Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Bow, is the show where we talk about all things writing, by writers and for writers!
“Because talking about writing is more fun than actually doing it.”
2022 Writing Goals
In this Writers Chat open mic, co-hosts, Brandy Brow, Jean Wise, and Norma Poore share about the struggle of setting goals and flexible ways to start goals for 2022. Our community discusses SMART goals and actionable and manageable steps to reach short-term goals in order to achieve your primary aspiration as a writer.
Watch the January 4th replay,
The Expression of Hope in Speculative Fiction
Speculative fiction author M. B. “Britt” Mooney talks about the power of story, not only in spec fiction but in other genres, too, in this inspiring episode. Britt says that “stories uniquely express the eternal because they have depth” and that stories and creativity give hope. Miracles teach us that there is an Option C in life and God speaks through our imagination. Britt shares a Steven King anecdote about how he, as a horror writer, and western novelist Louis L’Amour will see the same lake near a small town and envision completely different stories.
Watch the January 11th replay,
Britt (MB) Mooney—In the 2nd grade, a young and mischievous MB Mooney got in trouble since he was finished with his test while the other students continued to work. His superhero teacher Mrs. Green said to him, “Why don’t you write me a story?” He thought it was the best idea he ever heard, and he’s been writing stories ever since. A former missionary to Korea and public school teacher, MB Mooney markets for a missional coffee company, serves as a church planter, and is a published author of fiction and non-fiction. He and his amazing wife Becca live in Suwanee, GA with their three kids and a silly dog. In everything, he believes great stories change the world.
Join Us
Writers Chat is hosted live each Tuesday for an hour starting at 10 AM CT / 11 AM ET on Zoom. The permanent Zoom room link is: http://zoom.us/j/4074198133
Many fantasy writers got their introduction to the genre not through books but through Table Top Role Playing Games (TTRPG), or more recently, through computer Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG). It is not uncommon to see a new fantasy author’s first attempt at writing being a translation of their TTRPG campaign or an adaptation of their MMORPG experience. This has generally not been seen as a great idea, but a new genre is turning that advice on its head.
Why you don’t want to turn your TTRPG or MMORPG into a novel
TTRPG campaigns, while fun to play, often lack the narrative structure novels need. A TTRPG isn’t designed with a three-act novel structure in mind. That’s not the intent. Unless the author relentlessly edits the campaign, this can lead to muddled middles, and wandering plots.
Sometimes experienced TTRPG players create amazing characters, but even well designed TTRPG characters and MMORPG characters can lack for well defined wounds and inner arcs. The main character in an MMORPG is not driving the story the way a great protagonist will. The story is happening to them, and they are along for the ride. This can also be true to a lesser degree in TTRPG characters.
Enter LitRPG, Isekai and GameLit
My current work in progress is a Portal Fantasy and in doing research into comparable novels, I discovered a relatively new subgenre of Portal Fantasy. You’ll see the terms LitRPG, Isekai and GameLit all used to describe it. Many of the available works are translations of books originally written in Russian, Japanese, and Korean where the genre was born.
The main idea is the entire book happens inside the virtual reality of the game. It’s a mashup of Matrix, World of Warcraft , and Jumanji, with a dash of Ender’s Game. The idea of going inside a WoW-style MMO as a major plot element is hardly a new idea. You’ll see this trope in Daemon by Daniel Suarez, Halting State by Charles Stross, Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, and Reamde by Neal Stephenson.
The key element in LitRPG books that differs from those novels is the game play mechanics are explicit both for the reader and the characters. In LitRPG, you’ll see actual lines like this in the prose:
Damage taken. Hit Points reduced by 5: 11 (weapon damage + strength) – 6 (armor). Total: 35 of 40.
Buff gained: Strength +1, Energy loss reduced by 50%. Duration – 12 hours.
You’ve been hit by Messenger Gnoll! Damage sustained: 16 points. Life 44/60
LitRPG/GameLit/Isekai is a sub-genre of the sub-genre of Portal Fantasy. It features a protagonist from one reality transported to the game world by some means. In the game world, they have some sort of progress – usually tied to the concept of experience points. They receive gear from defeating their enemies and may or may not join up with others to overcome obstacles. GameLit books tend to be lighter on the actual game mechanics part than other LitRPG novels.
Why do LitRPG novels work?
Reading one of these books can feel like a guilty pleasure, and they can be surprisingly addictive. Similar to how mystery readers love to solve the crime along with the detective, many authors and readers of LitRPG enjoy having the characters strategize within the constrains of the game rules.
The protagonists in this genre can be bland and nondescript, but that’s part of their appeal. It makes it easier for reader to see themselves as the protagonist. Your previous place in life whether as a lovable loser or a Type A overachiever no longer matters. Now, only your knowledge of the game and its mechanics is important.
These MMO-in-book-form allow the reader to experience an RPG in a way they may no longer be able to. As MMO and TTRPG players mature, they may no longer have the large blocks of time needed to devote to these games. Through LitRPG, you can level fast, find hidden secrets, talk to illusive NPC characters, and defeat the most difficult encounters. All on your own time table.
Most of us have given up on finding the Ring of Power, or lifting Mjöllnir, or getting a letter from Hogwarts. But video games are a real part of our world. Long after we’ve abandoned the games in favor of work and family responsibilities, we can still be the hero of a virtual world as we follow along with the protagonist of our LitRPG. But, if you’re going to write one of these, remember readers also want empathetic characters, stimulating plots and intense drama. Those aspects of LitRPG/GameLit, like with any books, are the still most important.
