Category: News and Editorials
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Of Mothers and Daughters…
Years ago, a reader shared with me how much she appreciated the focus on motherhood in my stories. This caught me by surprise because I’m not a mother and hadn’t intentionally made motherhood a theme in my writing. But this reader’s comment made me think about the role of mothers in my novels, and I…
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Black History Month: How to Find Black Indie Authors
While I’m sure you’ve heard of contemporary Black authors like Octavia Butler, Walter Mosely, Terry McMillian, Nnedi Okorafor, James McBride, Samuel R. Delaney, and Tomi Adeyemi, I bet you’re less familar with Milton J. Davis, Amanda B. Weaver, Alicia Ellis, C. C. Solomon, Jessica Cage, and Antoine Bandele. That’s because the latter are indie authors,…
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Next Newsletter Issue Coming Sunday…
Happy new year! I’m excited to announce that the next issue of my newsletter will be dropping this Sunday. To welcome us into the new year, I’m offering my book, Eve and the Faders, for free to those who subscribe before the release of the next newsletter. So don’t miss this opportunity to add another…
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It’s a Black Queer Thing: Four Black Queer SFF Novels
Happy Pride Month and Juneteeth! If you regularly follow Waking Writer, you know that I’m an indie author of fantasy, paranormal, and sci-fi novels that center queer Black women. I’m hyper aware of how invisible Black queer authors are, whether indie or traditionally-published. But we’re out here, y’all, if you look hard enough. The fact…
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Level Up Your Writing: What Authors Can Learn from Video Games
Like most writers, I’m always on the hunt for inspiration. Seeking a spark for their next story, some writers devour books, watch movies or tv shows, and travel to new or exciting places. But there’s another treasure trove I’ve found for inspiration: video games. Full disclosure: I’m an avid gamer. I played video games when…
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Next Newsletter Issue Coming Friday…
Back in 2022, I launched a quarterly newsletter called “Berneta’s Reading Misfits.” While I’m great at keeping Waking Writer up-to-date, I’m not as stellar about keeping a steady newsletter for those interested in my own books and writings. But there’s no better time than the present to make some changes, eh? In past issues of…
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Challenges of Writing Fantasy (and How to Avoid Pulling Out All Your Hair)
Last year, I began my work-in-progress: a fantasy about a struggling actor who stumbles into a parallel world. Not only is the novel my first portal fantasy, but it has some typical fantasy tropes, such as taverns, lots of travel and quests, sorcerers and magics, were-people, etc. Unlike my previous novels, which fall more into…
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Sci-fi and Fantasy Book Giveaways in June!
Prolific Works regularly does book giveaways that allow indie authors to get their books in front of more people. Readers can get free samples of books and, in some cases, free whole books. I often use Prolific Works to offer free samples of my books and find other authors. About this month’s giveaways: June Sci-Fi…
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New Group for Indie Writers and Readers
As you may remember, fellow indie author Cendrine Marrouat and I created an #AuthorIndieSpeak Twitter chat last year, where we discussed all sorts of things relevant to indie authors. We discussed marketing, how to publish, reaching readers, and much more. We’ve decided a Facebook group might be a better format for these conversations and better…
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Five Characteristics of Great Speculative Fiction
Speculative fiction explores the unknown, the impossible, and the extraordinary. The genre (which includes fantasy, science fiction, horror, superhero fiction, dystopian, utopian, and other stories with supernatural and/or futuristic elements) allows us to venture into the uncharted territories of our imagination, and delve into worlds that challenge our understanding of what is possible. I write…
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