The Man Who Wore Mismatched Socks- My Novel's Purpose

The Man Who Wore Mismatched Socks

Dedicated to The Few.  Whoever we are, wherever we hail from- You saved us all.

 

Preface

Welcome to the world of Aloysius St. James Spottisworth-Gack.  A man with a funny name, yes, but also a man who carried off incredible feats of aerial derring-do in World War Two and the Cold War.  And a man who, in peacetime, had the incredible bravery to take a stand for individuality and meaningful human connection in an era whose signature characteristic was mass.  Mass markets, mass production, mass culture, in which everyone was supposed to like the same things, buy the same things, do the same things.

Be the same things.

Not for our hero Gack.  Not content to live an interesting and connected life himself, he set out to lead others out of the gaping maw of sameness and discover their own wonderful individuality.

Come join us then, as we experience, among other things:

-Exploits in the air that include winning the Battle of Britain and extend all the way to the Cuban Missile Crisis, which almost ended civilization as we know it.  Only our hero and a handful of men and women know the real story behind how the crisis was defused just hours before nuclear weapons were launched.

-Marriages that are exciting adventures, not ends of exciting adventures.

-Interesting people who solve interesting problems, confidently and not plagued by destructive limiting beliefs, including friends who help one of their own to beat a terrible addiction.

-Businesses that are so engaging, so visceral, and so darn much fun to patronize, that you will cry out for such places to exist in the real world around you.

-You will visit a pub, a gathering place called The Pig & Trebuchet, that brings people together to enjoy memorable experiences time and time again.

-You will explore the ancient tale of the struggle between good and evil, but you will also grapple with that much more common, and yet far less talked about, battle between remarkable and... average.  Between the best that we create and the banal that we so often settle for.

This work is in part a fictional treatment of the ideas and philosophies of Seth Godin.  The concepts found in Chris Anderson's books The Long Tail and Free are woven into the fabric of the book.  And underneath it all runs the astonishing body of research known as Diffusion of Innovations.  The chief proponent of this area of science over the years has been Everett Rogers.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/

http://longtail.com/

http://thelongtail.com/about.html

http://www.stanford.edu/class/symbsys205/Diffusion%20of%20Innovations.htm

As of this writing none of these thinkers has given specific endorsement to this work, and it is only related to them by their ideas, which are freely available to all to interpret through their writings and online presence.  I have long felt that the principles that are presented in their books such as The Long Tail, The Purple Cow, Tribes and Linchpin, as well as on their websites and blogs, would benefit from a fictional exegesis.

Crucial to this work is an exploration of the treatment of human beings as individuals or, in contrast, as interchangeable, temporary and disposable.  Certain aspects of the work may present difficulties.  For those who abhor war, as I do, I regret that it starts in war.  This is however the crucible in which our hero is forged, and war is the ultimate logical extension of the principle of treating people as interchangeable and disposable.  It needs to be examined as such.  To understand something, it helps to consider the extremes.

Our hero is a brewer.  Brewing interesting craft beers is an intellectually satisfying pursuit and enjoying beer or other alcoholic beverages in moderation can be an enjoyable thing in life.  Yet there is a potentially terrible cost to individuals and society from the manufacture and distribution of any form of alcohol- alcoholism, domestic abuse, drunk driving deaths and many other things.  I chose such an endeavour for my main character because most products and services in this world do carry some potential negative consequences.  The producer or creator has a choice between ignoring their externalities- costs passed on to others without their consent or even perhaps their awareness- or dealing with them is a responsible and forthright manner.  This concept also needs to be explored, hence the need for mead.

Come join me then as we explore, through fiction, the concepts of true human Connection as opposed to the interchangeable, temporary and disposable treatment of human beings; Linchpins; Tribes; Connection-based versus interchangeable businesses; the exciting life we can live in all the marvelous Niches that we create; and the vibrant Village of our own making in which we can live if we so choose.

(Image by Bernd Nurnberger)

I am aiming for a release date of summer 2012.  I will release a few key excerpts here and provide commentary about how this fiction relates to your business life and your life in the community around you.  Enjoy the ride!

Comments

[Dorothy Shapland]

Looking forward to a ship date! 12/12/12 has a certain symmetry to it...

[Joel]

"the vibrant Village of our own making"

I like that. Working on it, I am.

On the evening of 11/11/11 Sue and I were discussing what we could pull out for 12/12/12. We'll all have to coordinate our calendars, or we'll be rushing from event to event to support each other.