Many of the conversations online that concern “genre fiction” generally mean sci/fi, fantasy and horror. This stuff is distinguished from “mainstream” genres like contemporary dramas and comedies, and period pieces that are…well, dramas and comedies. it also doesn't include big genres like romance and psychological thrillers.
The ...

The Crime Genre
Banes at 12:00AM, Dec. 17, 2020Romanticising Something Terrible
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Oct. 24, 2020
Who doesn't love pirates?
Kids love to dress up as them in Halloween or during carnival season. There was whole a whole era of Hollywood where pirate movies were the blockbuster vein of gold. Pirates in fiction are charming, fun, dastardly, and the epitome of adventure.
Pirates in real ...
QUACKCAST 494 - No antagonist is the best antagonist?
Ozoneocean at 12:00AM, Sept. 1, 2020 LISTEN on our new player!
Listen on Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/adarunkduck-quackcast
Or TuneinRadio - https://tunein.com/podcasts/Books–Literature/Drunkduck-Quackcast-p1150194/
Does a story always need an antagonist embodied in the form of an active character? I don't think they do! We chat about examples of stories ...
Choosing Your Genre
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Aug. 1, 2020
For better or for worse, we are creatures of categorizations. We love to label things, and to sort them into neat little boxes so that we are absolutely certain we know what to expect when dealing with each one. It is that sense of familiarity that we are looking for ...
Revisionist Historical Fiction
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, May 30, 2020
So over here on Greek TV, there's this very popular drama series that happens to be set in a Greek mainland village in the 1950s, and sells itself as ‘authentically representing an era’. It started off very promising, as a crime drama + family drama kind of story where three ...
More Thoughts on Discovery Writing
Banes at 12:00AM, May 21, 2020
We've had some interesting discussions on various Newsposts, in the Forum and elsewhere on theduckwebcomics about knowing your ending, knowing your genre, planning ahead and outlining vs. ‘pantsing’ or ‘Discovery writing’, which is writing without knowing where you're going.
Though up to now I've mostly been a ...
The Means Make the Villain
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, May 2, 2020
There are the mustache-twirling villains, that enjoy being evil. They're deliciously fun!
Then there are the nutjob villains. Those that are basket cases one way or the other, psychopaths or antisocial, unfettered madmen with a logic of their own that wreaks havoc upon the world. They're also very ...
QUACKCAST 465 - Planning Vs pantsing!
Ozoneocean at 12:00AM, Feb. 11, 2020 LISTEN on our new player!
Listen on Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drunkduck-quackcast
Or TuneinRadio - https://tunein.com/podcasts/Books–Literature/Drunkduck-Quackcast-p1150194/
There are a couple of approaches when it comes to making a big creative project: planing it all out or working things out as you go ie ...