kinfeelings

[kinfeelings]

Swamp Indoraptor - a Variation

History:

Unlike in the movie we are familiar with, InGen and Jurassic World did not fail--whether this be due to successful continued containment of the Indominus Rex, or successful recapture or termination of the breached asset. With the successful creation of the Indominus Rex, came the next step of Dr. Henry Wu's experimentation at behest of the Military: "That one, a fraction of the size--deadly, intelligent, able to hide from the most advanced military technology. A living weapon unlike anything we've ever seen."

With greater funding from the Military and InGen behind him, Wu was able to perfect the Indoraptor. Highly intelligent, trainable with incredible situational reasoning, and easily handleable, the base Indoraptor proved to be an unmatched weapon on the battlefield.

Funding was provided to create new variations for a variety of battlefields. Prototypes were kept at Jurassic World for observance until their genomes were perfected. Well composed specimens were put on display--the weaker prototypes were kept in pens away from the eyes of the public.

Physical:

Based on the success of previous prototypes, as shown above, a water-based Indoraptor was designed for missions that took agents into marshy, muddy, and wet environs. Starting with the base genome, the swamp Indoraptor came in at 9 feet tall and 25 feet long, and weighed just under 1 ton. It retains it's faculative bipedalism, able to run and walk on either all fours or two legs, depending on the situation in order to maintain balance at all times. Specimens were shown to be able to leap it's length in height, and climb with ease using it's large killing claw as assistance--even on the slipperiest of surfaces.

The swamp Indoraptor's genome was bolstered with ancient crocodilians such as sarcosuchus to supply the animal with a stronger and more effective paddle tail, and crocodilian-shaped head, complete with a comparably intense bite pressure to either immediately crush limbs, or to grab and drag targets to a watery grave. Similar to it's contemporary crocodilian counterparts, it had bullet-resistant scales and scutes--a must-have for any battlefield.

This prototype was given chromatophores like it's Indominus Rex predecessor to test it's lethality on an ever-shifting battlefield. Primarily dark in color, it's infamous "racing stripe" was purple or blue, though able to shift due to its chromatophores. It had quill-like protofeathers, but these may have been an unintended result as they didnt seem to serve any tactical purpose--though they seemed to be a communication tool to portray body language.

Personality:

The swamp Indoraptor had a large range of vocalizations, from roars and barks to honks and chirps, including subsonic range in order to communicate long distance and through water. Curiously, they seemed to have mastered a non-vocal set of communications as well, observed by tapping their killing claw on rocks, trees, concrete, metal--anything that could transfer sound. Prototypes housed in pens adjacent to one another were found to share what could be considered "language". Handlers reported similar in siblings raised, trained, and deployed together--these teams boasted the highest mission success ratios.

Various prototypes displayed extreme tenacity, and varying levels of ferocity, with the most violent having to be terminated due to repeated escapes to kill other prototypes. Swamp Indoraptors were trained with pulse lasers and a sonic cue just like their earlier counterparts were. They react similarly to a cat with a laser pointer, and interactive displays were set up for guests to play with the prototypes in said fashion. Live prey was often used to test prototypes' abilities, and as a show to the public.

Today's specimen in particular displayed cold, calculating curiosity, able to be handled, but only if treated with respect--dignity even. Standard viability testing gauged her intelligence to be extraordinary, though her keepers reported they felt she was.. hiding more. She displayed exceptional curiosity at the sounds outside her pen, even the ability to mimic--to a certain extent--the sounds of other dinosaurs within the park. Test subjects introduced to her pen were met with intrigue, at points even adopted before their untimely expiry--due to their own flaws, not her violence.

[kinfeelings]

Interview with a dragon (on physical nonhumanity)

Special thanks to our host for helping me transcribe this into a readable format. Word count: 611

How would you describe yourself?

I’m a dragon, a drake (wingless dragon) more specifically. At the moment I’m also spirit, like some of the other members in our system, as someone who had once been alive and arrived here after death.

What is it like being a dragon? What do you do in a day?

Asking “what is it like being a dragon” is about as vague as “what is it like being a human”.

For what I do, I hibernate. The main things I do are sleep and hold a conversation if someone wants it. I don't move around much, if at all. Some might not consider that fulfilling, but having lived a full life already I don’t exactly yearn for much. I’m content with resting.

In what way are you physically nonhuman? Does your experience intersect with humanity in any way?

It does not, no. I've never been a human and wouldn't know much about it. I’m physically nonhuman in a similar way theriform animals are. This is also why I don't use terms such as otherkin or therian, since theriform animals aren't otherkin or therians of their own species.

How did you learn you were physically nonhuman?

It wasn’t really something I had to discover, I was born as a dragon and died at old age as a dragon. Now even as a spirit I’m still a dragon.

Why would — or wouldn’t — you go with the different types of physical nonhumanity?

Holothere as a term is too broad for me to want to use it, in a similar vein as someone acknowledging they fall under alterhumanity but don’t identify solely as alterhuman because of its broadness. It’s not specific enough. Clinical zoanthrope didn’t match at all since that’s not what I experience, and neither did endel.

Extranth I’ve settled on as “close enough” since I’m a nonhuman system member, although I wish I had something more specific for “extranth that lives in the headspace and not through the meatspace body”.

Some will argue that you’re still ultimately having a human experience, how do you respond?

