Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy

The master fantasy world-builder reveals her secrets to success on Patreon and speculates on how imagination might test-drive our future.

This supplement to the 2019 edition of our 101 Best Websites provides a guide to writing subreddits—destinations across Reddit where writers can find useful information, community, and resources.

For New York Times-bestselling fantasy novelist Jaleigh Johnson, Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is more than just a role playing game, it's a writing tool.

YA sensation Cassandra Clare discusses the tactics she leverages to craft her bestselling Shadowhunter series and demystifies the secrets of writing for different age groups and fostering representation in fiction.

As fans eagerly await Season 3 of Netflix hit series Stranger Things, Scott Hildreth offers three storytelling lessons and editing goals writers can glean from the show.

Julie Hyzy uses examples from popular books and films that incorporate fictional technology to understand what makes for appealing, believable tech-dependent stories.

We had the pleasure of talking with Tobias S. Buckell ahead of his keynote at indieLAB. Read on to discover his thoughts on what it takes to write powerful sci-fi, the process of writing with a co-author, and what's next for his career.

Well-timed coincidences can catapult a story forward, but a poorly planned one can bring your readers to a dead stop. Use these 7 strategies to harness the power of this storytelling tool while steering clear of common missteps.

New York Times bestselling author Sara Raasch shares her list of 20 considerations you should work through when building fantasy worlds.

Given the popularity and depictions of "paranormal and supernatural phenomena" in movies and TV, one of the world's foremost scientific experts on writing paranormal and supernatural phenomena explains how his expertise assists writers and filmmakers.

Many authors seek to incorporate contemporary themes and issues into novels that are set in the future. Here, Jay Schiffman offers five ideas to get your started if you're interested in incorporating real-world politics into a futuristic narrative.

The technothriller genre may be slated to become one of the most popular of the 21st century, and as such, it's a hot area in which writers can experiment. If you're looking to write a technothriller (or read one), here are five different varieties you'll find within the genre.

In advance of our 4th Annual Science Fiction and Fantasy Virtual Conference, four of the participating presenters share their best quick tips for writing fantasy and science-fiction.

In this episode of the Writer’s Digest Podcast, literary power couple Jeff VanderMeer and Ann VanderMeer discuss the benefits of existing between the literary and genre fiction divide, the art and science of deep reading, and their own processes to craft and edit an anthology big or small.

Prolific speculative fiction writer Harlan Ellison passed away on June 28, 2018, at the age of 84. In this interview with Ellison, published in May 2004, the firebrand writer discusses piracy during the rise of internet publishing, what it means to be a professional writer, and his trademark fearlessness.

In this excerpt from the book Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction, Orson Scott Card explains why exposition can present particular challenges when you're writing science fiction, and tips for overcoming those challenges.

Writing from multiple POVs allows you to zip around to new settings, cut away from scenes, leave cliffhangers unresolved for longer in ways that don’t work as well if you’re following one character’s perspective through the whole thing. Here are a few tips for getting started.