Heroes Fall

Yesterday was a tough day for a lot of writers I know. We all knew our patron saint of oddness and quirky stories had fallen from grace, but yesterday's article at The Vulture (sadly behind a paywall, but there's an archive version here) wasn't the icing on the cake -- it was the cake itself. Everything up to that point might as well have been the printed recipe card. Yesterday we actually tasted the cake and wanted to spit it out to keep from gagging. 

Be warned, several of the articles contain descriptions of sexual assault and harassment. They can be difficult to read, so exercise caution if you can be triggered by such. 

The author in question has been seen as an ideal for literary weirdness, an icon that proved writers didn't have to sacrifice their souls on the altar of "accepted markets" to find success, a proof text that writers could be true to their visions no matter how warped or weird or whacked out and still make it on their own terms as creators. And he was loved for that. 

Sure, little stories popped up as warnings here and there, but even in the "during" and "after" parts of the #metoo realization, no one really wanted to believe it, not about HIM. Surely, just this one time, maybe, surely, pleasepleasepleaseplease, let it be some kind of conspiracy of hurt feelings lashing out. 

Alas no. 

And now we must swallow the cake, as bitter and vile as it is, evidenced in the following articles (not behind paywalls):

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn01dynqx7ro

https://variety.com/2025/tv/global/neil-gaiman-allegations-sexual-assault-1236272893/

https://www.avclub.com/neil-gaiman-sexual-assault-allegations-details-report

I've known writers who have shared stories about Neil, not #metoo level stuff, but icky enough to make me wonder. On the other hand, I've heard lots of tales about how wonderful he was to meet at conventions or book signings too. That's what made this whole thing so hard to process. 

But, in light of the consistent and growing number of allegations, it's time to side firmly and vocally with the victimized. 

For some, that may look like throwing away all your Gaiman books and stopping watching shows based on his work. 

For some, that may mean you keep what you've enjoyed and you refuse to support any new books or new television/movie projects.

For some, you may still have the freedom and distance to separate the man from his art and enjoy the stories. 

For some, it may simply look like a few more months or years of processing that some will no doubt see as you being overdramatic because they just can't understand how deeply this affects you. 

Now, some will compare this to JK Rowling's recent fall from grace regarding her transphobic hard-line rants (seemingly meant to intentionally alienate her previous fans and celebrity connections), but some will draw lines between them and seek to delineate how different they are. For me, no distinction matters. Not really. They both have been revealed to vile people. 

However, it's not my place to tell you how to react. I'm going to be busy enough with the mote in my own eye. If anything, both of these situations are warnings for me to keep an eye on my own life. Let's suppose one day the dream of being recognized as a world-renowned writer comes true. What kind of harmful words or actions can folks drum up against me (and rightfully so) at that point? If anything, this is another bell ringing to tell me to be true to the things I believe and to watch my words in interviews and conventions and to be on guard how I treat people both in my private and public life.

I mean, nobody's perfect, as the cliche goes. I can find something to revile in the lives of many of my favorite writers. Flannery O'Connor. Shirley Jackson. Ernest Hemingway. F. Scott Fitzgerald. Racism. Sexism. Physical abuse. Homophobia. History is filled with writers who fail(ed) to live up to the ideals that fans foist upon them. And it's not just short story writers and novelists. So many of the comic book writers I grew up on have turned out in recent years to be MAGA redhats (or perhaps that should be asshats) who stand staunchly against most everything I stand for in terms of women's rights, racial equality and equity, LGBTQIA+ causes, humanitarian issues, etc. So, learning to reevaluate my support for and enjoyment of certain authors is nothing new. 

But, at least in my mind, that never excuses any kind of abuse or vileness. And make no mistake, what has transpired in this case is vileness, purely and utterly. 

What does it all mean for this blog?

Well, this blog has referenced writing advice and writing tips from Gaiman in the past, and there are several posts that show up with his name as a keyword. I will not be removing the previous posts but this blog will no longer reference Gaiman or his work, except in the interest of updating news about this story as it develops.