The Initial Steps of Worldbuilding: Architect, Gardener, Tourist
Nathan T. Dean
Listening to the news in the real world – that horrid place where dragons are small and kept in vivaria and pixie is just a kind of haircut – it…
writing advice
10 Ways To Up Your Word Count
Adrian Faulkner
Writing takes time, and in the case of novels, a lot of time. I don’t think there’s a writer out there who doesn’t wish they could write quicker. If you’ve…
Archetypes vs Stereotypes
Aaron Miles
What is the difference between a great character and a placeholder? Why is one warrior or wizard better than the other? They might serve exactly the same purpose in the…
Procrastination (Or Why You Can’t Trust A Version Of You From The Future)
Procrastination – it is the bane of all writers, something we all struggle with. How many times have we sat there ready to write and then find ourselves distracted by…
The Fantasy Language Problem – Part Two
Django Wexler
This is part two of Django Wexler’s guest post on fantasy languages. You can read part one here. (Click or mouseover links for humorous footnotes.) The preceding section is not…
How To Create A Civilisation
You’ve listened to the pounding hooves of nomadic Dothraki as the Khalasar sweeps across the grass plains, you’ve looked out from the heights of Minas Tirith over the white city…
The Fantasy Language Problem – Part One
(Click or mouseover links for humorous footnotes.) From the very beginning of the genre, one of the biggest problems fantasy authors have had to solve has been languages. It’s an…
Scientists find secret to writing a bestseller
Overlord
Imagine if publishers had the ability to tell whether a manuscript had the potential to become a bestseller within minutes of receiving it… without even reading it. It sounds ridiculous,…
Snake-Sticks and Cheap Tricks: Magic versus Miracle
Brian Staveley
I think one could be forgiven for confusing magic and miracle. If presented with a list of remarkable achievements – walking on water, splitting the moon in half, turning sticks…
Five Common Mistakes Writing Fantasy Flash Fiction
Faith M. Boughan
During my time as a flash editor for various ezines, I’ve read a fair chunk of speculative flash fiction. Some excellent. Some good. Some bad. Some really, really bad. And…
Your New Year Writing Resolutions
Every January, for more years than I care to admit, I would rather infamously declare to my closest friends that my New Year’s resolution was “to write THE book”. For…
Authors, Reviews and Commenting
Stephen Deas
Most of the advice I’ve seen for authors is not to read reviews, although by no means all. I’m going to disagree and say it’s a useful practice but you’d…