Stephen King and Owen King: The Family of Writers

Stephen King discusses his newest novel 'Doctor Sleep' and his son Owen does the same for his novel 'Double Feature'. This is a great interview. 

The BBA Whisperers and STGRB

The Bird and the Feather Flock Together


There seems to be a never ending circle of cyber warfare with authors. I'm not sure who's getting paid, but I'm next to positive that someone is. On one hand you have what at first seems to be random trolls, however you'll soon find that they're in a group. That group has changed it's name several times in the last six months, but they currently call themselves the BBA Whisperers.



What They Do and How They Do It

They look for readers who respond to a review. Anyone who's read this blog for any length of time knows that they didn't find me through my responding to a review. That is how they find their victims though. Then they associate you as quickly as possible to a anti-bullying site called STGRB. I have had the chance to speak with tons of indie authors who've experienced the wrath of the trolls. The thing I realized was that 90% of them would be an emotional wreck if they had nowhere to turn. Not only do they have somewhere to turn, but the Whisperers are driving them to STGRB.



STGRB

The site appears to be what one thinks it is at first glance, but once you see they're accepting donations, and you realize the trolls are dying to associate you with them, it all starts to look a little strange. You donate your money to a site that is designed by name to stop the Goodread bullies. They appear to be defending other writers who've been treated the way they'd been. In the end they're just turning the never ending cycle of cyber bullying of indie authors. Why would they want the thing to end? They're being paid for looking like they want to stop the Goodread bullies. This thing is a cycle of torture for indie authors that STGRB doesn't want to see end. 



The BBA Whisperers

These trolls are clearly the evil in the whole thing. They're coming after indie authors, or in my case an indie reviewer, and they'll try to classify you with the STRGB as quickly as possible. They're like politicians in the way they appear to hate one another, but they're the same thing (Trolls), and their agenda is to keep this whole thing going. It's more lucrative than their own writing careers. I'm not saying a few of them aren't making a buck, but it's obviously it's not as lucrative as driving out other indies. Some are doing it to eliminate the competition. That has been made clear several different times. The BBA Whisperers and STGRB might not actually know they're on the same team, and if that's the case then the donations are the bulk of the money they're getting. Which would bring me to this question. If you're not getting paid for this, how could you devote so much time and effort into the thing?


Answer: They're getting paid to derail indie authors.

Rick's Indie Publishing Blog: More Goodreads Lies and Damage Control Causes Stal...

Rick's Indie Publishing Blog: More Goodreads Lies and Damage Control Causes Stal...: Today  Goodreads made this announcement on their site.  It has already proven to be a pack lies but it has got all the trolls outraged. ...

Have the Trolls of Amazon and Goodreads Gone Too Far?

 Troll Bait

 It was said by fellow writer Rick Carufel that the trolls had committed internet crimes of stalking and bullying. They'd tried to put authors in a negative light using the forums, chat rooms, and social media. Lets keep in mind that teenagers have killed themselves over bullying of this nature. Not Rick, that guy is as tough as an old rusty nail. This isn't just happening to Rick. This is happening to indie writers everywhere. There may or may not have been crimes committed when Rick first mentioned it, but now there most certainly has been. He's not a modern day Nostradamus. Rick did predict exactly what would eventually happen.


The Crimes

 First we have to look at the irony of the situation. The STGRB website is routinely criticized by the trolls for stalking beyond the forums, chat rooms, and blogs. I've even heard them say that they've had job opportunities lost because of STGRB. I'd be willing to bet that over half of them live in their mother's basement. I'd bet the other half are old used up drunken housewives that hate their life.

Rick knew he had done time for trafficking cocaine, and he'd told me that one day the trolls would find out and try to persecute him for it on the forums, chat rooms, and blogs. He was right. The trolls are doing exactly what they criticize STGRB for. Only I've never put my eyes on a bit of proof that the anti-bullying website did any of that. I do have proof that the trolls did it to Rick Carufel.

These trolls don't like Rick or his books, although they've never read them. He's affiliated with a website that they don't like. So it only seems right to post his home address and personal information online. The local newspaper in Rick Carufel's hometown misprinted information due to poor fact checking. They refused to do a retraction and legal action is being taken. These trolls are basing their facts on misinformation. Then they run for the high road as quickly as possible.       



The List

According to Angela Horn these are 12 ass hat authors to avoid.


