The Unicorn Questions
Back in 2001, Tanamin proposed a bunch of questions to those of us who had unicorn characters/fursonas. They occasionally come up even 20 years later because of the ridiculous "horn placement" pictures that accompanied the questions.
In any case, in the interest of history, I present here the questionnaire and the accompanying pictures. Enjoy this little visage of the fandom 20 years ago.
Since its really long, I'm going to put it behind an lj cut. Proceed at your own spammy risk!
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[The Unicorn Questionaire]
Unicorn Questionnaire
Thank you very much for taking the time to fill out this questionnaire. Due to the sensitive nature of some of the questions, this questionnaire is for persons over the age of 18 only.
No matter where or how you came into possession of this questionnaire, I hope you're filling it out because you're an incurable unicorn lover, and unicorns like to help one another out! The answers received will be compiled and incorporated into a non-fiction book about unicorns. I am keeping the details under wraps at this point so as not to influence anyone's answers, but let me assure you that you will be helping out unicorns all over by filling this out and sending it back to me at
The deadline for getting these back to me is May 1st, 2001. Anyone who responds before the deadline will have their name entered into a drawing for a special prize! If you're filling it out after that date, you can go ahead and send it to me, but it will be just for fun rather than for research purposes.
Some things to keep in mind as you answer this Unicorn Questionnaire:
a) Your answers may be as long or as short as you like, though I would like them to be as long as it takes to fully express your information or opinion.
b) Please feel free to leave a question blank if for any reason you don't feel like answering it, I won't be offended or upset.
c) Remember that there are no right or wrong answers, so be as honest as you can.
d) Unicorns are well known for their sense of humor, and while humor is appreciated (even encouraged!), please don't answer any questions solely for the purpose of being funny. If you have to throw in a few zingers, mix them in amongst the real information.
e) Since the survey is kind of long, don't feel obligated to complete it all at once. Answer a few questions at a time, and before you know it, it will be done!
f) Have fun! If it's worth filling out, it should be worth enjoying!
g) There is a possibility that I will be interviewing some unicorn enthusiasts for the book, via email and/or telephone, mostly based on the responses that I receive to this Questionnaire.
h) If you know any other unicorns or die-hard unicorn fans who are 18 years of age or older, please send them along my invitation for them to fill out the questionnaire as well. A copy of this .txt file is available at
http://skunkworks.dynip.com/tapestry/uniqustn.txt
Above all, Thank You Very Much!
Tanamin M. Wingate
The Questionnaire
* Indicates a question that is for the author's information only and will not be released to anyone. Period.
1. What is your name? (First name and last initial is sufficient.)*
2. Email or other contact address?*
3. Are you male or female?
4. What is your age?
5. What religion/faith were you brought up into?
6. What is your level of education?
7. Did you enjoy school and/or college?
8. What is your ethnicity/country of ancestry?
9. Do you identify strongly with any particular country/culture/ethnicity other than your own?
10. Have you or anyone in your family ever traced your genealogy?
11. In general, how healthy would you say you were?
Very healthy? Pretty healthy? Somewhat healthy? Not very healthy? Not healthy at all?
12. Are you a vegetarian? If yes, do you eat eggs and dairy products?
13. How often do you smoke cigarettes?
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
14. How often do you smoke cigars?
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
15. How often do you smoke a pipe?
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
16. How often do you drink caffeinated drinks? I.e. coffee, tea, soda, etc.
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
17. How often do you eat sugary foods? i.e. candy, cookies, pastries, etc.
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
18. Have you ever smoked marijuana?
19. Have you ever taken any other recreational drug?
20. How often do you drink alcohol?
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
21. Do you have a high tolerance for pain?
22. How many times a year would you say you catch a cold, flu, or other minor illness?
23. Would you say that your body heals wounds quickly?
24. Would you say that your body recovers from illness quickly?
25. In what kind of place do you live? i.e. City, suburbs, mountains, farm/ranch land, coast, woods, desert, plains, etc.
26. Do you like the place where you live? If no, why not?
27. If you could have your pick of anywhere in the world, where would you live?
28. What do you do for a living?
29. Do you enjoy your day-to-day occupation?
30. If you could have your pick of any occupation, regardless of your talents, what would you like to do?
31. Is there any occupation that you have always admired? If yes, what occupation and what about it do you admire?
32. Is there any occupation that you would never pursue under any circumstances or with which you have always been uncomfortable?
33. What do you do for relaxation after a difficult day?
34. What are your hobbies or interests, other than unicorns?
35. Do you collect unicorns? i.e. figurines, pictures/posters, books, etc.
36. Would you say that you like unicorns because you feel attracted to their beauty and magic?
37. Have you ever felt drawn to unicorns in a way you can't explain?
38. Would you say that your connection to unicorns is:
Profound? Fairly strong? Moderately strong? Not very strong? Superficial?
