This is part one in our Free Marketing series. Authors are ordinary people with ordinary lives. Most of us have jobs, families, and responsibilities out in the world that, well, cost money (bills, bills, bills). In my life as an Indie, I have come across few authors who have plenty of money to spend on … Read more
This article is by Garren Jacobsen. What do you call 1000 attorneys at the bottom of the ocean? A good start. Now, with the obligatory lawyer joke out of the way, let’s consider fantasy writers’ worlds and the law. There is a lot that goes into the law. Sometimes, the law is concerned with high … Read more
We welcome you again to the world of speculative fiction, where there are no limits for what an individual can accomplish—except in the mind of the writer. Often, while we can create entire worlds out of our imaginations, stories of adventure and daring do have been limited to male characters, based on the belief that … Read more
Have you ever had a really awesome idea for a story? Have you ever given up on this idea because it seemed too similar to something else, or because someone said it was just like that other story they read – or movie they saw, or whatever? If you haven’t, you’re probably an exception. Chances … Read more
Fantasy novels are complex tomes filled with beguiling magics, curious creatures, unspeakable names, countless political fiefdoms, more breeds of elf, and thousands of years of adventure. Your readers have to learn all those new particulars without wanting to burn your book in rage. Thankfully there’s a trope for teaching those details. Let’s reboot the Mentor. … Read more
A merchant guild is a great resource for any of your characters who might be a merchant. Why would any writer make a character a merchant? He might be fine for a minor character, some colorful fellow met at a tavern, and certainly just the sort of someone to rob on an empty highway, but … Read more
It never fails. I will be napping in my truck at the school parking lot, waiting to pick up my son, when a perfect story idea will hit my skull with the force of a comic book onomatopoeia (BAM! POW! SPLAT!) This sudden smack from my muse will be so inspiring that I will sit, … Read more
What is the common narrative? The common narrative is the system of default characters and stories that a society tells. If you look at the preponderance of stories in a culture, you will usually find strong patterns about who is written about—whose stories are considered important enough to tell. In the western world, our common … Read more
Organized crime has become a mainstay in modern fiction. From suited-up dons to street thugs struggling to survive, criminal networks make for interesting stories. As writers and worldbuilders, how do we make organized criminal groups believable? Buckle up, because in this article I’ll tell you how. 1.Mafias and Gangs In the golden olden days, the … Read more
One of the first things I learned when I got into writing was that I was supposed to ask others to read my stories and give feedback on them. Apparently it wasn’t enough that I’d written something – others were supposed to give me their opinions on it and I might even have to [gasp] … Read more