Ted Atchley is a freelance writer and professional computer programmer. Whether it’s words or code, he’s always writing. Ted’s love for speculative fiction started early on with Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, and the Star Wars movies. This led to reading Marvel comics and eventually losing himself in Asimov’s Apprentice Adept and the world of Krynn (Dragonlance Chronicles).
After blogging on his own for several years, Blizzard Watch (blizzardwatch.com) hired Ted to be a regular columnist in 2016. When the site dropped many of its columns two years later, they retained Ted as a staff writer.
He lives in beautiful Charleston, SC with his wife and children. When not writing, you’ll find him spending time with his family, and cheering on his beloved Carolina Panthers. He’s currently revising his work-in-progress portal fantasy novel before preparing to query.
Ted as a bi-montly newsletter which you can join here. It’s a roundup of links about writing, Star Wars, Marvel, and/or the Panthers with brief commentary from him. Think of it as a kind of ICYMI (In Case You Missed It). Eventually, you’ll see info about my his books, and even receive free short stories.
Happy New Year, awesome authors! As writers of speculative fiction, military forces are a staple in many of our stories. Basing these on a real-world equivalent force can bring greater realism to our writing and help the reader suspend their disbelief of the more fantastical elements. Last month, we delved into unit and officer rank break downs, and looked at the commanding officers in a military force. This month, we’ll dive into the real boots on the ground: the enlisted men who carry out the General’s plans and strategies.
Enlisted Ranks
The highest-ranking enlisted soldier in any military force is the Sergeant-Major. You’ll find these soldiers in the leadership of every Battalion, Brigade, Regiment and Division. These are the people charged with planning the actual operations of the enlisted men in their unit. The role of the Commanding Officer is to decide what needs to be done and communicate that vision to his men. It’s the Sergeant-Major who has to make it happen despite whatever obstacles might stand in the way.
Below the Sergeant-Major are the senior field soldiers. The name assigned to the rank represents its unique specialty. For a cavalry or infantry force, the name of the rank is a Master Sergeant. For your heavy artillery units, the name of the position is the Gunnery Sergeant. If you have a medieval or fantasy setting where archers are a major part of the military force, the senior field officer goes by Bowyer Sergeant. These three ranks are equal in the chain of command hierarchy.
Each of these positions also has a colloquial name. The colloquial term for a Master Sergeant is “Top”. Gunnery Sergeants are “Gunney” and your Bowyer Sergeant is “Strings”. Last month, we discussed the ‘Light Colonel’ alternative name for Lieutenant Colonel. This is only used as a conversational way to refer to the Colonel, but they are never addressed this way. The same applies to the alternative names for Sergeants.
The next rank down is your Senior Sergeant, also referred to as a Staff Sergeant. This is the first rank an enlisted man can achieve where management and coordination are the primary concerns. These men rose through the ranks as Sergeants where they excelled at showing the men how to get things done and kicking them in the rear when needed. The Senior Sergeant must now delegate those tasks. The opportunity here is for the classic trope where an employee or solider is great at their job so we promote them to management. But management is a dissimilar skill set from whatever their job previously was. Being good at the former doesn’t always translate to being good at the latter.
Under the Staff Sergeants are the Sergeants. This is the rank where soldiers prove themselves through years of service accomplishing their assigned missions. Sergeants have the primary responsibility for the training of the soldiers under his command. He acts as a surrogate father figure. Though typically around 24 years old, to the fresh 18- to 19-year-old Privates, the Sergeant is as old as dirt. His word is taken as absolute truth. If the Privates paid him no heed, the wrath of the gods falls on their miserable heads. In peacetime, a Sergeant can expect to remain at this rank for eight to twelve years before receiving a promotion. In wartime, that timeframe is reduced, sometimes drastically.
Below the Sergeants are the Corporals who are essentially Sergeants in training. This is the first enlisted rank with the responsibility to lead other soldiers, the Privates and Lance Corporals. Sergeants and Lieutenants evaluate the Corporal before handing them a squad of 13 other soldiers to keep alive.
Lance Corporals are your most experienced enlisted soldiers who have not yet been given command over other soldiers.
The Private First Class rank shows the soldier is no longer a fresh faced recruit and might actually be useful for something.
Privates are the lowest rank in the military force. The recruit earns this rank after completing their Boot Camp, or whatever name you give the initial combat training in your story world. The higher ranked soldiers continue to use many unflattering names for the Privates.
Differences between officers and enlisted men
In most militaries, the lowest ranking Officer is in a higher position in the chain of command and “outranks” the highest ranking Enlisted person. Despite that, there’s a certain amount of professional respect and courtesy between the ranks. A Lieutenant learns quickly to listen to an experienced Sergeant Major. If there is any disagreement, the chain of command is strictly observed. Its importance simply cannot be overstated.
In many medieval and fantasy settings, the officers come from the nobility. One requirement of being nobility is raising and leading of units from your population composed of locals, peasants, farmers, and indentured servants from your lands. In those cases, the rank of the officer frequently derived either from their societal rank, or from the size of the force they could muster. You can see different levels of this, as well.
Use this information as a launching point
Don’t look at this series as a strict model you must emulate in your stories. That’s not the intent. Rather think in terms of what roles you need depending on the size and purpose of your military forces. Get creative with the names or titles you use to describe them. I enjoy looking at historical sources, or other resources. For my WiP, Divine Choice, I used the names of the levels in the old Dungeons and Dragons games I played as a kid for the inspiration for my ranks.