I speak human language because when I was alive I was allied with a human village that I wanted to communicate with. I disagree that a nonhuman experiencing human influence erases or lessens their nonhumanity, or that sharing a behavior with humans makes them human by default. Two different species can have similar or the same qualities without them being non-distinct.

I don’t exist in the same world that those in meatspace do, I’m just an observer of it from elsewhere. Even if at some point I manage to figure out how fronting works, an example we like to use is “you don’t turn into a bike when you ride one”. If I manage to pilot the human body for some period of time, I won’t magically know the firsthand experience of living a human life.

Are there any struggles or frustrations you have?

It’s frustrating to have others jump to conclusions about myself despite how much I try to explain; the niche of physical nonhumanity that I experience tends to break brains. No matter what, people will reason that I am in some way perceivably human. They’ll assume that I’m a clinical zoanthrope, or an endel, or the associative type of physical nonhuman (IE: I’m nonhuman therefore my body is nonhuman). The very last thing that ever tends to be considered is that I’m being very literal in what I explain about myself, and that annoys me.

Are you interested in any human activities?

Not particularly, I never found myself all that interested in the outside world post-death. I suppose I enjoy swimming, and fishing. But not fishing-pole fishing, fishing in the way seabirds fish, since that’s the way I’d done it when I was alive.

[kinfeelings]

•Otherkind of Color Alliance•

•Greetings! The Otherkind of Color Alliance is a brand new discord server specifically for alterhumans of color who wish to gather in their own space to have general conversation and make new connections!

<•>

•In a predominantly white community, it can be really difficult for alterhumans of color to make connections when we are so fragmented and underrepresented. This space seeks to change that! The otherkind of color alliance is a space made by people of color, for people of color! Any non-white person is free to join this space, regardless of whether they identify as any kind of alterhuman or not! We pride ourselves on being a welcoming, safe space for all manner of individuals!

<•>

•We welcome all non-white/non-european people of color, we are also a safe space for mixed race people of color and fair skinned mixed people! We will not under any circumstances welcome white people who claim 1/16th or 1/10th of any minority heritage in the server. Additionally, this space is ONLY for people of color/people who have a considerable amount of non-white heritage. We hold nothing against the genuine white allies of racial minorities, it is only to keep our space as safe and comfortable as possible for our members and to keep this space specifically for people of color.

<•>

•The Otherkind of Color Alliance also serves as the planning committee space for the powwow of the nonhuman event! The powwow of the nonhuman is an annual online event that was created to allow for the representation for indigenous therians and otherkind of all walks of life! More information about the powwow of the nonhuman can be found on the official website for the event!

<•>

•Interested in all or some of the above? Feel free to join our server by pressing the link below! We hope to see you there and thank you for reading! ☀️🪶

•https://discord.gg/nHtFHwAe4q

[kinfeelings]

A Concept: Kardiatype/Empeiríatype

There is this struggle I always had. Most of my fictotypes are routed in spirituality, or to be more precice, in reincarnation but there are also some past lives that mean nothing to me. While I remember some really small bits and pieces of theses lifes and I just have this strong feeling of “Yes, I used to be this person/thing” I don’t identify as this being anymore, which is why I simply refer to them as “past lives”. But there are also past lifes that are really important to me, these lives are integral to my identiy in a way that I know “I wouldn’t be the way I am without them” BUT they are still not exactly kintypes or fictotypes because, despite these feelings and experiences I don’t necessarily identify AS them anymore.

So far I didn’t really knew how I should call them, I always struggled. I don’t want to call them simply past lifes, because of how important they are to me, but I also know that they don’t fit the definition of a kintype/fictotype and hearttype/sympath/kithtype also don’t really fit because it’s more then just identifying WITH them. It’s the experiences I had as them what’s important.

I had one two anon messages about that with @aestherians and he simply proposed to just make up my own word. So that’s what I decided to do.

Kardiatype or Empeiríatype

I’m not sure which one I like more, so it would be cool to hear other peoples opinions. Both words have greek origin and mean Coretype and Experiencetype basically (even though Kardia can also mean heart (I think) which makes it a bit confusing because of hearttype, but eh)

The definition would be:

A past life which experiences had such an impact on you that it formed your core identiy and personality even to this day in such a way that it differs from your past life identity/personality therefor making you NOT identifying as the being from your past life anymore.

While this seems to mostly aply to the spiritual side of otherkin/therian/fictionkin I’m sure it could/would also aply to our psychological friends.

What are your ideas on the concept of Kardiatype/Empeiríatype?

[kinfeelings]

Maybe you can actively choose to turn something into a hearttype… Not just choose to frame your feelings as ‘otherhearted’ or to feed into whatever preexisting feelings you have until they’re such an inherent part of you that you can’t shake them off… But to actively look at something you have very little affinity for and say “I want to love that” and “I want that to be a part of me”. I’ve been thinking a lot about it since the thought was first put in my head, and I’m not afraid to admit I might’ve been hasty or straight-up wrong with my past statements.

I’ve always been interested in spiders, but never beyond the interest I had in other animals. At some point in late childhood, however, I started to fear them because the people around me (especially my mom) were afraid of them. This is how most fears appear; passed on from adults to children. It can be a great survival mechanism, however where I live there aren’t any dangerous spiders. So after a few years of arachnophobia, in my tween years as far as I remember, I decided I didn’t want to have any more irrational fears, and I started the long road to getting rid of them all.

