(Fabulous work from the ever so talented Drunk_ferret )
What Do Furries and Pro Wrestling Have In Common?
Sonas can be a lot like pro-wrestling personalities, or rather, they can parallel the process of creating a compelling character you embody that develops and changes overtime. While the goals can be different (be it for creative, social, stress relieving, or sexual outlets) what remains constant is the use and development of an avatar in favor of that goal. Having different versions of that avatar over time is common - the same way a pro wrestler develops their character:
Mark Calloway had different versions of his character The Undertaker:
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John Cena had different versions of his character to the point of the final result being a magpie of all the different versions:
And some have their characters change completely over time such as Drew McIntyre (Almost like furries creating new sonas):
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Personality vs Authenticity
KZ3 is my avatar the same way a pro-wrestler's character is there's and what they base their time in the sport (be it professionally or as a hobby) around. I base my livelihood around him - training, performing, selling merch. But rather than go out 4-5 nights a week slamming my body on the ground for pro-wrestling shows, my performances are my art, streams, dance performances/competitions, and social media.
What differs from WWE characters as opposed to indie artists however is the big fat "F word". Fake.
(I'm talking specifically WWE here since it's the most popular in the West and easy to associate to) Whereas pro-wrestlers embody their characters to perform for crowd entertainment - they're products of the business they're apart of. No matter how much you interact with them (if you're lucky enough to), generally you're interacting with the character and not the person - if you interacted with the person and they said their honest and authentic thoughts, they generally get in trouble for that.
Furries want the same thing most people want from indie creators - authenticity and a closer connection to the artist, writer, performer. They want to spread positivity to the one who brought them joy with their work (hopefully it's reciprocated) and develop a sense of belonging with others who want to do the same thing - this is how the fandom came to be in the first place.
I'm not here to talk about the pitfalls of that and how it can be very problematic (The whole separating the art from the artist debate) I'm saying I've caught myself before in a battle between being a "personality" rather than an authentic person. Stuck in a twisted self-loathing cycle, I was only finding purpose and worth in views, likes, and comments; trying to tailor my behavior, work, and avatar towards what other people "like" rather than staying true to myself. Unsurprisingly, I lost motivation in my work and lost my sense of purpose.
I took time off to find myself again and I realized that KZ3 isn't just a fictional character for me to run around in carpet and dance for online social clout - but a genuine representation of me; my dreams, my interests, my beliefs, my flaws, my personality. I [b]TRIED[/b] creating other sonas last year as a way to escape my stresses for a fresh start but I found that, no matter how [i]"likeable"[/i] or [i]"cool"[/i] or how viable the new sona idea was, I couldn't leave KZ3. No matter how many fears I had about how KZ3 would be perceived by the general public, I couldn't leave him. I genuinely [b]love[/b] being him.
Much like a pro-wrestler who developed his character, KZ3 too has developed overtime from a sona' that was just for kinks and my interest in martial arts, to something that really gives my life a sense of purpose:
I'm up at 5AM training and dieting to be this character.
I'm reading book after book, studying how to be a better teacher, instructor, mentor to others
I'm creating projects and work, guilds, hitting the con circuit to network and build this character up.
I'm literally obsessed with being this sona'. As close as I can get without actually mutating into a big poodle man.
In conclusion, my time in the fandom is not unlike a pro-wrestler playing the character they love for a living (only my way is a lot more injury free) and tailoring their lives around playing that character. It took me a long time to figure it out but it's something I needed to go through to grow and truly understand that this is what I want. To be my sona: Powerful, disciplined, protective, skilled, and a good teacher to others.