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Heyyyyyy remember when I put that weird request looking for people to give me species to make characters from? I would up going with two of you, and split them into two separate helpful tip posts.

The first, this one, will help with designing a one-species fursona/character. The second, which will be up sometime this week, will focus more on hybridizing two or more species instead of just slapping wings onto a wolf.

I noticed that everyone is going for some kind of hybrid, and there are some interesting choices, but I'll keep it simple and just ask for a hawk character. I really love their sharp, angular features. Lets say this character likes to dance, and is into tribal themes, collector of fossiles and weird taxadermy art, usually chipper, but also fiercesome. Dirty, dull, and dark colors are cool.

/u/Chaos_Kitten was the one who suggested it, and I could not help but do it. I have a soft spot for hawks, and the added interests made it wonderful.

This isn't my any means a tutorial, or a "this is how you do it, no ifs, ands, or buts", but when you're trying to make a character that isn't just a cookie cutter golden retriever, or yet another red fox, I'm hoping to help people think of a process to help them find their unique features.

Note: I link one image of sketches I did during this process, but each step had possibly 2-3 pages. I'm not about to flood you with a bunch of stuff, so I cut it down to one page of the best for each step.

Step 1: Reference your species

Okay so I chose a hawk. Wonderful! What do I know about them? Well...they're birds of prey, so they have talons and sharp, curved beaks. Hawks have fairly broad wings for gliding, and large tails (usually). So I start with what I know, and draw it (that top left headshot was without reference, I did a few more of these but lets face it, they're terrible).

THEN I REFERENCED. I went and pulled image references of different types of hawks. I made a list of some species I knew off the top of my head, you can see there, and went looking for images of those. Hell, I might wind up using those specific types of hawks for their colors/patterns later. Who knows?

Note: The two profile images on the right are a comparison between a hawk and an eagle. THEY MAY BE SIMILAR, BUT FIND WHAT MAKES THEM DIFFERENT! Eagles have huge beaks, heavy and extend quite a way from their brow. Hawks have very short, hooked beaks which gives them a unique look. Not as short as some falcons, but pretty short.

Step 2: Playing around with what you now know

After referencing, and having the type of animal fresh in my mind and fresh on my hand, I go and start playing with it in new ways, start trying to make a character. This is where I'd look for what kind of anatomy I'd like to have for an anthro. You can see I played with the different types of raptor feet, the "2 and 2" with fishing raptors, and the "3 and 1" with more average birds. While I love 2 and 2, I found using 3 and 1, with a digitigrade leg, looked best.

I DID like the 2 and 2, though, and looked into making the character's hands use those.

NEVER ERASE! This page is ugly as all hell, this stage usually is for me, but sometimes you need those mistakes. Maybe you'll get an idea from it, or maybe you'll know NEVER AGAIN.

Step 3: Developing the Character

So here's where I go back and start thinking what I can do to make this hawk...more than just a hawk. This is where I would think "what are some of my interests"? Or..."I really like frog throats, maybe I can work with that?" (fun fact, if you know my sona, that's exactly what happened with my glowy throat pouch!). THINK. PLAY. HAVE FUN. This is the stage where you experiment most.

I made a list of all the things I could think of, all the things I thought were cool, after looking at /u/chaos_kitten's list of stuff in the comment. And then I started trying it.

I came up with mostly bone-related accessories, at some point I started playing with deer horns, and I was looking into putting fur on this character's legs but it never got very far.

When coming up with ideas, DON'T GO WITH THE FIRST ONE YOU HAVE. When character designing, the first ideas you have are usually the worse, the most obvious, etc. You need to draw those to get them out of the way, but keep expanding on them. Think beyond them. Never settle for the first because it's there.

Step 4: Color Palettes

So this one I sometimes don't even do until the final image, but in this case I wanted to play with them, see if maybe I could get a bit more out of this character by looking at colors.

I was given muddy colors in the comment, which I absolutely love. This character, who loves taxidermy and archaeology, who's got a tribal theme going on (at this point I realized dance just wasn't happening...you'll see what I did with that later), it makes sense to have browns and reds.

Now, I'm a sucker for burgundy/wine colors. It's entirely okay to add in your favorite color of choice. This is ultimately your character you're working with, you generally would want to put things you like. So along with those browns and reds, I touched a bit into purples. I also am a huge fan of using lots of browns, and then throwing in something random like blue or green.

