Dogpatch Press

Fluff Pieces Every Week

Tag: grubbs grizzly

June 28, 2019

Debunking Furry Misconceptions about Copyright — guest post by Grubbs Grizzly

by Dogpatch Press Staff

Welcome to Grubbs Grizzly, known for his “Ask Papabear” advice column and Greymuzzles group popular among the original generation of fandom. He started The Good Furry Award for furs who demonstrate outstanding community spirit, and is at work on The Furry Book where copyright has a chapter. 

(Editors note:) It happens time and again. Someone traces art, does a “recolor” or reposts without asking. Or perhaps without knowing, with all the memes and reposts on social media. There’s good ways and bad ways to fix mistakes and spread constructive awareness (something easily forgotten in fandom.)

First, DO: send a DM saying “hey I don’t know if you were aware about this but can you please credit/take it down?” — DON’T: Rush past doing a DM to brew up a nasty mob and grab that callout clout. (Especially if the art isn’t signed and it’s a super-generic meme used all over the place.)

Nicely asking is the way to start with fan-to-fan issues. Fake-legalese can sound threatening, but what’s the ratio of sad drama vs. real lawsuits you can name about furry art?  Unless there’s mass-production going on, that’s just likely to spread nastiness and waste time when you could have been constructive.

I once bought a warehouse of cases of a photography book for next to nothing, saving them from being put out in the rain. I tried contacting the photographer to see what happened but got no answer. But after starting liquidation, he found me with a nice letter saying “the distributor screwed me and went bankrupt without telling me, I could sue about ownership, but I made them for love and really want them, is there any way to work this out?” I could have told him to piss up a rope because it would never be worth the lawyer fees; but his approach got me to ship him a truckload for only my loading cost and his transport cost. Win-win. He was a Playboy photographer who now likes furries. Triple win!

This site started like many fan projects as a free wordpress.com blog, promotes countless creators as a not-for-profit community service, and costs me to run it. There’s hundreds of years-old articles that won’t get weeded and could have a few reposted files in them (I don’t know). It can happen with posts taking 4-12+ hours to write. If any issue turns up, send a DM or “Here’s my Paypal if you can do a modest fee.” It’s that easy to get a win-win.

Writers get paid peanuts, but at least guest submissions here now get thank-you pay above fandom-standard rate (compared to fiction publishing, as the only furry news site that pays anything at all). Plus there’s a new regular banner feature that commissions underrated artists — the upcoming one is a Mexican fur. For this guest article, I’m grateful to Grubbs for declining compensation, he’s a great fandom supporter. (My opinion is independent from his). Enjoy! – Patch

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May 14, 2019

Voting for The Good Furry Award has commenced!

by Patch O'Furr

Nominations for the premier Good Furry Award are finalized, and voting has commenced at the Ask Papabear website (www.askpapabear.com/vote-now).

What is The Good Furry Award? It is a prize given to furries who have demonstrated exemplary behavior within the fandom by giving back to the community and by serving as a fine example of what furries are supposed to be about: fun, playfulness, imagination, creativity, and, above all, community.

The Good Furry Award was created by Grubbs Grizzly (Kevin Hile), who runs the Ask Papabear website, which is an advice column for furries and the furry curious. Grubbs (53) began the column in 2012 as a reaction to all the emails he had already been getting from younger furries asking about the fandom and seeking advice. He also runs the Greymuzzle, Outcast Furries, and Bear Furries groups on Facebook. In addition, he is still working on a guidebook called The Furry Book: The Who, What, When, Where, Why and How of the Furry Fandom. For those of you who have heard of this project, yes, it has been delayed a long time due to several setbacks in Grubbs’ life, including the unexpected death of his husband and recent death of his mother, but he hopes to finish it soon. The Furry Book will also launch his new publishing venture, Uncle Bear Publishing, which will offer nonfiction titles specializing in the furry community (Grubbs has 30 years of experience in reference publishing and is currently a freelance managing editor).

