Fan outrage over Susan Meachen, the novelist accused of faking her death

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No one saw this twist coming.

In September 2020, a Facebook post from someone claiming to be the daughter of independent novelist Susan Meachen announced that the writer was committed suicide.

Ms Meachen wrote what she described as "perfectly imperfect" romance novels and fostered a tight-knit online community of readers and other authors who supported each other.

When news of his death spread, author Susan A Cole recalled being shocked.

"When it came out that one of ours had committed suicide, it was quite destructive, we were crying just for that," Ms. Cole at the BBC. .

Then rumors began to spread online that Ms Meachen had been bullied.

"All the accusations started and it drove a huge wedge in the community that lasted for months," Ms Cole said.

The band celebrated the anniversary of Susan Meachen's death for two years. Fundraisers and book auctions have been held in her honor, and authors like Candace Adams have contributed to an anthology of short stories dedicated to keeping "bullying where it belongs...