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Tweets by PhilAthans!NEW!
- Updated Rate Card: Athans & Associates Creative Consulting
- BUY ME A COFFEE! Ready to throw a couple shekles into the cause?
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Books on Writing
- The Guide to Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction The book at the heart of all this!
- Writing Monsters Advice for SF, fantasy, and horror authors
- The Best of Fantasy Author's Handbook Volume I, 2009-2013
Buy My Books
- Six Guns & Spaceships Featuring my space opera western story “Rendezes”
- Devils of the Endless Deep My trip into the Fathomless Abyss
- Write to the Cover Featuring my story “Bella Lucky and the Titan of Tarvos”
- Australians, Buy Here! Order from Boomerang Books in Australia.
- The Best of Fantasy Authors Handbook …is now available–58 revised and expanded essays from the first five years of FAH!
- Tales from the Fathomless Abyss The anthology that started it all!
- The Haunting of Dragon's Cliff with Mel Odom, a new sword & sorcery barbarian is born!
- Completely Broken A novel of contemporary horror
- Annihilation My entry in the Forgotten Realms series R.A. Salvatore’s War of the Spider Queen
- A Reader's Guide to R.A. Salvatore's the Legend of Drizzt An essential companion to the greatest hero of the Forgotten Realms world
- I Made a Friend An alternate history/dieselpunk story for your Kindle!
- Morbid Dread of the Dawn Read my story in The Pulp Horror Book of Phobias!
- The Dogs Are In the Alley Again: A new horror story in Jitter #7
- Harbinger Asylum: Published one of my poems!
- The Lighthouse Keeper That Left A new poem in Harbinger’s Asylum!
- MegaTraveller: MANHUNT: Thirty-two years late, but better than never!
Communicate With Me
- Twitter @PhilAthans Admit it, you need to keep up with me at least a couple times a day.
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- GoodReads Join me at Facebook-for-readers
- Find me on Kindlepreneur: Master Guide to Selecting the Best Book Editor
Interviews & Guest Posts
- CLARKESWORLD INTERVIEW 1: I took part in a roundtable interview with other speculative fiction editors.
- MAKE-BELIEVE MONDAYS INTERVIEW: Debra Parmley’s Make-Believe Mondays is a must-read blog for SF/Fantasy fans, and she’s interviewed lil’ ol’ me!
- Celebrity Game Table: A detailed look at my Tegel Manor Campaign from 2003.
- Monsters in D&D, Books, Movies… Dicegeeks Podcast interview with Phil!
- Longwinded One Podcast: Episode 158: Philip Athans: The Years of Phil
- Classic Monsters, Modern Love: How a New Generation of Fans is Keeping the Universal Monsters Alive
- Publisher's Weekly “Is the Universe Expanding or Contracting?”
- Hunting for MANHUNT: The behind the scenes tale of my lost MegaTraveller adventure!
- Inside Storytelling: Writing Monsters, Creatures & Villains
- Porter Anderson vs. Movie Examples: With some nice things to say about my Living Dialogue seminar at the Writer’s Digest conference.
- 10 Questions with…ME! I get grilled by Ryan Schneider.
- SF Signal Mind Meld: Aliens I join other SF/F authors and editors on the subject of what makes a good alien.
- Ask the (Book) Editors: Panel video from 2013 Emerald City Comicon!
- Writer's Digest Guest Blog: How to Make a Vampire Not Suck
- Horror Authors: How to Scare the Heck Out of Your Readers A guest post at The Write Life with practical tips for scaring the crap out of your readers.
- Writer's Digest Interview: On Writing F&SF.
- How To Write Monsters With Philip Athans The Creative Penn Podcasts me!
- Roleplaying Tips: Interviews me!
- The Fanitarium Podcast: Interviews Philip Athans
- How to Create a Magic System: M.S. Farzan and Storyteller’s Handbook features The Guide to Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction
- How to Write Horror: Reading, Breathing and the Long Sentence (at Writer’s Digest)
- Worldcasting: I join the guys from Worldbuilding Magazine for a chat about… everything!
Past Posts
Category Archives: Video Games
WHAT MAKES A MONSTER SCARY?
The clock is ticking on the imminent release of Writing Monsters, so how about a full chapter to whet your appetite? I’d like to meet the first person who ever ate a lobster. Imagine being the first to pick up … Continue reading
Posted in Books, creative team, Dungeons & Dragons, fantasy movies, horror movies, horror novels, how to write fiction, monsters, Publishing Business, RPG, Science Fiction & Fantasy Novels, science fiction movies, Science Fiction Story, SF and Fantasy Authors, transmedia, Video Games, Writing, writing advice, Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy
Tagged author, authors, best fantasy novels, Books, children's book, comic books, creating monsters, creative process, Dungeons & Dragons, editor, Fantasy, Fiction, genre fiction, monster movies, monsters, Philip Athans, Publishing, Publishing Business, scary monster, Science Fiction, worldbuilding, Writing, writing advice, writing exercises, writing process
14 Comments
WRITING MONSTERS
At last it can be revealed in all its glory: my upcoming book from Writer’s Digest: Writing Monsters. Picking up where The Guide to Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction left off, at least in the case of monsters, this book … Continue reading
Posted in Anime, Arron of the Black Forest, Books, comic books, creative team, Dungeons & Dragons, fantasy movies, horror movies, horror novels, how to write fiction, monsters, Publishing Business, RPG, Science Fiction & Fantasy Novels, science fiction movies, Science Fiction Story, SF and Fantasy Authors, transmedia, Video Games, Writing, writing advice, Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy
Tagged author, authors, best fantasy novels, Books, children's book, comic books, Conan, creating monsters, creative process, Dungeons & Dragons, e-books, editor, Fantasy, Fiction, Forgotten Realms, genre fiction, monster, monster movies, monsters, Philip Athans, Publishing, Publishing Business, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Star Wars novels, teen books, Wizards of the Coast, worldbuilding, Writers Digest, Writing, writing advice, writing exercises, writing monsters, writing process
6 Comments
BOUGHT!
