The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas
Joie
I think I have a love/hate relationship with this series. The story itself is riveting—if you can get past the telling of it. The characters grow on you so much…
Worldbuilding: Creating Bestiaries and Fantastic Monsters
B. Pine
A well-defined bestiary is a must for every fantasy world, unless the creator plans to stick to mundane animals identical to realistic fauna, or there are no animals or creatures…
The Waste Lands by Stephen King
James Davies
There is just so much right about The Waste Lands it actually hurts my mind to picture anything wrong with the novel. Not only does it maintain the quality of…
Mark Lawrence Going Nowhere…
Overlord
On March 31st 2015 Mark Lawrence and 150 advanced research scientists were made redundant. Mark, as most of you will know, currently has four books out – Prince of Thorns,…
10 Reasons to Workshop
Aaron Miles
People learn to write in many different ways, some by reading masterpieces, some by going to classes, some just pick up a pen and get on with it. You can…
Gollancz’s Far-Reaching Le Guin Project Revealed & Radio 4 Programme Links
Ursula K. Le Guin sits as one of the top 10 most important fantasy writers of all time. The sad fact is though that not enough people have read her…
One Man’s Journey Through A Life In MMOs
Geoff Matthews
It has been said that computer games are the enemy of writing, and by extension reading. It might be true. It may also be that some games really do qualify…
The Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan
Steff Humm
When writing memoirs, or indeed anything, it seems essential to cluster events thematically, throwing away all the boring bits in the process (such as laundry and visits to the bathroom)…
Arsenic and Old Leaves: The Art of Poisoning Your Fantasy Characters – Part 1
Faith M. Boughan
So, you’re contemplating murder. Er, that is, your character is contemplating murder. Effective modes of death and all that. Bloodless versus bloodbath, public duel versus private confrontation, “accident” versus spontaneous…
Attending Your First Convention As An Unpublished Writer
Adrian Faulkner
So there comes a time early in every writer’s career when you make a very serious decision. You’ve been writing as a hobby for years, you enjoy it and your…
Mark Lawrence: Can Dark Fantasy Be Too Dark?
Today is our third Grim Gathering in Bristol, England! Hopefully a few of you readers can make it, but I know that many of you around the world will be…
Writing Fight Scenes
Marc Davies
Writing fight scenes is often an important task for a fantasy author. Some writers find they come naturally. Others find them daunting, and can’t think of anything worse. Whichever category…