This is an opportunity to reinforce your world building. The ranks need to sound like they belong in your world. You don’t want to create a fantasy world based on ancient Greece and then have your ranks named things like Lieutenant Commander.
Let your creativity and world building shine through, and make your military forces a seamless part of your world.
Ted Atchley is a freelance writer and professional computer programmer. Whether it’s words or code, he’s always writing. Ted’s love for speculative fiction started early on with Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, and the Star Wars movies. This led to reading Marvel comics and eventually losing himself in Asimov’s Apprentice Adept and the world of Krynn (Dragonlance Chronicles).
After blogging on his own for several years, Blizzard Watch (blizzardwatch.com) hired Ted to be a regular columnist in 2016. When the site dropped many of its columns two years later, they retained Ted as a staff writer.
He lives in beautiful Charleston, SC with his wife and children. When not writing, you’ll find him spending time with his family, and cheering on his beloved Carolina Panthers. He’s currently revising his work-in-progress portal fantasy novel before preparing to query.
As writers of speculative fiction, military forces are a stable in many of our stories. Basing these on a real-world equivalent force can bring greater realism to our writing and help the reader suspend their disbelief of the more fantastical elements. Let’s examine the ranks and numbers of a modern military force structure which you can use as a jumping off point to build realistic forces of your own.
The numbers you’ll see are the optimal numbers, but keep in mind we rarely see these in reality. Units are in constant flux as soldiers transfer into or out of the unit. Some soldiers will invariably be sick, or wounded — even in peacetime — as training accidents will occur. Even in the military, people take vacations, are on TDY (temporary duty), or even spending time at home.
Unit and rank breakdowns
I’m using the US Army at the end of the second World War (~1945) for the unit numbers, but this will apply to most of the US forces of the last hundred years. Authors can make their own choices to change these as needed to fit your science fiction or fantasy setting. Because of space constraints, we’ll only examine land forces. Naval ranks for a more science-fiction/space opera-based storyline may be a topic for future discussion.
We’ll work our way from smallest to largest. As an author, you want to spend the most time with small groups of soldiers. Big, climatic battles are great, but ultimately our stories are about our characters, and how they interact with the surrounding people. This is most easily seen in a smaller group setting. Always set up your story so that even in the titanic battle, it’s the action of your character or characters that sways the day. They should always be at the focal point. Your MC must take the one hill that controls the battlefield or make the perilous flight down the trench to hit the thermal exhaust port.
The smallest grouping is the Strike Team or Fire Team. This is six or seven individuals with various roles and skills. A Corporal or Lance Corporal leads a Strike Team. Two Strike Teams form a Squad. A Squad will have twelve or thirteen members and is led by a Sergeant.
Four Squads come together to form a Platoon. Fifty fighting men and women (and aliens depending on your world) acting in (we hope) unison. At this level, we refer to Commanding Officer (CO) and Executive Officer (XO). The XO is the second in command. He takes over should something happen to the CO. For a Platoon, the CO is a Lieutenant, and the XO is a Senior Sergeant.
Three Platoons form a Company. You’re up to 150 soldiers. CO is a Captain; XO is a Lieutenant. I never spell that right on the first attempt. Four Companies make up a Battalion. Here the CO is a Lieutenant Colonel (abbreviation Lt Colonel) or a Major. The XO is a Major or Captain.
Three Battalions form a Regiment led by a Colonel as CO and a Lieutenant Colonel as XO. A Regiment is almost 2,000 warriors strong. Three Regiments form a Brigade commanded by a Brigadier General. At this size, the commander needs more than one assistant. Brigades have an Officer Planning Staff, but this staff is not in the Chain of Command.
Finally, two Brigades make up a Division led by a Major General and his staff. (The famous 82nd Airborne is a Division.) It’s 10,800 warriors led by 642 Officers. 11,442 men, women, elves, dwarves and whatever other races inhabit your worlds.
Officers and Gentlemen
As you examine these ranks, don’t think you are required to use each one in your forces. Instead, think more of the roles you need for your characters and story depending on the size of purpose of your military forces. These will allow you to give realistic ranks to your characters. You can also get creative and come up with your own rank names, as I did in my current WiP, and eliminate ones you don’t need.
The highest ranking officer in a military force is the General. It doesn’t matter how many stars. Below him is the Lieutenant General. This character should have experience in multiple types of engagements. The Major General is a senior strategic official. Their experience is better used for developing an overall strategy rather than implementing tactics on the battlefield. Below them are the Brigadier General, Colonel, Lieutenant Colonel and Major. A Colonel might be in command of a Regiment, or a member of a General’s Planning Staff.
Lieutenant colonels are also referred to and addressed in correspondence as ‘colonel’. This gives rise to alternative terms. For Colonels, you’ll hear full colonel, bird colonel, or full bird colonel. A Lieutenant Colonel is called a Light Colonel. This is only used as a colloquial way to refer to the colonel, but they are never addressed this way.
The Captain is the first officer rank where your character must have shown true leadership ability. You’ll see Captains used as a Company Commander, or ‘detached’ as the Commanding Officer of many ‘special assignments’.
The first rank where the officer is given responsibility for the men in his command is Lieutenant (or First Lieutenant). A smart Lieutenant will rely on the experience of his Enlisted Executive Officer — a Sergeant Major or Senior Sergeant. The Senior Sergeant will show the Lieutenant him how to get the job done.