It's a good idea to not expand into TOO many colors. If you don't know color theory....well, learn it, yeah, but be careful just throwing every color ever. Browns and reds are along the same part of the color wheel, so I was careful not to take too many colors from the other end.

Step 5: The Final Design

/u/chaos_kitten this character is now yours, as is this reference sheet. Do with him/her what you will, though I may drop by and draw it once in a while ;)

Here is where I make my absolute final tweaks. By this point, I had a damn good idea what I was going to do with him, but I had a couple things that I changed:

*His hands no longer had two thumbs, I went with normal hands but with three fingers.

*I couldn't make him very dance-y, but during the design, my mind went from dance, to gymnastics, to the wrappings they wear for support. So he has wrappings on his limbs.

*He had wings on his back for so long, but after an accidental sketch, I made his wings look like they were attached to his arms and only went halfway. It was AWESOME! Mistakes sometimes are fantastic!

Since I work digitally and use layers, this is where I finalize any markings. I try to keep them realistic, it makes for more interesting characters imo. But I generally go through so many markings before settling on any that I like.

I hope it helps, I know there's been a lot of people asking recently about character design help, fursona design help, and I've been super into designing characters for a long time.

Remember, ultimately your sona is YOURS. No one can tell you what to do with it, but the more time you put into thinking about it, the more you may feel attached to your character.

submitted by Sareii
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Imgur Art by http://www.furaffinity.net/user/crimsyn

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Demisexuality, labels, and deaths. Use our coupon code “knot” at AdamEve.com for some bonus gifts! Music is “AA Battery Controlled Telescopic Knife” by Pepperpcoyote Website: www.lookleft.us Twitter: @peppercoyote FA: username/peppercoyote I'm playing shows at BLFC, MCFC, Furthemore, and FAU so far this year. Check your local listings! Episode 275 - Day 2567

Hey. I need some help on what do to or how to feel.

So today, I was at a museum browsing the Animal Body Works Exhibit. I decide to show a few photos to my furry friends on LINE, and my brother comes over. I hide my phone and he tells my mom to come and check my phone. She goes through my texts (regular texts) and my contacts, and my safari (at that time I just had PADx up, no Facebook or reddit, phew) and then asked me a question that still sticks with me.

"Is there anything on your phone that would make me angry?"

I realized that all 3 of the websites I use are kept secret from everyone. I feel horrible for mostly keeping these things secret, and also the fact that I talk to strangers more than people I know... I don't want to tell her because I will be banned and probably grounded for a year, but I can't hide it forever. Im not doing anything really horrible, like personal information, meeting you guys, etc, but it's against family rules.

It's not about me being a furry that's going to get me hated. It's the fact that I'm talking with people online (like right now) I trust you guys, what can I do?

Thanks for everything, guys. I can always trust you :)

~Nex

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Hi everyone, it's seem that ''Eternal-glow'' on deviantart need some help, her dog got hurt by a car, and now his jaw his broken (She has some proof of how much he's hurt) please help her, you can find either her journal here. http://fav.me/d8lmc1g

Or mine, offering commission at the price of 5$, every amount must be sent to her directly, but ask me for the commission, OR her if she offer it.

http://fav.me/d8lqgfl

Let all hope she can keep her dog, shall we?

submitted by Toxitythepony
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So I just made a yarn tail and I'm wondering how people in some of the images I've looked at get their yarn so dang straight I run mine through a hair straightener but it's till pretty curly any tips?

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So I was in bed last night and my mind wondered down the rabbit hole (hehheh) into a world where furries and humans existed on the same planet, they have the same inteligence, there just anthro. Would the furries get civilian rights? Would they be classed as humans or an animal species? Would they be descriminated against? Would the whole cycle of reality be changed by there meet existence? Do you think humans would eat furries? Would we live in harmony or in compleat separation? It really makes you think. Do you think it would be legal for a human to marry a furry? What do you think this world would be like? It's interesting to think of how many problems this would cause... So, what do you guys think?

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School stuff, mo' classes, mo' essays, blah blah.

Update: Still trying to work on the "Songs for 'sonas" thing but school and trying to get my synthesizer is kicking my ass.

