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
Creating Characters Readers Love by Kayelle Allen @kayelleallen #AmWriting
In any story, plot is the spine, the various settings are its bones, conflict is its muscle, and characters are its flesh and beauty. Together, they create a framework on which to build a beautiful story full of living, breathing characters. Here are some basic tips on how to make …
Non-Humans as Round Characters
Speculative fiction writers often cast non-human characters in their stories. Those aliens, elves, fairies, and pointy-eared Vulcans are among a large number of possible strange creatures. As they write, spec-fic authors must live with their creations for many months and readers must read about them for many hours. Neither group …
![Pitching Experience [@mhcushing @RMFWriters]](https://specficwriters.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Pitch-book-1200x628-3.jpg)
Pitching Experience [@mhcushing @RMFWriters]
When I attended my first writer’s conference—the Colorado Gold Writers Conference produced by Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers (RMFW)—it blew my mind. Two full days, from Friday afternoon through Sunday morning, of workshops and speakers that taught me a lot about writing. There were workshops for writers just getting started as …
Dots and Dashes for Fiction Writers
In a recent critique session, the subject of punctuation arose. Should a fiction writer use exclamation points, colons, and parenthesis? What is the right way to use the hyphen (-), dash (—), and ellipsis(…)? Experienced fiction writers rarely use exclamation points. It has the same problematic effect as typing in …
Yin and Yang of Critique
Literary criticism and critique are overlapping terms. Criticism means to negatively criticize a work. On the other hand, critique is intended to express a judgement about a work, both negative and positive, the yin and yang. In Chinese philosophy the terms describe opposite but interconnected forces and both are essential. …
Language in Science Fiction [@PaulSkewMatrix @NorWesCon]
One look at the schedule for Norwescon (Seattle, April 6-9) told me I had some tough choices to make. Without a time machine, I’d have to miss many fascinating sessions. But I could not skip Language in Science Fiction, paneled by authors David D. Levine, Erica L. Satifka, and Joseph …