1) Mysti Parker - Amazon/Goodreads

2) Robynn Gabel - Amazon/Goodreads

3) Jack Eason - Amazon/Goodreads

4) Rick Carufel - Amazon/Goodreads

5) MT Dismuke - Amazon/Goodreads

6) Jaq D. Hawkins - Amazon/Goodreads

7) L. Kirstein - Amazon/Goodreads

8) Gail Briggs - Amazon/Goodreads

9) Melissa Douthit - Amazon/Goodreads

10) Emma Paul - Amazon/Goodreads

11) Charlton Daines - Amazon/Goodreads

12) John Reeves - Amazon/Goodreads



These are authors that supposedly responded to negative reviews of their book. I know that #12 on the list has never done that, and I strongly suspect that the others on this list didn't either. Rick wrote a couple of non fiction and highly controversial essays. The trolls are picking people off that leave a positive review of his essays. They have referred to me as a Sandy Hook denier. After the blog post I wrote regarding that issue it never has came up again. I made it pretty obvious that there was no validity to the claim. That left them with no choice but to shut their mouth.

Angela has placed me on her list. This list is allegedly made up of badly behaving authors. I know at least half of the people on the list from groups like, Facebook, Linkedin, and Goodreads. These are not badly behaving authors and neither am I. These are people who were attacked by the trolls on Amazon and Goodreads. I never responded to a single review. In fact they started attacking me after I gave a review, and when they found out I was a writer they started shelving and rating my books with one stars. They never read the books they were reviewing, and had no problem admitting that they'd never read them. 



What's Next?

http://indie-publishing.blogspot.com/2013/08/amazon-says-stalking-bullying.html



So according to Amazon  it's not against the rules to post someone's address in the public forum. Nobody really needed to know that Rick Carufel had sold cocaine. Stephen King was a cocaine addict and admits that several of his books were written under the influence. He says he doesn't even remember writing Cujo. So while these trolls are riding the high road they actually look worse than Mr. Carufel. Because people who have a grip on how the world works realize a person overcomes and changes throughout life. The problem is that the trolls had the facts wrong as usual, and thought the charge was more recent than it was.They came off like fools for assuming this man hasn't turned his life around.

Maybe they knew he'd changed. Perhaps they knew he wanted change in a flawed system that allows the trolls to run things. I've seen him in the forum ripping them into pieces. They know he's bold enough to enter their domain, and it's hidden in the depths of the romance section. They've seen him engage in verbal combat with 25 to 50 trolls in the forum. I know for a fact that he's on a crusade for change. I believe he'll cause them to make changes in their ridiculous terms of service.

Under the Dome - Stephen King

I have really gotten into the mini series Under the Dome. It's one of about half of Stephen King's books I have yet to read. I'm a huge fan of Stephen King and have liked most all of the books I've read. The movies made from his work have been more 50/50. Anyone who's watched Maximum Overdrive knows what I mean.

The Stand was made into a mini series like Under the Dome. For its time it was pretty good, but one would get much more out of the book. If that is the case with Under the Dome then it will be completely awesome. I have enjoyed the first two weeks of the mini series and the whole storyline has moved Under the Dome up the "to read" list.

I have no doubt that King makes these characters come to life in the story. Like the Stand the emotional investment with the characters are minimal in the two television mini series. I can see where several of the main characters would be interesting to read about. The storyline moves the mini series and not so much the characters, and it does it very well. I know the book will be guided by the characters and they'll all come together and unite the way they did in The Stand.



There's little doubt that the book is better, but my Monday nights are spoken for until this thing is over.

The Sandy Hook Denier - What's Next?

The Problem

I have recently been accused of being a Sandy Hook denier. Anyone who has followed the last couple of blog posts knows where these things originate. The person who started this rumor knows who she is. The whole thing started when I reviewed a controversial essay. It was a rebuttal of Stephen King's essay Guns. I also reviewed Stephen King's essay, and from the two reviews I'd become a Sandy Hook denier. Just for the record I never denied that it happened.



The Reviews


 

I'm Not In Favor of Gun Control, January 29, 2013

By 

John "Robert"

This review is from: Stephen King Don't Know Shit (Kindle Edition)

I read Stephen King's essay and I read Rick Carufel's. One is in favor of gun control, and the other isn't. Stephen King has

fans that would buy a copy of anything he wrote, and Rick Carufel is an unknown writer who opposes the viewpoint of Stephen King.

See these two books are splitting people who are pro-guns and people who are anti-guns. It's not about who wrote which book. The two books were written with opposite opinions on the subject. I don't own a gun, but I'm not in favor of gun control.

Stephen King discusses pulling Rage from publication, and how he thought it was a blueprint for school shootings. From there he goes into the recent school shooting, which have suspicion surrounding them. It's an overreaction to something we don't know the truth about.

Rick Carufel's book is based on the fact that it is our constitutional right to own guns, and that there is someone behind that gun who's killing people. He goes on to explain why these people are going on these shooting rampages.

