This just in, Steve Maxwell is a controlling ass

[Guest Anonymous]

They are also missing a huge trick in not having Sarah respond personally to the children who write into the blog. It is just magical for a child to get a personalised note from a favourite author (Hell, I got a personal email from a favourite children's writer when I was 30 and I was over the moon!)

They could really widen the appeal of those books if kids knew they could leave a message on the blog and get a quick, smiley note back from the author.

[Avalondaughter]

How much money is made on those books? I really hope it's enough to get Sarah out of there and into her own life. I hope that there is legal help out there for her to get all past and future royalties from those books and get her out into a better life than this. Ditto for the Botkin women.

[Guest Anonymous]

They self-publish so who knows how much they make. They are so poorly written that they wouldn't honestly see the light of day if the Maxwells didn't sell them to their sheeple, so I doubt there is enough profit for Sarah to be in the position to buy her own house in cash, like her elder brothers did. If she ever escaped from Steve's clutches, her 'ministry' and 'testimony' would be screwed and all book sales would cease.

I expect Sarah earns just enough to buy nice 'hope chest' toys - the spendy sewing machines and kitchen gadgets that will help make Steve's her future husband's life easier.

[MamaJunebug]

The transfer of reply authority (ha ha ha) from Sarah to Steve is significant, I think, as are the recent statements about Sarah having been able to move out and choose any kind of life she wanted, the possibility that the Lord will provide a husband, and the over-arching value of Sarah the Pack(ing) Mule to the family business.

Let's review: some time back, somebody came here posting a not-too-favorable review of a Maxwell family presentation; a little further back in time, somebody came here saying that s/he is a Maxwell family friend. IIRC both have returned to the board several times. And Steve reads here.

Meanwhile: Melanie and her unborn baby are hovering in precarious states of health/survival, Steve's mom in Omaha is dying of Alzheimer's and no longer remembers (center of the universe) Steve, bookings are nearly non-existent. Christopher and Anna occasionally stand on their own four feet and are not in evidence in Maxwell blog reports of family gatherings. (anybody remember "the counting" in the movie Cold Comfort Farm? The deranged, spoilt matriarch conducts "the counting" of her family twice a year to be sure nobody's left. Comparisons obvious, IMHO.)

And so: Steve is stressing majorly. Somebody from The Enemy World Outside got into a presentation undetected! His own version of Knight is posting for the education of The Enemy World Outside!

Steve has worked for other people, got a degree from a real uni, dated Teri and persuaded her to marry him; he knows that it's simply right to be polite and congenial -- yet he's becoming more terse and rude by the blogpost, deleting responses after they've been published, as well as sending not-very-veiled messages to those of The Enemy who dare come to his blog and/or his presentations or even worse, his home!

I say he's a bundle of nerves with a fuse shorter than ever. Powder-keg boy, I imagine. I would not want to be a fly on that wall ... but I wouldn't mind being a few houses down the street with some good hearing. ;)

[WonderingInWA]

The comment sounds like it was written by a young boy. Steve could have replied in a much nicer way... like saying thank you or "we are so happy that you liked it".

Really. It's people like that boy who pays for their living - he should be courteous to the hand that feeds him.

I agree. When was the last time we saw Stevie thank his readers/fans/supporters? With the "encouraging" nature of Christians, he is the least encouraging of them all. Say thank you, encourage youths on endeavors, and understand how curt the written word can appear. Is he thankful for the people who support his family? If so, he's a published author, as is Teri, as is Sarah. I think the 3 of them could take the time to express gratitude and warmth.

[WonderingInWA]

They are also missing a huge trick in not having Sarah respond personally to the children who write into the blog. It is just magical for a child to get a personalised note from a favourite author (Hell, I got a personal email from a favourite children's writer when I was 30 and I was over the moon!)

They could really widen the appeal of those books if kids knew they could leave a message on the blog and get a quick, smiley note back from the author.

Yes! They are missing this part of their marketability!

(BTW, I got a thank you letter from Michelle Obama a couple years ago after they adopted Beau -- I almost framed it!).

[gardenvarietycitizen]

They are also missing a huge trick in not having Sarah respond personally to the children who write into the blog. It is just magical for a child to get a personalised note from a favourite author (Hell, I got a personal email from a favourite children's writer when I was 30 and I was over the moon!)

They could really widen the appeal of those books if kids knew they could leave a message on the blog and get a quick, smiley note back from the author.