But: My first ever song is going better than ever planned

Anyways, enough about me, tell me what you've been up to as of late!

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Don't have much to say here but 3/14/15....this is a pi day I've been waiting for for over 20 years.....I dunno about you guys but I'm eating a slice of pie at 9:26 today.

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Hello, Papa Bear!

I've wrote to you before and you helped me with a previous issue. It was a trivial one but now that I have your insight on it, I feel much better, thank you!

This time, the issue is a bit more larger. It's about an online 'friend' I have. We'll call her 'Ally'. I really don't know if she's a friend or not, but allow me to explain the situation. 

You see, I met Ally about 3.5 years ago, from a friend on DeviantArt. When she first video chatted me, she was alright. She used to talk about daily things and the like. But then came drama and most of the time, she'd use me as an emotional cushion. She'd never want to be alone, and she was really depressed. Me being the overly nice person I am, I stayed with her, and this continued about once every two weeks for a about two and a half years. 

We used to talk about dumb stuff sometimes, and there were moments where we did genuinely laugh, but sometimes she would be on video stoned or crying or smoking or drunk. She'd pour out her drama and I'd sit there and nod and say stupid things to try and cheer her up. I don't know why I tolerated it. I guess I felt bad for her because I thought she was really emotional and suicidal. She used to manipulate me into calling her. I know I was being manipulated but... I couldn't help myself. I felt really bad for her. 

There was a half-year I got a break from video chatting her once a week. We still kept in contact through text. We occasionally video chatted when I had a good enough internet or privacy. During this time, she managed to find a boyfriend, she moved out of her house that was causing her drama, and she's living pretty happily. 

Now the problem is... I just don't want to talk to her nowadays. I've become bored with her. She's happier than before, but she'll occasionally (once a month) get on video chat stoned or drunk, or she'll stick me on the phone with her boyfriend or other members of the house I really don't want to talk to. I remember saying: "I don't really want to talk to anyone else right now." and she still made me meet them. Although, perhaps I didn't say it with enough conviction as I should have. 

She's a very loyal and morally ground person, really. She just doesn't like being alone sometimes. She has her housemate, who she's really good friends with. I feel that I'm just there for her own entertainment sometimes. I've made friends in a game development chat I really like talking too. I can talk to them about dumb and deep stuff. Artist things, video games, life at school... heck, I just finished a four hour chat with one of them, and I enjoyed it! I can't handle more than 30 minutes with Ally. 

It's been bugging me: I feel that I'm in too deep with her because she thinks we've been friends for 3.5 years. I force myself to sit there and nod while she tells her housemate how she and I were buddies. I don't consider her much as a friend. Just... I don't know, an acquaintance. Someone who somehow forced their way into my life. I can tolerate her for 30 minutes tops, and during that time, we can have some decent conversation. 

I feel I've gone in too deep with her. Her friend's kid started calling me 'Uncle'. And she's really set on having me come visit her when if I go to graduate school in the USA.

I can not handle that. I will not handle that. >.< 

And... I don't know, Papa Bear. She's not clingy: I can tell her nowadays that I don't feel like talking and she'll accept it. She'll sometimes say stuff like: "*Whines* Pleeease?" But she's not clingy and as manipulative anymore and she won't force me into a chat. I just choose to entertain her because again... I feel bad. However, I just want to remove her from my contacts list. I've done it with so many other people, but with her, I've video chatted her and I've been there for the bad times in her life. 

I've been reading these little “Thought Catalog” friendship blogs and sometimes I think I'm just a crappy friend. Sometimes I think that I should give her a chance. Sometimes I just want to remove her from Skype without telling her a thing. 

I'm very confused and this is troubling me. Not to the point where it's distracting my work and general life, but every time I go online, she's there, waiting to talk. I don't want to talk to Ally, even though she's a good, happy person now who had some rough luck in the past. 

So after all this, what do you think, Papa? Should I tell her I'm moving on? I'm growing as a person and I've made new friends? Should I just write her a really long and emotional paragraph and remove her through Skype text? The one other thing stopping me removing Ally is that I know she's really emotional. I know she'll get depressed again if I leave her because she's had quite a few close people leave her in the past, during her seemingly endless bad weeks. Even the thought of saying: "Look Ally, I think we need to talk..." gives me the chills because I'm afraid she'll get this hurt look and... gah. What to do, what to do? >.< 

Your advice on this matter is greatly appreciated. 

