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Volume 2 is available! Order both vols now!
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Have you ever wondered just HOW to get started writing SF, Fantasy or Horror, or were curious about tackling certain subgenres or tropes? These books are for you! Each is chock-full of info on 30 different subgenres or major tropes! For each, you'll find:
Written by Tiffani Angus (that's me! PhD in Creative Writing) and Val Nolan (PhD in Contemporary Literature), who have combined their two decades of experience teaching writing--with a huge focus on SFF/H--along with their experiences as workshop attendees and published authors.
The Table of Contents for Vol 1 (plus intros for each chapter):
The Table of Contents for Vol 2 (plus intros for each chapter):
Vol 1 listed as one of Fantasy Hive's Most Anticipated SFF Books of 2023!
From a review on Runalong the Shelves: "The style is light, witty and enthusiastic and its pacy. This is a book you can explore your favourite genres in but also dip your toes into other areas as well. It’s also useful to remember playing with genre, subverting it and arguing it does need you to still be aware of the genre’s characteristics and failings so this book is helpful – especially if you’re a literary fiction author not aware that time travel or parallel worlds are not new (to say but two infamous examples I can think of!)"
From Alexander Glass's review in Interzone: "The authors draw out the richness of each subgenre, but most interesting are the connections made between different genres and subgenres – noting, for example, that the Borg – Star Trek again – are closely related to zombies. The links are so numerous, and so clearly set out, that it is clear the walls between subgenres – and even between genres – are low, and apt to crumble at a touch. If there are gates, Angus and Nolan have no interest in keeping them."
Author Pete Sutton in his Writing About Writing About Writing review says: "there's a sense of fun and exploration that you don't always get from dusty 'let's teach you how to write' books."
Co-author Val and I did a podcast with Dan at Coffee in Space! We nerd out about apocalyptic fiction and toilet paper, word count restrictions, the subjectivity of squicking people out, the permeability of subgenres, considering your audience and genre context, the fact that ancient humans weren't idiots, theme (which we cover in the book intro!), how our conscious and subconscious minds don't play together well, and having too many writing projects at once.
We did a videocast with Lauren McMenemy at Horrortree, where we talked about writing the book, how subgenres are porous (they're rivers, Val insists!), and how writing SFF/H is really writing about us now.
Read more about Vol 1 on our Big Idea post in 2023 John Scalzi's Whatever blog, and here on our 2024 Big Idea post about Vol 2.
Spec Fic for Newbies is available in paperback and eBook in the UK and US. Find various places to order on this linktree!
- a quick history of each subgenre/trope
- a list of things to watch out for
- an explanation of why that subgenre/trope is fun to write
- other info such as spotter's guides and writing element spotlights
- and activities to get you started.
Written by Tiffani Angus (that's me! PhD in Creative Writing) and Val Nolan (PhD in Contemporary Literature), who have combined their two decades of experience teaching writing--with a huge focus on SFF/H--along with their experiences as workshop attendees and published authors.
The Table of Contents for Vol 1 (plus intros for each chapter):
- Spaceships
- Aliens
- Big Dumb Objects
- Robots, Androids, and Artificial Intelligence
- Military SF
- Utopia
- Dystopia
- Apocalyptic Fiction
- Cyberpunk
- Solarpunk
- Folktales and Fairy Tales
- Witches
- High Fantasy
- Sword & Sorcery
- Grimdark
- Historical Fantasy
- Steampunk
- Urban Fantasy
- Paranormal Romance
- Time Travel
- Gothic Horror
- Supernatural Horror
- Vampires
- Psychological Horror
- Body Horror
- Zombies
- Suburban Horror
- Techno Horror
- Splatterpunk
- Cosmic Horror
The Table of Contents for Vol 2 (plus intros for each chapter):
- Space Opera
- Astronauts
- First Contact
- Climate Fiction
- Pandemic Fiction
- Uplifted Animals
- Submarine Stories
- Mysterious Islands
- Biopunk
- The Multiverse
- Mythic (aka Mythological) Fantasy
- Fairies
- The Goblin Market
- Enchanted Clothing
- Dragons
- Cryptozoology
- Body Swapping
- Portal Fantasy
- Carnivalesque
- Comedic Fantasy
- Folk Horror
- Ghost Stories
- Werewolves
- Possessed, Haunted, and Cursed Items
- Animals That Attack
- Evil Children
- Ecohorror
- Gendercide
- Places People Shouldn't Go
- Last Person Left Alive
Vol 1 listed as one of Fantasy Hive's Most Anticipated SFF Books of 2023!
From a review on Runalong the Shelves: "The style is light, witty and enthusiastic and its pacy. This is a book you can explore your favourite genres in but also dip your toes into other areas as well. It’s also useful to remember playing with genre, subverting it and arguing it does need you to still be aware of the genre’s characteristics and failings so this book is helpful – especially if you’re a literary fiction author not aware that time travel or parallel worlds are not new (to say but two infamous examples I can think of!)"
From Alexander Glass's review in Interzone: "The authors draw out the richness of each subgenre, but most interesting are the connections made between different genres and subgenres – noting, for example, that the Borg – Star Trek again – are closely related to zombies. The links are so numerous, and so clearly set out, that it is clear the walls between subgenres – and even between genres – are low, and apt to crumble at a touch. If there are gates, Angus and Nolan have no interest in keeping them."
Author Pete Sutton in his Writing About Writing About Writing review says: "there's a sense of fun and exploration that you don't always get from dusty 'let's teach you how to write' books."
Co-author Val and I did a podcast with Dan at Coffee in Space! We nerd out about apocalyptic fiction and toilet paper, word count restrictions, the subjectivity of squicking people out, the permeability of subgenres, considering your audience and genre context, the fact that ancient humans weren't idiots, theme (which we cover in the book intro!), how our conscious and subconscious minds don't play together well, and having too many writing projects at once.
We did a videocast with Lauren McMenemy at Horrortree, where we talked about writing the book, how subgenres are porous (they're rivers, Val insists!), and how writing SFF/H is really writing about us now.
Read more about Vol 1 on our Big Idea post in 2023 John Scalzi's Whatever blog, and here on our 2024 Big Idea post about Vol 2.
Spec Fic for Newbies is available in paperback and eBook in the UK and US. Find various places to order on this linktree!