The clown fear was easy to get rid of and only took a year or two at most. The fear of the dark was a lot harder and is something I still struggle with occasionally. The spider fear hit a nice middle-ground. I started out with exposure therapy - looking at photos of jumping spiders and admitting they were cute, moving onto progressively bigger and 'scarier’ species. Eventually I had the courage to get up close with wild spiders and photograph them, and finally to grab wayward spiders with my bare hands and move them outdoors. All the while I was reading about spiders, and the more I learned, the more I fell in love.

Eventually, after half a decade, I’d fallen so deeply in love, I knew I needed these creatures around me, and at the next reptile expo that came to town I bought my first tarantula. He was a gorgeous little Hapalopus formosus whom I named Trick, and while he’s in spider heaven now, I’m grateful that he was my introduction to spider-keeping.

Nowadays my love for spiders has become such an ingrained part of me that I just can’t imagine what kind of person I’d be if it wasn’t there. It has rubbed off on others and several people I know have worked through their own arachnophobia because of me. That’s wild!

My spider love has legitimately affected my life choices - I chose an elective entomology course last year, and I want to write my bachelor project about spiders. I want to work with spider conservation. I surround myself with spiders as much as possible.

It took almost a decade for it to get to this point, but I think I can honestly say I chose a hearttype.

[kinfeelings]

Abandoned

The first time I opened my eyes, I was alone and starving. I saw other pokemon hunting and getting food and I ate what they left behind. When I was confident enough in what I'd learned from watching, I started hunting myself. I remember the first time I saw another shinx. Before that, my life seemed normal, like this must've been how everyone started out. But when I saw those shinx, about my size, all playing together as what seemed to be their parent brought them food, I realized I was different. Their fur was blue, mine was yellow.

I tried to find a yellow shinx, or a yellow luxray, where I must have come from, but I never found anyone that looked like me. Unfortunately for me, my search brought me up a mountain where a staraptor was looking for their next meal. I ran as fast as I could, I got swiped at a bunch, I tumbled down the cliff. I should have died, but I happened to land in front of a human, who scared the staraptor off and took me back to his village with him.

After I was healed enough, he brought out his other pokemon. It was scary at first, but they were able to explain what was going on, and answer my lifelong question. The reason I couldn't find my family of yellow shinx is because they didn't exist. I was abandoned because I was different. The humans understand why I was yellow, but my family must've thought I was sick. I'd be cared for here. So I stayed. There were some weird things about my human compared to the other humans there, but I was weird too, we got along really well. He and the other pokemon he had were like a family. 

Eventually I had evolution explained to me, and I was asked if I was excited to evolve. I didn't want to. I was thrown out by my pack because of how I looked, they probably assumed I was too weak to survive. But I did survive and found a new family that liked how I looked. I didn't want to evolve out of spite for being abandoned, but also appreciation that everyone I knew now said I could do anything. I was going to do everything as the weak shinx that was left to die, because I could.

Fast forward a year, and I helped my new family save the world, complete the journal of information on every pokemon, and even defeat the god of all pokemon, Arceus! I had it all, everything I could have ever dreamed of! I was strong, I was a hero, I had the best family and the most amazing human.

And then suddenly…I lost everything. My human disappeared. A few days after our battle with Arceus, he just vanished. He seemed off after the battle, none of us knew why, and then he was gone. We waited. Some pokemon went out to look for him, they came back after a while. We waited. A few decided they would be off with other humans, that they could still be of use. The others followed on their own time. I waited. Some humans came into the house I was now alone in and gave me food. I waited. He never came back. I waited.

Now, I'm here. Next life. Where I'm a fictional character from a fictional game. Now I'm here and I know why he disappeared. He was weird compared to other humans because he wasn't from that era and Arceus sent him home. Maybe he tried to tell me and I didn't understand. Did he really have to go? Why couldn't he have stayed? Why did I have to be abandoned again? Why would Arceus do that to me? I waited.

[kinfeelings]

so I don’t know if someone’s already come up with this before and I just haven’t heard of it, but. I have a term I think would be useful to the otherkin/fictionkin community… 

sourcemates. Like canonmates in a way; they share a source material with you, but they are from a different timeline, perhaps. I have several friends who share a source material for one or more of our kintypes, but we’re not from the same canon. I feel that there should be a word to describe the importance of this connection, even though we’re not canonmates. 

so sourcemates, then, could apply to entire subcommunities of fictionkin, i.e., all Undertale kin would be sourcemates, and so on. Or it could be more personally related, so a friend who shares a source material you could call your sourcemate. 

so uh if you think this is a cool and useful term could you reblog this post maybe so others can see it? I feel like I must not be the only one who could make use of a term like this! 

[kinfeelings]

Felt like experimenting with the idea of a spectrum to describe the phenomena of nonhumanity or related things, as only having labels to work off of has its pitfalls when so many overlap. And so, the KINsey scale was born. Intended to be used per each identity/kintype. Feel free to reply or reblog with your own personal codes! My bonobo type is 3E-F5orange (tho that does fluctuate a bunch). Further explanation of my reasoning behind this....

I can't help but notice there are millions of new terms being coined every week, because what we already have is clearly unsatisfactory for many. And the differences between a of the popular labels are very blurred and overlap a bunch, sometimes to the point of being functionally the same! For example the element of choice for otherkin however small, especially for the psychologically inclined, means you could be fretting about whether you're kin or otherhearted or otherlink or something else entirely. When it shouldn't matter that much. And with the more popular labels comes an implied hierarchy with classic otherkin/therian being at the top, and its cousins being lower down.