39. Have you ever had the feeling that you may be or may have once been a unicorn?
40. Is there any trait about unicorns with which you particularly identify?
41. Do you have a unicorn alter ego? i.e. online persona, role playing game character, etc.
42. What is his/her name?
43. What is his/her gender?
44. What is his/her age?
45. Describe him/her.
46. Describe his/her personality.
47. Have you ever presented yourself to others as a unicorn? i.e. in online chat rooms, via email, as a pen pal, etc. If yes, what made you want to do so?
48. What is your favorite book featuring unicorns? What makes it your favorite?
49. What books/television shows/movies would you recommend to fellow unicorn enthusiasts? List as many as you like.
50. Think about your favorite piece of unicorn art. Write a brief description and explain what makes it your favorite.
51. Take a look at the following silhouettes. (figurea.jpg) Which one would you say most closely fits your idea of what a unicorn looks like? Why do you pick that one?
52. Take a look at the following drawings. (figureb.jpg) Which one would you say most closely fits your idea of what an alicorn (unicorn's horn) looks like? Why do you pick that one?
53. Take a look at the following drawings. (figurec.jpg) Which one would you say most closely fits your idea of what a unicorn's tail looks like? Why do you pick that one?
54. Take a look at the following drawings. (figured.jpg) Which one would you say most closely fits your idea of what a unicorn's hooves look like? Why do you pick that one?
55. Why do you think that unicorns are traditionally associated with maidens and/or virgins?
56. Why do you think that there are physically no unicorns in evidence today?
57. What do you think is the unicorn's relationship to: (answer only those that you feel are relevant.)
Dragons? Angels? Demons? Lions? Wizards? Witches? Fairies? Vampires? Horses?Werewolves? Egypt? Knights Templar? Crop Circles? Ankhs? Stonehenge? Pyramids? Dolphins? Pegasi (winged horses)?
58. Do you think that a unicorn's spirit/soul could be born into a human body? If no, why not? If yes, why do you think such a thing could happen?
59. Do you think there could be such a thing as an evil unicorn? If no, why not? If yes, what do you imagine an evil unicorn might be like?
60. If there were a procedure that would physically turn you into a unicorn, would you undergo it?
60a. What if it was very expensive or possibly had painful side effects?
60b. Would you do it even if it meant that people might want to hunt you down and kill you for your horn?
61. If you could create an organization dedicated to bringing unicorns together for support, discussion, and friendship, what would it be like?
61a. Who would be eligible for membership?
61b. Would there be anyone whom you might exclude from or consider ineligible for membership?
61c. What would be some of the goals of such an organization?
61.d What services might you provide for your members?
62. Do you find it easy to talk to other people about your feelings toward unicorns?
63. Do you find it easy to recognize or relate to other unicorn lovers?
64. Have you ever seen or otherwise physically encountered a unicorn? If yes, please describe your encounter.
64a. What kind of place did your encounter take place in?
64b. Was anyone else present for your encounter?
64c. What did the unicorn look like?
64d. What did the unicorn sound like?
64e. What did the unicorn do?
64f. How did the unicorn make you feel?
64g. How did you react to the unicorn's presence?
64h. How did the unicorn react to your presence?
64i. What thoughts or feelings does recalling the encounter evoke from you?
64j. Have you ever told others about your encounter?
65. Are you religiously/spiritually active? i.e. do you worship and/or attend services regularly
66. Do you believe in a Supreme Creator? i.e. God, Allah, Brahma, etc. If yes, do you believe that the Creator takes an active interest/role in your daily life?
67. Do you believe that every person has a soul? If no, how can you tell a person who has a soul from one who does not?
68. Do you believe in a life/existence after death? If yes, describe your idea of the afterlife.
69. Do you believe in reincarnation? If yes, do you have any recollections or clues of any past life?
70. Do you feel drawn to or fascinated by any particular historical period? i.e. Roman times, the Old West, the Renaissance, etc.
71. Do you feel drawn to or fascinated by any particular historical person? i.e. Marie Antoinette, Abraham Lincoln, Joan of Arc, etc.
72. Have you ever met someone for the first time and felt as though you had known them forever?
73. Have you ever fallen in love with someone at first sight?
74. Have you ever inexplicably disliked someone the instant you first saw them?
75. Do you believe in karma?
76. Have you ever been hypnotized? If yes, would you say that you were easy to hypnotize?
77. Have you ever undergone past life regression hypnosis?
78. Have you ever had a near-death experience?
79. How distressing would you say the thought of your own death is to you?
Highly? Somewhat? No feelings either way? Not very? Not at all?
