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.
Masterclass
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. 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.
SFF Addicts Ep. 66: Real Cultures as Inspiration with Gabriela Romero Lacruz (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Real Cultures as Inspiration with author Gabriela Romero Lacruz. During the episode, Gabriela unpacks different facets of culture, including what culture means, countercultures, SFF as a reflection of our world, immersive worldbuilding, pulling from real cultures vs. creating your own, research, cultural appropriation and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 60: Science in Fantasy with Kritika H. Rao (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Science in Fantasy with author Kritika H. Rao. During the episode, Kritika hypothesizes about the role of science, including how she incorporated science into her debut novel, balancing science with philosophy and esotericism, how science can affect character, plot, language and worldbuilding, science tropes and stereotypes, the work of Michael Crichton and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 56: Worldbuilding 101 with Martha Wells (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Worldbuilding 101 with bestselling author Martha Wells. During the episode, Martha unravels the intricacies of worldbuilding, including what it means, why well-crafted worlds are important for stories, first steps for worldbuilding, research vs. creativity, keeping track of details, how to convey information through description, avoiding infodumping, drawing maps, naming shit and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 54: Aliens & First Contact with Christopher Paolini (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Aliens & First Contact with bestselling author Christopher Paolini. During the episode, Christopher explores the mysteries of aliens, including why humans are fascinated by them, why first contact makes for fantastic story fuel, creating species and environments, science and our understanding of reality, alien tropes, reader emotions, empathetic aliens and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 52: Revision & Rewriting with Sue Burke (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Revision & Rewriting with author and translator Sue Burke. During the episode, Sue breaks down the nitty gritty of revision, including why it’s an important part of the writing process, approaches to first drafts, tools for revision and rewriting, how to keep track of characters and scenes, killing your darlings and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 50: Animal Companions with Andrea Stewart (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Animal Companions with fantasy author Andrea Stewart. During the episode, Andrea explores the furry foundations of animal companions, including why they’re so well suited for SFF, using real animals vs. creating new creatures, what animal companions can bring to a story and its characters, writing from the POV of animals, anthropomorphism, empathy and more.
SFF Addicts Ep. 48: Morally Gray Characters with Fonda Lee (Mini-Masterclass)
Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson and M.J. Kuhn as they delve into a mini-masterclass on Morally Gray Characters with award-winning SFF author Fonda Lee. During the episode, Fonda shares her “problematic faves” and untangles the moral complexity that we often find in fictional stories, including what draws us to morally gray characters, what compels authors to write them, stories that lend themselves well to moral grayness, the fine line between morally gray and evil, incorporating moral frameworks into worldbuilding and more.