OzSpecFic 101
(This article originally appeared in the Victorian Writer's Centre publication Victorian Writer November 2006)
That’s it! You tap the final line of your specfic masterpiece into the keyboard and you’re done. Suddenly the door
bursts open. It’s the commissioning editor for HarperCollins Voyager, the biggest specfic imprint in the country.
‘Give me that story!’ she cries. ‘We want it for a huge launch with simultaneous foreign language releases in
France, Germany and Poland. Would you settle for a six figure advance?’
If only. The trouble with writing great stuff is it’s not enough. You have to go out and hawk it. And to do that,
and make sure you’re not wasting your or anybody else’s time, you have to know the market. So welcome to OzSpecFic
101, or everything you needed to know about breaking into the oz specfic market and beyond.
As a rule, best selling authors in the genre don’t suddenly spring out of nowhere and latch a three book deal.
They’re already part of the local specfic community. So how do you go about becoming part of that? How do you know
who’s who in the intergalactic zoo?
Conventions
There are two kinds. Media cons where hordes of Spock-eared and Xena-clad neophytes come to hear their favourite
actors, watch non-stop back-to-back episodes of their favourite show and buy action figures, and then there’s the
other kind with a heavy focus on writers panels, author talks, ‘how to write...’ workshops, and more than a little
social drinking. Going to these is a great way to meet Australian authors, editors, and mainstream and independent
publishers – a gold-mine for any prospective specfic writer. Here’s some to check out –
Convergence 2 (the next natcon to be held in Melbourne in 2007)
Conflux (annual Canberra con)
Swancon (if you feel like going to Perth next Easter)
Publishers
Go to any bookshop with a reasonable science fiction section and you’ll see who the mainstream Australian genre
publishers are. But it’s the smaller, independent publishers, the ones you won’t see at Borders or Dymocks, where
you’ll have a better chance of selling your work to begin with. Then you can trade on your modest success with the
big boys.
Agog! (publisher of very successful anthologies), Ticonderoga (online and print opportunities here), Mirrordanse
(a venerable specfic publishing house), Canberra Science Fiction Guild (you don’t have to be Canberran to publish
here), Altair, and my venture with Andrew Macrae, coeur de lion.
Then of course there’s the magazines
Aurealis (the longest running oz mag), Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine (takes off every two months!),
Borderlands, Dark Animus, Orb, Shadowed Realms, the list goes on…
Market News
Another good way to find out what’s going on. One of the best Australian sites to log on to is Inkspillers. If you
want to try the US market, look no further than Ralan. And join an email group to get all the latest news and
more. The best in Australia is the Eidolist. Send an email with ‘subscribe’ in the title field to eidolist@eidolon.
net. And while your at it subscribe to the Australian SF Bullsheet (yep!) . There are also online critting groups
for specfic (if you don’t have any knowledgeable friends handy) like Other Worlds.
Manuscript Assessment
If you want some expert advice, solid editing, comments on style, structure, characterisation, use of technology
or magic, then you could consider shelling out for professional manuscript assessment. These services are run by
people who know the genre inside and out, and that’s why it’s 100% better than a more mainstream assessment. And
they can give you advice on suitable markets too. Bods in the business include Sarah Endacott, Robert N
Stephenson, Barbara J Holten, and, if and only if you have a Science Fiction mss, myself .
Tuition
Check out your local TAFE or the VWC for specfic oriented writing courses. Or if you want to immerse yourself in
the crucible, apply for Clarion South. This short story writing residential course is auspiced by the SFWA and run
by Fantastic Queensland, a powerhouse in specfic groups that emerged in that northern state a few years back and
also runs the Aurealis Awards. It’s a 6 week residential with rotating author tutors, including the biggest names
in Australian and US specfic. The Varuna Writer’s Centre has also hosted some up and coming specfic authors.
There’s also the monthly Melbourne-based critting group SuperNOVA, although they’re pretty full right now but use
the ‘Contact Us’ link.
So there you go. You have all the info to start getting involved in the local specfic community, and making the
right contacts to increase your chances of publication. They’re a nice bunch of people and, as Douglas Adams said,
‘mostly harmless.’ So get out there and make some new friends. Good luck, and here’s to the future!
Copyright by Keith Stevenson © 2006