Second Lieutenant is an honorary grade for an Officer in Training. You’ve heard of low man on the totem pole. Second Lieutenant is the dirt into which the totem pole is placed.
Going Medieval
For more medieval or fantasy settings, you’ll see ranks like Knight-General for the Commander-in-Chief of an Order of Knighthood. The senior field Commander of an Orders’ forces is the Knight-Commander. Knight-Captain is the highest rank an independent Knight can attain without declaring oath to a liege.
The Holy Quest is a key accomplishment for any knight and a fantastic event to center your story around. Prior to taking the Quest, your character is a Knight. After they have completed their quest, they become a Knight-Lieutenant.
In the next part of this series, we’ll look at the real boots on the ground: Enlisted men and woman who get the job done and the ripe opportunities for conflict that arise between the enlisted men and officers.
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Ted Atchley is a freelance writer and professional computer programmer. Whether it’s words or code, he’s always writing. Ted’s love for speculative fiction started early on with Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, and the Star Wars movies. This led to reading Marvel comics and eventually losing himself in Asimov’s Apprentice Adept and the world of Krynn (Dragonlance Chronicles).
After blogging on his own for several years, Blizzard Watch (blizzardwatch.com) hired Ted to be a regular columnist in 2016. When the site dropped many of its columns two years later, they retained Ted as a staff writer.
He lives in beautiful Charleston, SC with his wife and children. When not writing, you’ll find him spending time with his family, and cheering on his beloved Carolina Panthers. He’s currently revising his work-in-progress portal fantasy novel before preparing to query.
I just finished the last book in the Ravenwood Saga, Cry of the Raven. It follows the conclusion to Selene Ravenwood’s journey, a young woman who inherits her family’s ability to walk in dreams. I don’t want to give away too much since it’s the last book!
Why do you write? Do
you have a theme, message, or goal for your books?
I never start writing with a theme or message in my story.
Usually my stories begin with a scene that comes to me and I start asking
questions: what is happening here? How did these characters get to this place?
And what’s going to happen next? Then I start writing. Usually when I get to
the halfway point of the story I begin to see a theme. In the novel I’m
currently working on, the theme that keeps popping up is survival, and how it’s
not good to always be alone.
As far as why do I write, I’m not sure if I could stop. I’ve
wanted to sometimes. It’s hard to be a writer, a mom of four kids, and the wife
of a pastor. But when I don’t, the words build up inside of me until they start
to overflow and I need to write them down. Even if I never published another
book, I would still write.
How long have you
been writing?
I started writing in 2004 shortly after my daughter was
born. So let’s see, that would mean I’ve been writing for sixteen years (wow!).
My first book was published in 2012 and since then I’ve published eight books
with another one almost finished.
And how long did it
take you to get your first major book contract? Or are you published
non-traditionally? How did that come about?
I was at a writing conference pitching my first book (Daughter of Light). I met the editor for
Marcher Lord Press (now Enclave Publishing) and spoke to him for a while. He
requested the manuscript, I sent it, then never heard anything for eighteen
months. By then, my husband had lost his job and I went back to working full
time and put away my writing dreams so I could focus on helping my family.
Of course, that’s when I received the email that Marcher
Lord was interested in my series! During that first year, I worked during my
lunch breaks and any other time I could squeeze in writing. My family helped me
out immensely and after my husband found another job, I was able to work from
home when my kids were at school.
Which of your books
is your favorite?
That’s a hard one! I think probably Daughter of Light since it was my first book and I loved it so much
that I rewrote it four times instead of moving on to another story (which is
what most people advise doing).
Do you have a
favorite character or scene in one of your books?
Another hard one! I think Selene Ravenwood from my Ravenwood
series is my favorite because she had everything stacked against her (a family
history of secrets, the burden of being the oldest sister and doing what she
can to protect her younger sisters, the choice to either kill the man who can
bring peace to the world but will destroy her family, or help him escape and
find herself in exile), but in the end she found the strength and courage to
follow her own path.
Tell us about an
award you won that was particularly meaningful.
In 2018 the second book in my steampunk series won the Carol
Award. It’s a prestigious award that for years I had finaled in but never won. My
steampunk series was so different compared to most of books in the speculative
category, not to mention what was in the book market at that time. Also, that
year my father passed away and Awakened
had been dedicated to him. So when my book was announced as the winner, I was
shocked. I went up, gave my speech, then received the most amazing text from my
husband congratulating me when I sat back down. I admit I started crying.
How long does it take
you to write a book?
About a year. I’m a very slow writer and write about 1-1.5k
words a day, four days a week. But when I’m done, it’s a pretty clean draft
since I do all my editing and research while I write. Sometimes I wish I could
write faster, but this is who I am, and I’ve learned to accept that.
What’s your writing
work schedule like?
After I send my kids off to school (or as it is right now
with the coronavirus, send them off to various rooms to work on school), I
write my thousand words for the day. Mornings are the best time for me,
especially after I’ve had my first cup of coffee. By afternoon, my brain is exhausted
and I need to switch from writer to mom. At night, I like to read what I wrote
to get my brain thinking about what to write next. Then I start all over the
next day.
Do you have an
interesting writing quirk? If so, what is it?
I always need to be chewing on something or drinking
something when I write. So I drink tea or coffee, and always have gum nearby.
Maybe it helps me think, who knows?
What has been your greatest
joy(s) in your writing career?
