i read this post again and again and realized that most of the comment is for you becoming a VC - a VC is someone who invests other people's money, are you sure you want to do that??? because what i understand from your question is you just want to invest along with other like minded people, right?

couple of months a go even i didn't knew that a VC is different than an investor...becoming a VC (or running a VC firm) and becoming an investor, both are different and distinct. Both have pros and cons along with different sets of roles and responsibilities.