As you know I’m a Neil Gaiman fan. Well, this morning I found an article written by Chris Lough in which Gaiman talks about two of his upcoming new books, Fortunately, the Milk and The Ocean at the End of the Lane. Gaiman explains the backstories and motivation for writing these stories and then he shares a little about why fiction is dangerous. I thought it moving and true, and a fitting way to start my writing day. Maybe it will be for you, too.

Here is an excerpt:

Fiction, however, “shows you that the world doesn’t have to be like the one that you live in. Which is an incredibly dangerous thing for the world.” He related a story about being at a science fiction convention in China in 2007 and asking one of the government officials assigned to watch over the proceedings why China was now allowing such a convention. The official answered that while China has a worldwide reputation for being excellent at constructing things that others bring to them, China is not considered inventive or innovative. Through outreach to huge American tech companies like Google, Microsoft, and Apple, the Chinese government discovered that a lot of the individuals in those companies grew up reading science fiction. That, essentially, they were told at a young age that the world wasn’t static, that they could change it, that they could introduce new concepts and inventions.

Do yourself a favor and read the rest here: This Doesn’t Have to Be the World You Live In. Neil Gaiman on “Why Fiction is Dangerous” | Tor.com.