80. How distressing would you say the thought of the death of a loved one is to you?
Highly? Somewhat? No feelings either way? Not very? Not at all?
81. Have you ever had to have a pet put to sleep? Aside from sadness, loss, and grief, what other feelings did that incident evoke?
82. Have you ever been deeply effected by the death of someone you did not know personally? i.e. a celebrity, writer, political figure, etc.
83. How often do you remember your dreams?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
84. Are you more likely to remember good dreams or bad dreams?
85. Do you dream in color?
86. Have you ever been able to read signs, books, newspapers etc. in your dreams?
87. Do your dreams have a recurring theme or feature? i.e. sailing, castles, birds, etc.
88. When you dream, are you usually conscious of the fact that you are dreaming?
89. Have you ever tried to control your dreams while you are dreaming? If yes, were you successful?
90. Have you ever written your dreams down?
91. Describe your idea of what a male's role is in society.
91a. If you're male, have you ever had trouble fitting into the traditional male social role?
92. If you could imagine your perfect world, how would the male's role be different?
93. Describe your idea of what a female's role is in society.
93a. If you're female, have you ever had trouble fitting into the traditional female social role?
94. If you could imagine your perfect world, how would the female's role be different?
95. Have you ever wished you were a member of the opposite sex?
96. How often would you say you feel uncomfortable with sex?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
97. When it comes to romantic/sexual attraction, would you say you were attracted:
1. To the opposite sex exclusively.
2. Mostly to the opposite sex, sometimes to your own sex.
3. Equally to both sexes.
4. Mostly to your own sex, sometimes to the opposite sex.
5, To your own sex exclusively.
98. Sexually speaking, compared with most people would you describe yourself as:
Inhibited? Conventional? Liberal? Adventurous? Outrageous?
99. When it comes to your sexual fantasies, compared to those of most people would you describe them as:
Inhibited? Conventional? Liberal? Adventurous? Outrageous?
100. Have you ever had erotic or sexual fantasies that involved unicorns?
101. Have you ever been in love with more than one person at a time?
102. Have you ever had sex with more than one person at once?
103. Have you ever had sex with someone out of sympathy?
104. What to you is the difference between erotica, pornography, and obscenity?
105. When it comes to erotic/adult pictures, film, stories, etc, would you say that you:
Like it all? Like most of it? Have no feelings either way? Dislike most of it? Dislike all of it?
106. Have you ever been to a "gentleman's club", "strip club", "stag bar" or similar establishment? If yes, how did the experience make you feel?
107. Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?
108. Think about the men and women who are considered the most attractive in television, movies, and advertisements. Is this the type of person to whom you are most attracted? If yes, do you think that's because most people find them attractive or do you think that because they are in movies and ads that people have been conditioned to find them attractive?
109. Have you ever found yourself attracted to someone who would not be considered beautiful in the conventional "movie star" sense?
110. Have you ever been attracted to someone with an obvious "disability"? i.e. blindness, paraplegia, etc.
111. Do you find a woman especially beautiful when she is pregnant?
112. Does it bother you when mothers breast feed their babies in public?
113. Would you say you make friends easily?
114. How frequently do you make new friends?
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
115. Would you say you are an affectionate person?
116. Are you in a permanent relationship? i.e. married, domestic partner, handfasted etc.
117. Do you have children? If no, do you imagine yourself being a parent someday?
118. Would you say that, generally speaking, you like people:
Universally? A lot? Somewhat? Not much? Not at all?
119. How frequently would you say you were frustrated with the emotional limitations of others?
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
120. How frequently are you hurt or disappointed by other people?
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
121. Have you ever wished you were something other than human? i.e. another species, an alien, an inanimate object, etc.
122. In general, when it comes to confrontations with other people do you:
Look forward to them? Have no problem with them? Have no feelings either way? Dread them? Avoid them at all costs?
123. Is there any person(s) that you would consider a personal enemy? If yes, why?
124. If you were called upon to speak in front of a large audience, how nervous would you say you would be?
Highly? Somewhat? No feelings either way? Not very? Not at all?
125. When you want to meet new people where do you go?
126. Do you find that you have difficulty meeting people who think and feel the way you do?
127. Do you belong to social organizations? i.e. clubs, charities, church groups, etc.
128. Are your parents still together? If no, how old were you when they separated (for whatever reason)?
129. Did you get along well with your family when you were younger?
130. Do you get along well with your family presently?
131. Do you have siblings? If yes, how many and what ages?
132. Do any of your siblings share your fascination and love for unicorns?
133. Have you ever taken any formal martial arts training?
134. How musically oriented would you say you were?
Highly? Somewhat? No feelings either way? Not very? Not at all?
