This is topic links to writerly websites in forum FAQs and Links to Discussions at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.


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Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
 
Post links to cool stuff for writers here.

Start your post with a short description of what people will find at the website and then put in the link.
 


Posted by rjzeller (Member # 1906) on :
 
Kathy, this is a superior idea!! I love it.

I'll get things started with what I think is one of the best advice-from-a-writer-to-writers sites. It's Holly Lisle's website (she's a fantasy novelist) and it has a wealth of excellent articles she's written about how to write, submit, etc. To me, I find it an excellent resource.

http://www.hollylisle.com/fm/

Z
 


Posted by rickfisher (Member # 1214) on :
 
http://www.wordos.com/what.htm is an excellent article on Revising that I heard about from Ian Creasey on Codex.

[This message has been edited by rickfisher (edited January 15, 2005).]
 


Posted by Netstorm2k (Member # 2279) on :
 
Here's two I've been bouncing around:
Ellen Datlow is the editor of Sci-Fiction, the magazine and e-zine for the Sci-Fi channel. This is her personal website, and there's a bunch of pictures of her cats and stuff, but also a bunch of pictures of her mingling with famous authors. She also has a message board where she answers questions. Also, she tends to hang out at the Sci-Fiction forum, which I think is interesting.
Her website is: http://www.datlow.com
Another is Elizabeth Bear's personal site. This one is interesting, both from a literary standpoint, and also just from an oddly curious standpoint. Visit it, and you'll see what I mean. She has a running journal she keeps online. A bit odd, but kinda neat. Her website is www.elizabethbear.com.


 


Posted by mikemunsil (Member # 2109) on :
 
The Phrontistery

http://phrontistery.info/#general

quote:
phrontistery FRON-tis-te-ri, n a thinking-place [Gr phrontisterion from phrontistes a thinker, from phroneein to think; applied by Aristophanes to the school of Socrates]

Welcome to the Phrontistery! I'm your host, Forthright. Since 1996, I have compiled word lists on various topics in order to spread the joy of the English language. If you're looking for an online dictionary, a word list on a given topic, or the definitions to rare and unusual words, the Phrontistery is for you. Here, you will find my 15,500-word dictionary of obscure and rare words, the International House of Logorrhea, as well as many glossaries, word lists, and other English language and etymology resources.


Folk Tales of Great Britain

http://www.mysteriousbritain.co.uk/folklore/folklore.html

Divided into England, Scotland and Wales
Many nice tales

[This message has been edited by mikemunsil (edited January 22, 2005).]
 


Posted by Netstorm2k (Member # 2279) on :
 
Just ran over this, and after browsing it for a few hours, am convinced this is one of the best sites for sci-fi writers on the web. This guy has a TON of links to other sites, ranging from nanotech to terraforming Las Vegas. The website is: www.orbit6.com.
Really cool spot.


 


Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
 
This is a writer's blog, and it is a depiction of how different kinds of writers approach a story.

http://york-multiplex.blogspot.com/2005/01/three-guys-walk-into-room.html

I thought you'd all be interested in reading it because of some of the discussion that goes on here at Hatrack.
 


Posted by Tess (Member # 2199) on :
 
Thank you, Kathleen, I enjoyed that one.

Interested in other writer's sites with critiques and links? See www.writerbuddy.com and www.critiquecircle.com. Since my interests are not exclusively sci-fi and fantasy, it's nice to get involved elsewhere too.
 


Posted by mikemunsil (Member # 2109) on :
 
http://creativecommons.org/

An alternative copyright for creators.
 


Posted by mikemunsil (Member # 2109) on :
 
http://www.awpwriter.org/magazine/writers/djauss01.htm

A link to an article on Point of View

[This message has been edited by mikemunsil (edited April 03, 2005).]
 


Posted by dpatridge (Member # 2208) on :
 
here's a writer's community which is actually pretty old, but appears to be about ready to go through a new growth spurt... who know's what it might develop into...

they have an IRC channel, which I already frequent, a web forum which seems to not have much activity yet (it was just added not too long ago) and an internet radio stream for writers... i personally have never listened to the radio stream, so i can't tell you what that's like...

http://www.undernet-authors.org/
 


Posted by Elan (Member # 2442) on :
 
I recently ran across the following link:

Medieval Demographics
http://www.io.com/~sjohn/demog.htm

It's a great resource for anyone doing historical or fantasy stories that are set in a medieval style world. Using real-life statistics, the website gives you a great idea on what population per square mile would (and should) be, what sorts of occupations would be likely, and a ton of other useful demographics for creating a "real" feel for your world. There is also a "calculator" to help you come up with the demographics that fit your own data.
 


Posted by mikemunsil (Member # 2109) on :
 
Phrontistery

A link to a subsection with nautical terms. Might be handy for those writing fantasy and needing to know what to call the back end of a ship.

http://phrontistery.info/nautical.html

[This message has been edited by mikemunsil (edited April 03, 2005).]
 


Posted by Beauregard Doumitt (Member # 2457) on :
 
Thanks Kathleen, this is a great thread.

Here is a page of links for mystery writers. I think many of the links might be of more general interest: forensics, police procedure, etc. http://www.zott.com/mysforum/links.htm

The links are part of a mystery writers forum: http://www.zott.com/mysforum/

Gard
 


Posted by Robyn_Hood (Member # 2083) on :
 
I found this article through a link that Srhowen ( http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=525 ) posted in Christine's Agents thread ( http://www.hatrack.com/forums/writers/forum/Forum1/HTML/001736.html ). It is written by the owner (and agent) of an agency in New York and talks about some of the important things to keep in mind when writing a query letter.

Really helpful stuff.

http://www.zackcompany.com/perfectpitch.pdf
 


Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
 
Not exactly a writerly website, but this week's issue of SCIENCE FICTION WEEKLY has an interview with OSC in which he talks about some of his theories of writing:

http://www.scifi.com/sfw/issue422/interview2.html
 


Posted by DeepDreamer (Member # 5337) on :
 
www.ralan.com

The most exhaustive site for spec. fic. markets I have seen. There's a list of average response times, several categories of markets, from adult to humor, from semi-pro and paying markets to nonpaying ones, "4TheLove", as well as contests. Also a large list of links for writers.

I found this site off of Writer's Digest's top 100 sites, and upon seeing it, said "Eureka!" more times than perhaps was necessary. It will take me a long time to exhaust its resources.

(Edited to fix a typo that could too easily be misconstrued as bad grammar.)

[This message has been edited by DeepDreamer (edited May 27, 2005).]
 


Posted by abby (Member # 2681) on :
 
I have two sites I really like, the first is a great place to look up meanings of any name, or just to research names for characters: http://www.behindthename.com/
They even have a random name generator, though I haven't used that feature.

As much as I like my hardback Thesaurus, it doesn't have nearly as many responses as this site: http://www.synonym.com/synonym/ .
 


Posted by dpatridge (Member # 2208) on :
 
An interesting article I read a while back in "The Swan."

This article is written by hers truly, Kate Elliott, probably as a personal angst against her own series.

The topic of the article is on the reasons for and against "Fat Fantasy"
 


Posted by pixydust (Member # 2311) on :
 
This is an awesome thread! I've gotta write all this stuff down. Mike, that Great Britain one looks like just what I'm looking for, so thanks! I wish I had something cool to contribute, I'm just scratching the surface still.
 
Posted by mikemunsil (Member # 2109) on :
 
This site isn't of and by itself a 'writerly' site, but I think it could prove to be a gold mine for odd facts and ideas for fantasy writers.

http://www.ancientworlds.net/
 


Posted by MTGchamp (Member # 2557) on :
 
Apollyein is a fledgling writing site...
 
Posted by Phrasingsmith (Member # 2773) on :
 
Bartleby.com - Great Books Online

The preeminent Internet publisher of literature, reference and verse providing students, researches and the intellectually curious with unlimited access to books and information on the web, free of charge.

http://www.bartleby.com/

 


Posted by Paul-girtbooks (Member # 2799) on :
 
A couple of fellas from Glasgow in the UK have just started up their own site aimed at helping aspiring writers and artists. It's very much at the grassroots stage just now but check it out!

www.1stchapters.com
 


Posted by dpatridge (Member # 2208) on :
 
A new budding writing community on the Undernet: #Writer

http://writer.herbertlives.com/

It's still brand new, but it's growing fast. #author seems to have been making one last survival effort and I haven't seen any new activity there in a long time.
 


Posted by frogcat (Member # 2820) on :
 
Hacker, entrepreneur and essayist Paul Graham has a great article on writing essays. The Age of the Essay. http://www.paulgraham.com/essay.html
 
Posted by thexmedic (Member # 2844) on :
 
Essays on the fantasy genre:

www.panmacmillan.com/Features/China/debate.htm - an intersting short essay by China Mieville on the state of fantasy and how to deal with the issue of Tolkein.

http://www.saradouglass.com/epic.html - speech notes by Sara Douglass on the subject of fantasy in general and its role in a world dominated by science. Plus some thoughts on world building, writing series, and dealing with numerous characters. Much more old school than Mieville.
 


Posted by Corky (Member # 2714) on :
 
Stephen J. Cannell (screenwriter) has a series of online lectures starting here:

http://www.writerswrite.com/screenwriting/lecture.htm

 


Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
 
posting so this topic will be visible

 
Posted by pooka (Member # 1738) on :
 
What happened to the turkey feather doodah? Not sure if it's called that for real.
 
Posted by thexmedic (Member # 2844) on :
 
A couple of sites I enjoy:

The Internet Review of Science Fiction (www.irosf.com)

A fairly literary minded look at the current SF field, interviews with authors, and reviews.


Fantastic Metropolis (www.fantasticmetropolis.com)

Currently not being updated, but still somne great pieces of fiction by some great authors (e.g. Vandermeer). Plus interviews, commentary, etc.


Infinity Plus (www.infinityplus.co.uk)

A LOT of free short fiction and extracts. Plus interviews galore.


Laymon's Rules of Writing (www.horror.org/writetips-laymon.htm)

One of the most inspiring essays on writing I've ever read. In fact I never finished reading it. By about halfway through I was so ashamed of myself, I just went and started to write.
 


Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
 
posting so this topic will be visible
 
Posted by aspirit (Member # 7974) on :
 
Want to know how original is the technology in your story? Trying to figure out what to call the weird science concept that's already familiar to your characters?

Technovelgy (tech-novel-gee!) lists and describes inventions and ideas of published sci-fi writers.
 




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