The Importance of Kindness

October 10th, 2022  |  Season 5  |  11 mins 44 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, kindness, worldcon77, writers, writing, writing tips

These days, people prioritize a lot of things. Truth. Honesty. Maximizing share holder wealth. But there is something that seems undervalued — often described as a tool of the weak by those who are so inclined. But they’re wrong.

Today, I’m talking about the importance of kindness.

At the titular panel at WorldCon2019, Corinne Duyvis, Geoff Ryman, Claire Light, and Vanessa Rose Phin shared their thoughts about the true importance of kindness.

Portrayals of Mental Health In Genre Fiction

October 3rd, 2022  |  Season 5  |  13 mins 32 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, mental health, worldcon77, writers, writing, writing tips

Portrayals of people with mental illnesses have come a long way. From variety to accuracy to ending stereotypes.

In the titular panel at WorldCon2019, Alasdair Stuart, Penny Jones, Dr. Glyn Morgan, and Devin Madson, discussed who gets it right… and who gets it wrong.

Authors and Social Media: Friend or Foe

September 26th, 2022  |  Season 5  |  24 mins 23 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, social media, worldcon77, writers, writing, writing tips

Authors get a lot of mixed advice when it comes to social media. Let’s talk about different author approaches and tips and tricks to make social media work for you. In this post, I’m combining notes from two panels.

From the titular panel, Francesca T. Barbini, Gareth Powell, and Georgina Kamsika discussed if social media was our friend… or our foe.

And in Social Media: Tips and Tricks, Brenda Noiseux, Stevie Finegan, Lydia Gittens, and Pablo Defendini shared their experience with us.

In the Background: Class in YA Fiction

September 12th, 2022  |  Season 5  |  12 mins 6 secs

beta-reading, books, class, critique, worldcon77, writers, writing, writing tips, ya

In the real world, the social class we come from can have far-reaching consequences into our lives: from the jobs we hold, to the things that worry us, to our long-lasting health. Getting class, and its consequences right, can be tricky to do.

In the titular panel at WorldCon2019, Marieke Nÿkamp, Avery Delany, Caroline Hooton, and Victoria Lee discussed the ways their class upbringing compared to their current social class, and the implications inherent in that.

YA Futures

August 15th, 2022  |  Season 5  |  8 mins 55 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, worldcon77, writers, writing, writing tips, ya

YA is big and has been since the late 90s. But the future today doesn’t look like it did even 10 or 20 years ago. What do YA fantasy and science fiction readers want today?

At the titular panel at WorldCon2019, I had the opportunity to listen to the top professionals in the field discuss what they see coming. On the panel were Charlie Jane Anders, James Smythe, Eric Picholle, Fonda Lee, and Kristina Perez.