I'm not in favor of gun control, so quite naturally I agreed with Rick Carufel's viewpoint on the subject. Stephen King's book was well written, but the message is all wrong. We don't need our rights violated. What we need is the truth about what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary. There has been conflicting statements, actors playing parents, tribute pages set up days and even weeks before it happened. The truth about an elementary school shooting shouldn't be so hard to come by. 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm a Huge Stephen King Fan...But, January 27, 2013

By 

John "Robert"

This review is from: Guns (Kindle Single) (Kindle Edition)

I am a huge Stephen King fan. The truth is that I was inspired to write after reading Christine. He is my favorite writer and not just horror. While Guns was well written, and I expected nothing less, it sent the wrong message. Not just one part of the book, but the entire thing was off.

Stephen King first speaks about Rage and why he felt it necessary to pull it from circulation. Whether or not he should have pulled it is debatable, but at the end of the day he found it to be a blueprint for high school shootings. Whether or not we need a book like that out there again, is completely debatable. The book didn't kill anyone, nor did it make someone commit a crime that they ordinarily wouldn't have.

To restrict the amount of ammo that can be held in a magazine, or any other type of gun control is unconstitutional and shouldn't even be considered. King tried to avoid the politics of the issue in his essay, and I can understand why he would. However, this issue is completely political and cannot be explained properly without that being the driving force of the point.

They are not trying to outright take the guns, yet! But, they will strengthen gun laws and locate the guns. Once they know where to find them they'll round them up. They'll leave you vulnerable and defenseless. There is a more sinister plan that follows, but I'm not going to get into that in this review. Look up FEMA Camps and a lot of this will make sense.

[...]

Our right to gun ownership is being threatened by a couple of shootings that have a ton of questions surrounding them. Lies and coverups have surrounded both cases. It's odd to me that so many lies have been told, and we are talking about an elementary school shooting. The truth should have been easy to tell and no reason to lie and withhold information. The news outlets do not have to report the truth, and they don't.

We are experiencing some of the toughest times in American history. Now is not the time to take anything away, but there is never a right time to be constitutionally violated. You have to stand up for your rights, because your government isn't doing that. If you give up your guns...you're giving up your freedom at the same time.

 

 

 

 

You Can Believe Whatever You Want

 

You can see from the two reviews above that I never denied a thing. I know something happened in Sandy Hook. What happened? That is what I want to know. When the information isn't given in the first 48 hours then the odds are it's being altered, or will be before the population gets it. The point I made in both reviews was that the information was withheld from the public for way too long. I'm not sure what happened there, but that doesn't mean I think nothing did. 

 

 

Why do I not just believe what I'm told? 

 

 

Some might call me a conspiracy theorist, but there is a reason not to believe what we're told. In many cases strong evidence comes forward that proves we were lied to. I've looked into different things going back as far as the attack on Pearl Harbor. The American public has been lied to in the past when it wasn't even necessary. 

 

 

 

 “George Bush, what will the people do if they ever find out the truth about Iraq-gate and Iran contra?"

"If the people were to ever find out what we have done, we would be chased down the streets and lynched."  President George H.W. Bush, quoted by Sarah McClendon (White House Reporter) in her June 1992 Newsletter.

 

 

 

 

In Closing  

 

I'm not a Sandy Hook denier. I've been labeled that by people who review books without reading them. They've admitted to shelving and rating my books because of my opinion on the Sandy Hook shootings. Not once did I deny that it happened, but my books have been assaulted for my beliefs. These people have twisted the truth, and that is why I've pasted both reviews above. I never said it didn't happen, but I did say that we weren't told everything. There was more to that whole situation than we were told.  

The Cold Hard Truth: Goodreads

I have been a huge supporter of the Goodreads website. As you can see I promote the site here on my blog. The idea behind the site is one of genius. It truly brings the readers of books and authors closer together. In the past there has been nothing I could say negative about the site. That all changed here in the last two or three weeks. There is a group of what is being called "Trolls" roaming the site. They patrol the site looking for writers to railroad. I managed to go under the radar for about three years, but now I've been found.


They found me through a friend of mine. He'd written a rebuttal to Stephen King's essay Guns. My review of that piece was where I was allegedly discovered. Somewhere 2 and 2 had to be put together, but they managed to figure out exactly who I was. I don't use a pen name and my name is rather common. They found me because that is what they do. With a little research of my own I found they've been doing this for quite awhile. When I found out that they'd done this to others I posted a list. It was a list that I'd been introduced to by another friend who'd been trolled. Many of the names were accurate.