The winner of the 2019 Good Furry Award will receive $1,000 and a shiny in the form of a handsome trophy. Three runners-up will receive honorable mention certificates, as well. The current nominees are: Aleshka Alejandra, LeighAnn Baca, Troj Bruegel, Damien Coquelle (Timduru), Dai Cymru, Tony Barret (Dogbomb), Courtney Dunn (Dr. Wildlife), Jeff Edwards (Ramseys the Bull), Kat the Leopardess, Shelly McCaw, Courtney Plante, Murphy Slaugh, Rodney O’Riley, Tycho Aussie, Matt VanNest, Noelle White (Wyld), Andrew Willis, and Zorrore.

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November 29, 2018

Corgi Events Is the Fandom’s First Convention Management Company – By Grubbs Grizzly

by Dogpatch Press Staff

Grubbs Grizzly is known for his “Ask Papabear” advice column, and Greymuzzles group popular among the original generation of fandom. He’s at work on The Furry Book and made The Good Furry Award for furs who demonstrate outstanding community spirit. Nominate one for a $1000 prize! Thanks to Grubbs for this guest article.

Corgi Events appeared here for their con Aquatifur. They made the fandom applaud in August 2018 when Denfur filled the vacancy left by RMFC. All eyes were on them when Denfur’s first year beat attendance estimates by double, as high as RMFC would have grown if it still existed. More than a mere numbers success, it represented fans rejecting bad behavior that ruined its predecessor, and embracing the ideal of a community. For that I would give Corgi Events all the support I can.

(UPDATE 1: a twist in the story shortly after publishing makes me modify this to say I support fandom and its members, volunteers and community that makes cons happen for the love of it.) – Patch 

Corgi Events Is the Fandom’s First Convention Management Company
By Grubbs Grizzly

The history of furry conventions is an interesting one indeed, one that was recently written about by the late, great furry historian and book critic Fred Patten in his Furry Fandom Conventions, 1989-2015. As anyone who has read that book or is familiar with convention history knows, it all started with Confurence 0 in Costa Mesa, California, in 1989. After a couple years, new conventions started opening their doors. The phenomenon has snowballed until now there are nearly 100 conventions worldwide.

Up until recently, one thing fur cons had in common was that they were operated independently of one another. Often these would be organized by local fans, perhaps sharing crew with other events, but based in one community. Each would be organized by—typically—a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in the United States.

But the other day my attention was drawn to a company called Corgi Events LLC, when I heard its announcement of a new fur con in Irvine, California, to be called Golden State Fur Con. GSFC is debuting next year, along with another Corgi-created con, the Painted Desert Fur Con in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Reading this, bells started ringing in my fuzzy bear ears. Was Corgi trying to replace Califur, which failed to hold a convention this year, and may or may not in 2019? And Phoenix (Scottsdale is a suburb) already has the young Arizona Fur Con. Next, I saw that Corgi also runs DenFur, which has effectively replaced the failed Rocky Mountain Fur Con. The chosen locations look strategic, and multi-con management over distance is a departure from the furry norm.

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September 3, 2018

Update about the Good Furry Award, and The Furry Book from Grubbs Grizzly

by Patch O'Furr

The Good Furry Award is here to spread good news! Without speaking for the award or anyone involved, here’s a message with an exclusive book excerpt.

Regular readers who come here for the pulse of the fandom know that negative news can have a lot of impact. Obviously, there’s good reasons to spread important issues and stand for the truth.

But do you ever get fed up with hearing about bad behavior by ignoramuses who can barely care for a potted plant, let alone maintain good relations with other fans? Would you rather not devote too much mental real estate to occasional stories here about: Read the rest of this entry »

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July 16, 2018

The Good Furry Award, The Furry Book, and Joe Strike’s Furry Nation News from Anthrocon

by Patch O'Furr

Grubbs Grizzly of “Ask Papabear” has quite an established presence with many followers. Now he’s emerged from his cave to announce an award for other furries who demonstrate Outstanding Community Spirit.

Good furries are everywhere. But sometimes when fandom takes a look at itself and how it can be better, bad furries get attention. From circa-2000 Burned Furs, to Nazi Furs who have ruined furry conventions, troublemakers get more attention than they deserve. (None might be a fair amount.)

The Good Furry Award is coming to reward a fandom member each year for their community spirit. On top of benefit to one, the process of looking at nominees and their work is meant to promote much more conversation about good things that the vast majority of furries do for each other and outsiders alike.

The “Ask Papabear” website is now taking nominations for Good Furries: https://www.askpapabear.com/good-furry-award.html

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