Storycraft

In speculative fiction, a story can start with anything. A place, a time, a person, an idea. How do we grow that seed into an experience?

Save the Cat

A tried and true formula for crafting plots. Not for every story, but a great place to start.
Try the beat sheet at studiobinder

Outlining Your Novel: Map Your Way To Success

A book by K M Weiland that Jenny recommends. Tons of great brainstorming and organizing exercises.
Pick it up at Indiebound

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

A book by Anne Lamott. On writing shitty first drafts and more. Recommended by Jenny.
Pick it up at Indiebound

Writing the Breakout Novel

A book by Donald Maas. Jenny read this a decade ago and isn’t sure if it still holds up, but at the time it completely transformed her approach to her novel.
Pick it up at Indiebound

Classes, Workshops & Mentorships

Classes, workshops and mentorships are all great ways to get your feet wet, hone your craft, and meet people at your level and above. They’re where you’ll find your beta readers, your collaborators, your new critique group, your editors, agents, friends and people you make websites with.

Clarion

Clarion is an intensive six-week summer program focused on fundamentals particular to the writing of science fiction and fantasy short stories. They also offer online workshops, webinars and write-a-thons.
We're partial to Clarion UCSD
But Clarion West is probably pretty good, too

Writing the Other

Learn to write characters very different from you sensitively and convincingly. We highly recommend any of their online workshops and webinars.
Check out their website

Odyssey

The Odyssey Writing Workshops Charitable Trust is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with the mission to help developing writers of fantasy, science fiction, and horror improve their work. They host a renowned six-week intensive workshop, and offer a slew of other services, online stuff and other writing resources.
Give it a look

Taos Toolbox

Taos Toolbox is a workshop designed to bring your science fiction and fantasy writing to the next level. If you’ve sold a few stories and then stalled out, or if you’ve been to Clarion or Odyssey and want to re-connect with the workshop community, this is the workshop for you! Writers without workshop experience are also welcome.
Learn more

SFWA Mentoring Initiative

An all-volunteer service aiming to connect emerging writers to each other and to established pros with the objective of providing community, sharing knowledge, and offering networking opportunities, focused on professional development rather than artistic development. Applications for mentees are only open for a few days a year.
Find out when they open

Community

One of the best things about being a speculative fiction writer is getting to be part of an incredible community of thinkers and weirdos, idea-havers and cat owners and list makers. People who keep swords on their walls, curiosity their hearts, and entire galaxies in their dreams.

SFWA

Founded in 1965, SFWA is an organization for published authors and industry professionals in the fields of science fiction, fantasy, and related genres. They host the Nebula conference every year.
It's pronounced "siff-wah." Usually.

Worldcon

Worldcon is the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society and includes workshops, readings, talks and the annual Hugo award ceremony.
There's a new site every year, but you can probably find it here

r/PubTips

PubTips is your go-to place for publishing news, writing opinions, professional AMA's with authors, agents, editors, publicists, etc. We answer your deepest darkest writing and publishing questions. Whether you're into Self-Publishing or Traditional Publishing, we're here to help.
You will find much wisdom here

Podcasts & Blogs

Here’s what we read and listen to when we’re looking for advice, inspiration, solace, or a nice laugh.

Our Opinions Are Correct

Charlie Jane Anders and Annalee Newitz deep dive into a new topic each episode. It’s smart and funny and makes huge efforts to be intersectional. One of André’s favorite podcasts.
Give it a listen

Writing Excuses

Writing Excuses is a fast-paced, educational podcast for writers, by writers.
Give it a listen

Publishing Is Hard

It really is. Occasional thoughts on how to make it survivable and keep from losing your mind in the process. From literary agent DongWon Song. One of Thea’s picks.
Give it a read

Pub Crawl

A group of authors and industry professionals (formerly known as Let the Words Flow) who blog about all things writing, publishing, and books.
Give it a read

Getting short stories published

We all have a mountain of rejections underneath our very small pile of yeses and maybes. Every one of them is a victory.

How To Handle Rejection of Your Writing, Without Becoming a Basket Case

Charlie Jane Anders gives a thorough pep talk on how to keep going when everyone keeps saying no.
Spoiler alert: she got published.

Finding an agent

For when your novel has gone through enough drafts that you can’t look at it anymore, all your beta readers are exhausted, and your spell-check results consist entirely of made-up Venusian elf names.

FIYAH’s Querying Primer

A long-ish primer on what it means to query, from the preeminent magazine of Black speculative fiction.
It's really good, you should read it

Query Shark

How To Write Query Letters ... or, really, how to revise query letters so they actually work.
Browse the archive for what not to do

QueryTracker

A free tool that’s helped thousands of authors find agents.
Give it a try

The Complete Nobody’s Guide to Query Letters

Lynn Flewelling writes for SFWA on the basics of query letters.
Give it a read