Welcome to the January 2026 Fictionfolk Census! Through this survey, we're looking to see what sources are most common in the fictionfolk community. This survey is open to all who identify as being fictionfolk.
Welcome to the January 2026 Fictionfolk Census! Through this survey, we're looking to see what sources are most common in the fictionfolk co
All you have to do for each response is tell us the name of your source! No extra information needed. From these results, I will be examining:
What sources seem to be the most represented in the community?
What type of media seems to be the most prevalent in the community? (live action, video games, animation, film, television, etc.)
Does a certain media's popularity correspond to the amount of fictionfolk who have it as a source?
The survey will end 2/15/2026, and results will be posted on @fictionfolklore. (though the survey may be extended based on the amount of data collected) After the survey ends, I will try my best to get the results out in a timely manner (i anticipate a large range of data to look through, however).
further response information:
1. Do not add character names. Just sources.
❌ Cinnamoroll - Sanrio
⭕ Sanrio
2. One source per submission, please! This form accepts multiple responses, so please refresh and submit each source separately.
❌ Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Digimon, The Amazing Digital Circus
⭕ Percy Jackson and the Olympians
⭕ Digimon
⭕ The Amazing Digital Circus
3. For the sake of this poll, systems should respond as one source per body, regardless of how many headmates identify with that source. This goes the same for those with multiple kintypes from the same source.
Both myself and another headmate are kin from Pokemon. I am kin with two Pokemon, they are kin with one. Despite having three Pokemon kintypes between us, we would submit Pokemon one time. This is to prevent the possibility of an extremely niche source being overrepresented by a single body.
4. OC folk are welcome to respond! If you are a completely original character, just writing "OC" is enough. If you are from a preexisting source (ex: a Demon Slayer OC, a noncanon Demon Slayer character) then you should put the source itself. (in this case, you'd just respond "Demon Slayer")
If there are any other questions that come up, I will add to this post and update the explanation on the form!
thank you for your very speedy responses! as a mini behind the scenes look, we've hit over 1000 submissions, with submission 1000 being roblox! aside from milestones like this, I likely won't be revealing any information publicly until the end when I have the opportunity to go through the data.
on another note, some of your sources seem interesting and im going 👀 (and while i won't reveal our own sources as this is a community blog and i don't want to make any potential doubles uncomfortable if i do come across them, i will say that every time we see a sourcemate appear we are waving a bit in your general direction. of course we don't know what that general direction is, so i am waving @ the screen.)
I'm really curious about plantkin, like how plants experience it and how one knows that they are a plant, if that makes sense? i'd really appreciate it if i could ask you a few questions about your experience, but please feel no obligation to say yes if you don't want to :)
hihi! honestly it's kind of just a lot of regular human things I happen to associate with plants or that I instead think of as plant things? like instead of it being "I like the sun" or "I like the rain" I've always thought "I am like a plant in the sun/rain :)" (and lots of other things!) but yes feel free to ask anything, I'll try my best to answer :D
that makes a lot of sense! where i was struggling to understand the concept (not that i like disagree i just didnt get how it worked) was that i was getting all bogged down in the whole focus on experience, you know?
i think its because im very used to the whole "i do/experience X nonhuman trait" so i was wondering if you ever experience anything similar? do you get perception shifts and kind of "think like a plant"? or is that an animal-centric point of view?
also thank you so much for answering! this is incredibly interesting to me to learn about :))
alsoooo this is like alterhuman qna faq but do you know how one would know they're plantkin? is it just an identity thing where one just kind of knows/realises?
I feel like the "how does one know they're plantkin" is a hard one for me personally to answer, since I'm definitely more in the "realized there was a word for it" group than anything else. like as a child I was constantly "talking to plants" (specifically through their roots, which is neat, since I later learned plants actually communicate like that with one another. and in other ways of course, depending) & just generally seeing myself as one of them
but yeah honestly it is sorta different from any of my animal -types, a lot of the same stuff but just much more vague (and harder to describe </3) like I'm not even sure I get shifts in the same way, besides the fact that overall I tend to "feel more like a plant" in the spring/summer, and less so in the fall/winter. (deciduous moment)
another weird little thing is how I know which plants in particular I am, and that has to do with how alive they feel to me. an oak tree, for example, feels incredibly alive & talkative (when it's not winter anyhow) but a pine tree? those are just there, I guess. feels the same as a brick wall. makes me think "that's just a plant" (despite hating that phrase. and logically I know they're still lil guys)
I do hope any of this helped out, but obviously I don't speak for all plantkin or anything :)
of course, no worries, it's a very difficult question to answer sometimes :)
also that's so interesting, the how alive plants feel to you, like a pull towards your own? i do somewhat feel the same way with my animal types, so that does make sense to me!
thank you so much for answering, of course! this has all been really helpful for me to understand :)))
This was originally a response to this post, but it derailed a little so I've split it off into its own and expanded it.