135. Do you play any musical instruments?
136. Do you like to sing?
137. Do you like to dance?
138. Do you have any talents that might be labeled as extrasensory or "psychic"?
139. Do you enjoy drawing or painting? If yes, what are some of your favorite subjects to draw or paint?
140. Do you enjoy writing or reading poetry? If yes, what type of poetry do you most enjoy writing or reading?
141. Do you have a green thumb?
142. How often, regardless of the circumstances, do you lie?
Constantly? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
143. Would you agree that sometimes it is okay to tell a harmless lie?
144. Have you ever made a promise you had no intention of keeping?
145. Have you ever lied to avoid hurting someone's feelings?
146. When you are presented with an opportunity to help a total stranger on the street, how often do you stop to help?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
147. Have you ever voluntarily taken care of someone who was sick?
148. When friends ask you if they can borrow money from you, how often do you agree?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
149. Have you ever been in a fight, schoolyard or otherwise? If yes, who started the fight, you or your opponent?
150. Have you ever been in a fight, schoolyard or otherwise, on someone else's behalf? If yes, who started it, you or your opponent?
151. Have you ever stood up to a bully? If yes, was it on your own or someone else's behalf?
152. Has anyone else ever gotten into a fight, schoolyard or otherwise, on your behalf?
153. Have you ever allowed someone else to take credit for something that you did? If yes, why?
154. When you see another person violating a rule, regulation, or law, how likely are you to confront them about it?
Highly? Somewhat? No feelings either way? Not very? Not at all?
154a. How likely would you be to inform the appropriate authorities about it?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
155. What are your feelings toward capital punishment?
156. How often would you say the following statement applies: "If the police arrest a person, they must be guilty."
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
157. Have you ever had anything that you wanted to keep but you gave it away because it would make someone else happy?
158. Do you ever donate time or money to charities? If yes, what kind of charities?
159. When you see someone panhandling on the street, how often do you give them money?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
160. Generally speaking, when someone insults you, how much would you say it bothers you?
A lot? Somewhat? No feelings either way? Not much? Not at all?
160a. How likely are you to confront the person insulting you?
Highly? Somewhat? No feelings either way? Not very? Not at all?
161. How often would you say you work harder than strictly necessary out of a sense of duty?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
162. How often would you say you work harder than strictly necessary out of personal pride?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
163. Have you ever turned down help you desperately needed to avoid imposing upon someone?
164. How well would you say you accept compliments?
165. How well would you say you accept criticism?
166. What is your favorite:
166a. Color?
166b. Type of music?
166c. Album?
166d. Song?
166e. Type of book?
166f. Book?
166g. Type of magazine?
166h. Magazine?
166i. Type of television show?
166j. Television show?
166k. Type of movie?
166l. Movie?
166m. Type of food?
166n. Type of snack food?
166o. Type of candy?
166p. Type of weather?
166q. Time of day?
166r. Time of year?
166s. Holiday?
166t. Sport to watch?
166u. Sport to play?
166v. Type of car?
167. What kind of car do you drive?
168. What are some of your favorite animals, other than unicorns?
169. Do you like to be tickled?
170. Do you like chocolate?
171. Do you prefer baths or showers?
172. Do you keep a diary or journal?
173. How fashion conscious are you?
Highly? Somewhat? No feelings either way? Not very? Not at all?
174. Describe your favorite shirt or other garment. What makes it your favorite?
175. What do you normally wear to bed at night?
176. How often would you say you feel:
176a. Happy?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176b. Angry?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176c. Lonely?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176d. Tired?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176e. Disappointed?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176f. Excited?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176g. Sexy?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176h. Hungry?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176i. Depressed?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176j. Bored?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
176k. Frightened?
Always? Often? Sometimes? Seldom? Never?
177. Do you consider yourself to be a funny person?
178. Have you ever laughed so hard you thought you would hurt yourself?
179. Have you ever found yourself laughing uncontrollably over something that was not especially funny to you?
180. Have you ever intentionally made someone laugh while they had a mouthful of food?
181. Have you ever been so angry that you were driven to violence?
182. Have you ever taken out anger or frustration on an inanimate object?
183. Have you ever been so upset that you literally could not think straight or have forgotten events that took place while you were upset?
184. Have you ever put on a happy face when in reality you were seething mad inside?
185. Have you ever felt unworthy of being loved by others?
186. Have you ever felt like you were the only person in the world who thinks/feels/believes the way you do?
187. Have you ever thought that you would never find that special person to love?
188. If necessary, may I contact you to interview you for the book? If yes, please provide contact information.
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