And honestly, that's a completely legitimate concern. I'm sure that if you're reading this you've been a furry for long enough to have seen a situation similar to the one we're in now. Where, despite the fact that there are other options out there (and totally usable ones to boot) people trickle back to the worst possible place. It is always a shame to see, and the social pressure to go with the flow is undeniably very strong.

So as people who I'm sure want to see this website flourish and see the furry community/fandom/whatever we wanna call it become a little bit safer and less embarrassing, what can -we- do about it? What steps can we take to combat this? There's quite a few things, and though some of this may seem a bit obvious, I think it helps to keep it in mind. So forgive me if I seem patronizing, because that's certainly not the case. I want to see us build a new future together, and if you're here, I'm guessing you do too. So let's get started.

1. If you're a creator, and I mean of ANYTHING, whether it be visual art/music/stories/food reviews/whatever, get to posting that stuff! Again I know this seems obvious, but more often than not the reason why I see migrations like this fail is because people's galleries are empty. I know the idea of reposting a bunch of your old stuff is daunting and no fun, but don't worry, there's a tool to help (If you use Chrome at least.)! Just go to right here https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/waxpost-weasyl-crossposte/boddplgmdhddfmchbifhpdpekfdaenjc/related?hl=en and get yourself the chrome addon "Waxpost (Weasyl Crossposter). It's a frankly ingenious little addon that, when installed, causes that little Weasyl hat icon to appear in your address bar whenever you're on the page for any of your submissions. You then just click the hat, and you're brought back to Weasyl, with all the info from that submission already pre-loaded. And I mean everything! The picture itself, the description, the tags--The only thing you need to do is choose a folder (if you care about those of course), give the picture a rating. Then bam, you're good! It turns what seems like an insurmountable chore into something much more manageable, so I hope this helps a lot. And if you don't use Chrome, honestly I'd download it and the addon specifically for doing this, I was floored by how easy it is to use. The only problem? It doesn't work so well for stories, and I doubt it works for music too (though I could be wrong about that, and please tell me if so). Still, if you're a visual artist this tool can't be beat, so get on it! Especially if your gallery here is empty and your FA one is full. Do yourself, your watchers, and the community as a whole a favor--You won't regret it.

2. Whether you're a creator or just a watcher (And hey nothing wrong with that. We're really grateful you came here to support us.), get to commenting and faving stuff everyone! The reason why artists will leave a site is because they're afraid that there's no community to support them there, and that is very easily changed. So take some time to show your favorite contributors some love. Fave pictures, leave supportive comments, fave journals (what an awesome feature that is btw), signal boost for those who're trying to get commissions. It's really the least any of us could do, but the impact it has on creating a kind and stable community is E N O R M O U S.

3. Last, but certainly not least, again do your best to remember that time is on your side, as long as you stand your ground. There has never been a single community that was incapable of supporting several venues at once, and furries are no different. People love your stuff and love you, and if you make it clear that this is where you wanna be, they will be here too.

So those are my ideas everyone. Sorry for the really long journal, but please do give it a read. I know we can work together to make this a community worth sticking around in. And hey, if you have any ideas yourself on how to build a strong community, please share! I don't pretend to be an authority on such matters, and since you're just as much a part of the fandom as I am, I'm sure your ideas are just as valid. So let's do this everyone!