Conjure the Strange: Lessons From Horror
The award-winning writer studies how the most powerful horror stories are grounded in “deeply human dilemma,” and how daring the ghoulish can bring us closer to our characters.
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The award-winning writer studies how the most powerful horror stories are grounded in “deeply human dilemma,” and how daring the ghoulish can bring us closer to our characters.
The celebrated writer shows how science fiction’s “novums”—the futuristic or fantastical developments a writer invents in their work—can delve into philosophical questions, explore contemporary issues, and help us see worlds that are not yet real.
The best historical fiction “vibrates with a past that is in the present” and reveals the unseen in stories thought we knew—craft skills any writer can bring to their work.
The author of Winter Counts offers a masterclass in building suspense, whether your character is planning a heist or planting a garden.
A poet recommends a three-day program to examine your writing, where you write, what you write with, and what your goals are as a way to refresh your spirit and energize your writing practice.
Fairy tales are built on their own enchanting associative logic. A maestro of magical realism explores what writers can unlock when they let readers leap between a story’s plot points—and where such a trail of breadcrumbs can lead.
A writer of fiction and nonfiction forgets her laptop on a mini writing retreat and discovers new and productive paths through creativity without the constant pull of technology.
Five acclaimed writers traverse the literary landscape, gleaning lessons from diverse genres of writing and bringing them back to bear on any work.
Ten authors answer the tenth question in our Ten Questions series: What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received?
An author recommends strategies for organizing book events that give audience members a chance to connect with one another, opening up conversations rather than defaulting to the formal delivery of a static author reading.