Honestly? Receiving fanart. Seriously! I am amazed and love
the fact that my own creativity inspires others to be creative. I feel like
I’ve arrived as a real author.
What has been your
darkest moment(s)?
There have been quite a few of those, and each time I’ve
really wanted to walk away from writing. The time my husband lost his job. The
time I received some really harsh criticism and would have jumped ship if it
wasn’t for the encouragement of my husband and readers. When the reality of my
paychecks didn’t match up with what I’d hoped for. I’m very blessed to have
people in my life who believe in my writing and don’t let me give up!
How many times in
your career have you experienced rejection? How did they shape you?
There’s always rejection, even after you’ve published.
There’s rejection by readers who didn’t like your book. There’s rejection when
your next series doesn’t sell. There’s rejection when a book you’ve poured your
heart and soul into doesn’t receive recognition. It’s part of the writing life,
and it takes courage to keep on writing. There are a lot of highs and lows in the
writing life.
Where do you get your
ideas?
I have absolutely no idea. Usually a scene will come to me
and I’ll start asking questions. I’ll start a folder on my computer and put all
my thoughts and ideas about that scene into it. If the story continues to grow
and keeps me thinking about it, then I know I probably have a good story here.
For example, here’s how I came up with the idea for my Ravenwood series: I saw
a young woman standing over the bed of a young man poised to kill him. I began
to ask who are these two people? How did they get to this place? Why does she
want to kill him? What happens next? The story grows as I ask more questions.
Who is your favorite
author to read?
I’d probably say Jane Austen and J.R.R. Tolkien are my two
favorite authors to read and have read their books many, many times.
What advice can you
give aspiring writers that you wished you had gotten, or that you wished you
would have heeded?
Success doesn’t come at once, and when you discover what success means to you, it will surprise you. When I was a younger writer, I thought success was a big royalty check, bestseller lists, and awards. (I’m pretty sure every beginner writer thinks that.) But over the years, I finally realized success for me was contentment. I love simply writing every day, whether that book is ever published, wins an award, or brings in money for my family. I feel a sense of satisfaction, joy, and accomplishment in turning words into stories. That is enough for me.
What are common
mistakes you see aspiring writer’s make?
Giving up everything to be a writer. I’ve seen authors who
use all their time and energy to write to the point of neglecting and even
resenting their family, only to find in the end they are all by themselves with
nothing but a novel or two to show for it. It is by far better to reach the end
with a family cheering you on as you hold that first book in your hands than to
sacrifice those around you. The writing will always be there, your family and
friends might not be if you don’t invest in them as well.
Where/How do you
recommend writers try to break into the market?
Every writer needs to study the business side of writing:
publishing, marketing, pitching, editing. What publishers publish your genres?
What agents represent that genre? What conferences can you attend where you can
meet these publishers and agents? What if you want to self-publish?
Self-publishing is like running a small business. Are you ready to take on
those responsibilities? Writing is fun, but there is a business side as well,
and understanding how the publishing world works will help writers know what steps
to take next.
Morgan L. Busse is a writer by day and a mother by night. She is the author of the Follower of the Word series, The Soul Chronicles, and The Ravenwood Saga. She is a two-time Christy Award finalist and recently won both the INSPY and the Carol Award for best in Christian speculative fiction. During her spare time she enjoys playing games, taking long walks, and dreaming about her next novel. Visit her online at www.morganlbusse.com.
It’s a new year. For some writers it is an opportunity to pick up a previous work that had been lost in the daily grind of life and to finally finish your novel. For others it might be stepping into the role of serious writer for the very first time and beginning a brand new story. Wherever you might be in your writing journey, it always helps to have a list of resources to help you tackle that next fantasy or sci-fi story you hope to write! Here are a few websites that might help get your story written.
A great resource for Christian speculative writers is Realm Makers. Although this is an annual conference, they do offer recordings of past conferences for purchase and even offer a consortium for speculative writers to join on Facebook. This is a great place to connect with other Christian writers and to ask questions.
Lorehaven, along with its companion site, Speculative Faith, is a website dedicated to exploring fantasy and sci-fi writing and books with a Christian worldview. Head on over to their sister site, Splickety Publishing, to try your hand at writing flash fiction.
Other sites that are geared toward fantasy and sci-fi but do not specifically have a Christian worldview:
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) is one of the oldest organizations dedicated to helping published authors within the fantasy and sci-fi genres. Membership to this organization takes some work to achieve but having this on your resume will set you apart if you’re looking to get traditionally published.
Science Fiction and Fantasy Chronicles is a community of fantasy and sci-fi writers that includes specifics on writing and publishing. Connect with other writers on the forums and check out the listing of writer blogs so you can take your research further.
Worldbuilding Stack Exchange is a place where writers can voice their questions about science and geography to aid in creating realistic fictional world building. This is a great resource to get quick answers if you want your world to be believable with specifics about science and technology.
Critters Workshop is a family of workshops and critique groups for speculative writers. This is a free website that offers discussion forums and book suggestions on the writing craft.
No matter where you are in your writing journey, utilize these resources to make this the year that you tackle those stories God has given you to tell.
Laura L. Zimmerman is a homeschooling mama to three daughters and a doting wife to one husband. Besides writing, she is passionate about loving Jesus, singing, drinking coffee and anything Star Wars. You can connect with her through Facebook and Twitter @lauralzimm and at her website Caffeinated Fiction at www.lauralzimmerman.com
Hey guys, I wanted to kick this whole thing off by welcoming you to the ranks. (Though I’m sure some of you have been at this even longer than I, so some could probably welcome me to the ranks.)
