JJoin co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson & Greta Kelly as they delve into a writing masterclass on The Horrors of Technology with bestselling, award-winning author Paul Tremblay. During the episode, Paul deconstructs technological terror, discussing the techno-horror subgenre, technology as a source of dread, tackling technological concerns through horror, the blurring lines between reality and fiction, the uncanny valley and new ways of scaring readers, technological “boogeymen” across generations, the dehumanization of humanity and creativity, stripping characters of agency/control, isolation in a hyper-connected world, techno-horror as a catalyst for positive change and more.
Masterclass
SFF Addicts Ep. 219: Writing Assassins & Contract Killers with James Islington (Writing Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson & Greta Kelly as they delve into a writing masterclass on Writing Assassins & Contract Killers with bestselling author James Islington. During the episode, James pinpoints the target, discussing why assassin media is so popular, real vs. fictional depictions of assassins/contract killers, why assassin characters work so well in SFF, differences between assassins and contract killers, the fundamentals of motives/targets/clients/methods, centering a plot around an assassination, tonal consistency, the psychology (and backstory) of an assassin, morality and reader empathy, assassin training montages, researching assassins (i.e. ruining your search history) and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 217: How to Pace Your Story with Suyi Davies Okungbowa (Writing Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson & Greta Kelly as they delve into a writing masterclass on How to Pace Your Story with award-winning author Suyi Davies Okungbowa. During the episode, Suyi finds the right speed for your story, discussing what story pacing is, the Four P’s of Pacing: Pause, Propulsion, Progression and Passage, examples of excellent pacing, the term “fast-paced” and marketing psychology, common pacing mistakes, pacing expectations across genres, whether or not word count affects pacing, tools for signalling progression to readers, identifying pacing issues during revision and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 215: Parenting in Speculative Fiction with Laura E. Weymouth (Writing Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson & Greta Kelly as they delve into a writing masterclass on Parenting in Speculative Fiction with author Laura E. Weymouth. During the episode, Laura lays down the law of the (fictional) house, discussing being a parent AND a professional writer, the stereotypes of SFF parents, good and bad parental role models, writing believable parent characters, how parenthood can be intertwined with plot, teaching children empathy/morality through SFF stories, portraying community and partnership on the page, toxic vs. healthy relationships, the challenges of portraying motherhood in fiction, using spec fic to envision new ways of parenting, parental nostalgia and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 213: Crowdfunding & Special Editions with Bryce O’Connor, Ben Galley & J.D.L. Rosell (Indie Appreciation Month)
Join host Adrian M. Gibson and guest authors Bryce O’Connor, Ben Galley and J.D.L. Rosell for our final Indie Appreciation Month panel on Crowdfunding & Special Editions. During the panel, Bryce, Ben and Josiah discuss what crowdfunding and special editions are, crowdfunding platforms, increased demand for special editions, the collector’s mindset, types of crowdfunding projects, the FOMO effect for authors and readers, whether or not authors should run a campaign, crowdfunding risks, product options, rewards and backer tiers, funding goals and budgeting your project, marketing your campaign, production and fulfillment, mentally preparing yourself for a campaign, campaign length, the mid-campaign plateau and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 212: Self-Publishing in the Age of AI with Chris McGrath, Gregory Kontaxis & Michael Vadney (Indie Appreciation Month)
Join host M.J. Kuhn, guest artist Chris McGrath and guest authors Gregory Kontaxis and Michael Vadney for an Indie Appreciation Month panel on Self-Publishing in the Age of AI. During the panel, Chris, Gregory and Michael discuss the ethics of AI use, whether or not we can avoid it, the deluge of AI slop, risking your reputation, prejudices against self-publishing, filtering AI vs. human-made content, cover art and working with human artists, originality and the value of human-created art, audience (dis)trust and fan backlash to AI, the performative pressures of social media, losing the struggles (and romance) of art, how AI impacts marketing/marketplaces and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 210: Cover Art & Book Design with Jeff Brown, Rachel St Clair, Philip C. Quaintrell & Scott Palmer (Indie Appreciation Month)
Join host Adrian M. Gibson and guest authors/artists Jeff Brown, Rachel St Clair, Philip C. Quaintrell and Scott Palmer for an Indie Appreciation Month panel on Cover Art & Book Design. During the panel, Jeff, Rachel, Philip and Scott discuss what cover and book design are, creating a visual brand, the importance of typography and fonts, interior formatting and design, what makes a good vs. bad piece of art, due diligence and art/design no-nos, cover legibility and visual impact, evolving cover trends, setting reader expectations, commissioning artists, book titles, costs/budgeting, communication, timelines and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 209: Portal Fantasies with Seanan McGuire & Micaiah Johnson (Masterclass Panel)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and Greta Kelly for a masterclass panel on Portal Fantasies, featuring guest authors Seanan McGuire and Micaiah Johnson. During the panel, they open the door to portal fantasies, discussing what a portal fantasy is, the appeal of this subgenre, fundamental elements of portal fantasies, age markets and genre fatigue, portal sci-fi and secondary worlds, who has access to portals, establishing the rules of your portal, differentiating the “real” world and the “other” world(s), revealing the “new” of the portal world to readers, reflecting our own world through alternate worlds and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 208: Incorporating Music into SFF with Peter Orullian (Writing Masterclass)
Join host Adrian M. Gibson as he delves into a writing masterclass on Incorporating Music into SFF with author/musician Peter Orullian. During the episode, Peter strikes a narrative chord, discussing the intersection of music and storytelling, novelizing concept albums for bands, lyricism and the musicality of prose, copyright and including songs or lyrics in a story, adding music/songs to audiobooks, writing characters who ARE musicians, music in our world vs. secondary worlds, musical magic systems and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 206: The Art of the Short Story with Isabel J. Kim (Writing Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson & Greta Kelly as they delve into a writing masterclass on The Art of the Short Story with award-winning author Isabel J. Kim. During the episode, Isabel gets to the short of it, discussing what a short story is, examples of masterful short stories, short fiction as a testing ground, comparing short-form vs. long-form fiction, approaching theme, plot and structure in short stories, characterization/worldbuilding in a condensed word count, conciseness and pacing, editing and trimming stories down, selling your short stories on the professional market, the role of short story collections and anthologies and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 204: Drawing from Global History with Shannon Chakraborty (Writing Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson & Greta Kelly as they delve into a writing masterclass on Drawing from Global History with bestselling author Shannon Chakraborty. During the episode, Shannon traverses the world, discussing global interconnectedness across time, using SFF to shine a light on history, deciding on a historical time/place for your story, knowing when to deviate from history, author responsibility and intentions, accessible approaches for research, historical authenticity, academics/historians and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 202: Writing for the Reader Experience with Sunyi Dean (Writing Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson, M.J. Kuhn & Greta Kelly as they delve into a writing masterclass on Writing for the Reader Experience with bestselling author Sunyi Dean. During the episode, Sunyi caters to the reader, discussing why authors should consider the reader experience, putting yourself in the “beginner’s mindset,” offering value to the reader, promises and hooking them from the outset, delivering information at the right time, simple vs. complex prose, writing for yourself vs. the reader, author voice, revision and more.