There is obviously something very, very wrong with me. It might have something to do with the hope and optimism of a new year. It might be the elation and freedom I’m feeling from having finally launched my big project at work. It might be the sudden and euphoric lifting of post-holiday stress. Maybe it’s just the unusually warm January weather. Whatever it is, it has driven me completely insane.

I’m actually writing zombie fiction. Or, attempting to write, I should say.

Permuted Press is a small press publisher that specializes in zombie/horror fiction. They are putting together a new anthology called History is Dead, and the concept has me interested.

The premise for this collection: We love seeing or reading about zombies taking headshots from the absolute latest in police and military weaponry. We love seeing people fight and survive in familiar settings – the mall, the high school, Pittsburgh, Yonkers, downtown Manhattan. But, it’s kind of been overdone. Most all zombie fiction and movies are set in the modern world, and most of those in the U.S.A. So what we’re proposing is a collection of zombie short stories, set in some other historical period, especially if they’re also set in another geographical locale.What we’re looking for: zombie stories set sometime pre-20th century. Use your imagination. Biblical, Roman, Medieval, or the Old West all come to mind, as well as non-Western settings like samurai fighting zombies, or hordes of zombies crashing into the Great Wall.

So, historical zombie fiction. That’s what we’re looking at here. I found out about this anthology from Evil Avatar, of course. The guy who is “Evil Avatar”, Philip Hansen, is a horror writer himself, having worked with Permuted Press on past projects. He’s thrown his hat into this ring, so the competition is evidently fierce already, combined with the fact that I have never, ever even remotely considered writing zombie horror fiction. Oh, sorry, I mean historical zombie horror fiction.

But I’m going to try. One of my New Year’s resolutions was to work on one of my writing projects and at least start submitting before the end of the year. Since I was 12 years old and first got the itch to be a writer, my goal had always been to publish something before I turned 30. That plan failed (though I did win a scifi writing contest in college back in 1999, and was published in the college literary journal, but I don’t think that really counts, does it? Well, does it?). Now, my goal is to complete something (starting to write is easy; the hardest thing for a writer to do is actually finish something they’re working on) and get it submitted for publication before December 31st, 2007. Not actually published, mind you. I’m fine dealing with several hundred rejections if I really have to. Though rejection is still hard to take.

I wasn’t sure which project to continue working on. I’m partial to my children’s story, and my wife has been helping me with that. But I’ve been thirsty for challenges, and zombie fiction is just far enough inside, and equally just far enough outside my comfort level to be a perfect fit for a challenge that I might actually be able to accomplish.

I’ll share more when I’ve actually completed something.

So, yeah. Zombie fiction. I never thought I’d go there, either.