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Science Fiction Writer  ROBERT J. SAWYER  Hugo and Nebula Award Winner SFWRITER.COM > How to Write Looking for the Robert J. Sawyer Home Page? Go there for tons of information about Robert J. Sawyer, the bestselling author of 20 novels, including the Hugo Award-winning Hominids, the Nebula Award-winning The Terminal Experiment, and the Aurora Award-winning FlashForward, basis for the ABC TV series. Click here for Rob's home page, or scroll down for his how-to-write advice.   How to Write   Robert J. Sawyer is a bestselling novelist and short-story writer. He has taught writing at the University of Toronto, Ryerson University, the Banff Centre, Humber College, and elsewhere, and he's won 44 national and international awards for his writing, including the Hugo Award, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America's Nebula Award and the Crime Writers of Canada's Arthur Ellis Award.   Writing Workshops with Rob   Information about Writers' Workshops with best-novel Hugo and Nebula Award-winner Robert J. Sawyer   "On Writing" Columns   Great Beginnings Point of View Constructing Characters Show, Don't Tell Description Speaking of Dialogue Research Heinlein's Rules Wordprocessing Tricks Cover Letters and SASEs Self-Promotion Professionalism   Other Advice   Are the days of the full-time novelist numbered? Letter to beginning writers Manuscript format checklist Complete sample manuscript Outlines and synopses Writing an effective opening line A note about characters On infodumps (the "Page 69" test) How trilogies happen The book's written, what now? Landing an agent Getting an agent's attention Breaking into the science-fiction marketplace Why self-publishing is not the way to go Reversion of rights: a case study involving Doranna Durgin and Fitzhenry & Whiteside On Canadian Film-Option Contracts Getting good press Publicity doesn't just happen: A case study Using traditional media to promote your book On being interviewed More advice on self-promotion for writers Sample press releases Using your website to promote your book Advice for authors creating a website How to make a good impression at an SF convention Picking which panels to be on at SF conventions "As you know, Bob" — Kablooie! Notes for the copyeditor Tips for public readings Why authors attend science-fiction conventions Another take on conventions Audio! Rob's lecture on "Point of View" from Odyssey: The Fantasy Writing Workshop in 2006 Audio! Rob's lecture on "Is your SF element extraneous?" from Odyssey: The Fantasy Writing Workshop in 2006 Audio! A 37-minute podcast produced by Tee Morris featuring Rob discussing what authors can do to help market their science fiction and fantasy books Audio! A The differences between writing for print and for the screen Toronto: A Writer's Tour WordStar — A Writer's Word Processor Turkey City Lexicon, the hoary, and somewhat contentious, mother of all workshopping vocabularies Submission guidelines for Robert J. Sawyer Books, a science-fiction publishing line edited by Rob Rob discusses the writing process (from the TV series Writers' Confessions)     Random Musings   On Starting Out Writing Nonfiction Formal Writing Training Writers' Groups Fat Books and Computers Thoughts on the Opening Line of End of an Era   More Good Reading   Information about Writers' Workshops with Rob Novels by Robert J. Sawyer Home Novels About Rob For Book Clubs Blog Search Short Stories Press Kit How to Write Facebook Buy Books Nonfiction E-mail Rob Canadian SF Twitter