Rite Gud

When you send a short story to a magazine, it probably doesn’t go directly to the editor. Instead, it ends up in what’s called the slush pile–the pool of unsolicited work waiting for review. Who reviews it? Weirdos like us. The post Tales From the Slush Pile by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

They say the pen is mightier than the sword, but it is way easier to kill a guy with a sword than with a pen. The post Never Bring a Pen to a Sword Fight by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

The changing of the guard in the early 2000s and the euthanization of the reactionary Sad Puppy movement in the early 2010s should have ushered in a new era of speculative fiction, an era of creative freedom and experimentation. The post A Rite Gud Minifesto by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

In this very serious episode, we honor the most important writer of the 20th century, a man forty years ahead of his time: author, visionary, dreamweaver plus actor, Garth Marenghi. The post A Tribute to Garth Marenghi, World’s Greatest Author/Visionary/Dreamweaver by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

“Here’s my new novel, A Groan of Stone and Bone. It has enemies to lovers, a chaotic bisexual, BIPOC representation, elemental magic, and tons of 'Buffy' references!”  The post More than the Sum of its Parts: Writing Beyond Tropes and Easter Eggs by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

Because 'squeecore' got so big, we decided to revisit it to address some of the discourse it generated—the good, the bad, and the ugly. The post Rite Gud: The Squeequel by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

It is time to talk about Bear, Marian Engel’s 1976 Canadian novel about a mousy librarian who falls in love with a bear. The post Rite Gud: A Bear-y Special Episode by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

What is squeecore? You’re soaking in it! Squeecore is the dominant literary movement in contemporary SFF, a movement so ubiquitous it’s nearly invisible. The post A Guide to Squeecore by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

Bram Stoker Award-winning author John Langan joins us to talk about cosmic horror, his novel The Fisherman, upstate New York, how much money writers make (none), and how hard it is to get published when you're a little too literary for the genre crowd but a little too genre for the literary crowd. The post John Langan on Cosmic Horror by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

We have girlboss Cinderella starting her own business, Snow White leading an army into battle. And why not? The post Cinderella Is Not a #Girlboss: The Problem With ‘Feminist’ Fairytale Adaptations by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

In this episode, we re-examine the saga of the notorious Sad Puppies. What happened? What ripple effects did it have on the sci-fi/fantasy community? The post Puppy Play by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

In this episode, Gretchen Felker-Martin joins us to talk about her gritty post-Apocalyptic trans novel Manhunt (spoiler free) and how an idea becomes a traditionally published book. The post How Books Happen, With Gretchen Felker-Martin by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

Are superheroes a modern mythology, or is this a way to flatten the complexities of traditional art while giving commercial media a spiritual significance it does not deserve? The post The Tragedy of the Creative Commons: On Superheroes and Modern Mythology by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

Jack from Bad Books for Bad People joins us to pay tribute to art that isn’t here to teach right from wrong—what some might call degenerate art. The post In Defense of Degenerate Art by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

A story is a type of conversation with the reader. If you don’t leave room for the reader to speak, you’re a terrible conversationalist. The post This Is My Hole, It Was Made for Me: On Negative Space and Leaving Room for the Reader by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

Genre is safe. Genre is comfortable. But do we rely on genre conventions too much? Can genre hold us back? Is genre busting good? The post Genre Bustin’ Makes Me Feel Good by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

In today's sci-fi/ fantasy community, it's fashionable to dig up H.P. Lovecraft and put him on trial as the avatar of everything wrong with speculative fiction. The post Why We Can Stop Flogging H.P. Lovecraft’s Dead Bloated Corpse by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

If you’ve spent any time talking about geek culture, you’ve probably seen one word come up over and over again: gatekeeper. The post Meet the New Gatekeeper, Same as the Old Gatekeeper by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

What makes a writer? Is it coffee and cats? Is it a good author photo? Is it having a screenname like @JaneDoeWrites? The post So You Think You’re a Writer? by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

It's normal to look for people who share your interest in pop culture. But what happens when you only know how to be queer through fandom? The post Queerness Is Not a Fandom by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

Instead of learning from books, too many fledgling writers learn to write primarily from movies, television and video games, and their writing suffers as a result. The post Books Are Not Movies: Writing the Invisible by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

As the world looks grimmer and grimmer, Millennials and Gen Xers retreat deeper and deeper into childhood nostalgia. The post To Be a Great Writer, You Must Defeat a Thousand Babies by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

Why do we love horror so much? On the surface, it makes no sense. Why would anybody enjoy media that focuses on upsetting, grotesque topics? The post Finding Beauty In Darkness by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

Cultural criticism has always been an essential part of our media ecosystem, especially when it comes to geek culture. But is any of this really meaningful, or is it just another part of the big corporate content marketing machine? The post Saving Criticism from the Corporate Marketing Machine by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .

There are many writing advice columns that won’t help you write good—that will actually encourage you to write bad, or at best mediocre. The post Bad Writing Advice by Matt Keeley appeared first on Kittysneezes .