Hugs,

Kilik

* * *

Dear Kilik,

This reminds me a little of a situation I had with a former friend in high school. I met him during my brief life in Illinois, where I attended a high school in the Chicago suburb of Wheaton for a year. I didn’t have many friends at all at the time (having just been uprooted from my childhood home of Van Nuys and making a tough transition), and this fellow (I’ll call him Ted) made an effort to be friends with me, which was nice and I appreciated it. My family then moved again (to Michigan) and I lost touch with Ted. Fast forward about 30 years and he contacted me on Facebook. Ted was quite friendly, had married, and had become, well, very Christian, shall we say. Other than that year in Wheaton, we really didn’t have a thing in common and I wasn’t all that interested in his friendship. It’s not that I thought he was a bad person or even that I didn’t like him (he’s likeable enough), it’s just that I felt no sense of closeness to him, none at all, and, well, I found him boring. So, basically, when he contacted me I politely said hello, but made no effort to chat with him and he eventually got the message, I believe.

I have said in this column a number of times that true friendships are priceless and one should not dismiss them lightly, so perhaps this sounds a bit contradictory, but it really isn’t. A friend should be someone with whom you have some things in common (hobbies, work, world views) and to whom you can relate. You are under no obligation to be someone’s friend just because they want to be your friend if you really don’t feel like you have much in common. A friend is someone who enhances your quality of life, not someone who feels like a burden, an obligation because you somehow feel guilty that you actually want to dismiss him or her from your life.

I, like you, used to be a sucker for the whiny plea for acceptance, too, but I’m over that now. I’ll give you another, more recent, example from my life. I run the Greymuzzle group on Facebook (along with Critter Otter). To become a member, we have a couple guidelines that are simple, but strict: 1) you must be a furry, of course, and 2) you must be at least 30 years old (or else it wouldn’t be a Greymuzzle group). And, of course, you can’t be a jerk. So, anyway, I screen the people who want to be members and the other day someone asked to be a member, so I checked out his profile and it said he was 21. I wrote back to him and said, sorry, but you have to be at least 30. He wrote back and said he was 32 and his fursona was 21 and that was because he wanted to be young again. I then wrote to him that I wasn’t comfortable with people who lie on their profiles and, anyway, if he’s obsessed with being young he really didn’t fit in with a group of furries who were celebrating the fact that they were older, more mature furries. Then I got the whiny “pretty pleeeeeeze” like he was a baby. Nope, doesn’t wash with me, not impressed. So, you see, even though he technically fit the profile, he wasn’t right for the group and so the judgment call—about which I have no qualms—was appropriate.

Your letter is riddled with words and phrases that leave no doubt that you don’t wish to be friends with Ally; she just doesn’t fit into your life, your personality. So, do you “write her a really long and emotional paragraph”? Of course not. That just evokes a lot of silly, unneeded drama. You indicate her life has improved a lot, so, not to burst your self-esteem at all, but you might be giving the value of your friendship a bit more weight than it truly carries. I’m sure Ally will survive if you decide to break it off.

Unlike making friends, dropping friends is incredibly simple and can be done with class. You don’t have to be a drama queen about it; you don’t have to explain yourself; most importantly, you don’t have to be mean. Simply be disinterested, which is honest. You don’t have to block her, or even bother to unfriend her. Gradually reduce the number of times the two of you are in contact. On those occasions you do chat, reduce the amount of time you talk. Keep doing this until, eventually, contact is reduced to almost nothing or stops completely.

Now, at some point, she might contact you and ask if there is something wrong. To this, you say, “No, nothing’s wrong and I’m not mad at you.” If she presses, say, “Ally, I just think that what we had has kind of run it’s course. We really don’t have much in common. This has nothing to do with you; you’re a good person. It’s about me and my interests and life goals.”

Do not feel guilty about this! You are not being a mean or bad person. This is just a matter of two people who don’t click together. Neither one of you is to blame. It’s okay to weed out some clunker friends from your life and then, hopefully, find others who fit into your life better.

Hope that helps. 

Stay furry!

Papabear

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