Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Thieves & Rogues in SFF with author James Logan. During the episode, James dons his hood to discuss thieves, rogues and ne’er do wells, including why they’re fascinating to read and write, thieves and rogues in relation to setting, the relationship between world, characters and power dynamics, the act of negotiation, moral grayness, city settings, mood, humor and more.
Masterclass
Review: Deathless (Annals Of The GodEater Trilogy #1) by Rob J. Hayes
Synopsis Seven were the Godless Kings who took their war to Heaven. King Ertide Hostain was once known as the Crimson Prince. He fought side by side with angels and pegasi and defended the Sant Dien Empire against monsters. But his pact with Heaven has become strained. He has grown old, his body rots, and […]
SFF Addicts Ep. 99: Swashbuckling Fantasy with Sebastien de Castell (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Swashbuckling Fantasy with author Sebastien de Castell. During the episode, Sebastien plays the daring hero by laying out the essentials of swashbuckling, including how he defines it, famous examples of swashbuckling (like The Three Musketeers and The Princess Bride), the interaction between swordplay, action and stakes, how to pace a swashbuckling story, applying humor to swashbuckling, heroes, villains, contrast and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 97: Genre Mashups with Adrian M. Gibson (Mini-Masterclass)
Join host M.J. Kuhn as she delves into a mini-masterclass on Genre Mashups with her co-host/author Adrian M. Gibson. During the episode, Adrian picks apart the various aspects of genre mashups, including how he incorporated police procedurals and crime thrillers into Mushroom Blues, milieu and aesthetics as mashup elements, genre mashups vs. subgenres, meeting reader expectations in multiple genres at once, why authors shouldn’t force genres together and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 95: Circular Storytelling with Moses Ose Utomi (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Circular Storytelling with author Moses Ose Utomi. During the episode, Moses traces the circumference of circular storytelling, including what it is, how Moses approached it in The Forever Desert series, mythology and storytelling traditions, how to utilize circular storytelling in scenes vs. chapters vs. whole stories, managing characters, world and plot in a circular story, beginnings, endings and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 93: War in Speculative Fiction with Premee Mohamed (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on War in Speculative Fiction with award-winning author Premee Mohamed. During the episode, Premee unveils the shadowy nature of war, including how she incorporated it into her new novel The Siege of Burning Grass, good and bad examples of war in media, realism when depicting war in SFF settings, civilians and the costs of war, humanizing combatants on both sides, intimate perspectives of war, the importance of change and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 91: Connecting World & Character with Robert Jackson Bennett (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Connecting World & Character with bestselling author Robert Jackson Bennett. During the episode, Robert connects the dots between character and worldbuilding, including the intersections of world, character and theme, different ways to start your stories, worlds as distinct characters, how world dynamics can inform character behavior, character perspectives and description, mood, dialogue, Die Hard and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 89: Starting Out in Self-Publishing with Andy Peloquin (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn for a TBRCon2024 LIVE crossover episode with The Fantasy & Sci-Fi Fanatic’s Podcast. During the episode, they delve into a mini-masterclass on Getting Started in Self-Publishing with author Andy Peloquin and podcaster Daniel Coolbaugh, exploring the essentials of self-publishing, being an entrepreneur, approaching cover art and design, finding editors, the importance of readers and community, paying it forward, marketing and advertising, book launches and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 88: Writing Romance with Chloe Gong (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Writing Romance with bestselling author Chloe Gong. During the episode, Chloe unravels the enticing yarn of romance, including the appeal of romance in stories, the exploding popularity of the ‘romantasy’ genre, good (and bad) romantic chemistry, healthy vs. toxic relationships, expectations and tropes, Chloe’s favorite romance books and authors, romance as main plot vs. subplot, spice in romance and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 86: Tech-Fi & Technology As Story with Ken Liu (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Tech-Fi & Technology As Story with award-winning author Ken Liu. During the episode, Ken decodes the intricacies of technology fiction, including what tech-fi means, the uses of technology in fantasy, how technology and stories shape us and expresses our values, personifying technology, new technologies, A.I. and fear mongering, imagining positive impacts of future tech and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 82: Working Through Grief with Kevin Hearne (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Working Through Grief with bestselling author Kevin Hearne. During the episode, Kevin unpacks the weighty burdens of grief, including how it fits into the human experience, reading and writing as therapy, incorporating the theme of grief into fantasy worlds (like The Seven Kennings trilogy), putting yourself in the mindset of grieving characters, music as a writing aid, grief and writer’s block, readers, healing and community, things that make us happy and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 80: Impactful Scenes & Sequels with Jim Butcher (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Impactful Scenes & Sequels with bestselling author Jim Butcher. During the episode, Jim dissects the nitty gritty of writing effective scenes and sequels, including the potent scene-sequel dynamic, the building blocks of scenes (emotion/reason/review/decision), transitions between scenes and books, creating believable worlds, adding new characters to a series, keeping characters and stakes fresh, planting seeds, character progression and more.