When I posted the list from the anti-bullying website the group really came after me. They wanted me to remove them from a list I hadn't put them on in the first place. I removed the list, but I kept a link to the list in my blog post. Some of them claimed to be put on there for reasons not related to books and reviews. It was strange that they found me on a book review site to tell me that. However, it could be that they were put there for bullying somewhere else. If there is someone on that list who doesn't deserve to be there I feel sorry for you. I know how it feels to be put on a list you don't belong on. Still there is nothing I can do about the list at STGRB.


What have I done? 

I have created a list of my own. This list contains people that I've seen acting out with trollish behavior. This list will not include all of them, but it will include those who've been the most ridiculous.

The List

Angela

  

TinaNicole

Seething Wolverine  

In2books

Zahara  

Alicia 

 These six members I can personally say have used trollish behavior. There are groups and forums which they use to decide who to attack. They bait indie authors to say something about them, and then they take the high road. "You should never respond to a review," they say. It's not a review the commenter is discussing. They want to know why 10 to 15, in some cases more, have shelved their books to these ridiculous shelves.

The only reason I can figure them doing something so underhanded is out of jealousy. Not necessarily me, because I'm not out selling a couple of authors they've attacked. The stories I write only appeals to a niche  group of horror fans. I know there are going to be bad reviews based off of the content of these stories. I don't respond to these reviews. This  is not a response to a review. This a me explaining how a handful of trouble only creates more. Before you know it this thing has multiplied to the point of ruining a good website. 

Here's a link to one of the groups they operate from.

 http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/90418-anti-asshat-indie-authors

The Proof

Here Angela admits to shelving my book to demeaning shelves because she doesn't like my opinion on the Sandy Hook tragedy. She's basically saying, "I don't like you. Therefore your books are no good."

I have no doubt that the five names below Angela are her 'sock puppets.' That's a term I've learned while looking the whole thing over. It's duplicate accounts and people who will do one's dirty work. 

Here she exposes herself for who and what she really is. A first class hypocrite. 

 They're calling out people for shelving their books negatively out of revenge. What did Angela admit to doing above to my book?

Look what they're doing to someone's book. The list of names above wasn't compiled from this review of a fellow author's book, but you can see the same names doing my books in too.
 

There is a serious problem at the Goodreads site. The owner of this thing might want to step up soon. There are sites and countless blogs created because of the bullying on the Goodreads website. If there wasn't a serious problems these anti-bullying sites and blogs wouldn't be there. I had several good years on Goodreads. I really don't want to see the site go to hell in a hand basket. Right now it seems to be headed downhill rapidly.  

Reviewing Books You've Never Read

The Situation 

I arrived home the other day and found I had a text review for my newest book Murder Machine. I read the review and realized that the person hadn't read the book. They read the sample developed an opinion and left a review that they later extended making it more detailed. The reviewer didn't like the book based on the sample. I guess you could go read books that way, but that's not how I do it.

After I read the review I realized something. That on May 21st my book had been attacked by a large number of reviewers/trolls. It had actually started a week earlier. When I checked my other books I realized that they'd also been hit by the same people. These are not people who've read my book and unlike the text reviewer, they hadn't even read the sample.

I'd just heard of some other authors that had experienced this kind of thing. It all started to come together. I was being attacked because of my association with these other authors in various groups. These trolls are seeking out independent authors and intentionally railroading them. I looked further into the situation and found a list that most of them are on, but I know the numbers are much bigger than the list.

The List: http://www.stopthegrbullies.com/

I don't think that Goodreads should allow reviewers to leave non-text reviews. When I'm looking at reviews I never pay attention to those who had nothing to say. In my case with Murder Machine, at least I knew the reviewer had read the sample. Which is not enough to judge that story by. They said the dialogue was flat and quoted my book in their review to show that. I don't think you should ever quote a book in your review, but if Goodreads allows it then it's within the rules.

Murder Machine opens with a court room scene, and perhaps the yes and no questions being asked are not explosive dialogue, but one cannot judge this story by the first chapter. I had originally considered cutting that opening chapter. However, in the end I decided against it. The sample gives you a couple of sentences of chapter two. You can see that the story changes from there.

I'm not responding to the review. If the reviewer didn't like the sample I'm all right with that. The reason I'm responding to this issue at all is because people are reviewing books they've never read. Reading the sample isn't enough to review a book on, and that isn't why the sample is there. It's there to help you decide whether or not you want to buy the book. It's not designed for you to review the book. Stop reviewing books you've never read.  

I'm going to find out why these groups are attacking indie writers...more to come on this issue.

