I'm delighted to introduce Ed White, writer of creative and visionary fiction, who's contributing to the blog this week with an insightful post on a significant subject in SFF: spirituality and religion. Enjoy!
Not long ago I read an article, the title something along the lines of "The Best Books for Aspiring Writers". One of them was a book you may have heard of: Letters to a Young Writer by award-winning writer, Colum McCann. Each time I pick it up it fills me with inspiration to write, its pages filled with practical and philosophical advice on the craft, some of which I've found tremendously helpful. There's a chance you may do too. So in this post, you’ll find five of my favourite bits of advice so far.
Last week I took a drive up the motorway to the Duchy of Lancaster and to one of the smallest castles in England: Clitheroe. The purpose of this post is to give you some ideas for your world-building and writing. We’ll first look at the castle's features before exploring what life would have been like in the castle back in ye day.
I see many people seeking guidance on how long their novels and stories should be. Having compiled lists of publishers of short and long fantasy fiction I've noticed a few trends. This article looks at the lengths publishers seek for fiction in their various forms: micro, flash, short, novelettes, novellas, and novels. But it begins with a few words of caution.
Diseases ravaged the lives of millions of people throughout the Middle Ages. A combination of bad diet, poor hygiene, inadequate sanitation and an ill-informed understanding of medicine left many people vulnerable to fatal infections. Given many fantasy stories have a medieval setting, similar circumstances would give rise to diseases in a secondary world. As we'll see, this presents interesting opportunities for the fantasy writer.
Religion and belief systems feature a great deal in the fantasy genre, and it’s unsurprising why. Religion, faiths and beliefs shape our own lives in a multitude of ways, providing purpose, meaning and structure.
Another collection of tremendous articles for you today, featuring one of the best I’ve ever read: what editor’s want, how authors can take advantage of ebook piracy, up-lit, and three writing tips to always bear in mind. Enjoy!
I've been busy updating my lists of fantasy publishers for both short fiction and long fiction. The short fiction list now contains 80 publishers ranging from prozines to token publishers. Whatever stage you're up to in your writing journey, there'll be a publisher on there for you.
Another interesting collection of articles for you this week, featuring signs you’re a master writer, the Hugo Awards nominees for 2018, blogging lessons, and 55 grammar rules. Thank you, bloggers, for the helpful content!
I hope you're all enjoying the Easter weekend, anyway, with plenty of chocolaty treats to gorge on. Here's a little Easter treat from me: a list of 26 publishers of long fantasy fiction.