EXACTLY.

In fact, if I were Sarah, I'd try to spin the Moody books out into a Moody blog. Just think - it would be 100% "godly" content for kids just like the books are, and if they want to be all super-grubby about it like the rest of their blogs, they could have special sections that are only readable by people who mail in their box tops or proof of purchase to Sarah. Kids could even send in story ideas maybe.

Though I'm sure that's too close to "f*n" for Steve to countenance, never mind the independence issues for Sarah. Sigh.

Thanks for that other link, too - really makes me wonder even more just what all went down around the NR-Anna wedding. That has got to be an interesting tension.

[Guest Anonymous]

But, from Steve's perspective, Sarah's marketability is not a priority... I am sure he is happy to keep her home earning a little pin money and not getting too big for her SAHD cleaning boots...

[treemom]

Steve appears to have scrubbed a lot of comments from the two waitress posts. Because I commented on both of them.

[fundiefan]

Steve appears to have scrubbed a lot of comments from the two waitress posts. Because I commented on both of them.

You must be mistaken. Steve doesn't alter any comment, he doesn't censor the words of others, and he most definitely wouldn't try to hide something - that is akin to lying and Steve, as god's right hand man, would never, ever do such a thing.

[Guest Anonymous]

Thanks for that other link, too - really makes me wonder even more just what all went down around the NR-Anna wedding. That has got to be an interesting tension.

titus2.com/blog/index.php/2011/08/21/at-the-cabin/

This was a post that made me feel really sad for Sarah.

The morning started off with personal Bible time, and after breakfast, we gathered for a church service. Dad shared from Psalms 106, and I personally felt convicted in the area of needing to not murmur and be grateful. If something doesn’t go the way I would like it to, do I thank the Lord for that opportunity or do I complain? I might be thinking I’m doing great not to complain out loud, but doing it in my heart is the same thing!

It was a long time after the wedding, but it seemed as though, even on what some might call a vacation, Steve was on her back 'convicting' her of being sinful, even though she was keeping her thoughts in her head and not speaking them aloud.

Psalm 106 is about the plagues and punishments God is said to have heaped on the Israelites for forgetting all that God has done for them:

6 We have sinned, even as our ancestors depressed, lazy mother did;

we have done wrong and acted wickedly.

7 When our ancestors were in Egypt brothers were in youth clubs and sports teams,

they gave no thought to your miracles rules and consequences;

they did not remember your many kindnesses lectures,

and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea arguing over cats and dogs, outside Taco Bell.

*snip*

16 In the camp they Sarah grew envious of Moses Nathan

and of AaronChristopher, who was consecrated to the LORDhis wife.

17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan Sarah;

it buried the company of Abiramwhat some might call her friends.

18 Fire blazed among their followers her burritos;

a flame consumed the wicked her secret favourite meal.

24 Then they despised the pleasant land; Maxwell Compound

they did not believe his their father's promise.

25 They grumbled in their tents frumpers

and did not obey the LORD Steve's commands.

26 So he swore to them with uplifted hand

that he would make them fall in the wilderness work in the basement office forever,

27 make their descendants fall among the nations fertile years pass in humble servitude

and scatter them to forever clean kitchen cabinets throughout the lands Maxwell family homes.

47 Save us, LORD our God Daddy Steve,

and gather us from the nations protect us from the internet,

that we may give thanks to your holy name

and glory in your praise.

48 Praise be to the LORD Steve Maxwell, the God ofIsrael Kansas,

from everlasting to everlasting.

Let all the Maxwell sheeple say, “Amen!â€

[Bookworm]

I don't know if I ever commented about Sarah, despite reading all the threads about her. Somehow I identify way too much with her, not really sure why, but every time I think about her stuck in such a miserable situation it makes me sadder and sadder for her. I've spent quite a bit of time thinking about if there was any way to befriend her somehow but I don't see any way.

If you ever read this, though, Sarah, I’m available to talk to about things like does your father have his theology correct. I think you are a nice person and as a daughter who decided to live differently than her parents wanted and did so without ever rebelling, perhaps you would feel safe talking with me. Also, sometimes when you are raised in an untenable situation it takes years to realize it is untenable – when the emotions begin to be uncontrollable by prayer and pious things, you eventually realize maybe, just maybe, you are not happy and it's not your fault.

