Journeyman. Croupier. Editor for "The Rag." Dan grew up in relatively uninteresting times: The Cold War was over and by the time he was in high school it was cool to think Nirvana sucked, yet he still came of age pre-9/11. His values: amorphous, not bound by history. He came of age in a space of time that escapes history. The big deal was the president got a blowjob from some chick, the stock market went wild over some fake businesses, a dollar bought you a gallon of gasoline and the world did not end when the calendar flipped to 2000. He was born to a single mother, nursed from mores and values shaped by AIDS, Madonna and Reaganomics. Dan is necessarily confused, lost, apart from the culture he lives in. He finished his first novel in his early-twenties, which turned out to be an utter disaster. From the ashes and humility of his mistakes he ultimately learned an important skill; how to empathize with a reader. He now uses this experience to select and publish other people's work, and as it turns out, living vicariously through the success of far more talented people is a close second, in his mind, to the glory of being published himself. Dan has no formal literary background, though he's been writing fiction since he was 18. His background is in neuroscience, which he gave up in 2008 when all the world's money magically disappeared and he decided to play poker for a living. Today he lives in New York City where he continues to write fiction and play cards. "The Rag" is his second full-time job.