Browsing all articles in Writing.
Is This Normal Around Here?
So you get home to your enchanted castle, hand your coat to the golem butler who waits by the door, tut sadly at Markus; the caretaker who’s trying to fill a light globe and letting all the fairies escape, then you head to the kitchen where your goblin chef has an entire pig roasting on […]
Exploring Vvardenfell: How Morrowind Created an Immersive Secondary World
Back in 2012, I was sitting with a group of fantasy writers at the PNWA conference in Seattle. Everyone had begun rolling off their favorite authors, and soon there were choruses of ah, yes and mmm. I just sat there silently with a glass of ice water. Most of my writing career had been a conscious detour around […]
The Writer’s Plague
If you are a booklover who didn’t die before 1997, I would wager you have difficulty finding a decent story among the piles of…muck. In the past twenty years, authors—henceforth known as the Infected—have emerged, plague-ridden, with what we will collectively call the writing bug. While I try to remain optimistic, I cannot say this […]
Self-Published Fantasy: How the SPFBO is Revitalising SFF
With the exciting kick-off of the THIRD Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off (#SPFBO) already underway, I thought I’d share some thoughts about the complexities of self-publishing and how Mark Lawrence’s SPFBO initiative is shaking up not only the medium, but also the genre itself. (An older, less awesome version of this article can be found here.) Self-published […]
Plot Twists That Defy Genre Expectations
Most of us love a good plot twist. We’re always trying to predict where a narrative is headed, but we’re usually thrilled when it takes an unexpected turn, surprises us, and makes us re-evaluate the assumptions we’ve made about the characters and the story. However, some of these sudden turns knock the wind out of us more than others, because […]
Sieges and Siegecraft, Part Two: Defenders
Shore up the defences, man the walls and get those supplies inside! Last time, we looked at siegecraft from the attackers’ side; this time, we’re on the defensive. There are a number of reasons why someone would choose to defend a specific location: to protect property or the lives of inhabitants; to secure a strategic […]
Books Do Not Sell Without Covers
The secret to book selling is not so secret anymore. The answer lies in the unspoken pact between an author and reader, which agrees a great cover equals excellent writing. Honestly, we know the premise is false—great stories exist inside shoddy covers and vice versa—but the expectation remains. In fact, I know readers who have […]
The Necronomicon to the Nokizi: Creating Texts For Secondary Worlds
Welcome to Fantasy-Faction’s new feature, Worlds Within Worlds. Writing in-world texts offers an anchor for characters, readers, and authors—when everyone is working off the same information, there’s a sense of immersion and verisimilitude, that this world could exist. You can write up as much lore as you want for your own personal file, but once […]
Sieges and Siegecraft, Part One: Attackers
Throughout the bloody pages of innumerable fantasy books there are countless examples of the siege in fiction. From epic wars that last for years to brutal assaults that are swift and decisive, sieges are a classic element in many stories. They can provide some of the most dramatic and memorable events of the book, opening […]
Scrivener for iOS
Picture this. You’re sitting on your own in the doctor’s surgery and they are running 30 minutes late. Or there’s been some signalling failure and your train home is at a standstill. Or you’re meeting a friend at a restaurant or bar and they text to say they are running a little late. With time […]
Society in Story
There are a number of elements fantasy writers focus on during worldbuilding, traditionally they pour over decisions like mapping locations, designing a magic system and setting empires/species against one another – big, obvious things that shape the story. Yet this can mean they overlook an important aspect that helps to bring all the different elements […]
Romance in Fantasy – Part One
I’ve said it before: I write romantic fantasy. I never start out a story intending to write romance, but somehow, romantic threads always show up. I used to fight this phenomenon, but I’ve grown to realize that I just like romantic storylines. Not romances, mind—I don’t read much romance that’s just romance for romance’s sake. […]