There is happiness available. It will take more courage for you to grab it than it does for most, Sarah, but it is out there for you.

[lilwriter85]

They self-publish so who knows how much they make. They are so poorly written that they wouldn't honestly see the light of day if the Maxwells didn't sell them to their sheeple, so I doubt there is enough profit for Sarah to be in the position to buy her own house in cash, like her elder brothers did. If she ever escaped from Steve's clutches, her 'ministry' and 'testimony' would be screwed and all book sales would cease.

I expect Sarah earns just enough to buy nice 'hope chest' toys - the spendy sewing machines and kitchen gadgets that will help make Steve's her future husband's life easier.

This. The Maxwells might make a decent profit off the Moody books, but it probably isn't a lot. Since the Maxwell self-publish they probably have a quite a bit after recouping printing costs and I also believe they print their own books. They may only have to recoup supply costs. Sarah's niche audience isn't that large and I honestly think some fundies would dislike the boys and there are some fundies who probably don't know about them.

Very few people make large profits in the self-publishing world. One example of a massive success with self-publishing is Amanda Hocking. Amanda has written several paranormal romance books that she self published through Amazon. She made about 2 million dollars from ebook and print sales. She ended up getting a deal with St.Martin's Press. Amanda bought a house recently and she has been making the media rounds. The big difference between Amanda and Sarah, is that Amanda has made money off the large niche audience who loves paranormal books. Sarah's reading audience is really small and she probably doesn't even make a dent in the Christian book business.

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Yeah, I don't think Sarah is about to get rich (and I have to wonder just how much the whole family makes off their self-publishing, really). But running a Moody blog of sorts, or having some smiley interactions with fans would probably be, dare I say it, f*n, and give her a sense of purpose or even her own "mission" of sorts.

Probably more valuable in the marketplace (were Sarah to ever get free and need to work for pay) are her various office-operating skills running the general family business bookkeeping and shipping and all the rest of that stuff they mentioned in the birthday post. She's organized enough and capable enough it seems to be a decent office staff worker.

[Guest Anonymous]

Steve's motives for not marrying Sarah off are economic as well as a matter of control. If Sarah got married, her husband would not like the idea of royalties from his wife's books continuing to go to her father. He would probably insist that she wrest control of them from Steve. He might even demand an accounting of past Moody royalties. Even though Sarah's Moody royalties may be modest, they still go a long way towards propping up the Maxwells financially.

If this happened, Steve would be bastard enough to claim that he co-wrote the Moody books with Sarah. Even if his claim of co-authorship was eventually disallowed, he could still tie Sarah up in court for months, if not years.

[Guest Anonymous]

I doubt there is any such court case in the making. Really, they won't have sold that many books (Steve has mentioned "thousands" of children as readers but if you assume a low estimate of 4 per family sharing a book that could mean she has struggled to sell a thousand or so books). And there would be no future royalties if Sarah got in a fight with Stevie because the fake ministry would be exposed and the spell broken. There is nothing of literary merit in the books for people to buy them unless they can also buy into the idea of a perfect Christian family.

Now a book about a woman escaping from a Kansas Cult Family Compound - if Sarah were to brush up on her language skills, I would definitely pre-order that book. :)

[WonderingInWA]

I doubt there is any such court case in the making. Really, they won't have sold that many books (Steve has mentioned "thousands" of children as readers but if you assume a low estimate of 4 per family sharing a book that could mean she has struggled to sell a thousand or so books). And there would be no future royalties if Sarah got in a fight with Stevie because the fake ministry would be exposed and the spell broken. There is nothing of literary merit in the books for people to buy them unless they can also buy into the idea of a perfect Christian family.

Now a book about a woman escaping from a Kansas Cult Family Compound - if Sarah were to brush up on her language skills, I would definitely pre-order that book. :)

We could volunteer to edit it for her just to let her get her word out!

[Sydney Fox]

We could volunteer to edit it for her just to let her get her word out!

Put me down for a copy of that book! I'd love to get all the dirt on Stevie Maxwell and help Sarah escape/make a living in the process.

On another topic, do you think the Maxwell books are selling very well nowdays? I know MOTH is really popular among homeschoolers, but I barely hear about any of their other books on the homeschool boards. Their conference bookings are really down this year, so I wonder if they'll be facing a cash crunch in the near future. Also, if they're not travelling to conferences so much, do they really need Uriah?

