Glamourbombing

[jarandhel]

So, glamourbombing. I'm not a big fan of it personally, it seems like just a flash in a pan to me. Not lasting, not making real change. Just my opinion. But it is a practice that originated in and grew out of the otherkin community. So, here's my question: should I include links to glamourbombing communities in my link section? Is it important for getting a real overview of the otherkin community, both now and historically?

Comments

[drwho]

I am inclined to say 'no' due to its relative ineffectiveness. It would make more sense to point people (and thus effort) in more productive directions.

[jarandhel]

I'm inclined to agree with you completely, but something keeps holding me back from saying No, I'm not going to include them. Y'know, 99% of the time I let my rational mind make decisions like this. Maybe I'll let intuition have this one...

[arethinn]

I would do so, but then, as I mentioned, I have an interest in the whole historical picture.

[jarandhel]

I decided to follow my intuition on this one and include it. It also gave me a convenient excuse to start an "otherkin magic" links section, which so far has glamourbombing and otherkin reiki. Suggestions for other things to include would be welcomed. :)

[arethinn]

Fancy that, I have just such a folder in my bookmarks, for magic & such, although it's not very populated and some of these are on sites already linked to:

Tapestry of Worlds attunement, Rebuilding the Gateways
Silver Elves' Book of Elven Runes
The Otherkin Avatar Project
Dragon Runes

A couple glamourbombing links, which you may already have:

http://www.wildmuse.net/glamourbombs/
Someone's essay they wrote on the topic
Of course there's stuff on my site, but again, already linked to.

You probably wouldn't be interested in links to your own Reiki Annex and Crystal Matrix pages. ;)

[jarandhel]

Ooh, good stuff. :)

I've already linked to Rialian's Reiki pages in the Otherkin Magic section, so Tapestry of Worlds is covered. I think adding Rebuilding the Gateways might be pushing it, I have a lot of links to his site already. Hopefully people will find there way there via one of the other links.

Book of Elven Runes I've really been waffling back and forth on... on the one hand, it's a great example of specifically otherkin (elven) themed magic. On the other hand, it's a product rather than an information page. I'd rather focus on resources that actually put the information out there, I think.

Otherkin Avatar Project... here's one I'm REALLY not sure about. It was done at an otherkin convention, and there were otherkin participants, but it was designed by someone admittedly an outsider to the otherkin community. From what I understand, she meditated and contacted the various beings that she saw as avatars representing the various major "races" of the otherkin community, she intuited their names and sigils and associations, and only after all of this did any actual members of the otherkin community play a role in hosting the Avatars. While that's certainly magic aimed at otherkin, I'm not sure it's otherkin magic. I'd love to hear what others think, though, and I'm not saying I won't include it... just not sure yet.

Dragon Runes - ooooh, Isedon made runes? And they're connected with a remembered language with its own dictionary page? That's two links for two categories then! Thankies! :)

I have wildmuse linked already. Hesitant to link to the essay. It looks really good, but it's only a single entry hosted on someone's livejournal. I'm trying to avoid being quite that specific in what I link to (tho the Buck Young Essay is tempting me to make an exception...) At least for the moment, in order to avoid a total deluge of links, I think I'd prefer to link to sites that contain more than one relevant page. Otherwise there are an awful lot of one-off essays out there I could link to.

[arethinn]

While that's certainly magic aimed at otherkin, I'm not sure it's otherkin magic.

Having been there at the Kin North where it was done, I can say there was something to it, although I can definitely see your point. It seemed like the sort of thing otherkin would be interested in reading about even if it's not "an inside job", as it were.

[jarandhel]

Fair point. I'll add it, but with a bit of editorializing in the description. ;-)

[jarandhel]

And speaking of language links for the language section, I apparently forgot this on your site. Presume it's fae/sidhe?

[arethinn]

I wouldn't so presume. I honestly have no idea and from the sounds of it (ha, geddit?) that was not what I was trying to do at the time. (Whether I unconsciously succeeded is another question.) I haven't updated or even looked at that page in some time.

[jarandhel]

Mind if I add it to the remembered languages link section anyway? I can say something like "it is not known what race this language belonged to" in the description, if you like.

[arethinn]

And in fact not known if it is a single coherent language.

Although to be fair, Arethinn or full form Arethinn siltheri aTinderel did come up in a similar manner, of playing around with sounds and trying to "encode" and what "sounded sensible". I was surprised when, looking back through my journal tags for some reason (updating picture links I think) I came across a post where I was discussing it with Cel over IM something like three years ago - I hadn't thought I'd been toying with it that long. Usually I tend to forget small pieces like single words, but apparently this name had stuck around in my head longer than I'd thought. Tinderel I believe to be some kind of family name and it's only the second or third name I've ever dreamed in my life (and I'm not sure without digging out relevant notes from who-knows-where, but not even dreamed at random, but in fact in response to the intent to uncover such information - usually I get nothing I could even vaguely call related from attempts at dreamwork).

[jarandhel]

*nods* Fair. :) How's this sound as a description?

"A dictionary of words derived through the practice of a kind of glossolalia, attempting to express the 'soundfeel' of various ideas. It is unknown if these words are from a nonhuman language, or even if they represent a single coherent language. Offered here to see what they spark in others."

[arethinn]

Cool. :)

[jarandhel]

Added. :)

[ignited_spark]

Years ago I wrote an article about glamourbombing as real, change-inducing magic for a Pagan rag. They refused to call it "glamourBOMBING" because that was too much like terr'ism :P

[jarandhel]

... really? I'd always considered the constant disclaimers that glamourbombing did not involve any actual bombs to be unnecessary and rather fluffy. But they seriously thought that? I'd hate to hear what they thought of the terms "guerrilla art" or "poetic terrorism".

[jarandhel]

Btw, I would very much like to hear your thoughts on how glamourbombing can be real change-inducing magic rather than just a flash in the pan.

[ignited_spark]

Sure. Perhaps will post on the dreamhart forum about it...