Don't get mad, get even write a book

Starting on 6/25/10, my small book publishing company, Silver Sands Books, and I became the targets of an elaborate online smear campaign.

I was unjustly portrayed as being a pornographer, dog rapist, child rapist, pedophile, wife burner, member of an international child porn ring, drunk driver, being listed on the California registry of sex offenders, using the Internet to "groom" children for sex, being investigated by the FBI, a threat to my neighbors...and more. The attacker's apparent supporters publicly called for my caging, castration and killing.

The attacker published two online petitions directed to Connecticut Governor Rell to try to get me put on the Connecticut list of sex offenders. Silver Sands Books was accused of publishing books for pedophiles. The attacker tried to get printer Lightning Source to stop printing and distributing my books, accused the printer of breaking the law, and threatened to sue them. My attacker falsely claimed that Amazon.com had stopped selling my books because I am a pedophile, My friends on Facebook and neighbors received messages accusing me of horrible crimes above.

The attack pointedly demonstrated how our cherished first amendment can be easily misused.

• Anyone can say anything about anyone.
• Some of the biggest and most successful online companies (e.g., Google) shield vicious, dangerous, libelous, lying criminals who use their services--and make it extremely difficult for victims to have the attacks terminated.
• People will believe anything they read online or on paper.
• Anyone can be an attacker--or a victim.

I responded by reporting the crime to the FBI and police, contacting my friends. contacting the website operators who published the lying harassment, blogging and--of course--starting to write a book about the ordeal.

Since I was attacked for my writing, it's only natural that I write about the attacks.

I hope the last chapter will be about my attacker going to jail.

The book's working title: "Internet Hell: how false accusations almost destroyed me, and could destroy you"

There is no way to know how long it will take for the case against the attacker to be completed. The book will probably be published in late 2010 or early 2011.

Tentative Contents:

Part 1: Prelude to the attacks (attacker's background)
Part 2: The attacks
Part 3: The crimes
Part 4: The investigation
Part 5: The arrest
Part 6: The trial
Part 7: The aftermath
Part 8: Recommendations
Part 9: Thanks
Part 10: An appropriate joke