Any-hoo, whether your writing is just an outlet, or you’re looking to be published, you are a writer. But there’s a difference—did you catch it?
Writers fall into two major categories: those who Commit and those who Dabble. Both would argue they’re writers, but the differences are key.
Dabblers weave talesfor themselves. To them, writing is an expression, an outpouring the world may never see. Perhaps they want to keep it that way. Or maybe they want to share their words, find a voice through writing, but they’re nervous. What if people don’t like it? Basically, they fill journals and blog for a few friends and family, but their writing is a hobby.
Then there are the Committed—they write for others. Their voice matters, and they want people to hear their stories. They want to impact their audience, and they’ll go the distance. Every day, rain or shine, doesn’t matter how they feel. They don’t quit writing.
What kind of writer are YOU? I, personally, am a Committed Spec-Fic writer. Of course, I’m a teenager, and that makes it challenging as I learn the system. But I’m up to it.
[bctt tweet=”Are you a committed writer? Or a dabbler? #teenwriters #amwriting #YAspecfic”]
If you’re Committed, you’ll find a lot of great resources on this blog, and not just resources but community. If you’re looking to share with others, your stories, then most likely you’re already a committed writer.
Perhaps you wish you were.
Dabblers, to effectively commit, these tips are your best friends:
Set a time. Write every day. Many writers don’t understand how important this is. It may sound like overkill, and there will be days it’s a chore, but this tip can often keep you from drifting back into Dabbledom. The more you write, the better your writing will be. In King Julian’s words, “See how that works?” Even if you’re not working on a manuscript, devoting ten to thirty minutes a day to writing will be quite the asset. What you put in it is what you get out of it.
Know your audience. So many writers transitioning from Dabbler to Committed get caught by this guy. For their whole writing career, their audience has been themselves. But without knowing your audience, how can you choose what to write about and how best to communicate it? For this blog in particular, knowing my audience was vital.
Learn the industry. Look, I love shortcuts as much as the next guy, but there are none in the writing industry. It’s imperative that you know what you’re doing. Follow great blogs. Friend your favorite authors on social media. Get information by going to a writer’s conference. For fellow Spec-Fic writers, a highly recommended conference is Realm Makers. A conference is where you’ll make connections, gain opportunities, and most importantly, better your craft.
So who’s with me? Comment and let me know you’re in this for the long haul.
And then find me on Facebook or Google +. Thanks to Sarah Horrigan and BK for the (unaltered) images. And beautiful thanks to King Julien, because he’s my BFF.
Regardless how fantastic the setting, the people in your book must treat their environment as commonplace. A character who regularly interacts with something will spend little thought on (and the author should spend little time describing) its method of operation. This is true whether writing about food or magic. But how do you describe the common occurrences of a believable system? It’s best done with sparse descriptions of characters interacting with their world, but to write convincingly, you need to think things through. To get your creative juices flowing, let’s look at the energy that fuels your characters.
No, not their motivations, their breakfast.
Food Production
Unless your world breaks the laws of mass conservation (such as a cleric’s “Create Food” spell or the Enterprise’s replicator), your protagonist’s lunch came from somewhere. If survival isn’t one of your story’s tension hooks, you don’t need to describe the origin of each meal, but in a long enough adventure, your reader may wonder where the lone hero gets his food, and you’ll need to consider it as well.
In our world, all food can be traced back to plants, which require soil, sun, water, and carbon dioxide. This obviously applies to vegetables, fruits, and grains, but grasses inedible to humans are the sustenance of livestock, and from them we get a myriad of consumables. In fact, animal feed can often grow in climates hostile to farming, which is why residents of colder regions historically had more meat in their diets.
Other hostile climates, such as a post-apocalyptic future, may have a similar increase in dietary protein, or they may rely on food production and preservation of ages past (until it runs out!). Alternatively, space stations may house hydroponics facilities, or elven crop growth may depend on the blessings of the local druid. Nevertheless, before food is eaten, it must first be produced.
Food Preservation
Unless your protagonists are survivalist hunters or part of the agricultural industry, the food they bring on their adventures must be stored. Portable storage falls into five main categories: canned, frozen, dried, pickled, and salted. Even a high-tech future will have some variation of these methods (e.g. cryo-frozen meats, canned nutrient-paste, etc.).
Preservation only delays the process of rotting as long as possible, but decay is inevitable. You can’t have a character wake from stasis a million years after humanity’s destruction and have her forage for canned food, because by then it will all have spoiled. Exceptions are made for Spam and Christmas fruitcake.
Food Preparation
Anyone who has eaten Cheerios in the car knows not all food needs preparation, but a good meal requires heat. Why? Partly because warm food is pleasant (ever tried cold French fries?), but also because higher temperatures kill harmful bacteria (ranging from 140F for rare beef to 180F for poultry).
But no matter how bizarre your world’s heating methods are, your characters won’t think twice about them. Suppose you were an author writing about food two hundred years ago and conceived of a “Microwave Oven.” Should the microwave’s operator need to consider the details of particle physics and wavelengths? Not if you wanted to describe the way we typically use it. Even those who understand microwave technology seldom consider it when they put their leftovers in and walk away. The denizens of your creation should similarly spend little time thinking about something so common, even if it would be unimaginable to those living in a different world or time.
