A track perfect for readers and writers, speculative fiction focuses on topics relating to realms like fantasy, steampunk, science fiction, horror, and other genres falling under the SpecFic umbrella!
SPECULATIVE FICTION
Cross-Medium Horror Forum: Panelists spanning different media come together to discuss horror from every angle – the trends, the successes, the failures, and the multitudes of adaptations. Come get scared with the best of them.
Don’t Let Genre Get in Your Way: When you sit down to write do you find yourself trying to force your plot into a specific mold? It’s far past time you let your writing take flight without parameters. Come ask questions from our cross-genre panelists and learn the best way to write what you want to write on your own terms.
Gats, Gams, & Greenhorns: Everyone always remembers to build worlds, but do they always remember to build language? This panel covers the proper way to use slang, jargon, and other language mechanisms in genre fiction.
Inserting Science into Fiction: Enjoy science fiction but don’t know how to build the science? We’re here to help! Bring your best questions and your learning cap and our panelists will help make sense of the science in today’s best Sci-Fi media.
Into the Wastelands: Post-Apocalyptic and Dystopian stories are on the rise. Join our panelists for a discussion of the world after the end of the world.
Lone Hero vs. Heroic Group: What’s better when writing sci-fi and fantasy, a single hero or a group to share the task? This panel features on a discussion on heroic tropes and how to properly use both.
Mythological Creatures in Fiction: From the usual to the more obscure, our panelists discuss the use of mythological creatures in literature, and how to make even the most used tropes fresh and new.
Spy-Fi & Techno Thrillers – A Crash Course: Join our panelists for a walk through the growing trend of technological spy and thriller fiction.
Steampunk Today: Ever wanted to ask a bunch of questions about Steampunk but were too afraid to sound like you were behind the times? Never fear! Our panel of experts are here to tell you everything you ever wanted to know about the rise of Steampunk, its origins, and where it’s headed with today’s increasing technology and advancements in modern media.
Sword & Sorcery vs. Fantasy – What’s the Difference: Our speculative fiction authors and industry professionals will tell you, there’s a huge difference. If you’re unsure which is which, stop in to hear the discussion about the genres, their history, and the authors who defined each.
The Evolution of Urban Fantasy: Panelists experienced in the growing Urban Fantasy genre talk about the evolution of the genre and how both their work and the work of their contemporaries fits into the grand scheme.
The Language of Fear – A roundtable discussion of definitive horror elements and how to make and market them in new and interesting ways.
The Monsters: An in-depth look at how mainstream media has both helped and hindered the classic monster tropes.
The Zombie Horde: Zombies are popular, but are they too popular? Panelists take zombie-mania back to the bare bones and discuss the trends, how to use them, and how to create something new from the already-been-done slush pile.
Unconventional Fantasy: Not every fantasy novel has to be set in Medieval Europe, and not every fantasy novel needs a princess in a tower waiting to be rescued. Come learn how to buck the trends and stop writing the book everyone else has already written.
Urban Fantasy – The Gateway Genre: Let’s face it, Urban Fantasy is a huge trend and a growing portion of the Speculative Fiction realm. Our panelists discuss how the rise in Urban Fantasy has changed the sci-fi/fantasy landscape.
Utilizing Local Settings in Urban Fantasy: The most common bit of advice for new writers is “write what you know.” Our urban fantasy panelists discuss the benefits and drawbacks of using your hometown as a setting for your next novel.
Women in Genre: Our Ladies of Speculative Fiction come together to discuss the challenges and triumphs of women in today’s genre fiction market.
World Building 101: Our professionals are giving a crash course on best practices for building a believable, sustainable world in your fiction across all media and genres.
Writing Horror Without the Blood: Blood, guts, and gore are staples in the horror world, but are they necessary? Not all of our panelists think so. This hour-long panel will detail the alternate routes to a good horror story.
Writing The Other: Aliens, Fairies, and Animals, Oh My! Who gets it right, who gets it wrong, and what are the best practices for writing unconventional, non-human characters?
YA and Speculative Writing: Young Adult fiction is the hottest trend on the market right now, but is it always done correctly? Speculative Fiction often takes more focus and determination than readers realize, and our publishing professionals are here to give you the low-down on how to build a believable speculative story geared towards the younger crowd.
Creatures from A-Z Looking for something new in the way of supernatural beings and beasts to populate your stories? Tired of vampires, elves and dragons? Author Denise Verrico offers a fun and informative PowerPoint on mythological creatures from all over the world.
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