Planetside Full Archives

By Gareth L. Powell In 2020, I had the privilege of cowriting a science fiction novella called Light Chaser with Peter F. Hamilton, author of more than twenty novels, including The Reality Dysfunction, Pandora’s Star, and Salvation.  If I had…

by the SFWA Safety Committee As social media becomes increasingly fractured, more authors are turning toward newsletters as a reliable form of direct marketing. Mailing lists are an invaluable way to keep in touch with readers who actively want to…

by Jeremy Zentner Space operas often incorporate creative monarchy systems as part of their planet-spanning worldbuilding. And why not? Readers love a good monarchy! But there’s no reason not to be as creative with your royalty structure as you are…

(Kind of like the Star Trek Experience—lots of diversity that some accept, some fight, and others never see) by Elle Ire   Continuing Mission Our exploration of the experiences of various members within the LGBTQ+ spec fic community continues in…

By Karawynn Long Note: This post does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and advice is intended for general informational purposes only. You’ve written a piece of short fiction, submitted it, and gotten…

by the SFWA Safety Committee Small events can be some of the most rewarding experiences for an author. Signings, readings, classes, and panels offer an opportunity to connect directly with readers. They also offer some unique challenges when planning for…

By Randee Dawn Dr. Erin Macdonald Whatever you think a science advisor for Star Trek TV shows should look like, Dr. Erin Macdonald isn’t that. She’s actually far geekier and far cooler than you might expect….

Effective July 1, 2023, the SFWA Board of Directors will be made up of the following members: Jeffe Kennedy, President  John Murphy, Vice President  Jasmine Gower, Secretary  Erin Hartshorn, Chief Financial Officer  Directors-at-Large Monica Valentinelli, Jordan Kurella, Christine Taylor-Butler, Chelsea…

by Jelena Dunato When my publisher prepared the marketing strategy for my upcoming novel Dark Woods, Deep Water, one of the obvious labels proposed besides “fantasy” and “dark” was “Slavic.” It’s clear why—I’m Croatian; I’ve written a book featuring Morana,…

By Holly Henderson Romancing the Beat by Gwen Hayes, in its author’s words, explains how to write a kissing book. But that’s not all it does. Hayes gives the recipe for adding romance to any plot, and the expansive worlds…

by William C. Tracy Congrats! You’re an indie author! You’ve written a book, (hopefully) had critiques and edited it, put it all together, and thrown it up on Amazon. Time to watch the money roll in, right? Well, not exactly….

(Kind of like the Star Trek Experience—lots of diversity that some accept, some fight, and others never see) by Elle Ire Blog Series Mission To boldly explore the experiences of a variety of LGBTQ+ speculative fiction writers with regard to…

With just over a week left until our 2023 Nebula Conference, the SFWA Events Team and our many incredible volunteers have been busy putting the final touches on our first hybrid event since 2019.  With this pivot, the organization has…

by Corrine Kumar One of the biggest challenges writers face is finding time to write amidst a busy life. For many years, my strategy to overcome this was to sacrifice other parts of my life that I enjoyed. But, as…

by Ryan Breadinc If you’re not artistically inclined and want to write solely for graphic novels, going into the comic industry can feel daunting. However, collaboration can not only be an invaluable asset but a joy to participate in when…

by Rachel A. Rosen It’s a good time to be Weird. There’s a plethora of new titles and an explosion of microgenres targeted to specific tastes. Looking for post-capitalist solarpunk utopias? Poetic meditations on fungi? They’re out there. And the…

by the SFWA Safety Committee Many sites, subscriptions, and tools require a login to function, and in most cases (we’ll get to that later), those logins require a password. So, in the shifting landscape of online security, what’s the best…

by Juliet Kemp As writers, we all have our own strengths – and our own shortcomings. At the start of your writing career, you’re working on everything all the time; as you improve, you can identify your strengths and lean…

by May Haddad Fantastic noir is a subgenre that blends film noir or its literary inspiration and counterpart, hardboiled fiction and roman noir (respectively), with the more outlandish elements of speculative fiction. It crops up here and there in films…

by J. Scott Coatsworth In the middle of 2022, I broke my arm. And not just a simple fracture—my orthopedic surgeon said it looked like it had exploded. Thus began a difficult (and still in progress) recovery. I won’t go…

By J.D. Harlock Introduction The “belly dancer” is one of the most prevalent tropes western media has of Middle Easterners, and it’s often used as a cheap source of fan service in Middle Eastern and Arabesque settings. However, not only…

by Emma Johanna Puranen It seems like everyone’s listening to things these days. Between the larger podcast boom and the rise of the audiobook, it can be easy to overlook the small but thriving world of science fiction audio drama. …

A.J. Cunder As an editor, I’m tempted to say there’s a certain magic when it comes to submissions that catch my eye in the slush pile: an ethereal feeling when the story just clicks, an almost intangible quality to the…

by Anthony W. Eichenlaub Your time has value. That’s it. That’s the lesson. If you’re looking to save a few minutes, you can skip the rest of this article and just keep that one thought in mind. Your minutes have…