In a fantasy setting, maybe fire sprites heat your villagers’ meals in exchange for precious stones, but don’t revel in the occurrence if it’s commonplace. Or consider a future in which all single-use rations have a self-heating mechanism, making them especially useful on the galactic frontier. At any rate, a method of heating must be considered unless your people eat all their food cold (which limits the kinds of food that can be eaten).
Food Disposal
Disposal of waste is not of great concern unless your characters inhabit a world of extremely limited resources. Some examples are desert worlds, post-apocalyptic settings, or space stations (Hugh Howey’s Wool Omnibus come to mind). For the most part though, trash isn’t noteworthy. Even a short-range starship will probably jettison its refuse.
When writing about food, you don’t need to spell out every detail, but you should ponder how and what your characters are eating. A genuine environment will connect with the reader because it feels like you’ve considered how people survive in it, and food is very much a part of daily survival.
Much of this information comes from my own 2,500 square foot garden and from The Encyclopedia of Country Living, a 900+ page tome by Carla Emery that details everything our agrarian ancestors did.
The people in your world need governance. I’m sorry. I wish I could make it untrue, but a believable ruling system exists in virtually every fantastic world. The elven child in your young adult novel will eventually run into an elder or deputy. The four-man crew of an isolated space station will require a leadership structure. And even the lone hero occasionally needs to visit civilization to stock up on supplies.
So how do you craft a government? First of all, don’t get too overwhelmed, since you can craft it as you go as I wrote a few months ago. But the first principle to remember is this: Governments exist to ensure the interests of the governing bodies, not the governed. This has been true throughout all of human history.
[bctt tweet=” Governments exist to ensure the interests of the governing bodies, not the governed. #sadbuttrue #amwriting” via=”no”]
Good Governance – A rarity of the modern era
If you’re allowed to read this website and have the freedom to even consider writing a book, you may think my statement is overreaching. After all, you’ve been taught that governments exist to secure the rights of the governed, right?
Wrong.
In most western countries, we are privileged with brilliantly crafted documents called constitutions. In essence, they limit the power of politicians and hold them accountable to the people on a regular basis. Rulers continue to act in self-interest, but those interests (namely, power) rely on popularity and benevolence. In other words, good governments constrain the self-interest of the ruler to the well-being of the public.
[bctt tweet=”Good governments constrain the self-interest of the ruler to the well-being of the public #wisdom #takeitforgranted” via=”no”]
So if you want to create a realistic and stable society, or if you want a world in which the government plays little role in the daily lives of your characters, your fictitious country will need something to limit the power of those in charge. This doesn’t mean you need to go into details about the nation’s founding documents. In fact, if it isn’t relevant to the story, please don’t! But keep it in mind as you craft your world, because eventually your characters will interact with the laws of the land.
Note: A small group of people (e.g. a settlement, a space station) can sometimes get around this formalized power-limitation because the man in charge has a much more visceral threat before him. Specifically, if he doesn’t allow others to do their job well, his own living conditions worsen. Plus if he overextends his power, the populace may just kill him off, so good governance remains in his best interest.
Declining Governance – A violent transition
On a long enough timeline, even the best republic will eventually be found in the hands of a power-hungry zealot with enough popularity to bypass normal rules. You see this in Rome’s transition from republic to empire, Germany’s Third Reich, and of course, the end of the Republic in Star Wars.
The other option is complete economic collapse due to decadence and ignorance. Asimov’s famous Foundation trilogy shows this in sad detail, but it was seen earlier when the Roman Empire imploded from financial and military strains.
If your storyworld persists long enough, remember this other principle: no government lasts forever.
[bctt tweet=”No government lasts forever #whatarelief #scary” via=”no”]
Generally Speaking
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, don’t worry too much. Regardless of the setting, most western readers assume a western culture, 20th century rule of governance unless you say otherwise. Taxes are mandatory, theft and murder are prohibited, and the average citizen can expect a degree of protection from powers foreign and domestic. If this is not the case in your world, chances are likely you’ve already given governance a great deal of thought because it plays a larger role in your story. We’ll look at that more in detail next time.
Last month we looked at writing fictitious, sentient creatures within our own universe. In summary, God has a plan for them, but that plan may or may not be similar to the one he has for us. But what if your fictitious world, whether a Christian fantasy novel or a sci-fi one, is governed by completely different fundamental principles?
No, I’m looking at something more fundamental than physics – God.
What if a different God rules your world …
First of all, this doesn’t make you a heretic. It could certainly present some challenges, but if done well, Christians are willing to suspend their disbelief. Plus, non-Christians may be willing to read about worshippers of a fictitious deity even if they’ve been wounded by God’s representatives in this world.
This is especially true of C.S. Lewis’s Narnia series. If you didn’t know (surprisingly, some don’t), Aslan represents our God in Lewis’s fantasy world. However, there is no Bible in the land of Narnia, and the talking animals interact with their creator is differently than us. Most of what we discussed last month still holds true –God had a purpose for his sentient animals, and they never fell from grace so a pathway to redemption wasn’t necessary. Evil does enter the world, but in a different manner and is thus dealt with according to the rules of that world.
Some allegorical books like Hannah Hunard’s Hinds Feet on High Places or John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress use different names to represent our God, but the difference is in name only – in all other respects, God is very recognizable. Generally speaking, if God is in your book under a penname, this is safe and comfortable for the Christian fantasy and sci-fi audience. And just like historical Christian fiction or any other Christian fiction, the key is representing Him correctly.
