Writing Fantasy & Science Fiction: How to Create Out-of-This-World Novels and Short Stories

This is a great reference book for fantasy writers. Whether you are new to fantasy writing or on your third book, this is a great resource to have on hand to help you develop ideas. Lots of great lists and descriptions in this one. I highly recommend.

good quality and price. fast delivery. nice gift.

This is a "different" book in terms of helping you write Science Fiction and Fantasy. The first hundred-odd pages are an overview of the basics of writing/selling the two title genres, written by Orson Scott Card. For its length, his discussion is good, and suggested a potential market for a short story I'm thinking out. But that part is only the first 100 pages, out the book's 400 total. The rest of the book is a series of discussions on different topics, written by a collection of editors at Writer's Digest. They cover a variety of topics of *potential* interest to the writer, depending on their story and subject. This part of the book consists of 10 chapters, on topics that include such topics as "Traditional Fantasy Cultures," "Magic," "Witchcraft and Pagan Paths," "Creatures of Myth and Legend," and "Anatomy of a Castle." Some of these chapters give you perhaps a paragraph to a page of writing suggestions/ techniques. The rest seems intended to give you a jump start on research topics you might wish to explore. For instance, many of these chapters include lexicons of words you might encounter -- if your Medival fantasy has a farmer talking, you can learn an odd-shaped piece of farmable land is called a "gore," or that the "headland" is the space used at the edge of a field to turn a plow around. Need to know the respective importance of a Duke to an Earl? This book will tell you. The chapters about Magic and Witches do not talk about the details of legends, myth, and folklore -- they are talking of real, actual practices and belief systems in use today and the recent few centuries past. This kind of thing can be immensely helpful if your story needs it, or if the discussions of power animals, Wicca, or Santeria inspire new lines of thought. If your story has nothing to do with the particular topic, however, things can become eye-glazing. It's a good book, for what is. It's not a book I regret having, but it's also not the first book I'd recommend to somebody wanting help with writing Science Fiction or Fantasy.

I really think this is helping me to get my story(s) on its feet. It has some great advice and the notes it has you take really help organize your thoughts into something useful. Very happy with this!

This book is super useful to anyone wanting to write fantasy or sci-fi! It's easy to read and filled with useful knowledge and terms that every SF and fantasy writer should know.

Orson Scott Card has a beautiful way with words.

Dated but still useful

Great discussion of the history of SF and fantasy publishing, the differences between the two and advice on writing them both. The second half of the book is a dictionary of fantasy terms.