Newbie......?

Started by Omegus, March 27, 2017, 10:53:29 PM

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Omegus

Hello!

I guess for starters I wouldn't exactly call myself a part of the fandom currently, but maybe given time. Being rather socially awkward, I do apologize if this comes across as somewhat strange.

Lately I have been rather curious about the furry fandom and what its like, so I figured who better to hear about it from than the people who are a part of it. So if anyone has some free time to gush about the things they love or just talk in general, it would be much appreciated.

Gizmo


Hazellius

Welcome to the BCFurries forums, Omegus!

You're going to get different answers from different furs on what the furry fandom means to them, but to me, the furry fandom here in BC is more of a community than a fandom. I went to one of the meetups and immediately felt welcomed by a bunch of like-minded people. People that soon would become my friends.

It's basically what I had hoped when becoming part of a group. All sorts of events are organized, anywhere from small gatherings/meetups to large parties/conventions, along with dinners and activities such as bowling, hiking, swimming and dancing and the like. Some furs go to these events to fursuit, but most actually wear nothing furry. I go to these events to hang out with friends, with the added benefit of being able to wear a tail and/or ears if I'd like to do so :P

With "like-minded" I don't just mean liking animals, fluffyness and fursuiting. Almost everyone here is very open and accepting to people with different interests and mindsets. The socially anxious, the social awkward and the LGBTQ+ folk are welcomed, so there's a much higher concentration of them in this fandom. It's nice to be among people who are way more likely to understand your differences.

Hopefully that cleared up a couple things :)

Omegus

Quote from: Gizmo on March 28, 2017, 11:21:09 AM
Welcome!
Thanks!


Quote from: Hazellius on March 28, 2017, 01:46:00 PM
Welcome to the BCFurries forums, Omegus!

You're going to get different answers from different furs on what the furry fandom means to them, but to me, the furry fandom here in BC is more of a community than a fandom. I went to one of the meetups and immediately felt welcomed by a bunch of like-minded people. People that soon would become my friends.

It's basically what I had hoped when becoming part of a group. All sorts of events are organized, anywhere from small gatherings/meetups to large parties/conventions, along with dinners and activities such as bowling, hiking, swimming and dancing and the like. Some furs go to these events to fursuit, but most actually wear nothing furry. I go to these events to hang out with friends, with the added benefit of being able to wear a tail and/or ears if I'd like to do so :P

With "like-minded" I don't just mean liking animals, fluffyness and fursuiting. Almost everyone here is very open and accepting to people with different interests and mindsets. The socially anxious, the social awkward and the LGBTQ+ folk are welcomed, so there's a much higher concentration of them in this fandom. It's nice to be among people who are way more likely to understand your differences.

Hopefully that cleared up a couple things :)
thanks for the reply! It's nice to hear the local community is so accepting, hopefully it holds true for the island.

there's a few things I don't really understand that you (or anyone else reading this) might be able to chime in on. there seems to be an incredibly high concentration of artists that exist throughout the community, so it feels rather awkward as I am rather artistically stunted. from an outside view it doesn't seem like there's a single person that doesn't write, draw or sculpt to some degree. another thing I'm a little confused about is the importance of things like fursona's, as a few sources I've read differ on how necessary having one is.

Hazellius

If comparing with other fandoms, there is indeed a higher concentration of artists here. Some of them are furries themselves, but there is a reasonable amount of artists that are attracted to the furry fandom because - with almost every furry wanting to have an original and personal character realized - there are a lot of commission-opportunities.

This does not mean that there's an expectation for everyone to be an artist. There wouldn't be any artists if it weren't for the vast majority of people commissioning rather than being the commissioner. Everyone has different interests. Artistic interests is no exception. Artists look like the majority of the fandom because they are the loud minority. They require a presence online and in the fandom in order to get a lot of commissions.

As for the fursona-aspect, it isn't a requirement to be in the fandom. Particularly in BC, the furry community is inclusive as long as you're accepting of furries and the minority-groups that are attracted to this community, such as the socially awkward and LGBTQ+ folk. Particularly during conventions, there's plenty of people that either don't have a fursona yet, or are just a friend or parent that are tagging along with a furry.

That being said, furries are very much used to the people in their community usually having a fursona, so you can expect questions such as "What's your fursona?" or "What animal are you?" being asked every once in a while. Furries know that there are people in the fandom that don't have a fursona, so responding with that is an understandable answer to them.

Hope this helps :)

Korozar

Quote from: Omegus on March 27, 2017, 10:53:29 PM
Hello!