Classic otherkin especially, need to adhere to a particular narrative. Or else they're "delegated" to being hearted or something. To fit in. So increasingly I and some others have been thinking of ourselves as being "animal people", just animal people (replace animal with anything else that fits, fairy etc), a species first approach if you will. There are endless backstories and reasonings for why we are the way we are, but the result is the same. It allows for greater personalisation when you're like "I'm an x-person, and this is how". If your identity straddles the line between involuntary and voluntary, or if it was a sudden thing in your 30s rather than childhood, there's no pressure to pick a term and adhere to its norms. You're an individual and no less a real x-person than someone who has been struggling with something they've had no say in since toddlerhood. I'm a bonobo person, therian is the most convenient wordage but my backstory doesn't really tell you whether I really mean it, only how I got here. I don't always conform to the expected narrative.

Of course, I understand people also enjoy having labels, so I'm not hinting at removing them altogether. But spectrums supplementing those could be a viable compromise imo. I'm kinda dubious that we really need so many microlabels and umbrellas when it's already so muddy. It means you need to study what all of these are and have the memory of a computer in order to know wtf someone is talking about. If we prune that a little bit, it may allow for more legible communication.

[kinfeelings]

A Reflection of the Ideal Self; a mirrortype

In collaboration with @fish-and-forbear I’m happy to introduce the term reflection, or mirrortype, to the alterhuman community. A mirrortype is defined as a reflection of the ideal self and both terms are perfectly acceptable ways to describe it – whether you say “Elsa is a reflection of me”, or “Elsa is one of my mirrortypes”, or some other version of those statements.

The following text will try to define what an “ideal self” is in this context, what a reflection/’type can appear as, and elaborate on the similarities and differences with similar terms. It is 800 words long, with an approximate reading time of six minutes.

The ideal self

The ideal self is similar to an archetype, except it has, in our experience, far more detail. It is how we feel on the inside; how we should be. It isn’t a kintype or “true self” in that there isn’t a singular entity at the centre of it; it is a collection of values, beliefs and traits we encapsulate

There is something to be said of how the ideal self is something involuntary; a constant across lifetimes, selves and identities, but I’ll save that for a different time.

What is a reflection of the ideal self?

In our experience, reflections are most often found in fictional characters – but that is due to the nature of our ideal selves. Your ideal self might look very different, and you might find reflections of it in concepts, colours, songs, animals, objects, and so on. In my case, I associate a lot of concepts, colours, songs, animals and objects with my reflections, but that does not make them my reflection.

Let’s use my mirrortype Elsa as an example. Nearly everything about her is perfectly aligned with my ideal self; it’s almosta 1:1 reflection. Her gentle strength, her femininity and magic powers, the way she is a spirit meant to protect and bridge – that she is a protector, that she is tired, that she is old – these are all traits she shares with my ideal self. Because of that I relate strongly with her, but it doesn’t mean I am her. If anything, she is me – the same way as when you look in the mirror. You are not your reflection, but your reflection is you. It is not a kintype, not otherheartedness, not a synpath… but it is similar. And that brings us to similar terms.

Similar terms

It might be easier to understand what a mirrortype is if we compare it to other, pre-existing terms. Mirrortypes are very similar to terms like otherhearted, synpath, paratype, simile… and dozens more, whether widely spread or not. We really get nitpicky and gritty with the details when it comes to this, but it’s important, so bare with me.

Otherheartedness and synpaths is such a vague concept from before. It serves almost as an umbrella term these other terms fall under (like paratypes and similes). Mirrortypes are something very specific, where otherheartedness and synpaths are very vague, so the distinction is easy to draw between those.

Things get trickier with paratype, coined by @aestherians. In raer own words, paratype “includes every connection and relationship you have with something, that only exists because of your pre-established identity”. There is room for a lot of overlap with paratypes and mirrortypes, due to the nature of the whole ideal self – in many ways, you could say that a mirrortype is just a paratype with a more specific source… but there is another term that is extremely relevant to mirrortypes: similes.

Simile, another term coined by @aestherians (and elaborated on here, along with otherheartedness, synpaths and paratypes) is “a character, animal, concept, or object, which reflects or otherwise represents who you are, without actually being a part of your identity. A simile may be described as a metaphor for who you are.” Sounds familiar, right? So… what’s the difference between a mirrortype and a simile?

I want to preface this by saying I love the term simile, and I used it for a while to describe Elsa, though it still didn’t entirely fit. The difference, once again, comes down to the ideal self. A simile is a reflection of what is “already there”, who you already are as a person – and that is not the ideal self. My mirrortypes are very different from my similes!

If we want to get very nitpicky about things, you could say a mirrortype is the child of a paratype and the sibling of similes. A simile but to the left; a simile but with a different flavour. After all, the self and the ideal self will always have that in common: they are you.

[kinfeelings]

A silly funsie thing of my very rough, loose interpretation of alterhuman identities (just a couple of them) in a limited 2D visual representation.

Really, alterhumanity is probably 5D+ motion madness. At the very least, I'd imagine that constel is going around like its namesake.

(Posted as requested by @paracosmic-gt :D) (that grammar was weird, ugh. I donno how to fix it)

Terms below cut.

