The Plan

I need a 4 hour work week. 

More accurately, I need a work week that does not demand that I leave the house, regardless of the hours I actually work.  I want to move, travel without giving notice.  I also want to spend as much time as I can on creative endeavors, because pretty much everything else I do is pointless.  The answer, as I am learning, is dangerous fiction.  And because I can only write so much, and only so much of what I write is dangerous, I hope to take a dive in the shallower end of the pool as well, where much of the editing and publishing happens.

I am not going to get carried away with making fruitless plans, either.  For that reason, this blog is a test market; this blog will help define the genre and the audience for dangerous fiction.  At the very least, I will write about writing and all of that writing might help 3 or 4 or a dozen other writers.  At best, we discover that good books that were believed to be so niche as to be unmarketable now have a stable, loving home.

And one thing a nice home needs is some basic housekeeping, right?  So first: what is dangerous fiction?  I am going to tell you how I define it; then I will put it to you to define it for yourselves, and for others who read it.  To me, dangerous fiction is not always experimental or speculative.  These things have their own sort-of genres, established rules, and readerships.  Nor is it necessarily subversive in form.  To break the rules, you have to demonstrate you are aware of them.  This means proper punctuation and spelling in all places except those places where breaking those rules achieves something new.

And that is what dangerous fiction does.  It is not the attention whore, but the person who sneaks into the party uninvited, weaves a few fabulous but believable tales, then leaves right before the guests realize that their wallets are missing and all their shoelaces are tied together in one gigantic knot.  Dangerous fiction is distracting.  It breaks stuff.  Taboo subjects, impossibly shaped plots, themes and stories that are begging to be told, if only to piss people off.  All of these contain an element of dangerous fiction.  And this is what I want to write.  And read.

Now that you have an idea of what I am suggesting, let me tell you what I'm going to do about it.  First, I'm going to help myself.  Having a blog about writing when you're a writer kind of does just that.  This blog is not entirely about me, but it's not wholly selfless either.  I have my own novel to promote, which I will talk about in later posts.  I'm also going to speak to other writers, especially those that are still working on their craft.  I'm going to make it simple and straightforward, and because I am not attacking your actual manuscript with my red pen, maybe you'll listen to me.  I already teach writing.  I've hosted a workshop or two, and also edit books and marketing materials.  This isn't going to be the grammar show, but it is going to prevent a few people from making idiots out of themselves.  At least that's the hope.

More importantly, this blog will serve as an incubator for the creation of Dangerous Fiction Press.  I am not about to run out and apply for my business license just yet;  I want to generate interest first.  In the first few years, this will be a very small scale operation:  probably a couple of anthologies and a few novels.  It means a lot of learning for me.  Having this blog here will help me keep track of accomplishments and make me accountable for the plans I make.  It might also serve as a blueprint for others who want to take a similar route and enter the world of small press publishing. 

Deep breaths.  Here we go.