'Slenderman' Creator, Eric Knudson, Saddened By Stabbing

Don't hate "Slenderman."

It's not his fault that Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier, both 12 years old, chose to stab and attempt to murder another 12-year-old girl.

Geyser and Weier were just one millimeter from killing their victim, barely missing a major artery near her heart.

From AP, via FOX News:

The man who created Slenderman, a spooky character popularized in short stories, video games and films, and an administrator of a website that collected the works expressed their condolences Wednesday to a 12-year-old girl who was stabbed by two fans and to others affected by the tragedy.

A spokeswoman for Slenderman creator Eric Knudsen and an administrator for creepypasta.wikia.com said they have been overwhelmed with calls and messages since news broke that the girls charged in the weekend stabbing told police they wanted to curry favor with Slenderman and prove he was real.

"I am deeply saddened by the tragedy in Wisconsin and my heart goes out to the families of those affected by this terrible act," Knudsen said in a statement released by spokeswoman Sue Procko.

Creepypasta administrator David Morales said the site clearly states the stories there are fiction and its rules bar use by anyone under 13.

"We are not teaching children to believe in a fictional monster, nor are we teaching them to be violent," Morales wrote in an email.

He noted that administrators have not allowed any new Slenderman stories to be posted since 2012 because they want users to come up with fresh ideas. Since Knudsen posted the first Slenderman stories and photos in an online forum in 2009, hundreds of other writers, artists and programmers have created horror stories featuring the tall, thin, faceless man in a black suit.

"Overall, the community has deep condolences to the family of the victim and all those who were involved," Morales wrote.

The two 12-year-old Wisconsin girls charged as adults in the stabbing face 65 years in prison. The victim remains hospitalized.

Slenderman fans defended the stories and the community that's gathered around them.

I don't blame Eric Knudson or "Slenderman" or Creepypasta for this crime.

Twelve-year-old people in our society know that murder is illegal. They should know that killing is morally wrong.

We're talking really basic "do's and don'ts" here.

I think it's ridiculous to cut Geyser and Weier slack because they're just "children."

Twelve-year-olds know you don't lure a friend out to the woods and stab her 19 times, within a millimeter of her life.

This notion that the Internet has some incredible power over individuals, especially children, is BS.

Nothing on the Internet can wipe out one's morals and turn one into a monster.

Geyser and Weier aren't victims of the Internet.

Are we really willing to accept the idea that stories on a website make a 12-year-old incapable of knowing that killing a peer is wrong? Are we to believe that a 12-year-old should not be held responsible for planning a peer's murder and actually carrying out the plan?

I will not.

This crime is horrible. The stabbing was intentional. It was planned for months and the attack was meant to kill the victim.

Listening to people blame the crime on the dark recesses of the Internet and paint the attackers as poor, mixed up little girls, victims of Creepypasta, a force greater than their consciences, is horrible as well.