Likeness - What's on the tin, whatever you "share a likeness with". archive.md/2023.10.30-142647/https://extranth.tumblr.com/post/680195890861998080/okay-so-this-is-my-coining-but-again-its-not

Simile - "A simile (in the context of alterhuman identity) is a character, animal, concept, or object, which reflects or otherwise represents who you are, without actually being a part of your identity. A simile may be described as a metaphor for who you are."

Vaguetype[1][2] - An alterhuman identity that may fall into multiple categories, or if one has uncertainty or simply prefers not to define what all goes into a single identity.

Archetropy - An identity in which one performs the role, the title, the trope, or the narrative space one occupies and embodies.

Cameo (Shift) - A shift not of one's 'type. otherkin.wiki/wiki/Shifting

'Flicker - A brief, temporary identity.

Hearthome - "A place, whether real or imagined, to which a being has a deep and meaningful emotional connection, considering it their 'home.' This connection is strong, even if the being has not been raised or spent a significant amount of time in that particular location."

web.archive.org/web/20240907223441/https://blog.alt-h.net/post/154524344385/heart-is-where-the-home-is

Mirrortype - "A reflection of the ideal self".

Paratype - "an identity facet that only exists in relation to a preestablished identity".

Kardiatype - A past life [in] which [your] experiences had such an impact on you that it [wholly or partly] formed your core identity and personality, even to this day, [but] … you [DON’T] identify as the being from your past life anymore.

Constelic - Individuals "that adopt an identity(s) throughout their lives. Constelic individuals can have any number of constelic identities, and the amount might fluctuate throughout their lifetime. They aren't typically there at birth, instead being found and adopted later in life, and they oftentimes aren't permanent, though they can last a very long time." web.archive.org/web/20230519124625/https://constelic.carrd.co/

Heartedness - Identifying with something instead of as. To fully understand what that abstractness entails, I highly recommend reading Part I of Poppy's Simile essay.

Synpath - Something you identify with on several levels, which could be a concept that resonates really strongly with you, an animal or mythological creature you feel you act like, or a person or character you share a lot of common behaviors with, among other things. This often is used in synonymous to heartedness, but many do use it differently than hearttype.

'Linked - A intentionally made connection towards an identity, and can be later dropped as needed or desired. Usually, people only link identify-as identities, but there are folks like me who go beyond and link all sorts of alterhuman identities on the spectrum. web.archive.org/web/20180325235532/http://victiim-of-changes.tumblr.com/post/170162038800/otherlinkers-are-not-kin-but-voluntary I'm also avoiding the usage of "voluntary" because that's a whole mess within the community. A linked identity is the connection that you intentionally bridged, that's it.

Kinity - In which one identifies as a nonhuman species or character. otherkin.wiki/wiki/Otherkin

Therianthropy - In which one identifies as an animal. Essentially the same as being otherkind or fictionkind, just of different focus. Just in case, therian does mean any species that has animality within.

Any links that aren't embedded are due to external links not being able to be reblogged into the community. Please put the links directly into your URL bar or add https:// at the front.

[kinfeelings]

The Chordata Guide to Otherlinking

Hello! This is a guide written from my own experiences, and a tiny bit of consulting with other ‘linkers. If you can think of ways to improve this, let me know, and I’ll update the original post. This is Version 1.1.

What is otherlinking? What is a linktype?

Otherlinking is the active choice of identifying as something. This sounds very vague, so let’s have an example: Imagining yourself as a lion makes you more confident, so you like doing that frequently. Identifying as a lion becomes a part of your identity.

For many of us, otherlinking includes consciously taking on traits of out linktype (imitating/“fake it ‘til you make it” OR strengthening already existing traits by focusing on them through a linktype). This is a form of mindfulness training. For example: I would like to be as calm and collected as insert-fictional-character. In stressful situations, I think “How would they react?” and try to act that way by imagining myself as them. If this revolves around already existing traits, a linktype can help amplify those traits.

Let's get some vocabulary out of the way first, for everyone who comes across this and isn’t familiar with otherlinking.

● Linktype / Otherlink / 'link- A voluntary identity a person takes on. I.e. I identify as a woodpecker because I want to. This identity can be of a real existing or extinct animal or plant, a mythological being, a fictional being or person, an object, a concept, et cetera.

● Otherlinker - A person with a linktype.

● Otherlinking - The act of having a linktype.

● Copinglink / C'link - A subcategory of linktype. A copinglink is a linktype created for coping with trauma, stress, et cetera.

● Copinglinker - A person with a copinglink.

● Copinglinking - The act of having a copinglink.

Requirements

You might ask yourself: "I want a linktype. What're the requirements to get one?" Well, you already got all the requirements down. To take on a linktype, you need to want one. Whether you feel compelled to take one on, or you feel it could help you in some way, or you decide you want to try this just for the heck of it, it's all valid. You want, you can.

How?

This is the trickier part, and it varies from person to person. I will give a basic rundown. Adjust this for your personal needs where you see fit.

1. Find your being/thing/concept.

2. Examine your reasons for why you want to call this yourself.

3.a. Your reasons for wanting the linktype might already be enough to make the identity feel right.

3.b. If you don't feel yourself clicking with the potential 'link, and struggle with identifying as it, analyze it to find the traits that don't resonate with you. You can change parts of the 'link, or view it through a different lens to make it feel closer to home. I.e. For fictional characters, it can help to disengage from fandom interpretation, or canon characterization, and instead put your own spin on them.

