All Comments on 'Other People's Problems'

Thanks to Bb3 for an engaging look into Brandon's psyche and its relationship to his behavior. I am amused that commentors focus on his negative aspects rather than his progress in improving himself. Like all of us real people Brandon is (so far) an incomplete story. BTW, where are all the comments whining that the story doesn't tie up all the issues and future events with a ribbon bow? Funny that...

Very interesting. Keep 'em comin'.

Good one.

It will happen again and what will Jeremiah d

Perhaps he had an attitude problem,and a desire for married women,but that is no reason for getting beat up and harassed by the police.He should have sued the force and the two policemen ,they would have kept well away from him in the future.As for his partner and snotty wife,he should have set up practice in opposition to him.

Really well done. Looking into the psychological aspects of cheating and how adults let their problems become their kids.

While the story made me uncomfortable it forced introspection and I think that’s a good thing.

Mission Accomplished

Seriously full of unlikable characters, yet somehow I enjoyed it anyway. I kinda felt sorry for Brandon. Was he an asshole? Sorta, but I can see how he never really got the chance to grow up. The dad was a bigger ass by letting the messed up mom stick around.

"subsided on frozen foods" - really? Try reading through properly. "Subsisted"

Sorry didn't go much for the unlikeable main character.

The story was very good even with a flawed main character. The point was he became aware of his short comings (with some reinforcement) and was working to change. I've known people like Brandon, to many that never grew up. Bebops tale was like a slice of (fictional) real life and I enjoyed it very much. It was a welcome change!

somewhere east of Omaha

Just reading through the comment, and see "full of unlikable characters", so the fuck what? Life's full of unlikable characters. And another: "try proofreading"; big fucking deal if every little word or sentence isn't William Shakespeare. It was a good story and I liked it. You'd think that all these shitheads were dragged kicking and screaming into a small room and forced to read these stories that people work hard on. Are mistakes made? Sure, they are, but jesus christ, can't they just let it go and enjoy what they can? BTW, if you want to write with no mistakes in the future, download Grammarly, as an add-on to Word, and you'll be golden (and it's free) . Happy writing!

Lovely story. If we cannot believe in personal growth and learning from mistakes then we should just either close all prisons or lock everyone up for ever depending on your viewpoint. We should also hold all mistakes against someone even if they made them when they were hormone infused and immature teenagers....actually we do that one already on twitter. TC Ireland

(Sips an ice cold Dr. Pepper)

So if Brandon was Brandy instead. And she broke up some marriages sleeping around, would the comments be as sympathetic and understanding ?

Great job! A good read!

"Mom had never been what you would call domestic and subsided on frozen food." I'm trying to picture that! You mean subsisted, of course.

I think he was wrong not to sue the police who attacked him,they have no right to go around assaulting people just to show solidarity with their mates.

Great writing from Bebop to actually make the reader feel compassion for an unlikable asshole.

I wish the story could have been longer, would have loved a full redemption arc.

Now see Bebop, this was excellent BUT you could have gone so much further with this. You have a tremendous talent for character development, especially when it comes to emotional growth, overcoming challenges and battling adversity. So what if the main character started off as a horrible person? No one is perfect and most people battle shame. Shame is a crippling condition and causes far more dysfunction than anyone ever wants to admit. I really feel like this story deserves another look. Everyone loves a romance and true love. They elicit dreams of that love of a lifetime. They are wonderful but rarely do they encourage introspection and change. Redemption tales do this. They encourage looking inward and give hope that growth and change is possible. More than that, they encourage action to thrive.

This was a lovely story. It has the potential to be your best. -starsong77

Good writing, but bailed out 1/2 way. Couldn't get into the main character....just a bit too unlikable.

A thoroughly unlikeable protagonist, but a well-written story. I'd love to see further growth...

Third reading

of this master class in how to make an unlikeable MC become somewhat less unlikeable and possibly redeemable, not to mention creating complex supporting characters (Mom and Dad) who defy simple characterization. The only thing I can't forgive is letting Dr. Pepper sit and get warm instead of surreptitiously pouring it on the nearest plant that needs to die.

Really good story with interesting character development. The next phases of hi development would be really interesting. He seems to have got to the good-intentions stage. How much damage will he do as he moves to good action? He might well take up with someone nice, vulnerable and actualy incompatible, does he risk getting out or does he not dare, and if so what happens as he gets colder towatds her? Or .... As someone said, your great at character development, and I would have loved you to follow up with this one.

I sort of got lost in the beginning when he got beat up a kid with an ASP. That was finally explained later on. I guess I've gotten to used the wives being being the bad guys getting taken down by what used to be loving husbands. I was a good story and showed hoe some with destructive tendencies in relationships can change with the right help. Good story and well thought out. Mookie's was touch from Needles and Delaney?? 5 stars

I sort of got lost in the beginning when he got beat up a kid with an ASP. That was finally explained later on. I guess I've gotten to used the wives being being the bad guys getting taken down by what used to be loving husbands. I was a good story and showed hoe some with destructive tendencies in relationships can change with the right help. Good story and well thought out. Mookie's was touch from Needles and Delaney?? 5 stars

It takes guts to write a story in the category that'll get you eaten alive for anything less than BTB. Thanks...