Creating headmates, becoming a system, becoming plural--if these things interest you, absolutely awesome! It's always great to see people interested in plurality, and often making a system can come with a lot of benefits depending on why you do it. It can be a very, very rewarding experience and hopefully if you do decide to be plural, yours will be too! But there's a lot of things related to creating a system that aren't talked about--the parts that might not be so fun, the risks, and the things you should maybe have a think about before committing to it.
As a disclaimer, this isn't to sit on a high horse and tell people when to and when to not be plural. In the end, you decide what happens in your own brain, and this post is our own opinion! But these things are rarely talked about from what we've seen, and we've seen a lot of systems struggle more than they would've otherwise if they thought a bit harder beforehand. We wanted there to be a resource to explain a lot of those common issues from our own perspective, to at least make people think.
This will sound largely negative because of that because we are focusing on risks, and of course not all systems have any internal issues at all either! Though considering what being plural might come with as a package-deal before deciding to become a system yourself is important before making those decisions.
Why do you want to be plural?
The first question to consider is pretty simple: why? There's plenty of reasons, and not many are harmful across the board, but some carry more risks and need a bit more thought than others. Have a think about why this is appealing to you--do you want friends? A partner? For fun? To share your responsibilities with someone? How will being plural contribute to that?
Thinking about these things in-depth can help you figure out weighing the risks to the benefits and making the decision to (or not to) become plural. What do you want to get out of it, what are you willing to give up, is it okay if it doesn't go how you planned?
Becoming plural for romantic/sexual partners?
This is going to be a long section, because it's such a loaded topic. But.. If you want to be plural to get a partner, the most important thing in our opinion to remember is that your headmate will be a fully fledged person, with as much agency and complex emotions as any singlet. They can like you, dislike you, be romantically interested, hate you. Headmates of any kind aren't objects or your personal fantasy. This is important to remember for any reason to become plural.
You cannot create or contact a headmate with the expectation that they will become your partner. You can have hopes, you can form relationships with your headmates if it happens naturally between you, but in the end, you will need to be understanding and okay with the fact that they may not reciprocate. It can be amazing to have in-system relationships, we have a lot personally! They can be great in ways so different and unique from relationships with those in other bodies, but you still need to approach them with the same care you'd approach other relationships with.
This means accepting them as a part of your life and as your headmate even if your relationship doesn't work out, or they never fall for you in the first place. You can't force a singlet to date you, and it's not okay to force a headmate to either. Like singlets, you can't know what direction your relationship may steer in until it happens. You meet someone, you talk, and things develop in one way or another naturally--things just can't be forced. And like with singlets, you need to be aware that you will 1000% need to respect their boundaries, and open to communication about them.
You also need to understand that even if they're a soulbond of your favourite character, or a tulpa you made, or another headmate you made specifically to be what you want... They can change over time, so much so that you might even end up disliking them. You need to be open to that idea and not try to force them to be who you wanted them to be--people change and develop over time, headmates are no different. Even if you do end up not getting along, you are the one who has decided to share your body and life, so you have to make peace with that possibility. Plurality isn't something you can usually ethically undo (unless your whole system agrees, outside of going no-contact with day-trippers) if you don't like the people you made, you have to live with them.
Honestly we'd advise almost entirely against becoming a system for the intent of creating a romantic relationship with your headmate. Historically there's been issues, especially in the tulpa community, where headmates are created for the express purpose of being a partner, and that has huge ethical issues around it and develops into further problems. Creating a sentient being specifically to be a romantic or sexual partner to yourself and holding that as a strict expectation for them is objectifying at absolute best. You can't do that to a singlet, you shouldn't do it to a heamdate. Abuse against headmates is real--if it would be abuse to do to a singlet, it is also abuse to do to a headmate.
But if you are entirely, wholly okay with the possibility that your headmate may just be a friend or not even like you at all, and you're still willing to accommodate them once they exist in your body and treat them with respect and equality... You can get a headmate with those romantic hopes in mind, as long as it doesn't affect any other way you treat them.
Becoming plural for internal friends?
Honestly.. Pretty good reason and pretty common! You still need to keep the above points in mind, but focused around friendship instead. They are people, they might not end up being your friends, and you need to understand that you can't force them to fit your idea of them once you've made them real.
Things might be okay for a while, then they might get rocky. Alternatively, things might start out horribly rough but end up with you being close later in life. Be open to all these possibilities. It's just like any friendship with a singlet--there can be ups and downs, there might be breaks, there might be things you disagree on fundamentally... And you need to be aware of those possibilities.
Becoming plural for fun?
Plurality can absolutely be a fun experience! The process of making/contacting your headmates, then getting to know them and going about life together can be so rewarding. Once again though, you need to be open to the idea that it may not always be fun. You might argue, your headmates might have a falling out with you, you might disagree on things all the time.
You need to be aware of those things and be ready to make compromises, respect them, and treat things seriously sometimes too. Some created systems never have any internal issues ever, which is great! But before you start the process, you need to be aware that you might need the skills to compromise, resolve possible conflicts, and make plans that are good for everyone.