4. Once you've established a connection, you can reinforce it if you want to. A linktype can feel very faint at the start, so here are some examples for what you can do to make it feel more 'You':

● Wear clothing you can associate with the 'link.

● Inform yourself about new hobbies that you can associate with your linktype. I.e. If your linktype is an archer and you've never tried archery before, see if you can find an archery range open to newbies nearby.

● If you are a visual artist, create drawings of your linktype in a way that relates to your irl person. I.e. Draw the linktype in your clothes, or in irl places you've been in person.

● If you're a writer, write something including your linktype in a way that relates to you. I.e. Include them in a story inspired by real life events that have happened to you.

● Make the linktype your social media profile picture.

● Let people know they can use the linktype's name as a nickname for you.

● Change your social media alias/username to be related to the linktype’s name.

● Talk to people who will treat you as your linktype (and not just view it as roleplaying).

Don't be ashamed of expressing yourself in fear of other people’s opinions. Unless you're dependent on them (for money, safety, or other physical and mental health needs), it doesn't matter what they think.

Caution

If at any point in your journey you notice that a linktype makes you feel worse about yourself than you do without the linktype (i.e. feeding into anger, self-hatred), stop it. These dangers can already crop up during the ‘link creation process. Here are ways to go about this, and possible causes:

● Stop engaging with it. This sounds very 'It'll go away if I ignore it long enough', but that's exactly it. A linktype should fade when you don't engage with it anymore. Don't approach this by thinking "I'm not allowed to think about this anymore", but instead, every time when your linktype comes up, acknowledge it, and replace that thought with something else. If you struggle with this, examine what 'triggers' you to think of your linktype. Mindfulness is a powerful thing that often goes underestimated.

● Replace it with a different linktype that doesn't bring these problems.

● If your linktype started off without these issues, try to find out what caused it to change to become negative. Maybe there are other factors in your life that're putting stress on you and it shows through your linktype.

● Maybe you’ve outgrown your linktype. People can change over time, and your linktype could be preventing you from taking the next steps for personal growth, and this can negatively influence your well-being. Try letting go of the linktype. It might turn out the be a freeing experience.

● Talk to a therapist (, or, if you can’t access therapy, an understanding friend). Yes, tell them specifically about the linktype and the problems you have with it. A second person can shine a light on aspects you didn’t notice.

Good to know

A linktype can become an integral part to yourself, and at some point you might find it hard to separate it from yourself. Is this still a linktype? Is it a kintype (otherkin)? That is for you to know and decide. The lines can be blurry, and at the end of the day you are the only person who can decide what labels you want to use and what community has the most in common with you (if you even want to label yourself and interact with ppl w similar experiences). Unless it is harming you (or others), a linktype turned integral is nothing bad. Our environments shape us as people constantly, and a linktype over time can contribute similarly.

🐟

That’s it! If you have questions or need help, feel free to contact me through Asks or DMs. If I’m unavailable, search around a bit to find other otherlinkers who might be able to help you. ♡

[kinfeelings]

The Verza: An Otherlink Overview

The following post contains information that is exclusively relevant to my alterhumanity. Please do not include this in any unrelated content or fan material without my consent.

When it comes to species lore, Creatures of Sonaria’s lack of depth is a bit of pain. At best, I have artist headcanons, small descriptions, and a synopsis of Sonaria’s existence to work with. Canonically, Sonaria exists as a sandbox in which Wardens spawn in various creations (Creatures) of theirs and observe how they adapt to the world and its extreme environments.

The biodiversity of the planet is incredible, but I’ve wondered why CoS skirts past the fact that every Creature has a homeworld they originate from. I understand that Sonaria is the focus of the game, as well as its main setting, but how come there’s no elaboration on that?

As someone who is both an otherlinker and an imagithrope, I figured I’d take matters into my own hands. I chose to be a Verza, and personally, I want to explore my species, their origins, and any lore they have outside of Sonaria.

If that means making my own, then so be it!

Zohutek: Creator of the Verza

Zohutek is the Sentinel of Love and Bringer of Blossoming. Better known as the Ardor Warden, not much is known about them seeing that they’re quite an elusive entity.

Even though they’re easily distinguishable, some species favor the avatars of their creators enough to negate those differences. Verza fall within that group. Known for their colorful yet imposing dispositions, Verza also share the solitary behavior of Zohutek’s avatar(s). That isn’t to say they can’t bond with other Sonarians, though. Once a Verza’s trust is earned, they’re quite personable and embrace all who come their way. These individuals extend their passion to friends in great zeal, cementing their position as one of Zohutek’s creations.

Oneiros: Home of the Verza

Like all species populating Sonaria, the Verza are alien to the planet itself. While there’s plenty of Verza who were born on Sonaria and became members of its food chain, there’s even more of their kind within this same universe. All of whom can be found on the planet Oneiros.

Oneiros is a misty lavender-and-white planet, totally dreamlike in appearance. This terrestrial planet is recognizable for hundreds of floating landmasses that cover its surface. This is due to a massive ecological event that permanently affected the gravity of Oneiros, causing many of its future species to evolve with the ability to glide or fly in order to traverse these landscapes.

Originally, grassland and desert biomes were considered “uninhabitable” due to devastating dry seasons and heat waves respectively. However, thousands of Verza would later populate these areas. Verza are capable of converting heat into energy through the sun-shaped halos hovering behind their backs. Heat isn’t necessarily a primary energy source since Verza are omnivores. Nonetheless, their ability to convert heat into thermal energy and consume it gives Verza an advantage over blistering climates.

