Novelist looking for subjects to interview

Hello, everyone.

My name is Amanda. I have a bachelor’s degree in English and Creative Writing and I am currently working on my master’s thesis in creative writing at SNHU.

My thesis is a three hundred page fictional novel with a sex offender as the main protagonist.  As I head into the revision stage, I’ve gone over my current text and realized, unfortunately, that the only thing I really know about sex offenders is from what I’ve seen on television. I know this is inaccurate.  So my next phase is to reach out and interact with those who can tell me what it’s really like; to fill in the blanks or correct the information that the media, and therefore, the general public gets wrong about registered sex offenders in today’s society.

I find this forum fascinating and informative and would love to open a dialogue with anyone who would like to be “interviewed” about what it’s like being a RSO on a day to day basis.  Tell me everything. What do you have to worry about on an average day that someone not on the registry wouldn’t understand? What steps did you have to take when you were first released from the correctional facility, or, if never incarcerated, after your arrest and you were first put on the registry.  How much of your own money have you had to spend because of your status?

I am especially interested in hearing from anyone from Washington State, but any and all information from any state or walk of life would be invaluable.

Thank you all in advance.

19 thoughts on “Novelist looking for subjects to interview

  1. I’ve read the other responses and no disrespect to those that have shared but I can assure you that you have not heard a story / journey like mine. Please contact me via e mail and then I can give you a contact number for me. Thanks and I hope you will consider giving me ten minutes of your time, then you can determine if you would like to hear more.
    I’m from Dallas Texas.

  2. It’s taken me years and years to get myself a decent life. I’m on the registry for life but if your persistent and dilegent you can get past them holding you down. Haters are gonna hate and that’s just all there is to it just let them. I don’t be leave that these laws are going to change any time soon, if ever. Just do what you have to to try and get on with your life. If your state is really bad about it then move to one that isn’t as bad. but don’t let the stygma ruin your life. They (society) would love nothing more. It’s all about politicians getting votes and cops getting the funding they want. Keep your circle small and real and move on. Good luck.

  3. i wasnt even convicted of sex offense and have been forced to register as sex offender since 1992.my judge even said i didnt have to register in 1992 the time of sentencing,i have the transcripts to prove it, no one will even look at my case.i have no constitutional rights,constantley targeted by police,20 stops a year.i have a wife and 2 kids in college,they are terrified of cops and cant believe the abuse we as a family have been subject to.i realize my life my life is over due to this,i worry about wife kids etc..ive been jailed 4 years total for their mistake they wont fix.they are rude at the mn bca.laugh. badger me and hang up on me and threaten me with arrest if i continue to question them.its made me think of doing terrible things to them since they stole my life, that i would never even think of before this.i have a million stories,been stopped and police take the other people out of car and tell them im a predatory offender,i wonder if i know something that the government doesnt want me to express.the facts are this never ever been convicted of any sex offense..never..i thought my life was somewhat important but the justice system thinks different.ive been raped by the justice system ,but its ok for them ,their above the law…

  4. I had a career in higher ed and good standing within the community where I lived. I made the mistake of attempting to have sex with my ex-girlfriend who had just broken up with me and had shown up to my apartment at 4 a.m. drunk. She drank the drinks herself, I did nothing to her but try to have sex with her when she was too incapacitated to consent. I had had about 15 beers, and had been brokenhearted about the breakup. What I did was wrong, illegal and stupid, and I will pay for my stupidity for every minute of every hour of every day. Today my life is ruined, I owe $200,000 in student loans that I have no way to payback. I could have paid them back if my life as a college professor had worked out, but it is not to be. I doubt if I could get a minimum wage job, if I could get beyond the bipolar depression that I have. I believe if the bipolar had been diagnosed earlier, I wouldn’t have these problems. I did 10 years probation and my case has been sealed and expunged but due to the registry rules I have to remain on the registry for life. I’ve seriously contemplated suicide, but I can’t do it while my mother is still alive. I will never have a family of my own, a wife, house, dog etc. Instead I will spend my entire life alone contributing virtually nothing to society all because the registry won’t obey the court. If I was taken off the registry I think it would be different but maybe not. I can live with the hatred of the community, the ostracism, the economic marginalization, the curtailing of the freedom of movement, and the knowledge that I live with the most worse title in the society. It’s just the fact that I will be alone for the rest of my life that gets me. I have so much sorrow, depression, self-loathing and general hatred for myself that all of the “kill them now,” crowd doesn’t have an effect on me. If one came along to exact payment for a case with no evidence except my confession with a victim who sued for $250,000 and worked for rape crisis for three years before I met her. Her boyfriend a probation officer took her five days after the incident to the hospital for a rape kit that came back negative. So if that avenger is out there and they came to me I would gladly let them murder me. My life as a sex offender is forfeit, I will never know any of the small pleasures in life because everywhere I go I am a sex offender and have to watch out. I used to fear the vigilante, but now I know they are just trying to free me from a life not worth living.

