User blog:Queen Misery/"Slender Man" Stabbing - Dark Fiction and Reality

I have become aware of the tragic attempted murder of a 12-year old girl by her 12-year old "friends" - who after reading about Slender Man on Creepypasta wiki tried to sacrifice her in order to become "proxies" (slaves) to Slender Man.

Needless to say this has caused the religious and mass-media to go into a frenzy over "Satanic" material online, as a writer of horror I feel we all have to come out and say we are not and never will be a cult that encourages children to murder one another.

The horror genre has always been a place of controversy but due to this incident the controvery will be growing even more apparent - in the end what is truly important is that the victim survives and recovers, the girls who committed the crime are dealt with and people stand united in stating that killing in the name of a FICTIONAL character is not what any writer condones.

Horror is an expression of our imagination, it is not "Satanic" and it is not a tool for real-world killings.. out of respect for the victim of this crime I won't be making any Lovecraftian or Grimdark stories / updates for the next few months (I will continue with Worry etc instead) but I won't stop writing horror, because I know that we are not "degenerates".

What occured was tragic and we need to learn from it but we also need to stop the inevitable witch-hunt that will detract attention from what is truly important: the victim and the obvious mental illness that caused 2 12-year olds to believe Slender Man was real (this is akin to someone murdering someone because Freddy Krueger told them to do it).

Also if you are in the US and have the money (or know someone who does) I highly recommend you contribute to this fundraiser in support of the victim:

http://www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/waukesha-creepypasta-bring-her-back/186588

I will end this blog with these words:

In times of great unrest it is easy to blame the "bogeyman" for the evils of the world, be it "Satan", rock music or "Slender Man" - what we need to do is ensure that the world does not demonize writers or artists due to the actions of a few disturbed individuals.

Horror is not "sick" or "evil" - it is a part of being human but if you ever feel like your creations (or someone elses) are taking over your life, making you do or say irrational things get medical help.. do not be afraid to tell people.. likewise if a friend or loved one seems to obsess over a work of fiction do not be afraid to talk about it with them or people you trust.. the bogeyman does not exist, "Slender Man" is not coming to corrupt our youth.. however mental illness and other conditions that cloud the ability for rational thought do exist and are often overlooked.. so please.. let's stop seeking to blame fiction and start looking out for one another.. you never know, it may save lives.