Being a female in the age of the internet.

That is horrifying and awful and just wrong-headed stupidness and I'm sorry you have to deal with it. Take care of yourself and those you love however you need to - and if there's anyone I can punch let me know.

WHAT THE LIVING FUCK.

I don't even.

What the fuck.

I hate people.

I read this last night and it boggled my mind that someone thought that was acceptable. I still cannot find the words to say to you about this sorry excuse for a person. Stay safe and give your kitties hugs.

Alarm systems.

Since you have cats, a lot of the bells and whistles on offer won't work - motion sensors? oh please no.
But they can monitor the entire perimeter, doors and windows, to prevent entry.
We did this when we moved into a Southside Berkeley house of many windows, after being burgled twice other places.
It is very comforting - you can know coming home that no one has been there, and you can set it when you're at home to chime if a door or window is moved.
They will walk through with you to figure out what is needed, and you only set up what you think is needed.
I really, really like having it - makes me worry less about random house-settling noises in the middle of the night.

Thank you for speaking up and sharing what is happening.
Thank you for *not* allowing this person to control you and for spitting in the eye of fear.

I'm sorry this person is so threatened by your awesomeness, they feel the need to threaten something so dear to you.

I hate bullies. And I'm sorry you and your kitties are the targets this time. :(

I wondered why I hadn't seen any updates about them lately.

I'm glad to hear, though, that while you're understandably shaken, you're not letting the bastard grind you down.

Keep on, Keeping on. And I hope that through some IP and header wrangling, you can track this person down and sic the law on them!

I can’t understand the lack of courtesy let alone all the other things that troll types get up to.

Having basic manners and etiquette is critical to getting on in life – and with troll types they just can’t seem to get on with life let alone themselves.

Best wishes and kind regards

I only recently read one of your books and started following your blog. This... broke my brain. I am so furious for your sake and the thought of someone hurting cats... it makes me want to go get a baseball bat and stand guard to keep your babies safe. And that's the censored version of my thoughts.

You know all this, but I'm going to say it, too:

You have done nothing wrong. You know this. Know that we know it too.
Your cats have certainly done nothing wrong.
Threatening people is not cool. Threatening their pets is not cool.
People who actually care about shelter animals are the ones adopting them and the ones helping out in the shelters and the ones donating to the shelters -- you know, the ones being part of the solution, not the ones being assholes.
Kitty cat parties are cool. Assholes are not.
Please let us know if there's something we can do in addition to trying to say supportive things.

I'm sorry.

I've been on the receiving end of death threats, puppet accounts, photoshops and other online harassment. I hope that emails stop, or better, that the person gets caught and held accountable.

I'm so sorry that you have to deal with this. That anyone does, really.

I don't know how much it will help, but there are ways to block dummy email accounts: http://www.block-disposable-email.com/ has a fairly decent track record. That way you would at least be able to avoid reading any more of these disgusting messages.

There are also ways to track the IP address from where the server is located. There aren't huge success rates for things like that, as people use libraries and cafes, but if you do manage to track the person down, that's a suit for harassment, and probably assault as well.

Whaaaat? OMG. Ok, that goes beyond evil. If you ever find out who it is, you know I want to be in on the lynch mob. *hugs* I'm so sorry some asshole is threatening your babies. :(

I'm so, so sorry that has been happening to you. And I hope whoever is behind it will be caught. Soon. In the meantime, good and protective feelings to you, Lilly, Alice, and Thomas.

I find it so upsetting and appalling that this sort of thing goes on. I blog, but I'm not popular, or important, so I've remained off troll-radar.
I only just read about another female blogger receiving death threats for her work online ( http://ittybiz.com/death-threats-online/ ), and now I feel like these nasty horrible people are striking closer to home by threatening an author, a PERSON, I really appreciate and admire.
It's really really upsetting, and I just wish I could do more to help. :/

My only useful suggestion is if you, or someone you know, has the tech savvy to try to track them down and get them arrested. I won't suggest maiming, even though that feels justified.

I know you've taken comment amnesty from this post, but I want to put my voice out there on the off chance you'll see this:

I am furious.

Firstly because I am an animal person, and the idea of someone imagining in graphic detail how they would kill ANY animal makes me sick.

And secondly, because it's you.