  5. I realize it is now February, but I have to say, to be entering the revision stage of a novel in which the protagonist is a registered sex offender, without actually having interviewed any actual sex offenders is not very good research. How do you even create such a societally specific character without any basis? At this point, I would say forget the revision, throw the novel out, actually interview some sex offenders, and start over.

  6. I’m the mother of a mentally ill son, now labeled as a sexual predator due to the ex post facto Adam Walsh Law, and I have a very unique story that I would like to share.

  7. A short story published by David Frank with an RSO going through the daily experiences of life, conscious of his status, is available on Amazon. It is an interesting story from the perspective of an RSO, may be worth a look.

    I think the more such stories get out there and read by people, the more things could change for the better.

  8. Please contact me if you want a woman’s perspective on the registry. I have custody of my children and am now being forced out of my home because of my status. My children have suffered enough.

    1. I’d like to hear your story. I suggest you read my articles on the internet: “Women as ‘Rapists’ and ‘Pedophiles'”; “Child Sexual Abuse Lunacy in Wisconsin,” “loony Wisconsin.” Read my recent comments at RSOLs on the Abigail Simon and Cassandra Sorenson-Grohall cases.

  9. If you are truly interested, my email is above. My story is very unique and does not even fit your “everyday s.o.” story.

  10. I was convicted of Indecent Liberties for touching my daughter in Washington State in 1982. Due to her age under 12 I must register for life. I have encountered my share of discrimination and events in life due to this conviction. Often thought of writing a book beginning from being molested by my father. Now at age 63, I married a Chinese lady in 2007 and , after 7 years of petitions and appeals my petition for her visa has been denied due to this conviction. Despite 2 recent psychological evaluations , both of which conclude that I am not a pedophile and am not a threat to anyone. Immigration considered me a threat to her safety. This restriction does not apply if I were to marry anyone in the US. I’d be happy to help you if I can.

    1. I’m in the same boat. I married a filipina in 2009. Been living with her in the Philippines and now we are separated. Trying to get past the Adam Walsh Act. Is anyone challenging the constitutionality of this?

  11. I am a registered sex offender in New York and life is really hard at times because noone will hire a registered sex offender, even though the recidivism rate for a convicted sex offender is 2 to 3 percent. What the general public believes is that a convicted sex offender will always commit a new sex offense. There is about a 17 percent chance that a registered sex offender will commit an offense that is not a sex offense just to be able to put food on there table because there is nobody or any entity that will help. You are made to go to group therapy which is understandable but therapy is suppose to help you so you do not commit a new offense. The therapy here is all about dwelling on what you have done in the past and not about what you are doing to prevent yourself from possibly re-offending. If an individual wants to move on with their life, it is not a good idea to keep bringing up the past. I will be on the registry for the rest of my life. I have had problems of people harassing me in the area that i live in because my name and address goes to everybody in the county where i live. While riding my bicycle to group therapy i had someone try to run me over. The police in the area will not do anything about the harassment because i am a registered sex offender.

  12. I want to sue Virginia because their SO laws are violations of my constitutional rights. I’m unemployed, almost homeless, and have not re-offended in 28 years, I’ve never re-offended, and am treated as if I’m preying on children. The stuff is crazy!!

  13. Excellent! I have a deadline tomorrow night, so until I get this packet sent in I will be slightly unavailable. After that, however, I would love to ask some questions of anyone who is willing.

    My email address is: AHPackard@outlook.com

    If you’re interested, shoot me an email. I’m looking for slice of life kind of stuff, particularly the raw, fish out of water feelings that you may have experienced during your readjustment period from incarceration to being a so-called “free man”. We can start there, or you can just start by telling me a little of your story and whatever information you think I should know. After the 1st of October I can send you some questions, thoughts, etc. I’d like a natural conversation to develop rather than a stock list of sterile genetic questions, but we’ll see how it goes. And you can answer with as much or as little detail as you feel comfortable with. I appreciate your enthusiasm and
    looking forward to the interaction.
    -Amanda

  14. I think your thesis is a good way to expose how American Justice entraps people in some of these sex related encounters. There are different types of sexual encounters. Some encounters are with actual victims and some are victimless. My case ended with me taking a plea deal rather than to go to court with a jury trail.
    Sure I would love to tell you all the tricks’ that they do to lure one into their web of deceit. Funny thing is how can one really get justice from deceits and lie’s?
    They will go on Adult chat site, pose as teenagers when most website’s say that you have to be over 18 due to the sexual content of the adult chat site. All these internet sting operations on adult chat site’s should be banned. I am sure all school’s teach the dangers of the internet in school.
    So if you need some info about internet sting operations and how they con and virtually stalk to entrap someone when can con into their web they will.

Leave a Reply to mike Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *