Category: On Writing

Guy Anthony De Marco

Speculative Fiction Author

Guy Anthony De Marco

Speculative Fiction Author

Warm light and a curl of green mist spill through a slightly open door into a dark stone corridor — a speculative scene shown through detail, not labeled.

Blog On Writing

Show, Don’t Tell in Speculative Fiction: Active Voice for Magic, Tech, and Horror Scenes

Here is a scene I see in a lot of first drafts. Mine included. The portal was opened by the

A single manuscript page with gray placeholder bars in standard manuscript layout on a dark slate desk under a brass lamp, beside a fountain pen, a typewriter key, and a faint star chart.

Blog On Writing

What Is Shunn Format? A Speculative Fiction Writer’s Guide to Standard Manuscript Format

Shunn format is the standard manuscript format most SF, fantasy, and horror markets ask for. What it requires, modern vs. classic, and free templates.

A printed manuscript covered in red-pencil scribbles on a dark wooden desk beside a brass telescope, a folded star chart, and a lit candle in warm lamplight.

Blog On Writing

How to Self-Edit a Speculative Fiction Novel Before You Hire an Editor

Self-editing a novel in SF, fantasy, or horror? Run these six revision passes before you hire an editor, from structure and world rules to clean copy.

A writer's desk at night with a glowing amber lamp, steaming mug, open notebook, and manuscript pages, beside a rain-streaked window where autumn leaves drift past a crescent moon and dark, otherworldly spires.

Blog On Writing

November Novel Writing Challenge: A 30-Day Plan for Speculative Writers Without Burnout

How many speculative fiction writers does it take to draft a novel in November? Just one, but she’ll spend the

An open book with blank final pages on a candlelit desk, as a long clawed shadow creeps out of its spine toward the viewer and a dark doorway stands ajar behind.

Blog On Writing

How to End a Horror Story: Endings That Keep Scaring After the Last Line

It’s almost Halloween, which means a lot of you are sitting on a horror story with a great opening, a

Guy Anthony De Marco on a panel at the 2012 World Horror Convention, seated at a table with a microphone in a Yurei Press polo.

Blog On Writing

Writing Science Fiction with a Technical Background: From Navy and IT Tech to Speculative Fiction

I spent about 11 years in the U.S. Navy working on electronics, helicopter avionics, and advanced computer systems. Then I

Sauron from Lord of the Ringses, my precious.

Blog On Writing

Villains

The protagonist is the one character most writers dwell on. It takes a fine balance between making them likeable and

On Writing

Passive Writing was avoided by the Author

Ah, Passive Writing. One of the most common problems that plague newer authors. What is Passive Writing? Passive writing is

A vintage typewriter with a blank sheet, an ink bottle, a fountain pen and crumpled paper on a dark desk at night.

Blog On Writing

Show, Don’t Tell: Huh?

“Show, don’t tell” is a fundamental principle of writing that can greatly enhance the reader’s experience. Instead of directly stating

Manuscript pages marked with red editing strokes, a red pencil, scissors and paper clips beside a curling black cat tail.

On Reading On Writing Other Blogs I Enjoy

Video: Editors Editing Excerpts (Live On-Air)

Keystroke Medium has a weekly show on Thursdays called The Writer’s Journey. For this episode a group of accomplished editors

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