Rachel Rooney is quitting

[Gumbomambo]

Just that really. She tweeted last night she’d just had enough, she’d been piled on again and enough was enough. She’s finishing the last project and that’s it. I just feel so so sad for her and the kids her books help. I like Rachel, she’s got such dignity and a lovely spirit I wish her well but I hope she can have a break and come back.

That is so sad. I bought her Hey Girl book recently and really like it.

That's really sad, she's an important voice countering the gender ideology being pushed on Infant age children. I wish her well too. Hopefully she will have helped to change the tide, and will be back after a while, teaching and writing to help children, and not having to think about all the gender idiocy. I don't have small kids, but I am off to buy her books anyway to show my support.

Poor Rachel.

Who ever knew writing a book about loving your body and looking after it could be the start of such a difficult few years resulting in this.

I hope she draws some comfort from the support she hopefully knows she has..I know many of us have emailed her in the past.

A real shame

It’s shameful what’s going on in publishing. She is trying to protect children at no gain, only detriment, to herself.
Disgusting people.
I must stock up on all her books, I have ‘My body is me’ and it’s lovely.

I must also do a bookshop raid and get her books for Granddaughter. It is a crying shame but Rachel, like the rest of us, must look after herself.

That's upsetting and enraging in equal measure. I feel for her so much, and anyone else in the public eye who endures such relentless vitriol and wilful misrepresentation. Not just by TRAs, but the (self-appointed) great and the good of publishing. (I saw the recent onslaught that I think may have tipped her over the edge. It was from three publishing big-hitters, snarking about her like the queen bees in the playground.)

I hope she is able to step back, deactivate twitter and create her beautiful books without that noise. Twitter feels like it's the real world, especially when it's the mouthpiece of your industry, but it isn't. There are many agent and editors out there who just want to support talented professionals to produce books that people will buy. (And we know there are plenty of people who love her work.)

Here are her tweets:

twitter.com/RooneyRachel/status/1499518363630022659?s=20&t=HDrWwHWSZRk4eJmqcgoyuw

The last few days have been awful for me since someone in publishing quote tweeted something I'd written & claimed they were the subject of it. ( Not that any of my followers had a clue who it was & the person getting no backlash!) This has resulted in 100's of their chums

writing damning comments explicitly about me, including 'transphobic' 'shit-for-brains' 'vile' 'bigoted' 'hateful' 'rancid' 'cruel' 'bitchy' having 'shrivelled black organs' 'snuffling around in a gutter' 'a bully' & 'not fit to be a children's author'

These above being much worse than anything I'd tweeted. Comments made by children's authors, children's editors, children's librarians & other industry types. Publishers & marketing etc have been contacted with complaits about me, a bookshop withdrew orders

of my books & sales teams now have cold feet. A number were those who've been targeting me for over 2 yrs from when My Body is Me was published. (The picture book that encouraged 3 -6 yr olds to love the body they're born in. This was 'terrorist propaganda' they said.)

An agency I worked for was publicly targeted. I'd violent threats through my website. People in the industry, (some I'd had had good relations with) began to unfollow me or block me. I was policed behind the scenes. Then Covid happened. I lost my nerve & stopped writing

What has been played out very publicly ( yes, I know you are all watching but say nothing...) is online industry bullying of the highest order by a cut-throat subset, mainly gender ideologists - most with pronouns in their bio. In a way, they've acheived what they set out to do.

I'm now seeing out my last few projects - trying to get Hey, Girl! noticed & preparing to release my final lovely picture book The Fears You Fear. I love working with kids, teaching, poetry / children's literature etc. It's been my life. Yet I've no choice but to exit publishing.

It's a loss for me - & dare I say it, a loss for children's poetry too.
On the plus side, there's a certain liberation to be had :) Fingers crossed my supporters keep buying my books & my lurkers actually read the gender/ sex articles I post here.

Rachel.

Oh Rachel.

We stand with Rachel

Thank you for posting the tweets, ScreamingMeMe. Much appreciated. Awful to read the abuse, never mind what it must have been like for her to be on the receiving end of it.
I hope she is able to continue in some way working with children and poetry. She clearly loves it and it would be a great loss for her.

Thanks for posting the tweets @ScreamingMeMe, it’s distressing just reading those again let alone living it. Is there anything that can be done for her? Apart from buying her books? I read the JKR world book day tweets yesterday and it was just magic, watching all those pictures of babies, kids and whole classes dressed up and retweeted. She put a lovely message for tons of them and probably made their year, even in those there were disgusting spiteful tweets, spoiling a fab moment for nice innocent kids who were dressed as Harry, o Luna and even a Christmas Pig. It’s so sad.

Oh I'm so sorry. Rachel

@ScreamingMeMe

Am I understanding correctly that the hateful comments she listed were made by "children's authors, children's editors, children's librarians & other industry types."?

Tragic

I’m trying to buy My Body Is Me online and it’s unavailable everywhere. Any ideas where I can get a copy?

'My body is me' is currently in stock on the Transgender Trend website.

I’ve found a page where it looks as if you can order many of her books.
www.rachelrooneypoet.com/books

Going to treat myself!

Thanks. I’ve ordered a copy x

I’m also going to order from local bookshops, to try to raise their consciousness.

Christ. This has to be addressed. Kemi Badenoch spoke about the intimidation tactics of TRAs. If the government is aware of the issues they need to start dealing with it.

Women being forced out of their careers and livelihoods for having an opinion, legally protected, is a disgusting shame that our politicians should not be ignoring.

💐 Rachel.

Maybe worth suggesting to FILIA she is included here

uk.bookshop.org/shop/filia

[email protected]

[quote DontLikeCrumpets]@ScreamingMeMe

Am I understanding correctly that the hateful comments she listed were made by "children's authors, children's editors, children's librarians & other industry types."?[/quote]
Yes

I’ve just stumbled across this thread after googling Rachel Rooney. I came across my DC’s My Body is Me book yesterday and was looking to see what else she had written now they are a little older.

I knew of the initial pile on, but I’m shocked and saddened to see the abuse has continued to such an extent that she no longer feels she can continue to write. It’s terrible that those within the publishing industry have just sat back and allowed this to happen. I would love to know the names of the authors and illustrators who have bullied her out so they don’t get another penny off me.

I have just ordered the rest of her books, and hope she one day finds writing can be her safe place again.

I helped to lead a youth group for a bit. The aim was to have educational and political activities as well as games and bushcraft outdoor stuff. I got less interested in the discussion side when I found that if the children had a 'wrong' opinion you were supposed to tell them the right opinion and end the session. Not facts, opinions. There is too much of this in the educational sector. British publishing has always been small and cliquey but it seems to have got worse rather than better.

It’s the modern version of book burning.

All those involved, from the disgraceful bullies to the cowards at the top not prepared to risk their pensions, should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves, and perhaps read up on 1930s Germany. This seems to be the way we are heading.