Becoming plural to share responsibilities?
Another pretty complicated one, but it all boils down to the same sort of thing: you need to be okay with the idea that your headmates might not help at all, and that you cannot force them to bend to your will. It can be amazing to work as a team to tackle homework, work, socialising, chores, and other daily life struggles! Sometimes, because headmates can be just as complex as singlets, there might be times where no one can cooperate and you have more of a frustrating "my roommate never cleans up after themselves" situation than a nice neat schedule you all follow together.
Another ethical issue that at least used to be common around tulpa communities is creating a headmate to do all your chores, responsibilities and work for you, sometimes to the point of making a headmate just so you never have to front again. This is another thing that is abuse, objectifying, and a reason you shouldn't make a headmate. These things can happen naturally, some headmates love working and cleaning, but you should not create a whole living being with the intent to have them work for you while you just front to have fun, or don't front at all.
Do you understand what a headmate is, and what that really means?
Of course, if you're looking into this, you know the concept of headmates. They're people who share your body/brain who might be able to control the body and hang out with you! But sometimes, even though a lot of people understand as a concept that headmates are alive and can be as complex as singlets, people don't realise what that can mean. Not all of these are always applicable, but some things to think of:
Your headmate might disagree with you on many things.
Your headmate might like and buy different foods, clothes, etc.
Your headmate might have different hobbies and want to have some money to spend on them.
Your headmate might want to front and control the body. Sometimes, they might want more front time than you're comfortable with giving and you'll need to negotiate.
Your headmate might want their own social media accounts, their own social circles, their own friends and partner(s).
Your headmate might use your things in the front--eat your food, play your games, use your makeup, draw in your sketchbooks, take photos on your phone, etc.
You might argue with them.
You might not like each other too much, but you're stuck in the same body and have to navigate that without harming each other.
They might be romantically interested in a person different to someone you like, and you'll have to navigate that together and with the other people involved.
Your headmate might have times where they don't want to be bothered or spoken to.
Your headmate may be unable to give you much or any privacy, for example if you're constantly cofronting or they're stuck being co-conscious.
Your headmate might have boundaries that are hard to accommodate or respect.
Your headmate might have a disability you need to accommodate, or triggers you need to take note of.
Your headmate may do, think, feel and want anything that a singlet you've never met before might. This includes things you don't like, things you want to keep to yourself, and things you do like.
You need to be aware of these possibilities and more, and know that you still want to be plural regardless. The skills to navigate any friendship or social situation apply to headmates too--conflict resolution, how to compromise, how to make decisions as a team, how to accommodate others' needs without sacrificing your own.. Those are all so important when you're sharing your whole foreseeable future with someone. And it likely is your foreseeable future, being plural can often be a lifelong commitment.
As an added note, this isn't always the case, but persecutors are also possibilities in any type of system. Disordered, nondisordered, traumagenic, endogenic--it doesn't matter. Sometimes, you may get a headmate who acts harmfully, toward you or the body or your friends. And even in that case, you need to find ways to cope and deal with the situations that might present. Without resorting to abusing that headmate, as is so common in plural spaces.
Often persecutors are treated as some sort of public spectacle to harass and abuse, but this quite literally makes it worse for everyone involved. "Hurting them back" often results in more aggravation and further issues. You need to have the skills to navigate and manage potential severe conflicts internally.
In a lot of cases, headmates tend to become persecutors because they've been mistreated and neglected or treated as if they're inherently lesser than the host in the first place. You need to treat your headmates like full, real people, no matter what.
Headmates can be kind and loving, and they also might be rude, cruel or aggressive, and you won’t know what they’re like until you meet them–just like any singlet. You need to know before you make a system that you can't always just "get rid of" them, walk away or block them if things go wrong, because you literally share a body and brain (and in the cases of day-trippers who you can cut contact with, you need to be willing to do so). You will need ways and supports in place to manage in case things go badly.
Are you okay with sharing your life?
This was touched on in the last part, but we're expanding upon it here. You, someone who has brought a person into reality to share your life, need to at least be understanding of the concept that your headmate might have differing life goals than you. It's hard to navigate and complicated when it happens, but at least finding a compromise is key.
It's likely to feel unfair to your headmate if you make all the life decisions, don't involve them in the process, without a chance to have their own goals and life path. And this can lead to a lot of conflict! After all, you created this person and they're likely to want something at some point. We've known many systems who have created headmates just to "talk to occasionally when I'm bored", and those headmates often get frustrated and feel isolated and objectified because they aren't allowed any say and aren't allowed to live their own lives.
Letting your headmates have their own hobbies, letting them have input or coming to decisions together about your career or education, helping them with their own life goals while still aiming for yours--these can all be good compromises to not being able to lead fully separate lives! Though this is a lot to compromise on for a lot of people, so it needs to be taken into account that sometimes, your goals won't line up and you'll need a middleground.
Do you understand the stigma?
