quite successful, as now it’s been published! “Little Jaybird lives in a very large house alone with his bedridden mother. Portraits of dignified ancestors look down upon him from dusty walls. At times also a curious spider peeks from between the cobwebs. Even though it’s safe inside the house, with its doors barred and windows boarded up, reality can’t be shut outside forever.” It’s available now for download (complete with original soundtrack music), and this September Dark Horse Press will release it in a hardcover book edition.

image c. 2014 Dark Horse Press

One of the classics of anthropomorphic superhero comics, Extinctioners by Shawntae Howard, is available again in digital form. Originally published in black & white by Shanda Fantasy Arts, Extinctioners: Road to Extinction #1 – 5 have been scanned for download by Angry Viking Press. “It was a time for celebration. The budding of young romances, the coming of age transition from child to young adult, and the promising hope of the future. Katherine Fela and Scarlet Starfox’s lives could not have been more different from one another, but the appearance of alien invaders would forever intertwine their destinies. ” Check it out at Drive Thru Comics. This version includes a brand new full-color cover.

image c. 2014 by Shawntae Howard

Furry publisher Sofawolf Press has announced use of a new submissions and reviews system, Submittable, aiming to simplify the process for both editors and creative types.

The following anthologies are currently open for submissions:

• Heat #11 (romantic/erotic stories, comics and poetry): open until September 30th
• New Fables (literary fiction and poetry): open until filled
• Hot Dish #2 (longer romantic/erotic stories of 10,000–20,000 words): open until filled

Sofawolf is also accepting submissions for novels and graphic novels. Those interested can visit sofawolfpress.submittable.com to read submission guidelines and submit their work.

Bad Dog Books' website has been repurposed as a store for FurPlanet's e-books and comics. 45 items are for sale, at prices from $2.95 to $9.99.

Two free e-books are on offer for those wishing to try before they buy: Kyell Gold's collection Gold Standard, and "Thou Shalt Not Kill" by FuzzWolf.

Promoted authors include Kevin Frane, Ben Goodridge, Cyanni, and Rechan; over 40 are represented in total, including anthologies. Art packs by Kadath are also available.

Buyers may download "DRM free" works in both epub (Nook, Sony Reader, iBooks) and mobi (Kindle-compatible) formats.

New products are to be announced via a dedicated blog and on @BadDogBooks.

Bad Dog Books, founded in 2005 by Alex Vance, became a FurPlanet imprint in 2011.

Part-time furry cartoonist and full-time MD Jenner, creator of UMA-nominated strip Doc Rat, has become an editorial cartoonist for Australian Doctor.

Jenner, better known in the medical world as Melbourne GP Dr. Craig Hilton, has been cartooning for over 25 years. Within the fandom, he is best known for the adventures of Dr. Benjamin Rat, which started June 2006.

The position at Aus Doc opened up after the retirement of Dr. Bob Futcher. [tip: Fred Patten]

Endtown is an Ursa Major Award-nominated black & white web-comic by Aaron Neathery. “A mutagenic plague followed by a global war fought with disintegration weaponry has left much of the Earth a desert of fine powder, and what remains of humanity fragmented into humans, animal-like mutants and bloodthirsty monstrosities with lots of teeth. The surface, still teeming with the mutagenic virus, has become the domain of the dreaded Topsiders: Well-organized, technologically advanced, and heavily armed un-mutated humans sworn to exterminate mutations of any kind in order to clear the way for the eventual resurgence of a new, genetically clean humanity. Faced with annihilation, mutants and ‘impure’ humans have retreated into the depths of the planet to form communities and hope to win, or at least survive, what may prove to be mankind’s final war.” The strip continues weekly on Gocomics, and now Jarlidium Press have announced that the first two years of the comic will soon be released in two paperback volumes. Pre-orders have already closed, but the books will be available for general sale this June.