Speculative Fiction Writers Association

About Speculative Fiction Writers Association

We are an online group of speculative fiction authors writing science fiction, fantasy, horror, time travel, climate fiction/solar-punk, slipstream, steampunk, weird west, fairy tales, alternate history, dystopian/utopian, cyberpunk, etc. for MG, YA, and adults.

Critique

We meet Tuesdays at 6pm MT/8pm ET on Zoom to discuss current writing topics and critique each other’s work. We are always open to new members of all ability levels.

Community

We have a private Discord server where we discuss current events, publishing opportunities, author conferences, marketing, and publishing issues.

Join Us

Please sit in and audit a session. Meet members and see how our group works. Contact us to schedule a Tuesday that works for you.

Recent Blog Posts

What Are Sensitivity Readers?
Writing Tips

What Are Sensitivity Readers?

Sensitivity Readers: What They Do and Why You Need Them Learn From My Mistakes It all began with my fascination with the Navajo Code Talkers. Their ability to rapidly send messages in a code they invented, using their native language, provided a huge advantage to U.S.Forces fighting in the Pacific …

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Add Emotion to Fictional Characters
Writing Tips

Add Emotion to Fictional Characters

Expression of emotions in speculative fiction writing is crucial to engage readers and create a vivid, immersive experience. As a novel writer who struggles with adding emotion to my characters, I did Internet searches on the topic to help me. Lots of writers and educators have suggestions. I asked chatGPT …

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Computer, microphone and notes
Podcast

Podcasting with Social Anxiety

My writing home is Speculative Fiction Writers Association. The members are incredibly accepting of imaginative writers. If I ask about recent changes to Einstein’s theories or where forest elves live… they can help. When it comes to the craft of writing, the group gives lots of advice, and they have …

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Book Review: All Systems Red
Book Reviews

Book Review: All Systems Red

Award Winning Novel Written by Martha Wells, this series has won the Nebula and Hugo. All Systems Red is the first novella of the series. Emotional Portrait of One Robot In sharp contrast to the classic I, Robot novel by Asimov—an intellectual exercise tied together by loosely related short stories—All …

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Red Rising Book Cover with angry clouds in background
Book Reviews

Book Review: Red Rising

Red Rising, by Pierce Brown, takes place in a dystopian version of our galaxy, where a dying Earth sent pioneers to terraform the other planets in the solar system and altered their genetics to ensure their success, using hair and eye color to differentiate between the different levels of hierarchy. …

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Add Emotional Depth to Characters
Writing Tips

Add Emotional Depth to Characters

Character Symptoms: emotionless, bland, and uninteresting Imagine a critique partner reads your first chapter and says: DIAGNOSIS: Your character is not relatable It’s time for a transplant of personality, humanity, emotion, and agency. Character’s Emotional Reaction to the Plot Characters should show emotion in how they react to situations confronting …

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