There's a lot of weight that being plural can hold. Movies like Split affect primarily CDD systems, but these things that portray being more-than-one as something dangerous like that can and do affect people's idea of plurality as a whole. People around you might not understand, including those close to you. Particularly being a created system can come with extra infighting from syscourse as a whole.
Do you know who you'll be comfortable telling? Would you be able to cope with not being accepted? Do you want to share? What if your headmate wants to share, maybe because they don't want to pretend to be you? Those are some things to think about regarding the stigma of it all.
Letting your whole life be dictated by avoiding being anywhere close to something stigmatised plays into a lot of ways people get negative biases against certain groups, so we encourage you to avoid getting too deep into "avoid at all costs" as a mindset. It's not often very helpful to think that way either. But at least considering that there is stigma that exists, what it is, what it means, and how you'll navigate it before committing to being plural is a good idea.
So, In The End...
Hopefully this provides at least a little insight into potential struggles with plurality. Truly we've seen enough headmates be harmed in our time by people who wanted to make a system and weren't ready to accept what headmates being full, other people means. Hopefully, thinking about these things can prepare some potential to-be systems for what plurality might mean for them. Hopefully you can think about ways you'd solve problems beforehand, or learn a little about how to cooperate with people you might not like, or learn ways to compromise on things that may be important for multiple people.
If you read through this and are having second thoughts, that's okay. If you still want to be plural but are worried, think on it a little more, maybe brainstorm ways you could cope with potential issues, think about solutions, ask the community for ideas even! You can still prepare yourself to become plural if you don't feel you have the capacity as you are right now, it's perfectly okay to be unsure. Take your time, you have plenty of it.
As stated in the beginning, this isn't meant to be a "don't become plural ever" post, it's a disclaimer, a thing to consider before committing. Headmates and originals/cores alike are hurt by quick decisions all too often and we want to encourage people to just think a little bit more, to hopefully minimize harm and make plurality overall a more enjoyable experience for those looking to become systems.
As a primary owner of the body/one who is actually anchored to the body (because I detest “host” terminology), and the others sharing my inner world that may or may not be accidental or unintentional happenings (near all of them happened unintentionally or accidentally, and I’d ascribe “thoughtform” as a term to my two median buddies, the rest are walk-ins, maybe two are actual soulbonds, but even that’s not fully conscious for me), I spend a lot of time anxious and worrying.
Worrying about enrichment for them, worrying about shared time for them. Anxious if I would accidentally do parroting or overshadow their actual actions and voices with my overactive imagination. I saved food for them, want to share activities with them, I offer to meet middlegrounds with them.
I wanted and enjoyed the companionship they couldn’t always offer. I worry for their safety within the realm of my own making, under my own power. I don’t want to accidentally do something to them, I ask them to fight back or give strong input whenever possible if I did or thought something wrong.
Maybe because I fully realized my shared plurality with them after having a supportive community, and learning all about various forms of plurality, surrounded by mostly friends that may or may not share a body/mind. While largely possible I was already plural, or had the seed of it long before I found my community, I learned to always see anyone and everyone, regardless of their origin or autonomy level or whether they get prime time being a body’s pilot or not, as their own individual.
Alright, so here's a question. Alterhumans as a whole, but especially fictionfolk, are told we're invalid. But what makes us valid or not?
Roughly stated, "valid" means that something is legally binding or officially acceptable.
With a quick google search of "what does it mean for someone to be valid" you'll be told that being told that you're "valid" means that the truthfulness of your ideas is being agreed upon.
So how does that fit into alterhumanity? How are we, as alterhumans, "valid?" How is our identity any of these things? The thing is, we shouldn't be valid or invalid, because this is who we are. Our identity shouldn't rely on being "valid." Valid is if our identities are truthful and agreeable to society's standards. And the truth is, we aren't socially acceptable. We're a big fucking mess of creatures and objects and characters from worlds that people don't believe exist.
We're whatever we want to be. We're dragons, fae, elves, characters, creatures, gods, angels, concepts, elements. We shouldn't box ourselves in with a word like valid, we shouldn't be tormented by the question "am I valid," because we don't need to be. Being fictionfolk is being who we are, who we want to be, who we need to be, and who we were. No matter how strange, how "invalid," how stupid, how odd, we are fictionfolk. And hell, maybe you're not. It's okay to stop being alterhuman if you realize you're not. You weren't faking if you didn't know, you weren't pretending if you thought it was real. As much as I talk, fictionfolk is just a label like any other. You're whoever you want to be, and if a label doesn't fit you anymore, or makes you uncomfortable, then you can stop using it. You have a right to comfort, you deserve to be happy. You don't need to be valid, you don't need to stay the same all your life, because you won't stay the same forever. You'll always change, because nothing is static. And whoever you end up being, you have a right to be there and to be happy. Next time you're called invalid for being someone or something that "isn't real," know that they don't matter. Know that they aren't you, and validity is just a concept. Next time you look in the mirror and think that maybe you were wrong about who you are, remember that's okay.
I don't care who you end up being, I just think you deserve to be happy.
