#anyway I mean it - if you're tall and can give me specific tips and pointers based on what I've written

[quinloki]

Mini vent feel free to ignore

NGL I've always been proud of my height(178cm/5'10) but damn if trying to read x reader fics isn't difficult... I'm never going to be small or petite and I dunno it's hard. Glad 1P gives me a taste of that with how ridiculously sized some of the guys are

No, I can appreciate those feels.

It's one of those things where I do try to make my readers as neutral as possible, but also like - I have been a full 5'00" since I was 12.

That's 30 years at this height.

There is probably a *lot* of stuff I write that unconsciously marks the reader as Short-SHORT without meaning to, because it's a default perspective for me. Now, granted, when I'm writing Kid, or Crocodile, or Doffy, these are BIG guys. Everyone is going to feel small, an Kid's not just big in a height sense, he's a BIG GUY.

I also avoid describing body types anymore than I have to, but I don't think I could write a specifically fat reader. I mean, *I* am fat, I am most certainly 100% Not Thin, or slender, or athletic in any capacity. But I mean, I'm also flexible, and I might have way more stomach than I'd like, but I can still lift the back end of an empty Prius.

To which, I just mean, fat doesn't equate to someone being fit or not, so even when I write a feisty reader, I don't *mean* to imply they're fit. Or not. I mean to try and leave it open to the reader themselves.

The hardest part of X Readers isn't just trying to make them as close to one-size-fits-all as you can, but also in understanding we all make assumptions on both sides of the equation. Writer and Reader both.

That said, representation is awesome, so I LOVE x reader stories that do get into some description. Black Readers, Fat Readers, [Insert Whatever here] Readers, Readers that are almost practically OCs.

In the end, the author should enjoy writing it, and the reader should enjoy reading it, and that requires a lot of work on both sides. Cause even self-indulgent writing is still a lot of work, and shifting through mountains of fic is also a good bit of work.

But, I do understand your frustration. I've heard a few people struggle with it... You know, I realize this is on anon, but if there's a story I've written that you've really enjoyed, if there's ANYTHING you want to take time to point out to me and say "this really implies smallness because in my experience x,y,z." I can't promise anything, but it wouldn't hurt either.

It'd be good education for me - learning about other people's experiences will always help me be a better writer. I've certainly experienced a lot personally, but I'll still only ever have my own perspective. I can't promise I'll write a specifically-tall-reader story, but it might help me pull my writing into more truly neutral territory so I'm not subconsciously just writing all I know.

[llatimeria]

asking on behalf of a friend but how do you make a fursona. like. does it HAVE to be an animal you identify with or can you just be like yea that species is fucking RAD. friend is also not artistic and def wants to commission an artist but just isn't sure how to lay the groundwork before all that. anyway any pointers would be cool!

I HATE THAT MOBILE MAKES ME MISS ASKS SO OFTEN i hope this hasn't been loitering in my askbox for too long anon I am so sorry

the #1 rule of fursona crafting is that there are no rules. your fursona doesn't have to be anything, except something you like. sometimes that means your sona is an animal you really relate to and sometimes your sona is just a creature you find fuckin awesome and sometimes for you that's gonna be the same animal. thats how coelacanths are for me! i both have kinnie feels for them and also think they're just really cool animals.

don't be afraid to hybridize or use fictional creatures also. there is no law that says your fursona can't be bigfoot with tits wider than they are tall. live your truth.

as for more detailed design tips i'd suggest...

pick a small color palette (usually for me that'll be 4 or 5 colors but again. there are no rules. use the whole goddamn rainbow if ye wish) and sticking to it. if you google "color palette generator" you get a half a dozen ways to do this, anywhere from hand-picking each individual color to randomizing it to uploading an image and having it make a color palette out of that it's pretty cool.

do you have a Vibe? an Aesthetic? a Special Interest or Hyperfixation? are you Goth and Like Moths or are you more of a cottagecore kinda guy? make a moodboard of your ideal Energies (or the energy you're imagining for your sona, if it's different/more specific than yours). give this to the artist/s you commission!!!!

even if you're not super artistically inclined you're welcome to use basic free to use bases to get a rough design down that a commissioned artist could later refine and customize specifically for you! dw if it looks like shit, every artist ever once drew like absolute shit, we get it

also a lot of artists take reference commissions and will make a nice pretty ref sheet for you! you don't even always need a shitton of information beforehand, i know ppl can and will take commissions like "can you draw a ref sheet of a red anthro cat with green paw socks and blue paw pads? thx" (but always ask politely, bc some artists aren't interested in doing something That vague, which is fair as Artistic Liberty can be stressful!!). to many people tho if you come to them with a color pallette, a moodboard, and an open mind, they'll be super willing to work with you!