So many members have nothing on their profile/bio.They do not think it is important. But it IS important. It gives other members an insight into what the new member is interested in.
AGE.
Youngsters will always claim that they are just as "educated" as, say, a 30 year old. And that may very well be so. But it is not the knowledge that matters; it is the maturity of the Poster.
GENDER.
Not really important, but it's better to know if one is addressing a young girl, or a young boy.
LOCATION.
If you do not wish to give your Location, leave it blank! "Up with the Fairies" is not a Location! The Location, just town and country, may help to find a real coven, or somebody living nearby with the same interests.
WRITE SOMETHING ABOUT YOURSELF.
So many write things such as their sexual orientation; we don't give a hoot about that! Write about your interests; what you would like to learn.
FLUFF.
Fluff is okay if you accept that it is Fluff! Many "Fluffies" come onto this site and begin to really learn. Then they are no longer Fluffies.
So, please note, your profile/bio is important!
I saw mods who have a "non-location" on their profile and they're quite very knowledge.If a person provide knowledge on the site,it doesn't really matter at all where he/she lives.
I know it's important, but my magical practice has been more difficult for me to explain or label than it has been to…well, practice.
Age…I prefer to let other people surprise me. A person's maturity would show in how they interact and what ideas they have. If I find out later that they're a teenager or an octogenarian, and it changes my appreciation of what they wrote, I just feel like that's an effect of inner prejudice that I personally would rather not give in to.
Gender…same as age, although I don't like that the English language doesn't have non-gendered pronouns and that there's such a high tension of politics or courtesy. You don't have this problem with Tagalog or Bahasa.
Location…Aww, but if you don't wish to give your location to find a local coven, why not have fun with it as much as leave it blank?
Writing personal descriptions…While this isn't a dating site, I have noticed much more heightened tension around sexual orientations, calling for more representation, changing the laws for better equality, and all that. These have nothing, oddly enough, to do with dating or marriage directly. While it's anathema to call orientation "a lifestyle", to state one's orientation still means taking a stand for something social and even political--and an entire generation of people with internet access are giving so many hoots about that.
But yeah, if you're going into Identity Politics, might as well include in the profile whether a person is cisgendered or ablebodied, or their ethnic heritage, because all that is gaining hoots as well.
Interests and aspirations are good to include. Hobbies, too, and fandoms…okay maybe not that last one because I haven't the stamina to explain the difference between fluff and pop culture paganism between what I anticipate will be a lot of Sternly Worded Forum Posts if not confused or outright fluffy.
Brysing, I respect your views on fluff (and I certainly admire your patience) though I don't know if SpellsOfMagic as a community is really…"there" yet.
Ah-ha! This forum's code parses my ellipses into question marks! I was wondering why I sounded so uncertain on these forums lately. (Sorry, this post is off-topic.)
Location is not only about finding a coven,or a friend. This site is world-wide, and there are differences of language and Time Zones. And it is always best to profile a little about one's self.
For instance, apart from being female, we know nothing about you! There is nothing on your profile.
I can see where you are coming from, Brysing, but I simply think that part of the fun of the way things are set up here is that it allows for individuality. Each member can craft their profile together in a way that they feel best represents them. If they don't want to give out any information about themselves they shouldn't feel that they have to. As you said yourself, the profile gives insight as to what the person is like or interested in. So why not let them express themselves through their profile in a way that they enjoy?
If they want to write about their sexual orientation, why not? Though it's not a dating site, it is a community of people seeking to make friends. The gender options here only include male or female- and I know that many people I've met here do not label themselves as such. Cisgender people sometimes include this in their profile and I think it's fine. It helps like members find other like members and make friends. So long as they don't treat it as a dating site, I don't see the problem with that.
If they want to write something silly on their location, why not? I myself have written "between Van and Vil"- it is relevant to my practice, as it means "between Hope and Dispair" (the two rivers of blood stemming from Fenrir). I don't feel like giving out my real location, and I feel like this little tidbit is a way of expressing myself.
Just food for thought. Everyone is unique and everyone's bios are unique.
Personified, stated a good point. This site, itself is a unique site. So many people express themselfs, in their profile.
While, yes, i also agree with you bryson. Many people who have little,to nothing on their bio, can be discouraging. We must realize that some just don't feel comfortable, sharing.
