The Hare Krishna who called me "c**t face"

A few months of hate mail led me to a person I did not expect

Hi,

Right up the top: this newsletter contains strong language, and misogynistic references that may be triggering for some readers.

I’m incredibly lucky in that when I make something, a certain number of people will like it. That includes things like Tickled, Dark Tourist and Webworm. It’s a privilege I don’t take for granted.

I feel lucky that you are reading this, and supporting my work.

But I am also fascinated by the other side of the coin — by the people that absolutely loathe me. The ones that hate me, and want to break both my arms.

I’ve experienced — let’s call it negative feedback — starting way back when I was a cadet in a New Zealand newsroom. When I slighted a band called My Chemical Romance by calling them emo, angry emos wrote in wanting my head on a stick.

Over the years I’ve gotten very used to people’s strange reactions, which is probably good because over the years it’s just kept increasing — in large part thanks to social media and the fact I’m fairly accessible online.

But instead of getting down or angry about it, I’ve just gotten more and more fascinated — sometimes interacting with these people to try and see what’s going on in their brains.

I want to understand how a privileged, cheery kid loved by their parents can jump on a message board and spit the most racist stuff imaginable, or how a mild mannered man in their 60s can transform into an absolutely filthy beast when left alone on a computer for five minutes.

So today’s newsletter is about one of the many people who likes to send me negative feedback, and what I learnt about them.

I hope you enjoy the ride.