Didn't know there was discourse abt this until recently so here's something the alterhuman community (especially fictionfolk community) NEEDS to understand
The ablesim in the fictionfolk community is absolutely insane. By the way, regarding this post I have NPD and BPD which both affect me daily everyday.
Just because someone doesn't have remorse or regret for what they did in canon or source doesn't make them a horrible person. They do not have to apologize to anyone for lacking empathy.
I, for example, do not regret murdering anyone that I did in source. That doesn't make me a horrible person because I acknowledge that what I did was inherently bad and choose to not do it here.
I'm not going to apologize for something I don't regret because I would be dishonest. Call me a villain for whatever you want.
If any of this makes you upset, maybe your ableist. If someone acknowledges that its bad and chooses to not do it despite not regretting it at all, they aren't the bad person.
Lacking empathy doesn't make you a bad person. Your ACTIONS determine that.
Id say it depends on how the universe is built! One could argue if theres no humans, there'd be human fictionkin in a furry world.
Here's some other ideas though;
If theres non-sentient feral animals, they could have those as kintypes
All animals are sentient in some way? Fictionfolk is the main form of alterhumanity! You'd have a lot more fiction 'kins and 'hearted and etc in a furry world like that. Maybe an anthro is pokemonkin because Pokémon is still a fictional magical world?
Human and Anthro mixed? Think like Deltarune, where we have the human protagonist living in a world of anthros. There's likely still feral animals, so point one applies here, but with mixed households like the Dreemurrs you may see lots of kids like Kris and adults who have a stronger tie to beasts. This would make alterhumans a very common thing, and some monsters may even feel more human.
That's all I can think of off the top of my head, but like I said it really depends on the world building!
Just saw a post in the therian tag of someone saying to keep purity culture out of the alterhuman community and then has DNI proship/fic in their bio. The mental dissonance
So anti-therian sentiments are pretty much always a front for hatred or discomfort towards queer people, the mentally ill and people of other races/cultures, I think we all agree on that, but I think it can also be clear at times that the people who spout this stuff don't have much respect for animals point blank.
Like, often the points they make come from a place of disgust at the thought of someone imitating nonhuman behaviours ("so you eat from a bowl and shit outside?") and its interesting to me how these behaviours are painted like they're... unbecoming. Like you should be above acting like an animal. It feels, to me, like they're subconsciously attached to the notion of animals being of "lesser intelligence" or lower ranked than humans, therefore being influenced by them is an embarrassment.
Some people, generally younger folk who wanna be edgy when they can't wrap their head around something from what I've seen, see an alterhuman or furry or whatever and threaten to hunt them or skin them or any other kind of act of animal cruelty they can think of. That speaks for itself, obviously, but also like... I've seen anecdotes a good few times of therians who've made genuine expressions of their nonhumanity in conversations, only for it to be interpreted as self deprecation. Most people can't seem to take the image of an animalistic person seriously in itself. You can see this in normie reactions to therianthropy and you can see it tenfold in their reactions to furry.
I believe that we're not gonna see progress in how alterhumans are treated till we make progress in accepting the wider marginalised groups that overlap with our own movement. But even so, its glaringly obvious how people can't even comprehend the thought of relating to animals as more than a curiosity or spectacle. They're seen as simple. They don't have language we see as complex, they don't do maths, art, philosophy, inventing to the same extent as people. They eat, shit, kill and fuck. They're purely biological. They have no inner world. Therefore, they're below humans.
Except... humans do all that stuff too. And most animals do the same things humans are so proud of themselves for, just in their own way. The only real difference is that animals don't go to great lengths to fill whatever void each human seems to have inside that pushes them to keep searching for a reason to live. Animals are better in tune with themselves, I think. Humans can't fathom that its okay to be internally fulfilled by simple things. They especially can't fathom how animals piss and shit and fuck without shame. It kind of speaks to a severe disconnection from nature, which we're unavoidably a part and product of. Many of us live in a culture where we're taught on some level to be ashamed of our basic needs. Its becoming increasingly hard to view ourselves as products of a mushy bloody biological world when our society values only the civil and the intellectual.
Hateful people will use this divide we've created as fuel to hurt others. You don't need me to explain to you how all throughout history bastards have done horrible things to innocent people for horrible reasons and all the while perpetuated an idea of their victims being apparently uncivilised. Treating the Other as subhuman, forcing them down to the same level we see animals as being at, is unfortunately nothing new. I believe part of the reason humans struggle to accept therianthropy is that therianthropy, in a way, elevates animals to beside humanity, and that's difficult to comprehend. It kind of forces you to question the hierarchy of living creatures you've built inside your head. Actively choosing to accept animalistic qualities into yourself 1. communicates implicitly to those around you that there's something about animals to respect and admire beyond usefulness/amusement, and 2. is inherently a pull towards the sensory, biological and "gross", which we don't make a whole lot of room for in our current world. We're taught to suppress the instinctual, and we're also pushing nature itself away more and more. Wanting to take joy in your own body and wanting to experience fur, scales, claws, meat, noise, the flesh and bones and mannerisms of an animal is deeply sensory. When someone is confronted with desires and self-perceptions like nonhumanity and the beliefs about the world it challenges... its easier to conclude that therians are pushing themselves down, rather than lifting animals, and the urges humans can't accept, up.
