Bob Ingrassia

Twin Cities writer Lily Coyle got angry when she heard Pat Robertson claim that Haitians brought the earthquake on themselves by making a pact with the devil.

"I couldn't sleep all night I was so mad," Coyle said. "How insensitive, to kick people when they're down."

Instead of muttering to herself, Coyle chose to channel Satan himself. On Thursday, even before she'd had her morning coffee, she banged out a hilarious open letter to the televangelist — and fired off her missive to the Star Tribune.

The Strib featured the letter as one of its "Letters of the Day" — and it wasn't long before the online version took off.

Coyle's letter began:

"Dear Pat Robertson, I know that you know that all press is good press,
so I appreciate the shout-out. And you make God look like a big mean
bully who kicks people when they are down, so I'm all over that action.

But when you say that Haiti has made a pact with me, it is totally
humiliating. I may be evil incarnate, but I'm no welcher. The way you
put it, making a deal with me leaves folks desperate and impoverished.
Sure, in the afterlife, but when I strike bargains with people, they
first get something here on earth — glamour, beauty, talent, wealth,
fame, glory, a golden fiddle."

Satan then stuck the dagger in by warning Robertson to shut up or maybe the Devil would "renegotiate your own contract."

Lots of folks have been sharing the link on Twitter. David Brauer at MinnPost did an item. A Daily Kos diarist did a post,  as did The Cucking Stool.

With all the attention today, Coyle couldn't resist Googling "Lily Coyle and Satan."

"I don't know how I feel about being Satan's mouthpiece," Coyle said.

Coyle is a freelance writer and playwright whose work includes "The Princess and the Pee," an unlikely children's play about bedwetting. Her husband, Patrick Coyle, is a filmmaker whose recent work includes "Into Temptation," a movie about a trouble priest who aims to save a mysterious young woman.

"I"ve got a children's book I'm hoping to get published," Coyle said. "I hope this whole Satan thing doesn't hurt my chances."