Speculative Fiction Writers Association
An Online Critique Group with Members from Coast to Coast
What we writers do is called ‘creative’ writing. But what is that, really? What do we have to do, to be ‘creative’ in our writing? The definition of ‘creative (adjective)’ is ‘involving original ideas in producing an artistic work.’ So, to be ‘creative’ writers, we must make original ideas. Ideas not heretofore conceived …
Tammie Painter is the author of The Circus of Unusual Creatures series I have recently been binge reading. Not such a binge since there are only four books in the series so far. The narrator of the stories is Duncan, aka Brutus Fangwrath, Deadliest Dragon in the West. He loves …
What inspired you to start writing? High school: short humorous story read aloud got positive reaction. Wrote poetry and science fiction while in Vietnam, none published. Was a photographer/editor in the public affairs detachment of the Wyoming Army National Guard. After wife died, remarried horse lady and moved to Nebraska. …
Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series is a seminal work of science fiction, prominently topping many lists of ground-breaking and genre-defining works. The original story consisted of three related books: Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation. Each represents a step for humanity in the evolving political progression from the current First …
Into the plethora of genres and sub-genres in today’s fiction rockets BABEL, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution, by R. F Kuang. The title says it all. History, deeply interwoven in a fantastic view of what might have existed, the long (500 pages …
Give a group of authors the same writing prompt, and they will write unique stories with diverse characters and emotional journeys, differing plot elements, and singular plot twists that any element of commonality is difficult to find. Such is the power and joy of writing speculative fiction. Even the incredible …
As a writer who has been critiqued and often critiques other authors, point-of-view (POV) is a common topic. However, talking about POV is not enough because it is intertwined with the overall narrative perspective of the work. That perspective is a mix-and-match of several concepts that should stay fairly consistent …
You’ve got a brilliant idea for a story about an AI. Time to get writing. You sit at your desk. You boot your laptop. You dismiss those notifications about pending updates. You launch your word processor. You spend five minutes setting the font, paragraph indent, and line spacing. At last, …
PART ONE: THE PROBLEM What do L. Frank Baum, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Orson Scott Card, Roald Dahl, Neil Gaiman. H. P. Lovecraft, J .K. Rowling, and J. R. R. Tolkien have in common? Each is a beloved author who has written foundational speculative works that continue to inspire today. In …
2nd of 2 parts Writing speculative fiction is a nuanced craft that demands a blend of creativity, discipline, and technical skill. New writers frequently stumble over specific hurdles that can hinder their storytelling. Here are eight additional common problems beyond the typical advice: Weak Beginnings The beginning of a story …