It's sad if you ask me. So many cultures around the world, now and in the past, live in tandem with animals and plants and soil and sea. We can live equal to the nature around us, because we are nature. Fuck, alterhumanity isnt even a newfangled thing. Folks have been emulating animal characteristics for all sorts of reasons for all of time. Animals are more than tools or commodities or things spawned in to make the landscape more interesting. I can't speak for any community beyond my own but all over the world folks have been chill with nature in all sorts of ways and actually respected the existence of the things around them instead of harvesting everything for personal gain.
I think we therians kind of have a duty to learn more about this stuff and try to advocate for the care of the creatures we've accepted into ourselves. Whether or not you're on board with your existence in a human society, you've been blessed with a voice to speak with. I'm not a genius and I can't tell you every single thing you should research or get involved in if you want to change the world, but maybe next time someone tries to fuck you over for being what you are, ask them "what's so bad about being an animal?"
I think that otherlinking would be better off being characterised by the action of crafting the link, and not just by it being a "voluntary identity".
First of all, I've come to believe that solely dividing identities by whether or not they're voluntary isn't the best method. (Other members of the community have made excellent points about that already, also just. the quoiluntary label.) It forms an artificial binary whereas in reality, being somewhere in the middle is very common. Also, in and of itself, whether or not it's voluntary doesn't necessarily have a major impact on the actual experience.
In terms of 'linking being an action, (in my experience at least), you don't simply wake up and say "I've decided to be X." You actually have to link first in order for it to really feel like part of your identity. The linking can be simple and quick, but it's still something that you do.
This may not seem like a huge change, but in my opinion it would make a lot more sense for the distinction between otherlinking and other forms of nonhumanity to be framed this way. It seems a lot more accurate to the experiences I see, and personally I prefer the perspective of focusing on the linking.
Isn't the whole point of it being voluntary that you do the voluntary?*
(PLEASEEE if you have an opinion on this share it, this is some random thoughts of mine and I love, love, LOVE talking about 'linking!!!!)
*grammar is for the weak /silly
(also I don't know how common of a perspective this is, the otherlink page on therian fandom wiki kiind of gives of these vibes, but also is quite different from how I use the term lol)
@cawcawmf3 (difficult to explain stuff in comments x3)
OK SO like obv it does depend on what kind of advice, so like feel free to ask about anything specific (dms are also open salute). but here's some generic stuff on how to link, from my experience!!! (there's also other linking guides there, like by chordata's guide to alterhumanity)
If you take a more psychological approach, the goal is typically to make your brain believe that you ARE the thing, and to just make it a part of your identity
A classic method is to FAKE IT TILL YOU MAKE IT. Refer to yourself as your linktype, try to think of yourself as your linktype, you can do a little mantra of repeating that "I am x" (worked really well for becoming a goat!)
Something that I also think is really important is to realise the ways in which you already are like your linktype? And intentionally place emphasis on them. For example, when I linked being a goat, I realised how much I already loved doing goat things (climbing shit, biting stuff, eating grass), and how much goat traits I already had (being a contrarian little shite /aff, jumping around, urge to feel textures, etc). With my Hunter (TOH) linktype, I resonated with Hunter a lot due to having similar trauma, so that was kind of an anchor for the linktype (but this made the linktype much less all encompassing, since it was a very specific part of myself).
That made the linking process and up feeling more about bringing out a part of myself that was already there, and just focusing in on those specific aspects of them, rather than creating a completely new identity from scratch.
Also, I found putting myself into the mindset of the thing really helped, especially if wanting to experience mental shifts. For linking a goat I went into a field and climbed shit and did other goat stuff, trying to feel as Goat as possible (and still do that for fun, like how non linker therians often go out and embrace their theriotype). With Hunter, I watched episodes of the show and imagined literally being in his shoes, thinking about what was happening as MY experiences, as my memories. I also wrote self insert fanfiction :3
this is likeee a summarised yap of what has worked for me!!! Like I knew that I had linked my linktypes when I could say "I am x" and feel as if I'm saying the truth. THIS IS SUPER UNORGANISED BUT YAH FEEL FREE TO ASK ANYTHING MORE OR FOR CLARIFICATION OR JUST TO CHAT OR WHATEVER X3
[ 𖥔 I hope in some form we can rekindle the otherlink tag. Even if it's just flag stuff. literally the only hope to see otherlink content is the latest section AFTER we blocked a blog thats A KIN BLOG for KINS. For KIN culture. ]
[ 𖥔 we are puppy pilled. Truly puppy maxxing. We like the canine posts but it doesn't feel for us despite the tag being there. It's a common feeling among otherlinkers I've seen. it'd be nice for a change if big otherlink posts wasn't just generally towards alterhumans or saying we exist & are valid. Like I KNOW I am but why can't i find MY people in MY tag with ease ]
[ 𖥔 it's really hard if you're someone like us who needs input from those who are xyz thing, it's helpful for reaffirming & being sure I connect with this thing. but how can I if I need to scroll forever to even see otherlink posts. By linkers. ]
[ 𖥔 There is 1 ( ONE !!!! ) copinglink culture blog. It is very much inactive. On that end we'll probably make our own. It is criminal there is zero area for otherlinkers in their own damn tag. ]
Question 37: If your source is animated, do you remember it like its animated? (e.g. My source is 2d animated, I have memories of it in the same animation style)
We've seen some posts lately where people are saying they feel too plural to be a singlet and too singlet to be plural, or that they feel certain plural-ish ways about their kintypes... And, well, we have news for you--there's (possibly) a word for that!
