I have never had to face the cognitive dissonance of the artist dilemma; when the artist and its creation polarise one another to such an extreme. There is this certain base belief, call it the halo effect or whatever you may, that you can sense a persons ’character’ or ‘goodness’ through their art, because art is supposed to reflect one’s inner cogs, wiring and other mechanisms. Clearly, this idea of artistry and its artist has very little ground to stand on and has been disproven over and over again. One could argue that when an artist receives a certain amount of fame, material good and overwhelming positive feedback it tarnishes that goodness in that person as a product of their environment- no different to a child being a product of their household. That being said, it is safe to say that no consideration or tenderness should be given to one of my favourite authors, Neil Gaiman.

After reading the New York Magazine piece, titled “There Is No Safe Word” (13/01/2025), I was utterly astonished and disgusted. For those who do not know, I will summarise it very simply, but I urge you read the piece for yourself. Journalist Lila Shapiro interviewed a total of eight women who all had, to certain extend, had similar traumatic sexual experiences with Gaiman. The article focuses in on Scarlett Pavlovich, who took care of Neil Gaiman and his ex wife’s child. She explains Pavlovich’s experience at the age of 22, working as a nanny and living with the family despite out of desperation despite the continuous sexual assault of a much older, adored artist, Neil Gaiman. The article goes into detail about the abuse she was subjected to and it is some of the most vile things I have ever read. Once she is done telling Pavlovich’s experience, Shapiro ties the allegations with other women’s experiences with Neil Gaiman. Some younger, some older, some more experienced, and some less experienced, but they all ended up feeling alike Pavlovich – in complete shock and feeling unable to stand up due to his status and position in life.

Now all of these allegation are, well, alleged, but by the number of women and Neil himself only defending the non-consent part and blaming the rest on BDSM kinks is ridiculous. It is evident he does not have any experience in sexual safety and communication with his partners which is a vital part of BDSM… so I drew my conclusion. Like previously said, I would highly recommend reading through the article because of how much work and detail went into it. It is behind a pay wall but people like Rachel Oats and Read with Cindy have made in depth videos dissecting the article.

It took me some time to digest this information and let it shift my reality… Before this controversy, I had never faced a favourite artist falling into deep enough controversy for me to have their art ruined. After reading about this, I kind of wished I had read more of Neil Gaiman before, because now, I will never be able to enjoy one of his works without feeling the lens’s of a perverted mind. I know I will not be able to stop self from analysing or dissecting where his amoral ways begin to seep in, even if I don’t believe that there always are traces. Bad people can make good art, they are not caused by one another! However, I will never be able to read Ocean at the End of the Lane without remembering that his own son had to witness his father raping his babysitter in front of him and I will never read Coraline without remembering how he pushed down and assaulted young and vulnerable women.

I have always loved his work, because he creates such comforting and childlike spaces within the horror genre. It has these magical and whimsical elements without making the reader feel babied – it gave me a taste of something I myself would like to create one day. I still hold those memories of my first Neil Gaiman reads very dearly, it developed me as a writer and I still find his works brilliant. I disapprove of those who try to go back to his works and find the clues to his behaviour, because art is not that simple. When I create a story or a poem, I don’t unravel my own persona and spread it out on the pages. Sometimes, it is completely fantasy and a fun imagining, and sometimes; it is dissecting a small aspect of me. At times, I truly reflect myself on the sheets of paper, but then it is expressed in my own choice of words. The wonderful thing about writing is that most readers cannot tell when you decide to let your own person shine through and when it is experimentation. I have had people read stories where I play with concepts or ideas, like debating a philosophical idea within a story, and then they believe that it is based on experience. People can read my stories and draw conclusions on who I am, but unless you know me personally, those conclusions are a false facade and was not even meant to be puppeteered. Bad people can make good art and whether or not you think someone makes good art – you will never be able to judge their private character until you meet, and even then, you might be too clouded by artist adoration.

Beware, of the adored artist!