Kathe Koja’s Dark Factory
Taking Bohemia seriously.
In Dark Factory, Kathe Koja — an incredible, versatile writer who has pioneered multiple genres of fiction — presents an “immersive novel,” about a high-stakes Bohemian party scene of mixed-reality artists, wealthy dilettantes, weird theorists and the very serious business of fun.
The titular Dark Factory is a hot mixed-reality club, where dancers, DJs, bartenders and artists combine music, neural interface signals, intoxicants and physical movement to create transformative, all-night parties without rival.
Though Dark Factory is raking in cash, it’s also hemorrhaging it, thanks to a feckless owner; sinister financial backers, petty rivalries, and the restless, precarious tastes of the scenesters, which Dark Factory both leads and responds to.
The story revolves around two poles: first, there’s Ari, a rock-star scenemaker and producer who is worshipped by art-school kids, importuned by would-be DJs and artists, envied by his rivals and resented by his boss.
Then there’s Max, a preternaturally gifted theorist of immersive experiences, who can see and understand the way that scenes come together, nail down the instinctive genius of someone like Ari and explain why it works. Max’s brilliance should guarantee…
