top of page

Stories

  1. Exploring the Dark Side of Faerie in Modern FantasyFaerie has never been as harmless as its glittering modern image suggests. Beneath the wings, moonlight, and enchanted gardens lies an older tradition of…
  2. Make Your Contest Opening Impossible To IgnoreA contest reader may encounter dozens of stories in a single sitting, often with limited time to give each one a fair chance. Your opening scene must therefore…
  3. Why cursed objects keep enchanting fantasy readersA tarnished ring, a locked music box, or a sword that whispers in the dark can transform an ordinary fantasy plot into a story of irresistible danger. Cursed…
  4. How to write a story about climate change without preachingClimate change is an enormous subject, spanning politics, science, economics, migration, extinction, and everyday choices. That scale can make a story feel…
  5. Balancing description and action in speculative fictionSpeculative fiction asks readers to enter unfamiliar territory: a distant planet, a haunted kingdom, a fractured timeline, or a city where old magic shapes…
  6. Why second-person narration can work in fantasyFantasy often asks readers to cross a threshold. A familiar room becomes a portal, an ordinary person discovers an impossible inheritance, or an ancient power…
  7. The art of the slow burn in a short storyA slow-burn short story does not rush toward its central revelation. It creates a quiet current beneath ordinary moments, allowing unease, desire, suspicion,…
  8. Spotlight on anthologies as a path to publicationFor many fiction writers, publication begins with a single short story rather than a complete novel. Anthologies offer a focused, achievable route into the…
  9. Writing a Noir Mystery Without GunsA noir mystery does not need a pistol, a body count, or a detective in a battered fedora. Its essential ingredients are moral pressure, hidden motives,…
  10. How Food and Drink Build Believable Fictional WorldsA steaming bowl, a bitter local spirit, or a carefully rationed piece of fruit can reveal more about a fictional society than a page of historical explanation.…
bottom of page