What if no God exists in your world …
Can you create a godless reality and still honor God with it?
Yes and no.
Stories communicate ideas, and even a story without religious overtones can share virtues and theological notions. R.A. Salvatore’s Icewind Dale trilogy has a character named Drizzt who overcomes prejudice against his dark elven heritage. This noble figure even risks his life to protect those who would like to see him dead. Sound like Jesus? I’m not saying Salvatore is a Christian (I don’t know either way), but if a Christian wrote a similar novel expressing righteousness, he should be proud, even if a god figure isn’t explicit.
[bctt tweet=”Even a story without religious overtones can share virtues and theological notions #storyworld #fantasy” via=”no”]
Similarly, everyone familiar with Timothy Zahn’s Star Wars trilogy (Heir to the Empire etc.) knows of Mara Jade and her conversion experience. This resonates with Christians and non-Christians alike, but only followers of Jesus understand why.
Of course, the most well-known example of Christian fantasy is J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. Even though the God we know is not present, there are countless metaphors for Christianity contained in the series, and entire books have been written to unpack them. But fans enjoy the series as a fantastic romp in a richly detailed world whether or not they recognize some of Tolkien’s deeper truths.
However, there is a caveat. Since ethics without divine authority are only a matter of opinion, a truly godless reality has no ultimate source of morality. And a world without any morality will be a very, very dark one. I immensely enjoyed reading George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire and I highly recommend it to any budding fantasy writers, Christian or not (I promise it isn’t as graphic as HBO’s Game of Thrones). But I wouldn’t want to live south of the Wall, or even visit. Martin excels at portraying the complete and utter depravity of mankind, but without any source of hope, his world’s inhabitants face a bleak existence. A Christian writer should be careful not to delve too far into the dark without any guiding light.
[bctt tweet=”A Christian writer should be careful not to delve too far into the dark without any guiding light #amwriting #redemption” via=”no”]
In summary, if you are a Christian fantasy or science fiction writer, your novel will have allusions to your faith, because it is a part of who you are. This can take the form of an alternately-named version of our own God or by delivering biblical concepts and ideas in the form of righteous characters.
Atheists believe all creatures evolved over countless millennia of bloodshed, allowing only the fittest members of a species to breed. They therefore imagine all sentient life with the same violent nature as humanity, and the same basic need for governance.
But the writer of Christian science fiction and fantasy has a unique perspective on mankind, and therefore also a unique way to imagine inhuman races. That comes from a biblical understanding of the nature of man.
But the first question the Christian needs to ask when writing a work of Christian science fiction or fantasy is this: Does your world even take place in our universe? If so, you have to take certain things into account. Specifically …
[bctt tweet=”Does your world even take place in our universe? #storyworld #scifi #fantasy” via=”no”]
God is in charge and has a purpose
If the God we know from the Bible exists in your fiction, then we know certain things are true. Specifically: God created man intentionally (not accidentally) to have a relationship with him, man rebelled against God, and God allows man to be forgiven.
Understanding these fundamental aspects of humanity will guide you when writing about non-humans in a biblical universe. Why? Because although God gave all creatures a purpose, an alien’s purpose may be very different from our own. Maybe God didn’t create the space-fairies to worship him, but to punish humanity. Scary thought, but it wouldn’t be unprecedented based on the way He used Cyrus in Isaiah’s prophecies.
God so loved [humans] that he gave his only begotten son
Sin and redemption are so intrinsic to humanity that we forget that mankind may be unique in this regard. But have aliens even rebelled against God like humans? Perhaps they had a test like the one in Eden but passed. Obviously their relationship with the Lord would look very different. A great pair of novels that deal with this theoretical issue are Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra, both Christian science fiction novels by C.S. Lewis.
[bctt tweet=”have aliens even rebelled against God like humans? #storyworld #scifi” via=”no”]
Even if aliens did fall from grace, redemption may look different. God chose a very awesome way to reconcile man to himself, but a different method could be employed to bring otherworldly people to himself. For example, Ted Dekker’s Circle series (Quadrilogy?) had an unusual redemption story for the characters in his alternate reality/ future/ past/ whatever it was.
A sad possibility is that there is no hope for redemption for an alien race. It sounds cruel, but we know of one sentient alien species in our own reality that has fallen members with no hope for salvation. No, not the Rock People from the Noah Movie. Sigh. Angels and Demons. Angels were created for purposes similar to man’s (worshipping God), but somewhere along the line, a third of the angels rebelled against God (just like Adam rebelled). To our knowledge though, their species has not been offered forgiveness. The mercy He grants humanity gives us a unique and humbling position.
Before I completely overwhelm you, not all sci-fi and fantasy needs to have aliens or other species. Examples: The Battletech series by Michael A. Stackpole and others, Joss Whedon’s Firefly (ok it’s a TV show, not a book), and Isaac Asimov’s Foundation. But if you’re writing Christian science fiction in our biblical universe and describing fictitious species , you’ll need to consider which aspects of man’s story are unique and which aren’t. Maybe heaven in your book will contain many different species, or maybe not. You don’t have to describe this heavenly display, but you should keep it in mind as an end-goal for your protagonists. At any rate, God’s eternal plan is of supreme importance in human lives, so it at least bears consideration for nonhumans. And a better understanding of humanity’s own (possibly) unique story will help you craft your own.
Unless your protagonists are survivalist hunters or part of the agricultural industry, the food they bring on their adventures must be stored. Portable storage falls into 