I guess for starters I wouldn't exactly call myself a part of the fandom currently, but maybe given time. Being rather socially awkward, I do apologize if this comes across as somewhat strange.

Lately I have been rather curious about the furry fandom and what its like, so I figured who better to hear about it from than the people who are a part of it. So if anyone has some free time to gush about the things they love or just talk in general, it would be much appreciated.

Welcome! Feel free to ping me any time on telegram or twitter at @projectx593, I'm kinda socially awkward too so we can have a grand old awkward time chatting about furry stuff, video games, or whatever else!  :)

Omegus

Quote from: Project on March 30, 2017, 12:09:09 AM
Welcome! Feel free to ping me any time on telegram or twitter at @projectx593, I'm kinda socially awkward too so we can have a grand old awkward time chatting about furry stuff, video games, or whatever else!  :)
haha I would like to but I don't know what telegram is and I don't use twitter, any other alternatives? thanks either way!

Quote from: Hazellius on March 29, 2017, 01:26:58 PM
If comparing with other fandoms, there is indeed a higher concentration of artists here. Some of them are furries themselves, but there is a reasonable amount of artists that are attracted to the furry fandom because - with almost every furry wanting to have an original and personal character realized - there are a lot of commission-opportunities.

This does not mean that there's an expectation for everyone to be an artist. There wouldn't be any artists if it weren't for the vast majority of people commissioning rather than being the commissioner. Everyone has different interests. Artistic interests is no exception. Artists look like the majority of the fandom because they are the loud minority. They require a presence online and in the fandom in order to get a lot of commissions.

As for the fursona-aspect, it isn't a requirement to be in the fandom. Particularly in BC, the furry community is inclusive as long as you're accepting of furries and the minority-groups that are attracted to this community, such as the socially awkward and LGBTQ+ folk. Particularly during conventions, there's plenty of people that either don't have a fursona yet, or are just a friend or parent that are tagging along with a furry.

That being said, furries are very much used to the people in their community usually having a fursona, so you can expect questions such as "What's your fursona?" or "What animal are you?" being asked every once in a while. Furries know that there are people in the fandom that don't have a fursona, so responding with that is an understandable answer to them.

Hope this helps :)
I never really thought about that! for all the art and commissions I hear about, I didn't consider that the patrons likely wouldn't all be ordering if they could draw their own personal character themselves (not to say the art isn't worth it!)

thanks a ton for all the info, I think I will look into local groups given time and see about exploring this a bit more. you've been an immense help in alleviating some of the worries.

Korozar

Quote from: Omegus on March 30, 2017, 12:34:52 AM
haha I would like to but I don't know what telegram is and I don't use twitter, any other alternatives? thanks either way!

Telegram is a messaging service that a lot of furs use, there's also some public BC Furries groups on it. As for alternatives for me, you could try my facebook https://www.facebook.com/projectx593, or just DMs here on the forums - though I may be a little slow to respond here.

PlasmaGryphon

Quotefrom an outside view it doesn't seem like there's a single person that doesn't write, draw or sculpt to some degree.

I do not write, draw, or sculpt.  It is rather easy for such people to be invisible on art centered sites and communities, despite their numbers.

Omegus

Quote from: PlasmaGryphon on April 02, 2017, 01:21:43 AM
I do not write, draw, or sculpt.  It is rather easy for such people to be invisible on art centered sites and communities, despite their numbers.
yeah actually going through more community based message boards and stuff I'm noticing way more regular people. I think there's a lot of veneration for the artistically inclined which results in a great deal of conversations centering around them.

KarnDragon

I think that the artists seem prominent because, to my understanding, the furry fandom started with appreciation of anthro art. And of course, if people like the concept of anthro animals they are going to like to see artistic depictions of them. This is a great community for artists, but an audience for the art is also necessary.

Kit

Quoteit doesn't seem like there's a single person that doesn't write, draw or sculpt to some degree

we all express ourselves in different ways, myself I use martial arts and singing :)
Kit Fox

tokar

#12
Quote from: Kit on April 08, 2017, 09:57:06 AM
we all express ourselves in different ways, myself I use martial arts and singing :)

There is a visual I didn't need.  Someone bouncing around a stage, wearing martial arts style clothes,  breaking cinder blocks and pieces of wood, while singing ........ Somewhere over the rainbow, or The sun will come out tomorrow, tomorrow, bet your bottom dollar....

Lol
1 ton truck available for hire.  contact me by personal message for info