Doug Linger


 * ''This is not the same person as the similarly-named artist Doug Winger.

Doug Linger, a.k.a. Xodiac, currently resides in Redmond, Washington. He was born and raised in New Jersey and has also lived Fremont, California. He graduated from the University of Kansas in 1996 with a Bachelor's degree in Geology.

Linger is a writer with stories primarily in the transformation genre. In the late 1990s, he formed 1/5 of the Teen Round Robin story collective (alongside Jon Sleeper, Brian Eirik Coe, Bryan Derksen, and Trey McElveen). Early stories were primarily set in The Winds of Change and The Blind Pig universes, among others. Since then, however, he has concentrated primarily on writing stories that can stand on their own. To date, he has no professional credits as an author.

Linger is the assistant editor for the magazine, "Renard's Menagerie," which deals with anthropomorphic-related fiction. This means he reads through the submitted stories and helps determine which will be accepted for publication. He also offers opinions and suggestions on artwork, and assists with advertising, the forums, and other aspects of the magazine. The first issue of the magazine was first published in January of 2007.

Linger's fursona is usually that of Xodiac the dragote, a coyote-dragon hybrid. He is not deep into his character, however, usually using him merely as a furry version of himself for the purposes of roleplaying. Xodiac the character has little developed history, quirks, or personality different from his player.

Linger has made three fursuits and wears them at conventions. Only one might be considered complete, however. His first attempt at costuming was to build the Disney character Brooklyn the gargoyle. This was abandoned after the mask was completed as he turned to the re-creation of his fursona, Xodiac. His next suit, a half-suit, was that of Maid Marian, a horse in renaissance-era clothing meant to be a pun-laden reference to Robin Hood's mate. His current work in progress is that of Onyx the gargoyle, a reworking of Brooklyn with modifications to make him an original character.

A notable feature of his costumes is the inclusion of working wings on both Xodiac and Onyx. The wings are pneumatically powered. While large, they are not capable of flight, despite the rumors. He also aims for a more realistic, less toony look to his creations than most other fursuiters. Linger is not available for fursuit commissions.

Linger is working as the Fursuit Track lead for RainFurrest convention.