Although Verza are among Oneiros’s dominant species (in both intelligence and evolutionary progress), they’re not the only species taken from this planet. Other Oneiran species include Athulyth, Aesmir, Altulis, Luxceses, and Yiepir. Furthermore, Oneiros has its own populace of quasi-humanoid species; though, they’re closer to air elementals and nature spirits (such as nymphs or fae) than humans. Those who’re incapable of flight have mastered the technology of air ships. While Verza live on the fringes of their civilizations, they are capable of trade, governance, and interspecies communication with their neighbors.

Sonarian Verza vs Oneiran Verza

When members of the same demographic are split between different cultures and upbringings, a diaspora forms. There’s a vast gap between Verza who’re raised on Oneiros and Verza who’re raised on Sonaria. The earliest of Sonarian Verza did attempt to find ways of returning to their homeland, but with a lack of materials and a dangerous environment at hand, many motioned to establishing their own means of survival on their new planet.

Herds were few and far between, as are the Verza themselves. At most, these circumstances result in Verza rarely being seen in groups larger than a pair and their offspring. In these cases, pairs find a stable environment and stick to it as their territory. These families rarely have the opportunity of becoming clans, let alone communal herds, knowing the instability of Sonaria and its biomes. As a result, they live less complex lives compared to their peers on Oneiros.

Sonarian Verza rely on their natural abilities to thrive. Some might say their wide pool of skills and ingenuity as a species are what keeps them from total extinction on Sonaria. From using Gold Breath to disorient enemies to using flight to scout out more territory, Sonarian Verza are staunch survivalists. That said, they still participate in creative pursuits as a show of character. Their affinity for creating art and inventions is one of the few qualities Sonarian Verza retain from their days on Oneiros.

In stark contrast, Oneiran Verza span many generations. Typically, Oneiran Verza are either nomadic as herds or intermingled with other sapient / sophont communities in the form of culturally diverse encampments. Sometimes, the latter can flourish into villages or townships rich with unique textiles, pottery, and other art that’s unique to the communities which make up their population. Within these spaces, Verza contributions range anywhere from powering smithing forges with Gold Breath to organizing hunting herds that help provide food for the encampment.

As for their nomadic peers, roaming herds can be found almost anywhere. Herds tend to migrate over many of Oneiros’s floating continents, unmistakable for anything else as they gallop over the clouds. These Verza are also famously knowing for a yearly occurrence known as The Emergence. The Emergence is a rite of passage exclusive to nomadic Verza in which young adults of these herds venture on a cross-continental journey of their own and must return to their herd towards the end. Verza are given the option to remain within the herd they were born into or live on in the herd they built with other young Verza. No matter their choice, a celebration known as The Blossoming takes place after the completion of an Emergence. This celebration spans three days, leading up to whichever path one chose. Overall, the event of The Emergence goes from the beginning of Spring up until the end of Summer.

Whether nomadic or intercultural, Verza herds are recognizable through the runic tattoos carved into the torso, rear, and undersides of their bodies. Nomadic herds specifically take part in painting their faces, torsos, and halos with pigments made from the earth.

The practice of runic carving (“tattoos”) is a rite passage that solidifies one’s place in the herd. This rite performed at a young age; given the strange anatomy of the Wardens’ creations, these carvings age and change with the Verza as they grow. These same markings are etched within the bodies of Sonarian Verza, but the original purpose of the practice is unbeknownst to later generations. In their circumstances, Sonarian Verza carve these markings into their young to easily identify them if they’re ever lost in Sonaria’s shifting landscape. Why the painting of the halos and upper bodies stopped among Sonarian Verza is a mystery.

[kinfeelings]

Created Knowledge

Being psychological* otherkin, the concept of having a specific type of dragon that I am doesn’t always make sense for me. While I know that I’m a dragon, and a lot of my general features I’ve figured out from noemata (even if they sometimes conflict with each other), there are certain aspects of my draconity which I don’t know in that way. This includes details of physical features, along with some species-related instincts or behaviors. In many cases I don’t think these are things I have yet to figure out - I just don’t think that inherent knowledge exists.

Because of that, I’ve occasionally instead created parts of my draconity and what I consider to be my dragon species (in a sense, filling in the blanks). As an example, I write fiction with dragon characters, and sometimes don’t have an intuitive sense of what the correct body language for a situation should be. In these cases, I’ve often taken inspiration from canine, feline, or even human body language for my writing. Interestingly, because I write using my own dragon species as inspiration, this ends up changing my own species. What wasn’t there before becomes created knowledge that affects my own behaviors or appearance.

This isn’t noemata, which is inherent knowledge about one’s kintype and isn’t chosen. Discussing a bit on the Otherconnect discord, this doesn’t seem to be an experience that’s specific to me. As far as I could tell, there wasn’t any terminology for it, and I think that it might be useful to create some (with ideas below). The idea behind this is to have a word that represents ���knowledge about one’s type”, but that could be of voluntarily created origin, or possibly quoilintary or mixed-voluntary. Here I specifically used the word “type” because I don’t think this experience (nor noema) is limited to just otherkin, and that it can apply to otherhearted or otherlinkers.

Just listing out a few of the ideas for a word to describe it that were discussed:

-Aspect could be used to be any sort of knowledge about one’s type, with whether it’s involuntary or voluntary being a modified. For example, “an involuntary/inherent aspect” would mean the same thing as a noema.