See, because I've been following you since before your first book deal, because you're a "friend of a friend", because you are so obviously a child of fandom like me, you occupy a very special place among the various authors/artists I admire. You're "Ours". In a way that leaves you your own person, but makes me even more protective and concerned about you in tough times than I would be over any other author/artist. I hope that doesn't sound weird/creepy/etc, it's just... Though we're not friends, I feel a closer connection to you, because I know you understand me in the way that all of us fandom kids understand each other.

So, the idea of someone threatening you or your loved ones makes me see fucking red. I'd be pissed anyway, but now I'm furious.

It is not cool. If you got arrested for assault, I would be contributing all my spare money to your legal defense. And coming to California to picket for your release and the arrest of the bastard who tried to hurt your babies.

I wish I wish I wish I could make them go away, or give you a hug, or in some way make this better. But since I can't, I'll settle for letting you know that I am furious and frightened and sick to my stomach with you. Not as much as you, because I know there's no way I can be as scared over these threats as you are, since they're your babies, but I am.

If anyone lays a finger on them, know that the internet will rise up to help you pound their head in. Because we will.

You're our Halloween Princess. And we will be your Candy Corn Army if you need us to be.

I know you've taken comment amnesty, and it only makes sense - it would take too long to answer all this stuff.

I have 2 cats, my roomie has 2 cats. The idea of someone threatening them because they didn't "approve" of how or where we got them makes me furious. I don't care if you got your cats from a breeder, a shelter, a rescuer, or a feral had them in your garage (like two of ours were born.)

The cat doesn't chose where to be born. Their person choses to love them, and that's what counts.

That some douchebag would chose to threaten them and throw misogynistic crap your way just further degrades my opinion of the human race. The net is full of people harming pets to hurt people, and getting off with a slap on the wrist, except when people howl (remember the guy with the bichon frise on the freeway?)

You have friends and even acquaintances who support you, especially against this kind of garbage.

As always, you have my support from the Land of Poison and Fire, and I hope there is a way to find out who is sending these horrible messages and bring them to justice.

I was given a link to this entry because we were discussing on another forum about the shit women have to deal with online. Really scary shit, some of it, and when someone posted this link (the same person who also turned me on to your wonderful books!) I had to come over and see. I expected I'd see a post condemning this kind of threatening violence, but I never expected to see that people have threatened you and your cats! I'm just astounded, and angered, and so so sorry.

I've had to deal with a lot of online shit myself. I decided to get rid a lot of my web presence that I could control, stop blogging about controversial things. Unfortunately, I even pretty much stopped writing.

Except about my dogs. Because hey, that's not controversial, right? It felt safe.

Now I see it's not. How stupid of me to think any of us are, because the crazy people who spread hate out there will always find some reason to come after people.

So there is nothing I can say that hasn't already been said here: I'm angry, I'm disgusted. But I will stay say I'm sorry you've had to deal with this shit. And what kind of asshole goes after someone who has given so much pleasure to the world with their writing.

It doesn't help on a practical level, but you know there are a whole lot of us out that there that love your work and your writing (in any form!) and we support you. And your cats.

Stay strong, stay safe. These "people" are despicable.

I'll never understand the sense of ... ownership some people take toward public figures, in that they feel they have the right to make demands of them (see Martin, George R.R.), follow them into bathroom stalls, and generally opine that if the public figure isn't completely accommodating to their every unreasonable whim 24/7 and is ever less than pleasant no matter the circumstance, they somehow don't deserve their success. And I'll never understand what makes people think they have any kind of right to the kind of terrorism they're pulling on you. And yes -- it's terrorism; it's an attempt to instill crippling fear.

Some people give humanity -- heck all sentient life -- a bad name.

I'm so sorry this is happening to you, and join with everyone else in hoping it stops immediately ... preferably, with a conviction.

I'm so sorry that this person is focusing on you and not spending that time with their therapist.

Seriously, what the fuck.

::Hugs::

Goddess. I am so sorry that this...piece of filth has done this.

i'm just going to say this: i hate dickbags. i hate how so many of my favorite female bloggers have stopped what they do because of these dickbags. people need to grow the hell up.

Upon reading this, I was so incoherent with rage on your behalf, I was sputtering & speechless [the way I haven't been since being proposed to, 20+ years ago]. My practical lawyerspouse recommends contacting Leslie Fish for tips, & gleeful reinforcements.

(((hugs)))

If you ever need an alibi, all you have to do is ask.