Edie here. I cannot tell you how excited I am to have Ralene Burke joining us here on The Write Conversation. She's an amazing spec fiction author and has a heart to help other writers. I know you will be as blessed as I am to have her here. Be sure to give her a warm TWC welcome!
A New Year & A New Column for Writers
by Ralene Burke @RaleneB
Happy New Year, writers! My name is Ralene Burke, and I am the Marketing Director for Realm Makers (more on that in a minute). I am so thrilled that Edie invited us to have a monthly column on The Write Conversation. I have so many exciting things to share with you in the coming months—writing tips, special guests, and more—all having to do with some aspect of the growing genre of speculative fiction.
Whether she’s wielding a fantasy writer’s pen, a social media wand, or a freelance editor’s sword, Ralene Burke always has her head in some dreamer’s world. And her goal is to help everyone #SHINE Beyond their circumstances! Her novels, Bellanok and Armor of Aletheia, are available on Amazon. More fantasy novels coming soon!
A New Year & A New Column for Writers
by Ralene Burke @RaleneB
Happy New Year, writers! My name is Ralene Burke, and I am the Marketing Director for Realm Makers (more on that in a minute). I am so thrilled that Edie invited us to have a monthly column on The Write Conversation. I have so many exciting things to share with you in the coming months—writing tips, special guests, and more—all having to do with some aspect of the growing genre of speculative fiction.
What IS Speculative Fiction?
Wait, what? You’re not sure what speculative fiction is? Well, I’ve got you covered. Speculative fiction is an umbrella genre that encompasses all stories that involve speculating beyond what we currently know: fantasy, sci-fi, supernatural/paranormal, horror, steampunk, and of course any mash-up that includes those genres.
Speculative fiction is not just Star Wars and Lord of the Rings. Some authors, like Frank Peretti, are celebrated in the Christian market, while others find crossover success, like Ted Dekker, Thomas Locke, or Tosca Lee, all who have been keynote speakers at Realm Makers.
We’ve seen a resurgence in recent years of readers looking for cleaner speculative fiction. I’m not talking squeaky clean—but stories that leave out gratuitous sex scenes and graphic violence. We’re happy to report there’s also a growing number of authors rising to meet this need!
What IS Realm Makers?
Realm Makers is the premiere organization bridging the gap between speculative fiction writers of faith, whether they write for the Christian market or the general market, and the readers looking for engaging books from a Christian worldview. We are mid-way through our sixth year, and we’re still growing and expanding with so many opportunities for writers and readers.
What do we offer?
For writers:
- Our Writers Conference, held July 18-20 in St. Louis this year, is our annual opportunity to come together to learn, network, and grow our family!
- Our Membership Program has plenty of benefits like the special Slack community, webinars by publishing professionals, a valuable newsletter, discounts on conference registration, and marketing opportunities.
- The Realm Awards are our annual awards program where we celebrate the best in speculative fiction by writers of faith.
- Realm Makers Consortium is a Facebook community open to all speculative fiction writers whether they are members of Realm Makers or not.
For readers:
- The Mobile Bookstore, where we take select books to the readers by attending book festivals, homeschool conferences, and more!
- The Online Bookstore is the place to see our inventory if you can’t make it to one of the events.
- Monthly Newsletter that highlights new releases, author interviews, etc.
I look forward to getting to know y’all in the coming months, and I hope you will ask me any questions you have or just let me know what you love about speculative fiction (whether you write it or read it)! I’ll catch up with you all next month.
TWEETABLES
A New Year & A New Column for Writers from @RaleneB on @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)
When her head’s not in the publishing world, she is wife to a veteran and homeschooling mama to their three kids. Her Pinterest board would have you believe she is a master chef, excellent seamstress, and all-around crafty diva. If she only had the time . . . You can also find her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or at her website.
Ralene & TWC, as I mentioned in my intro I'm super excited to have you on here and to be able to let others know about Realm Makers. For those who don't know, I'm a member of their paid site and find it IMMENSELY valuable! I also attended the Realm Makers conference last year and it's now on my must-go-ever-year list! Blessings, E
ReplyDeleteAw...thank you, Edie! What a blessing your kind words are. I'll look forward to seeing you at RM again this year, then! :P
DeleteWelcome Ralene. I am looking forward to read your posts.
ReplyDeleteThank you! And I look forward to getting to know the followers here like you!
DeleteRalene - thanks for defining Speculative Fiction. Not my genre; but you have perfectly described what my creative 24 yr old DS is all about. Yet he’s been tight with Jesus since he was 4 and sometimes it’s hard to reconcile his faith and his genre. I will tell him to check out your site! :)
ReplyDeleteHi Chris! I totally get what your DS has been going through--I know a lot of have struggled either with reconciling our genre with our own faith or with the expectations of other Christians. I hope if he checks us out, he might find the hope and inspiration he is looking for.
DeleteHi Ralene!
ReplyDeleteI just joined Realm Makers last week after I heard about it for the first time from a co-student in one of Margie Lawson's writing classes. I'm writing a my second book as a fantasy but realize it fits in speculative fiction. I'm also planning to attend the 2019 conference! Need to meet you! Allyson
It's a pleasure to meet you, Allyson! I am so glad you found our community, and I look forward to seeing you in person at the conference. It's going to be an epic year!
DeleteWelcome, Ralene! I, too, have daughters and good friends who are speculative fiction writers, and your inclusion on this blog (one of my faves!) is brilliant!
ReplyDeleteAw, thanks, Regina. I hope my contribution can help and inspire all writers, regardless whether they write spec or not. :)
DeleteI admit, a few years ago, I had to google 'spec fiction' before I agreed to read and judge a title for the Selah awards. Since then, I've been a part of the writing walk of three spec fiction authors.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to following your column.
Speculative fiction seems to be a term that even people who write fantasy/sci-fi don't necessarily know--but it's so much easier than saying *deep breath* fantasy/sci-fi/supernatural/steampunk/horror/etc. :) So glad to hear that you've taken a shine to the genre.
DeleteSQUEEEE!!! Super excited to see you here, Ralene!!!
ReplyDelete*hugs* Thank you, Robin!
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