-Linkstory or linkcanon could be used for specifically voluntary knowledge.

-Insight could be used to mean any sort of knowledge about one’s type, with kinsight and linksight being the (in)voluntary versions.

*Although I have things that I’m considering could be memories, I still consider myself psychological in nature. Even if my draconity was caused by a previous life, I see my identity as the dragon I am in my current life, which might differ from a previous species or have been formed by aspects of this life.

[kinfeelings]

So it turns out I'm 'linking this species now! The Asilvestrela from Creatures of Sonaria (a survival MMO on Roblox, in the same vein as Path of Titans or The Isle).

I saw them for the first time earlier today, and it hit me like a flung bag of bricks to my skull. If this gradually turns into a kintype rather than a 'link over time, I won't complain, but for now, it's just a 'link, and I'm fine with that.

According to trivia on their official Wiki page, they were: inspired by mandrills, Thylacosmilus, Smilodon, lions, solar storms as a concept, sunsets and hyenas. And man if that ain't my vibe!!

[kinfeelings]

I'm Fictionkin-ish? Coining: Imagithrope.

@who-is-page and @frameacloud's panel at Othercon has gotten me thinking about writing essays about my own alterhuman experience... I was thinking maybe I should write something about why I write fiction, and how that relates to my own identity. But thinking about that made me realize that one of the reasons I write is because I identify as a fictional self-insert character that I created when I was a hatchling in make-believe games. Like, that's the way I view myself - not as a generic blue dragon, but as that specific character. Additionally, given that many of those games were based loosely in books I've read, it means that my identity is based in fiction as well. Though I don't identify as him, my name is even based on a fictional character's!

I've never really thought about calling myself fictionkin before now. When I joined the otherkin community initially, I had some bad reactions to talking about my identity in that way. And then some more bad reactions. My identity as a dragon is involuntary; I couldn't change it if I tried (and I have), and it isn't something I intentionally made into an identity. It's a bit of why I never really got why everyone insisted strongly on the distinction between otherkin and otherlinkers. Though I'm not opposed to the idea, I don't feel like my fictional identity was made by me channeling a past life either, which felt like it was the acceptable explanation for this back in 2016. Otherwise, creating a kintype wasn't "allowed."

For a while, I felt like I separated my identity into a dragon otherkin aspect, where I was just "a dragon", and had character me on the side as a fun thing - what I considered my "kinsona". But I think this is a false dichotomy. The two aren't really separable; who I am as a dragon was created through books and play. It wasn't really until @aestherians's posts in early 2021 - five years after I found the otherkin community - that I felt that the community had finally decided that the definitional line between kintype and linktype, voluntary and involuntary, didn't have to be such a strict line after all. (I'd been arguing that "involuntary identity" shouldn't be a part of the definition of otherkin for four years by that point, so yes, I'm still both smug and salty.)

So, though I didn't expect this to lead to me coining a new term when I started out writing out this post, I've decided to do it. I'm not sure if anyone except me is going to use it, but I think creating it as a concept gives it both a bit of legitimacy and permanence. I hope it will be of use to someone else, and if anyone else shares a similar experience, I welcome them to talk about it in more detail - at some point now, I think I definitely should describe mine.

Imagithrope - An alterhuman whose identity was created and/or formed, wholly or partially, through some form of imaginative play. This can include fantasy play, roleplay (tabletop, text, live action, etc), fanfiction, writing, art, and more.

[kinfeelings]

well now it's more like i only include fictional felines in my Felidae heart-type, alongside mythical and partially-feline ones, but still.

i think i'm just gonna recycle my baneful cats species for an original fiction story, which i may have said on this blog before, since i don't feel it as a 'link or 'type any longer. they're SO intriguing tho, i love them so much.

i'll never forget where they originally came from, tho. scar's threatening wolves. :)

i miss my baneful cats OCkintype, xD

i need to redo them and put them in a fiction story of some sort

they were inspired by @scarsmood's threatening wolves lol which are BADASS btw i highly recommend learning about them when you have the time

...actually it occurs to me that since i include fictional feline species in my felidae cladotherianthropy, then my baneful kitties can totally count within that!! yay!!

[kinfeelings]

what does fictomere mean?

Your fictomere is the subject of your fictional identity. It was coined by @sundragon over on the Fictionkind Dreamwidth. Here's his explanation:

What is a fictomere? It is you, the subject, the fictional aspect that encompasses you. It's a fictotype, it's a hearthome, it's a headmate, it's a 'link, all that and more. Whatever brought you here in the first place.

When I began the prompt project, I realized quickly that being inclusive was gonna be very wordy. Asking "where does your fictotype/headmate/synpath" come from is clumsy, and when it comes to folks with hearthomes and other connections it requires additional sentences to fit them in properly. I don't feel like writing all that out every time, and you probably don't feel like reading it. And so, fictomere became a thing.

From Ancient Greek μέρος (méros, “part”). A fictomere is the part of you that is fictional, no matter what your relationship to that subject is. Additionally you can use it as a placeholder for a fictional connection that you don't know exactly how to label. Not sure if it's a headmate or a hearttype, but you need to call it something without being redundant all the time? Call it a fictomere. It's fictional, and it's a part of you, and sometimes that's all you know!

It's relatively isolated to this community (though you're welcome to use it anywhere you want, if you like it enough) for now, though that's subject to change.