Serial Cyber-stalking, Cyber-bullying and Harassment Rampant on the Internet

Serial Cyber-stalking, Cyber-bullying and Harassment Rampant on the Internet

A Minnesota man is troubled by a case of wide-spread, serial cyber-stalking he has uncovered.

Rick Carufel has found a disturbing number of reports and evidence of blatant, organized cyber-stalking, cyber-bullying and harassment all originating from the same online source – a public forum owned by a well-known global corporation. It appears to have been ongoing for at least three years and involves dozens of people victimizing hundreds.

“There seems to be some indication that the corporation in question may be deliberately shielding those responsible and may even be actively supporting them. Recently I have seen an alarming number of cases concerning attacks on a certain group of individuals.”

It is obvious to anyone who carries out a cursory investigation by going to the website in question that the corporation has some very questionable policies which it has made no attempt to address, resolve or even acknowledge. The company’s public forums are the origin of what can only be described as vicious personal cyber-attacks to date. Even in the face of thousands of complaints, the corporation does nothing to correct the situation.

While researching the US cyber-stalking laws, Carufel has discovered that the Minnesota statute 609.749 clearly defines the activities of these people as criminal acts. This is the same statute used to prosecute predatory sex offenders who stalk underage victims online. There are between thirty and forty people currently responsible for hundreds of organized attacks with the intent to damage careers, reputations and income. These are not merely isolated incidents. Instead, when the predator’s focus their attention on an individual they keep up a sustained attack trying in every underhanded way possible to discredit, demean, insult, demonize and harass their victims across the internet at every opportunity.

Carufel said that according to his understanding of the situation, these people are committing crimes which the particular company that owns the website is fully aware of. “It’s absolutely amazing how many people these cyber-terrorists have frightened into not speaking out against them because of the threat of very damaging retaliation. These stalkers have found the perfect cover for their crimes, protected as they are by the company concerned.”

 

Carufel went on to say that these attacks if allowed to continue, will potentially cause millions in damage over time. “They are the offshoot of an industry in transition that desperately clings to outdated models and these waning industry leaders are not happy with the current state of events.  I’ve had reports that there may actually be corporate sponsorships for some of these attacks, targeting a certain segment of the industry most responsible for their decline. There is much more to be uncovered, but I am out of resources to pursue this investigation much further. I’m hoping to gather enough solid evidence together to compel the State and Federal authorities to request indictments.  These people are spreading terror and misery every day and must be stopped.  Their cover is diabolically clever and they have thus far managed to weather every attempt to root them out.  Hopefully armed with 609.749 by proving the association between the cyber stalkers and the particular corporation, we can accomplish that.”

Carufel stated that were he to publicly reveal the details, people would be shocked.  He stated that he already has enough evidence from his own case to send several of the individuals concerned to prison. Combine his evidence with the many other reports of similar personal attacks and harassment condoned by the corporation and Carufel hopes to have a deeper investigation into it and its system of protection tailored to accommodate these criminals.

My Review of Stephen King's Essay on Guns

I am a huge Stephen King fan. The truth is that I was inspired to write after reading Christine. He is my favorite writer and not just horror. While Guns was well written, and I expected nothing less, it sent the wrong message. Not just one part of the book, but the entire thing was off.

Stephen King first speaks about Rage and why he felt it necessary to pull it from circulation. Whether or not he should have pulled it is debatable, but at the end of the day he found it to be a blueprint for high school shootings. Whether or not we need a book like that out there again, is completely debatable. The book didn't kill anyone, nor did it make someone commit a crime that they ordinarily wouldn't have.

To restrict the amount of ammo that can be held in a magazine, or any other type of gun control is unconstitutional and shouldn't even be considered. King tried to avoid the politics of the issue in his essay, and I can understand why he would. However, this issue is completely political and cannot be explained properly without that being the driving force of the point.

They are not trying to outright take the guns, yet! But, they will strengthen gun laws and locate the guns. Once they know where to find them they'll round them up. They'll leave you vulnerable and defenseless. There is a more sinister plan that follows, but I'm not going to get into that in this review. Look up FEMA Camps and a lot of this will make sense.

[...]

Our right to gun ownership is being threatened by a couple of shootings that have a ton of questions surrounding them. Lies and coverups have surrounded both cases. It's odd to me that so many lies have been told, and we are talking about an elementary school shooting. The truth should have been easy to tell and no reason to lie and withhold information. The news outlets do not have to report the truth, and they don't.

We are experiencing some of the toughest times in American history. Now is not the time to take anything away, but there is never a right time to be constitutionally violated. You have to stand up for your rights, because your government isn't doing that. If you give up your guns...you're giving up your freedom at the same time.

John Reeves - Indie Author Network

John Reeves - Indie Author Network