See, while a lot of people see "multiple system" and "plural system" as interchangable, they actually have nuance to their meanings. And there's a third term, "median system", that might actually apply to you!
Some descriptions of the terms, for reference!
This won't be the only term list in this post, but to avoid dumping a ton of terms at the start without context, they'll show up where relevant. For now, though, here's a few.
Singlet:
The state of being one singular person/identity in one body. Synonym for non-plural.
Plural:
More than one entity, self, identity or consciousness in a single body. Simply, being more-than-one in some way. This is more of an umbrella term for multiple and median.
Multiple:
Having more than one distinct identities or people within a body.
Median:
The state of being somewhere between "singlet" and "multiple" on the plural spectrum.
Now, that's pretty vague, especially if this is a new concept to you! What does "inbetween" of multiple and singlet even really look like? The answer is, well... Anything, almost! But that's also vague and unhelpful. So...
Some examples of what being a median system could feel like...
You're like a metaphorical hydra--all part of one dragon, but there's different heads. You might feel parts of yourself arguing or thinking different thoughts, and some might be more in charge at times than others, but in the end, you're all a part of one unit anyway.
You're like a metaphorical coin--you're all one single thing, but there's different faces. Depending on what angle someone looks at you from, they could see something completely different.
You're like a gemstone cut for a ring--all one stone, but there's facets of you that reflect light just a little differently.
You speak to your subconscious, but because that subconscious is you, you feel like you're an inbetween of being just one person and two people. (This can also include things like daemonism!)
You feel like your identity itself is a shapeshifter (not in a kintype way--your identity as a whole).
You're otherkin/fictionkin/etc, and your kintypes have juuuust a little too much separation from you to feel like they're still you, but they're you enough that they're not separate people. They're not entirely distinct from you, but they're also not entirely wholly you, either. (More on this one later!)
You feel too much like a singlet to be plural, but too much like a system to be a singlet.
You age or pet regress, and feel like your regressed self is a different version of you. Sure, they're still you! But they're just different enough that they fall in a grey area of being "you" vs "not you".
You feel like "you" are, in whole, a person wearing a lot of different masks. The masks might make you act a little different, or look a little to-the-left of your normal appearance. All the masks are a part of you, as much as you're a part of them.
You feel like you sometimes have a different "filter" put over you, like a photo being digitally edited. You're still the same base thing, but sometimes there's an extra layer on top that makes you a little different.
You don't feel singlet or multiple, but feel like a secret third thing that's in any way inbetween.
You feel like you're almost a system.
Now, that's nowhere near an exhaustive list, but it's a bunch of stuff we've experienced and/or heard from others in the community. That gemstone comparison is actually common enough for the median version of the term "headmate" to be a sort of reference to how it feels!
Headmate (also alter, system member):
An entity/person that is a part of a system.
Facet:
A type of headmate that is a part of a median system.
There's also a term for identities that blur the line between "fictive" and "fictionkin", because the experience of being median while having identities that feel like fictives and fictotypes simultaneously is so common! (There's now a factbased identity term for the experience too!)
Fableing:
A type of facet in a median system that shares experiences of both fictionkin and fictives, making them an inbetween, adjacent to both experiences, or both at the same time.
Factling:
A type of facet in a median system that shares experiences of both factkin and factives, making them an inbetween, adjacent to both experiences, or both at the same time.
Otherkinity and Median Systems
In particular though, we see a lot of otherkin who say a lot of very plural-y things about their kintypes. While not everyone who says these things is 100% plural and maybe just one or two of these points to nothing plurality related at all... These are things we think are pretty good indicators you should at least consider looking into median systems, even if you've looked into being multiple before.
Your kintypes can speak or communicate to you, disagree with you or each other, or interact with things separate from you. This doesn't need to include written or spoken language, either! Sometimes internal instincts clashing can feel a lot like median facets disagreeing.
Shifting causes you to experience memory loss, amnesia, or anything similar.
Shifting causes a complete gender change, even if previously and after the shift you disagree.
Shifting causes you to act "out of character" compared to your usual self.
Shifting causes a complete sexuality change, even if previously and after the shift you disagree.
