While you're doing all that you've also got your butt parked in a chair as often as possible, doing the actual craft of writing, one word at a time. Take notes, write reviews, whatever you have to do to start looking at it as a writer (as a *student*) and not as an audience member. Think about what you are reading, analyze it, see how it works. Go to conventions, meet people that do what you want to do and suck their brains out with a straw (metaphorically).ĭon't be afraid to cut your teeth on other projects, like the sort of things you find here: Īnd read widely, not just the kind of things you want to write. Go to forums that are focused on writing, and not just for rpgs. Submit fiction, talk to editors, or maybe even see if you can volunteer for small markets as an editor yourself. You should also engage with all sorts of people. A few good fanfic pieces won't communicate those factors to an editor the way a list of published credits will. Good writing and ideas are important, but there are a lot of other factors that go into making a writer, like how well they take edits and how they handle deadlines. Look at the bios for the pathfinder fiction authors and investigate the other stuff they've done prior to PF. For some idea of what kind of markets are out there have a look at this site: Here is a bit of unsolicited advice, some of which has already been touched on.įirst, if you are serious about writing fiction, you need to look beyond writing in just one world or for just one audience. If you can hear what the haters say, and pick the truth out of it, you will find that it will make you a better writer. I'm not sure who said it, maybe Sun-Tzu, but there's an old saying to the effect that you shouldn't listen to what your friends say about you, because they love you and will withhold certain information from you in order to avoid hurting you, rather listen closely to what your enemies say about you, because they will speak the ugly truth. Not only will Paizo then have the opportunity to review it, but you will also very likely get some very direct feedback from the community.īefore you do that, however, I would also strongly encourage you to make sure that you have a very thick skin, and that you're actually up to the task of hearing people potentially trash your labor of love in very cruel ways. I would strongly encourage you to start a thread on these forums with a sample of your writing. I'm pretty sure Burdock was using "professional" as a way to measure the quality of the writing, rather than in the literal every time I've ever heard advice for writers, it boils down to one thing: Write. Please note: I am not a Paizo or Goblinworks employee of any kind, and nothing I have said above is meant to be read as the corporate policies of either entity. If you are instead asking: Paizo/Goblinworks, can I write for you? I would direct you to this portion of their website's FAQ You could be in fairly serious legal trouble. On the other hand, if you are writing something set in the Pathfinder world and being paid for it, without Paizo's knowledge (and consent), you're infringing on their intellectual property, the same as you would be if you wrote and published a Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance, Warhammer 40K, Star Trek, Eberron, or Star Wars piece. I don't know Paizo's stance on free fan-fiction, so I won't speak to that at all. Professional fan-fiction is typically a nonexistent contradiction in terms: To write professionally is to be paid for what you produce, while Fan Fiction is usually unpaid (being fiction that is written and shared with a fan community without monetary recompense).
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