WOW, Sir, that was very, very good! Thank you 5 more BIG SHINY STARS!

I didn’t like the way it started out but that was the whole point of the story but by the end I was cheering for the MC, The MC father’s sacrifices, where an inspiration for all fathers who have found themselves in a similar situation ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Interesting story. Probably as true-to- life as many of the other stories here, and even more-so than some of them. Not much of a fun read but it does kinda make you wonder what makes a dirtbag like Brandon tick. 5⭐️s.

Hmmm...am troubled by the MC's decision to mislead Jeremiah about the reason Brianne's mother stopped her from spending time with him. Understandable that he wanted to spare the young man's feelings but people from disadvantaged socioeconomic circumstances sadly face discrimination in all aspects of life. The sooner they learn to see this prejudice for what it is, the sooner they can begin to respond to it effectively. It sucks but such is life. Develop the skills to succeed despite the bigotry as early in life as possible.

This is why I'm childfree. if this asshole was my son i'd cut him off and never speak to him again even if he was on his deathbed. I'd cut off my right arm if it treated me half as badly as that father was treated

"You have disdain for me. More importantly, you're afraid you'll become like me, as if being a cuck is contagious."

While I feel the father's pain, I have to side with the asshole Brandon at this point, because the dad was wrong. He raised a man while acting as a doormat to a hoe. Of course that's going to have an impact on a growing boy. Why do you think mother's are told to get rid of abusive husbands. Because children see that shit and assume that's what a marriage looks like. Of course Brandon wouldn't know how to cope with having a cuck father. Who would honestly?

If the dad was raising a daughter the same way, she would've ended up exactly like the mother and that would also have been his fault as well. In this case alone Brandon is right, he needed a father and a role model. All he got was a cuck and a broken man.

Good story. You write stories in an effort to do new things. Writing stories about unlikeable characters is hard.

People criticize your characters, but they are REAL. At least in your world view. This is an author's purview. I know characters like this in real life. Your character are polarizing, but you spin a good yarn. For this you have my respect.

My second time through this tale. Many folks may not dig deep enough to fully appreciate the tale (or not be willing to admit the close call to their own life/ personality. Eighteen is the legal age of adulthood but of course many don't grow up till much later if at all. I like seeing the MC seeing himself as others do and finally becoming a real man (I think it was around age 48 in my case). Thank you for your story!

somewhere east of Omaha

tomato tomahto, haters can call this a story about an asshole, I prefer a story about redemption. the ending was subtle I can see how some readers were confused.

There are excellent stories that don’t have likable characters. Yeah, the MC was an asshole and at the end, he was a slightly better asshole. Doesn’t change the fact that this was an excellent story. Very well developed characters.

well written, good story and ending. Yes, he was an asshole and splinted family life, but maybe overcomes it. Also like that you drew in Foster Kids and Big Brother Sisters. World needs more of them

Some of us think that the cop’s friends should have been looking for ways to hurt the slut wife, since she was the one who betrayed him!

Me,never mind the fact that Brandon is an arsehole,he didn't deserve to be jumped by the cops.After the way they had been harassing him, he should have sued the police and had them fired.They are paid to uphold the law not take it in to their own hands.Too many of them stray off track.

Great story. Brandon having growth was good. Self awareness was great. And he didn't have a perfect ending - he lost his friend and had to put the work in.

The real irredeemable people were the gleeful partners who just kept cheating remorselessly. And the sanctimonious mom.

Great stuff.

Reading #4 (or maybe #5) and it's still a page-turner for me. Brandon was blessed to learn how to be a half-way decent man while he was still young; I was well into my 70s and still have much to learn, perhaps too much for the time to be. Thank you again, Bebop, for gracing us with the fruits of your talent.

It was a 5 star story but I took one away because dude was trash! 🤣

There's an old saying, "There but for the grace of God go I". We all carry baggage from our childhood. For some people it's a valise and for some it's a cargo container. It's up to us to downsize our baggage and get it off our back. Brandon was working on it. Let's be clear - it's not fucking easy. Worthwhile story.

LMJ

It is an excellent story. I liked it. If someone criticized you for having an imperfect MC, then they must be perfect or kidding tgemselves. We all carry some baggage from our past, some people more that others. Brandon was working on his baggage and trying to change. That is uplifting. May more assholes do the same.

Sorry, you made MC that big of an “axxhole” I just couldn’t com back from it. One star only.

The MC’s father chose poorly. He was wrong. The boy would have been better off without a mother figure at all rather than the example of womanhood he was given.

ZK

Im worried that jeremiah is gonna end up being a predator that needs exterminating; "She's hot. I'm gonna hit it and quit it." Personal baggage never goes away, the burden it poses may diminish but its always there, like a bad habit and under stress one may revert back to destructive behavior. rk

Too much and too little. Never could get invested in the story or characters. Hard to figure out what the hell the story was about. Got tired of reading it and jumped to end but still didn’t help. Loved a lot of your stories but not this one. LM

If there's no hope and redemption for a louse there's no hope or redemption for any. Thanks everybody needs hope...