Table of Contents

Resources : Discussions on Writing

This is a growing collection of AH.com discussions on the topic of writing - not just alternate history, but also other related genres of literature or other media.

NOTE: Please do not resurrect long-dead discussions (i.e. dead for several years). It is against good conduct on the board. If the thread you found interesting is really, really old, you should rather start a new thread with the same topic or a similar topic, if you really want to discuss it. (Though you can link to the older, dead thread in the opening post of the new thread, if you want to. Just for completeness' sake.)


General musings and discussions

Tips on writing for the web, prepared by Kit

Tips on how to write

Problems You Have As A Writer (And Solutions To Them)

How to write more, quicker and how much ?

Any tips on finishing stories faster ?

How do you write ?

Making stories with characterization

Writing Craft: How do you handle physical descriptions?

The Official Timeline, History and Story Help Thread

The Worldbuilding Thread

The Conlanging Thread and Constructed Languages

The Speculative Biology Thread

Worst clichés ?

How does everyone feel about multiethnic character names ?

Names of foreign characters created as corruptions of names ?

Fictional characters with names hilariously inappropriate to their ethnicity

Theme Naming in Video Games

What's something you'd revise in your favorite work of fiction ?

What makes a good children's book ?

Worst portrayal of military tactics in a work of fiction

Things fiction always gets wrong

The Original Fiction Mary Sue Test

Examples of Mary Sues in fiction

Worst Mary Sues

Fictional characters with names hilariously inappropriate to their ethnicity

What types of characters do you find underrated in fiction ?

Your pick: Most touching non-mushy lovestory ?

The "Logan's Run Problem" in fiction

"Iceberg Chart" of things to consider when depicting a fictional (or fictionalised) culture

Worldbuilding & Story Writing Software

Fiction: Should it reflect the times or be an escape from them ?

Orphaned Ideas


Alternate History

HELP: How to Write a Timeline

Useful Essays on Writing Alternate History

Alternate History Clichés

What are the Golden Rules of timeline writing ?

I wanna write a TL, but...

Indicating the alternate bits in your prose

Ekranoplans: The 'New Dirigible' of AH Fiction ?

The Official Timeline, History and Story Help Thread

A Thought on the Multiverse and Alternate History

Why do things always go wrong in alternate timelines ?

ATLs that lead to OTL

Are we too obsessive about plausibility ?

What to do about butterflies ?

Favorite alternate history premise ?

What's an alternate history cliche that you're never tired of ?

Which is worse? An implausible alternate history or a boring alternate history?

Quirks you put in your timelines

Why do ATLs often "end" before the present

How do you plan a timeline without getting lost in the detail?

Concept discussion: Cross-timeline travel possible, but with weird side effects

Would modern Jet Fighters work if ISOTed in the past ?

Help FC build an army

Alternate History Cruelty Potential

What nation/peoples/ethnicities deserve a timelime

How to implement ASBs into a story?

Amateur AH fan wants to write


Science Fiction

Engineering A Planet

Exo-planets, and how to simply model them

Alien Worlds Thread

Official Alien, Alternate and Future Species and Cultures Repository

Current religions in space and on alien worlds

What should humanity's first colonized world be named ?

Names for space settlements (mostly in the Solar System)

Question: Skies of other worlds

Building an Earth-like World

Speculating about Alien Civilizations

Realistic first contact

What is the answer to the Fermi Paradox ?

Why are aliens in fiction so humanlike ?

Of Alien Races and Originality

How "alien" can an alien animal really be with the law of convergent evolution

Tips on designing alien species and civilisations

Aliens and humans interbreeding ?

Can we eat aliens ?

What is your favourite alien species ?

Stuff to contemplate when designing aliens

Thoughts on Alien Monoculture

General question on writing up a fictional transplanted human culture

Works with subverted "United Earth" trope

What would the UK name a space colony ?

Need appropriate name suggestions for planets colonised by a specific nation(ality)

Best name for Chinese space empire of the far future ?

Question about Mars colonisation and the Sabbath

Plausibility of Earth-Mars cold war

What is civilian life like in popular sci-fi ?

Can someone recommend some "demilitarized" names for fictional police ranks ?

Why Science Fiction Detective Stories Aren't Impossible (article by Mark Cole at Clarke's World Magazine)

How could Earth withstand an attack ?

Space combat idea

Use of nuclear weapons in space

How to invade an O'Neill Cylinder space colony

A dumb question on growing crops in space

What is the weakest sci-fi universe you know of ?

What sci-fi universe would you like to live in ?

The pitfalls of writing comedic sci-fi ?

Is modern military sci-fi too prudish ?

Cyberpunk-esque themes/settings that haven't been used ?

Trojan planets and their implications

Building a Hard Sci-Fi Universe

Works with "United Earth" trope subverted

Sci-fi Worldbuilding Thread (defunct, start a new one)


Fantasy Fiction

The General Fantasy Discussion Thread

Preferred Tone of Fantasy Genre

Fantasy clichés

What common medieval fantasy tropes have no basis in actual history ?

What's Right and Wrong with Fantasy ?

How to make a not so generic fantasy setting ?

How did knights, princesses and dragons become a fairytale cliché ?

Understanding High Fantasy and the inherent difficulty of writing it ?

Does a fantasy story need to have a central antagonist ? (Story help)

Fantasy Naming Conventions

Royal Titles in Fantasy

Homemade Noble Titles

Favourite fantasy world

Underused cultures, time periods, and settings in fantasy

Medieval European fantasy world ideas not based on the British Isles

Early Modern Fantasy ?

Ideal fantasy story setting (not stereotypical)

Fantasy without the magic

Random thoughts on ice magic

Fantasy with technological development ?

Industrial fantasy

Most plausible way for gunpowder and magic to coexist ?

Reconciling gunpowder use with fantasy settings

Gunpowder dominant fantasy setting?

Industrial Age in Middle Earth

A new kind of fantasy

Fantastical Democracy

Underused fantasy races ?

What are some possible ethnic slurs for Dwarves ?

More realistic vampires

How to kill a dragon

Writing humorous speech on the threats of monsters (or lack thereof), need help

A post-apocalyptic Lord of the Rings

A post-apocalyptic Oliver Twist

Types of RPG character classes in modern day settings ?

The Grand List of Urban Fantasy Clichés

What would Tolkien have thought of Star Wars

Comparing the styles of J. R. R. Tolkien and G. R. R. Martin

What is a good name for a metal that is anti-magical ?

Question about alcohol in fantasy


Mixed Genre / Multiple Genres

Religious and cultural clichés in SF and fantasy worldbuilding

Evolution of Fictional Creatures

What kind of 'Punk' do you like ?

Genres specific to a historical setting ?

A few points for Victorian and Edwardian period writers

Why isn't Cyberpunk sci-fi as popular anymore ?

"Clockpunk"

Industrial Fantasy

The Official Steampunk Thread

Best examples of steampunk fiction ?

Magical Steampunk: Yay or nay ?

Dieselpunk

Dieselpunk ?

The Official Dieselpunk Thread

Dieselpunk works recommendations

Technology without petroleum

Magical races in a fascist and communist environment ?

TL Help Needed! "Deco-Punk" ?

The Official Atompunk Thread

The Official Jetpunk and Rocketpunk Thread


See Also

Fantasy and Alien Blank Basemaps Thread

Alien Worlds Thread

Alternate Planets, Suns, Stars, and Solar Systems Thread

Fictional nation development template

A series of in-depth articles on fantasy cities from existing fiction

Writing Excuses.com - A long-running blog about writing.

Writer's Ark - Discussion forum for writers and readers of speculative fiction.


Useful Resources Main Directory