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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[–] Twoafros@sh.itjust.works 12 points 1 day ago

This was a very disturbing read. I'm glad some of the survivors found each and other and are coming out with story, and I hope wierdo gets prison time so he won't be able to do this to anyone else

[–] lurklurk@lemmy.world 19 points 1 day ago

There's a lot of good books written by awful people. I guess Gaiman might be one of those awful people

[–] Fedegenerate@lemmynsfw.com 6 points 1 day ago

The sandman audiobooks were so good. I don't expect they'll be finished now, if they were, I don't expect I'd be buying them.

[–] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 20 points 1 day ago (1 children)

This is certainly going to have an effect on Tumblr.

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[–] viking@infosec.pub 2 points 23 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.

[–] OutlierBlue@lemmy.ca 3 points 22 hours ago

Yeah that article is a slog. It's 5-10x longer than it needs to be. I get they're trying to set the tone, but holy shit.

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[–] EpicMuch@sh.itjust.works 41 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (6 children)

I have so many of this man's books on my shelves, a few of them signed. I don't know what to do with them. I don't want to throw them away (yet), because the stories are wonderful and I'm still attached to those characters and worlds. but. I don't to see his name anymore. on anything. I've turned them backwards, spine inward and placed others in the gap between other books and the back of the shelf. what a tragic loss caused by a Jekyll\Hyde monster.

Good Omens is one of my most favorite and re-read books and I don't know how many decades it'll take before I touch it again.

[–] TheMachineStops@discuss.tchncs.de 22 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (3 children)

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Death_of_the_Author

H. P. Lovecraft was very racist and you can even see his racism in his books, and people still read his books. You need to disconnect the author with the books, although Lovecraft was racist and not a monster like this guy. I even heard he tried to change before he died.

[–] bss03@infosec.pub 7 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Consuming the media is fine; funding the bad people (or their heirs and assigns) is not. Sail the high seas, mateys.

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[–] Jamablaya@lemmy.today 9 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Yeah he was racist, but also a New England resident in like 1910 who married a Jewish woman.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 4 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

I read an anecdote where Lovecraft went on some sort of antisemitic rant only to be gently reminded by his wife who he married. I guess he was an equal opportunity bigot.

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I honestly think that Lovecraft might have suffered from some mental illness, the guy had so many phobias. His childhood wasn't good either, he was racist because he genuinely thought they will kill him or hurt him.

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[–] CeruleanRuin@lemmings.world 38 points 1 day ago (3 children)

The stories live on their own. They left his mind and are no longer his. They live in your mind now and are yours now.

If it makes you feel better about them being there, tear out or paint over his name on them. And continue enjoying stories that are good.

I believe in death of the author. People throughout history were all sorts of awful, but that doesn't mean they didn't have some good thoughts too. Don't throw the baby out with the bath water.

[–] oyenyaaow@lemmy.zip 3 points 1 day ago

It also helped that he withdrew completely from public life, as opposed to doing the jkrowling thing where she repeatedly announced that anyone supporting her books support her views. Divorcing good omens from him is even easier because Terry Pratchett's daughter stepped up and took over in his stead, but also because there is acutoff that is immediate instead of something lingeringly tainting every aspect of his stories the way the harry potter books and other media is.

This hits tumblr expecially hard because he's a regular poster there and his comments are everywhere, but nevertheless he did inspire a lot of young writers and give good advice there, and you cannot argue that those advice did good when they were being offered, while admitting that asking him anything are not advisable now even if he didn't go full silence.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 15 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Part of the problem in Gaiman's case is that he absolutely does not shy away from sexual violence in his stories. The perpetrator usually gets punished, often ironically, but how can you read about one of his villainous rapist characters and not think about how he's got experience with what that character is doing?

That's not a problem with stuff like Good Omens, which is more family fare, or even the stuff he does specifically for kids. It's a huge problem for stuff like Sandman and American Gods.

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[–] prodigalsorcerer@lemmy.ca 41 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It can be hard to separate art from artist, but just keep in mind that you've already paid for those books. He isn't getting more money from you just rereading them, and nothing changes if you continue to enjoy the books.

Also he doesn't get paid if you pirate them. So feel free to pirate them.

[–] slurp@programming.dev 37 points 1 day ago (3 children)

At least with Good Omens you can focus on Terry. This is grim.

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[–] vivavideri@lemmy.world 24 points 1 day ago (1 children)

God, barf.

I was one of those sad goth kids clinging to the dresden dolls through my turbulent adolescence. After palmer met this nutsack her whole vibe changed. I mourned the loss of an era and ultimately left it all behind. I can't even begin to fathom what kind of.. Mind-shattering nightmare that would be, someone you connected with on that level, being the intersection in your life between "the before times" and one of the most traumatic things that can happen to someone. Fuck.

[–] intelisense@lemm.ee 11 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Having read the whole article, I'm not entirely sure Amanda Palmer comes out smelling of roses either - the way the last few paragraphs are written make me feel she's covering up for him, and those lyrics read like she's got it in for her.

[–] Eldritch@lemmy.world 43 points 1 day ago (2 children)

No one should ever be put on a pedestal. We all have our demons. Though many of them are semi innocent or only hurt ourselves. It still sad to hear another celebrity abused their celebrity.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 19 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I do not disagree with you, but I still think it's heartbreaking when it turns out that a man who is lauded for his feminism turns out to be a horrific rapist, sadist and predator.

[–] Eldritch@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago

100% it wasn't my intention to imply otherwise. Just to point out that celebrities are still just people and people have pretty dark sides oftentimes. So many people get lulled into traps thinking that someone famous or well known is safe. They're just like any of the rest of us.

[–] Clent@lemmy.dbzer0.com 27 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I don't know about you but none of my demons involve sexual assault.

[–] biofaust@lemmy.world 11 points 1 day ago

But that doesn't take away the fact that someone's demons could be of this kind. It's a built-in risk in every human.

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