this post was submitted on 14 Jan 2025
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Warning, this story is really horrific and will be heartbreaking for any fans of his, but Neil Gaiman is a sadistic [not in the BDSM sense] sexual predator with a predilection for very young women.

Paywall bypass: https://archive.is/dfXCj

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[–] ICastFist@programming.dev 32 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Welp, that's yet another maker of incredible art that turned out to be an absolute monster. Fucking hell.

If what he says about The Ocean at the End of the Lane about the kid representing him is true, then he's just another case of keeping a vicious cycle of abuse going. He should've sought psychological help. Hell, he should seek psychological help now, the media would love to write about his RL redemption.

Serving for his rape crimes would also be nice.

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[–] WhatSay@slrpnk.net 7 points 21 hours ago (32 children)

Welp, I guess if I still want to read any of his books, there will probably be a ton of them at the thrift store

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[–] zecg@lemmy.world -5 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

will be heartbreaking for any fans of his

ISHYGDDT

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[–] lonlazarus@lemmy.sdf.org 19 points 1 day ago

I have enjoyed Gaiman’s writing, also the Sandman show was excellent, but I am glad that in this era that I’m not the type of person to be a fan of anybody. I guess it is natural to ascribe virtue and look up to people who create thing you resonate with, but there’s no reason to think someone who wrote a book is worth praising or emulating other than in the book you liked.

[–] CitizenKong@lemmy.world 27 points 1 day ago

Sounds like someone who suffered from serious abuse, never went to actual therapy in a meaningful way but instead got into a position of power where he could feel good by being the abuser instead of the abused. Which does not excuse any of it. On the contrary, his writing shows very clearly that he understands that what he did was wrong, but he did it regardless.

[–] MojoMcJojo@lemmy.world 59 points 1 day ago (4 children)

I have no evidence, but I believe Orson Scott Card has a thing for little boys. I devoured his books when I was a tween, but began to feel uneasy over time. There was a reoccurring theme of young boys being put in graphic situations that just, I don't know, but I've never been able to shake that feeling. Song Master pushed me over the edge. A 'beautiful young boy' being castrated so he doesn't go through puberty was when I stopped reading. My Spidey sense had never stopped going off about him since then.

Aaaand I just googled. I'm not the only one who picked up on that. Ew

[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 52 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Card is also a giant piece of shit in other ways, which is unfortunate because he is a good writer and his essays on the methodology of writing are excellent.

https://www.wired.com/2013/10/enders-game/

[–] Zoomboingding@lemmy.world 5 points 22 hours ago (1 children)

I find it difficult to reconcile how the writer of Speaker for the Dead is such a bigot. Dude took a hard swerve at some point.

[–] stringere@sh.itjust.works 9 points 21 hours ago

You're not alone in your confusion there, friend. Reading Speaker for the Dead and finding out about who the author was as a person blows my mind as to how such a bigot could even conceive of the ideas in that book.

[–] stoly@lemmy.world 10 points 1 day ago

Huh. I never noticed, but that actually explains Ender's Game.

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[–] Roflmasterbigpimp@lemmy.world 74 points 1 day ago (17 children)

Jesus fucking Christ.

I have not read anything from Gaiman, but I can see that lots of People really liked his books and the Person he showed the world.

So I just want to say, I'm really sorry for all of you. Even though Gaiman can rot in Hell, I feel sad for people who just got their favorite Books and stories poisoned.

[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 42 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (7 children)

This is way worse than the J.K. Rowling turned TERF bit. These are actual crimes committed against women.

I legit really enjoyed many of his works, Good Omens, written with Terry Pratchett, is an all time classic, and I used to be proud of the fact that I actually met the man, as did one of my oldest friends as well as my brother in law.

Now it's all like "What the fuck?"

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[–] stoly@lemmy.world 122 points 1 day ago (4 children)

We have to remember that Bill Cosby was praised for decades because he genuinely made the world a better place while being an utter sack of shit.

[–] scarabic@lemmy.world 13 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

It sounds like (at best) some of Gaiman’s victims consented to some form of foreplay or sex and then rapidly found themselves on the receiving end of some brutal BDSM without consenting to it. If I were a woman reading this I would find it hard to ever trust any man, going into sex, even if I wanted to have sex with him. When the world’s most harmless-seeming man can suddenly become a punishing torturer in the sack, how can you ever know that a guy is safe until after the fact? Jesus.

[–] cleanandsunny@literature.cafe 8 points 22 hours ago

This is why women choose the bear…

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[–] Hasherm0n@lemmy.world 96 points 1 day ago (1 children)

When the initial allegations came out I was shocked. A week later I was having breakfast with a good friend of mine and his wife. The wife worked in the comic book industry and we'd talked about Gaiman before. I brought up the allegations and she told me that no one who rubbed elbowed with his circle were shocked. Apparently he already had something of a reputation.

[–] ddash@lemmy.dbzer0.com 82 points 1 day ago (4 children)

This is what gets me every time. Once this goes public everyone starts saying, ah yeah, no wonder, they had a reputation already, I knew they were sketchy and so on. So where the fuck where you (not you Hasherm0n, the people bringing this up) all this time? This could have ended so much earlier if people would speak up and make it more public.

[–] Hugin@lemmy.world 26 points 1 day ago (1 children)

There is a big difference between knowing a persons reputation and knowing their actions. Sometimes a person with a bad rep does small things you pick up on that reinforces the feeling. But you still don't actually know enough to accuse them.

It's a big deal accusing a powerful person. They are usually going to deny it and people are going to ask for proof. If all you have is rumors and a feeling it only hurts you.

It took several women coming forward with what happened to them to get the public on their side. Imagine trying to accuse him when all you had was rumors.

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[–] Shacktastic@lemy.lol 5 points 21 hours ago

That's the logic of a witch hunt. I mean, obviously there are behaviors so suspicious you'd feel almost complicit not to report them. But a lot of the times all we have are the subtle impressions built up by our unconscious brain and it's not until the answer is shown that it all clicks into place and what once was hidden is now so obvious.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 50 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Speaking out against the rich and powerful often does not work out well for the person who does it. They would be fighting a very rich and very successful man with a legion of extremely devoted fans. Women who have been direct victims of powerful men have spoken out about it and been destroyed for it (see Anita Hill).

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[–] viking@infosec.pub 3 points 21 hours ago (3 children)

I'm wondering if the editor doesn't want the article to be read. It starts off so lengthy and boring, I was ready to give up after the first 3 or 4 paragraphs, and just didn't manage to finish thanks to the prosaic writing style. Hope some actual news outlet picks it up and sticks to the facts.

[–] hamFoilHat@lemmy.world 3 points 20 hours ago

Thank you, I thought it was just me. I got through a bit more than you it seems but I still started skipping paragraphs at a time before giving up.

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