Saturday was National Buy a Book Day and once again, we went out as a family and . . . you guessed it . . . bought books! I’ve asked people to do three things in honor of National Buy a Book Day: 1. … Continue reading
Posted in Books, comic books, E-Books, indie publishing, National Buy a Book Day, Publishing Business, Romance Novels, Science Fiction & Fantasy Novels, SF and Fantasy Authors, Video Games, Writing, Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy
Tagged author, authors, best sellers, Books, children's book, comic books, e-books, Fantasy, Fiction, genre fiction, Philip Athans, Powell's Bookstore, Publishing, Publishing Business, read more, Science Fiction, teen books, Writing, writing advice
1 Comment
I GEEK, YOU GEEK
Let’s call this one a love letter to jocks everywhere . . . I’m a geek. I’m a nerd, too. In England they’d call me an anorak. If I were to travel to Japan I would be an otaku, I think. The definition … Continue reading
Posted in Anime, authors helping authors, authors to writers, best fantasy blogs, best genre fiction blogs, best horror blogs, best science fiction blogs, best websites for authors, best websites for writers, Books, conventions, Dungeons & Dragons, fiction writing blog, fiction writing websites, help for writers, helping writers become authors, how to write fantasy, how to write fiction, how to write horror, how to write science fiction, Publishing Business, RPG, Science Fiction & Fantasy Novels, science fiction movies, SF and Fantasy Authors, transmedia, Traveller, Video Games, websites for authors, websites for writers, writers to authors, Writing, writing advice, Writing Community, writing fantasy, writing horror, writing science fiction, Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy
Tagged author, authors, Books, creative process, Dungeons & Dragons, Fantasy, geek, geek chic, geek culture, genre fiction, golf, golf geek, Magic: The Gathering, nerd, Philip Athans, Publishing, Publishing Business, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Wizards of the Coast, Wondercon, Writing, writing advice
4 Comments
OUCH!
I’ve been thinking about pain lately. I know that might sound terribly grim and negative, but I can’t help it. I have this toothache, see, and it’s difficult to think about anything else. When I wake up in the morning … Continue reading
Posted in Arron of the Black Forest, Books, comic books, creative team, Dungeons & Dragons, horror movies, horror novels, Publishing Business, RPG, Science Fiction & Fantasy Novels, SF and Fantasy Authors, transmedia, Traveller, Video Games, Writing, Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy
Tagged author, authors, Books, creative process, editor, Fantasy, Fiction, genre fiction, Philip Athans, Science Fiction, Star Trek, toothache pain, wisdom tooth pain, Writing, writing advice, writing process
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PREDATOR/PREY: WHY MONSTERS ARE SCARY
I love monsters. I love monster movies, monsters in books, monsters in games . . . I have a huge collection of role-playing game products, stretching back to my first encounter with the medium in the summer of 1978. I have cycled through … Continue reading
Posted in Books, creative team, Dungeons & Dragons, fantasy movies, horror movies, horror novels, Publishing Business, Science Fiction & Fantasy Novels, SF and Fantasy Authors, transmedia, Video Games, Writing, Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy
Tagged author, authors, Books, creative process, Dungeons & Dragons, Fantasy, Fiction, genre fiction, Philip Athans, Publishing, Publishing Business, Science Fiction, Wizards of the Coast, worldbuilding, Writing, writing advice, writing process
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NO ONE CARES ABOUT YOUR GREAT IDEA
Years ago, I was chatting with my friend Jess Lebow, and told him about this great idea I had for a video game. I don’t even remember the idea anymore, but I do remember his response: “No one cares about … Continue reading
Posted in authors helping authors, authors to writers, best fantasy blogs, best genre fiction blogs, best horror blogs, best science fiction blogs, best websites for authors, best websites for writers, Books, creative team, fiction writing blog, fiction writing websites, help for writers, helping writers become authors, how to write fantasy, how to write fiction, how to write horror, how to write science fiction, Publishing Business, Science Fiction & Fantasy Novels, SF and Fantasy Authors, transmedia, Video Games, websites for authors, websites for writers, writers to authors, Writing, writing advice, Writing Community, writing fantasy, writing horror, writing science fiction, Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy
Tagged author, authors, Books, creative process, editor, Fantasy, Fiction, genre fiction, Leonardo Da Vinci, Philip Athans, Publishing, Publishing Business, Science Fiction, worldbuilding, Writing, writing advice, writing process
15 Comments
A DAY OF ME3TINGS
I’m afraid all I can spare this week is the lightest of blog posts, and with only a teaspoonful of actual advice for authors. Tomorrow morning I leave for the airport at about 5:00 am for a 7:25 flight from … Continue reading
BOOKS FOR FANTASY AUTHORS XIII: COLUMBINE
From time to time I’ll recommend—not review, mind you, but recommend, and yes, there is a difference—books that I think science fiction and fantasy authors should have on their shelves. Some may be new and still in print, some may … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Publishing Business, Science Fiction & Fantasy Novels, SF and Fantasy Authors, Video Games, Writing, Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy
Tagged author, authors, Books, Columbine, creative process, editor, evil, Fantasy, Fiction, genre fiction, Philip Athans, Publishing, Science Fiction, villain, Writing, writing advice, writing process
4 Comments
Fantasy Author's Handbook 