In September I spent two weeks travelling around Ireland. I’ve visited plenty times before, but I’ve never explored. I went with the intention of trying to see anything and everything I could. I barely scratched the surface. Exploration is a tremendous source of inspiration for writing, and for the fantasy writer, inspiration for world-building. It’s… Continue reading A World-Building Treasure Trove
The crucible is one of the simplest and most effective plotting tools. At its core is the relationship between the protagonist and the antagonist. The conflict they share spawns plot. It illustrates wonderfully the interwoven relationship enjoyed between character and plot.
Today I present a guest post by Ed White, writer of fantasy and science fiction. It's these two genres that his article focuses on, discussing their origins, their very essence, and, as Ed puts it, 'the legion' of sub-genres that have developed to make these genres two of the most exciting, inspirational and forward-thinking of all.
Sometimes the ideas dry up. Trump's Wall blocks out creativity and all you can do is lament. A terrific solution to those droughts, I've found, is art
Dros Delnoch, Pelennor Fields, Julatsa, the Battle of the Bastards, Helms Deep. These are just some of the most iconic battles in fantasy. The writers of these epic clashes knew a thing or two about warfare, and this post aims to give you some research to aid your creation of the compelling and gripping clashes fantasy fans love so much.
The writing game can be a lonely one, but it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, working with others can improve your writing tremendously. It can be quite tricky finding fellow writers nearby to meet up with, but the internet has made that a whole lot easier. Hundreds, if not thousands of writing groups exist online. No longer do writers have to sit alone in their bedroom reading work aloud to their cats. But it still can be quite difficult to find the right writing group for you. So here's a list of all those I’m aware of.
Not long ago I put together a post sharing some invaluable writing advice offered by award-winning novelist, Colum McCann in his book, Letters to a Young Writer. But I'd only made it halfway through at the time, so I thought I'd share some further insights from the second half.
I'm delighted to introduce novelist Gene Rosen who's put together a satirical story on the click bait articles we all fall victim to. You know the ones, "3 ways to get published in a week", "5 tips to make you write like Orwell." You click on them and learn sweet F.A. Enough of me, over to Gene.
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.