[Guest Anonymous]

I fear for Uriah, I really do. :shifty:

[gardenvarietycitizen]

On another topic, do you think the Maxwell books are selling very well nowdays? I know MOTH is really popular among homeschoolers, but I barely hear about any of their other books on the homeschool boards. Their conference bookings are really down this year, so I wonder if they'll be facing a cash crunch in the near future. Also, if they're not travelling to conferences so much, do they really need Uriah?

If they're the sort of people who want to pay cash for a house, I presume Uriah was paid in full. His upkeep though is something else (their last conference he ended up needing a new transmission, I imagine that surely ate up whatever profit they made from that trip?).

Thing is though, if they don't travel in Uriah, they have to travel in a tiny van with a trailer pulled behind it - you can see their old setup in old blog posts. It's way more of a pain in the ass, and it seems they were staying in hotels, which also cost money. So Uriah might still make sense to keep around for trips (and I'm sure they HOPE they will have more trips).

But absolutely yes, I'm curious about how the whole travelling bookselling conference gig is going. Two or three years ago seems to be their peak time? Lately I don't see so many 15 stop tours. Of course they keep giving the same seminars, so probably once a given church has hosted them, they don't do return visits.

I too have heard MOTH being popular among homeschoolers, but I wonder about the rest of their offerings. MOTH has some substance to it besides the out there religion, so you can find testimonials from people who basically say "well, if you just ignore the crazy[1], there's a bit of meat to be had" about it. The rest of their books, not so much, y'know? The "schools" one itself isn't so popular as far as I know, because people who read it come to the conclusion that one reason the system works for the Maxwells is that they don't have a whole lot of content they are covering. But MOTH is like Flylady, has wider appeal.

[1] particularly the scheduling of babies. That part gets a lot of hate...

[lilwriter85]

I remember the van and trailer pics. I think Maxwells are starting to feel a cash crunch, during one of their last conferences they stayed with a family from one of the churches they were at.

[Hane]

Amen, sister!

*!!!!1111eleventy-eleven1111!!!*

So true. I can sympathize with her plight. I didn't grow up fundie, but in the home of a mother who hammered home the importance of premarital virginity, and who told my sisters and me that "any girl who gets her own apartment before getting married might as well just hang a red light in her window" (i.e., announce she's a prostitute). So, although all three of us got college educations, we were all too intimidated to strike out on our own before marriage (we were 20, 28, and 26 when we got married). There was always the ugly implication that, were we to leave the nest as single women, we'd be disowned and wind up with a lousy reputation. (Back in the early '70s, when one of my friends graduated college and got herself an apartment in the town where she worked, my mother demanded, "Why isn't she living with her mother?" [interesting that Mom left out the girl's very-much-present father.] I said, "Because she's an adult." But I hadn't had the nerve to do the same.)

I jumped into marriage at the age of 20 because I wanted a legit way to get out of my controlling mother's house, because I was terrified I'd never be able to support myself on my own, and because I thought that, if I didn't jump at the first marriage proposal I got, I'd wind up on my own forever. I could see Sarah doing the same, should some guy ever manage to hack his way through the thorn hedge and into the Maxwell compound.

Sarah is "sheltered" from any practical knowledge of the way the business world works, so would have no way of realizing how valuable she could be in, say, an office setting.

Sarah's books, although they are self-published and have a limited audience, probably are a significant source of income for the Maxwells, who seem to live extremely frugally.

[Mommy22alyns]

The comment sounds like it was written by a young boy. Steve could have replied in a much nicer way... like saying thank you or "we are so happy that you liked it".

Really. It's people like that boy who pays for their living - he should be courteous to the hand that feeds him.

This exactly. Steve is just so harsh and abrupt.

[Hane]

I just left this comment:

Dear Steve–

Do you have any idea how curt and abrupt your response sounds? This little boy and others like him are literally paying your bills, so a little kindness and a “thank you†wouldn’t hurt.

***

I know it will never see the light of day.

[WonderingInWA]

I just left this comment:

Dear Steve–

Do you have any idea how curt and abrupt your response sounds? This little boy and others like him are literally paying your bills, so a little kindness and a “thank you†wouldn’t hurt.

***

I know it will never see the light of day.

Oh, it will never see the light of day, but I am LOL that you posted it! Honestly, if the guy relies on the public for paying his bills, he really REALLY needs to hear realistic feedback. Good job!