Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dan Denton. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Dan , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

I recently left the best job I ever had, as a union autoworker, where I served as an elected chief union steward. When the company offered a small buy out package as an early retirement, I thought “no way,” it’s not enough money to give up this job and the benefits. I’m in my early 40’s. I”m too young. But the more I thought about it, the more I remembered that when I was 7 years old I didn’t dream of growing up to be a labor leader, or an autoworker. I dreamt of being a writer. I’d already been widely published, including a novel and a novella, and I’d started to earn a little money as an artist the last few years,, but less than 10% of what I made as an autoworker, I decided to buy and remodel a 20 year old travel trailer to live in, and travel, and live a less expensive lifestyle, and I created a Patreon account that I’m still not good at using, but I’m up to 17 subscribers and nearly half a month’s worth of groceries coming in from supporters, just in my first couple of months. A lot of my friends think I’m crazy for giving up such a good job to chase my dreams with no safety nets, but at the end of the day, if I don’t bet on myself once, then what’s the point? What’s the worst thing that can happen? I wind up working in another factory somewhere else eventually? No worries. I’ll know that I went all in once, and will never live with the what could have beens.

Dan , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I first won a school writing contest in third grade, and that began a lifelong journey of wanting to be a writer. I grew up in extreme poverty, in adverse and traumatic conditions like so many others in our American cities. But I still went to community college for a year, and majored in journalism, but after that, mental health challenges and addictions took over, and I battled those for much of my 20’s, a wild era that included multiple rehabs, factory jobs, and bouts of homelessness. After getting sober at 27, I began to rebuild my life, and although I always tried to write, I started doing so in earnest. I eventually found a job at the Toledo Jeep Plant on the assembly line, got elected chief steward, and won another big city wide poetry contest in 2016, and I’ve never looked back. I”m most proud that my poetry, short stories, magazine and newspaper columns, and novels all reflect the life of working people, most usually those that struggle to stay above the poverty line. My books are available at our county jail, state prison, every rehab facility in town, several psych wards, a record store, an indie bookstore, the city library, multiple university libraries, and a few coffee shops and art depots. To be able to reach the audiences that I used to live amongst, and still be accepted in a library is a sure sign that I’m writing something worthwhile and with authenticity.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I found success in getting poetry and short stories written and published, but finishing a novel was impossible for years. I joked once in an interview that I started 87 novels before finishing my first one, but it’s not a joke. That number might be accurate. Being a writer that struggles with mental health challenges including ADHD, I could never get past 70 or 80 written pages before giving up. Then I bought a new fancy computer, because I finally had the funds to buy what I wanted, and it automatically synched to my cell phone, so the things I wrote on the computer are also saved on the phone, and now I can write, or edit anywhere on my phone, and when I get home I can polish and write more on the computer. Discovering that hack, being able to write in the middle of the factory on break time, helped me write my first novel, and then I was lucky enough to be discovered by a well known independent press, and finally at 42 years old, I was comfortable calling myself a writer.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

To me, art has always been my one solace and refuge in a tough, tough world. So when the factory workers around me bought and read my first novel, and raved about how much I nailed what it’s like to be an American factory worker, that’s a trophy you don’t put in a case, you carry it in your heart forever. So many factory workers over the years have started reading or writing poetry because they read mine, and realized not every poem has to be about two paths in the woods. I’ve always said that if the only thing I ever accomplish in life is introducing blue collar people to literature. and literature to the blue collar world, then I’m a raging success.

Contact Info:

• Website: thedandenton.com
• Instagram: porkchop78
• Facebook: Dan Denton
• Twitter: DanDenton9
• Other: I write a weekly column for an online magazine called A Thin Slice of Anxiety. The column is called Sweat Stained Review: Confessions of a Blue Collar Misfit

Image Credits
First image: professional author photo taken by PhotoDave Photography second, third and fourth images are covers of my books last photo is of me and UAW President Shawn Fain at a recent UAW convention