Shifting causes you to want to change your name, even if previously and after the shift you disagree.
You don't feel like you're yourself while shifted.
You get thoughts that you don't feel belong to you, and feel like they belong more to your kintype.
You don't feel too much like you are your kintype, unless you're in a shift. (Also check out fictionflickering/otherflickering!)
Your kintypes do things that you're unaware of while you're shifted.
You commonly dissociate during or before shifting.
Your kintypes change your likes and dislikes (for example, while shifted you might hate apples while when not in a shift you love them).
You'd call your kintypes headmates or you feel like they'd be classified as headmates if you had DID/OSDD (spoiler alert, you don't need those to be a system!)
Your shifts cause a full or very strong personality change--especially if other people notice.
You feel disconnected from your body or lose control of your body while shifting.
You come out of a shift and are confused, distressed, or surprised at how you acted during it.
Like I said, not all of these point toward being median if there's just one or two--but, if you have the time to look into it, I'd recommend giving it some thought!
Misc FAQs
Do I have to call myself a median system if I fit a lot of/all of this?
Nope! Your identity is yours to label, and this post isn't meant to shove people into boxes. This is simply meant to inform people of what a median system is, and let people come to informed decisions themselves.
Can you be both multiple and median?
Absolutely! There's plenty of ways this can be a thing, too. Some examples:
Multiple system with median subsystems.
Median system with multiple subsystems.
A system that fluctuates between median and multiple.
A system with a bunch of headmates who are median or multiple (regardless of subsystems).
You could be both at once, which we've seen called "mediple"!
Can you have a CDD (like DID and OSDD) and be median?
Yep! It's commonly believed that most (not all!) OSDD systems often fall under the median umbrella, even! A system of any structure or origin can also have median members within it, regardless of other parts of how it functions.
Can you choose to be median?
As with plurality in general--yes, probably! We haven't seen any guides to specifically form a median system, but we're sure it's possible. Daemonism, for example, is usually counted as a nonplural experience by their community, as daemons are "you" in another font--for lack of better phrasing. But a lot of people do consider this to be a type of median plurality in their own experiences!
Is this an endo system thing?
No. Endogenic and traumagenic systems alike can both experience median plurality, and can also be disordered or nondisordered. The term didn't even originate in endogenic-specific spaces, nor did it originate recently either. "Midcontinuum" was presented as a term in around 1996-1997, and "median" was created in 2002. Some early plural communtiy mentions of the terms:
What is a median? Neither multiple nor singlet.
Us and Being Median:
This was co-written by a median subsystem (Dagger of Decay) and one of said subsystem’s QPPs in-system (Shrapnel). While we don’t reflect the entirety of our experience of having median plurality within our system, we can share what we personally know of our own life in the hopes that it resonates with others in a helpful way.
Being a median subsystem to me (Dagger of Decay), feels like I’m separate sides of the same metaphorical coin. (At least, that was an accurate descriptor until I discovered more facets than just the two.) You look at this coin, and one side might have a picture of one thing on it, while the other has something completely different–but you’d be wrong if you said that this was two separate coins just because it’s different depending on how you see it or how you hold it. You’d also be wrong in saying that the coin only had one uniform side–I mean, it clearly has different pictures on each side, they’re clearly different!
The faces of the coin are the fableings that make up me as a person. If I really wanted to, I could probably label myself as one person with very strong kintype shifts, but that doesn’t feel like it covers the full scope of my identity. I can’t talk to my facets, I also can hardly ever disagree with them because we’re so close to the singlet end of the spectrum. But even still, when I’m Tomura Shigaraki, I’m not really the other facets of myself anymore–it’s like you’ve spun that coin around and they’re the ones who are face down, hidden from sight for that moment. The same is true for when any other one is in control. The coin just sort of flips itself occasionally and oops! I’m the same base guy, but in a different font. A little bit to the left maybe.
The amount of separatedness between us fluctuates–sometimes I say “I” to refer to all of me, other times we say “we”. That’s one of the more noticeable fluctuations between my facets, but there’s plenty of other things that shift and change too–how distinct we feel, how much we can disagree with each other, how much we feel connected to other identities we hold… But in the end, we’re solidly sat in the grey area between “one singular guy with no extras” and “multiple guys in one head”--and it took our system a while to get a hold of what that can mean and feel like, so I hope some people who are questioning or struggling with their identity can get a little bit of something out of this post.
For further reading:
The Dragonheart Collective's "Am I plural" guide.
Allium House's "what is the self?" essay.
Endogenic Hub's "Medians" page.
Otherkin Wiki's Plurality page (section on median plurality included).
Beepbird's "Median is More than People With Parts".
Beepbird's "For Medians: Fronting and Switching Control".
Beepbird's entire median plurality links section, honestly.
A lot of people have been reblogging this with "I DIDN'T KNOW THIS WAS A THING" and "I had no idea this counted". We can't respond to every individual one, but welcome to the plural community! Medians definitely belong!
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