Updated: December 2025

Writer’s Fun Zone was created by a creative writer and creativity coach, Beth Barany.

Beth Barany is an award-winning novelist, certified creativity coach, and podcaster with 20+ years guiding fiction writers from first draft to published author.

That’s me!

I created this blog to share my tips, tools, and techniques learned during my own writer’s adventure as a science fiction and fantasy novelist and over the 20+ years of helping thousands of writers across 5 countries.

I’m a writer, just like you. I’m also a teacher, and am called from deep within, to teach through writing.

*Award-winning author of the Henrietta The Dragon Slayer YA adventure fantasy series; the Janey McCallister space station Mystery series; and the critically acclaimed sweet paranormal Touchstone series.

*Podcast host of How To Write The Future podcast, with 180+ episodes since 2022, offering practical craft advice for SF/F writers.

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Why I Created Writer’s Fun Zone

I didn’t set out to become a creativity coach for writers.

Like you, I started as a writer who just wanted to finish a novel.

The struggle was real. I’d sit down to write, full of ideas for epic worlds and complex characters, but something always held me back.

Self-doubt. Perfectionism.

The crushing weight of thinking every sentence had to be brilliant on the first try.

I’d hesitate and struggle to write a word, facing the same chapter for hours, never moving forward.

Then came the turning point.

I joined a critique group and found a community that helped me move forward at my own rhythm, learning every step of the way, especially learning to write badly from my peers, and have fun doing it.

I realized writing didn’t have to be torture. It could be play. Exploration. Adventure.

That shift changed everything. I finished my first novel. Then another. My Henrietta the Dragon Slayer series came to life and won awards. The Janey McCallister mysteries followed.

But more importantly, I’d discovered something:

the process matters as much as the product.

Why science fiction and fantasy?

These genres let us ask the biggest “what if” questions.

They give us permission to explore identity, society, technology, and humanity through impossible situations.

Science fiction and fantasy writers need extra courage.

We’re building entire worlds while also mastering character, plot, and prose.

That creative challenge thrills me, both as a writer and as a coach.

After 20+ years of coaching thousands of writers, I’ve seen the same pattern: writers get stuck not because they lack talent, but because they’ve forgotten how to play.

They’ve lost the joy that made them want to write in the first place.

Writer’s Fun Zone exists to bring that joy back.

Play — Adventure — Exploration — Freedom — Discovery

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Explore Our Most Popular Resources

Whether you’re starting your first novel or polishing your tenth, these articles will help:

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Our Philosophy

Spark Manifested

Writer’s Fun Zone, WFZ, is a service to aspiring and published fiction and creative nonfiction authors …

…to help make writing and book marketing fun and adventurous.

After all, if writing weren’t bringing us some kind of pleasure, why do it?

I know you may have bad days, when sitting down to write is the last thing you want to do, yet you’ve made a promise to yourself, your fans, your readership, your boss… So sit down you must.

In short, the Writer’s Fun Zone blog is by and for creative writers.

So, I built this site to explore:

What makes writing and editing fun;
How to get motivated when writing doesn’t feel fun;
World building resources for science fiction and fantasy writers that I think are fascinating and exciting;
Why humans are drawn to story telling;
How writers can tell stories in new ways;
And more, like over 180 episodes of the How To Write The Future podcast — It’s an exploration after all!

At the Writer’s Fun Zone, you are encouraged to play with writing and to discover how making mistakes is actually a form of play.

When you play, you take risks, you feel good for having taken those risks, and lo-and-behold, you grow, learn and become a stronger writer.

At Writer’s Fun Zone, I’m dedicated to helping you to:

Make money with your writing;
Have a career as an author;
Be fully self-expressed;
Be fulfilled inside and out;
Make meaning through your creativity;
And, more…

Subscribe to Writer’s Fun Zone here.

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Ultimately, you’re growing and stretching your wings as writers to make a difference in the world.

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Writing is a form of discovery.

Writing, publishing, marketing and selling our writing is telling the world what we’ve discovered.

The Writer’s Fun Zone offers tips to uncover the playful spirit within.

Comments welcome. And thank you in advance for your insight, enthusiasm, and contribution to the Writer’s Fun Zone.

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Why Trust Beth’s Guidance?

✨ Award-Winning Novelist
California Indie Author, Grand Prize, 2012
Page Turner Awards Finalist, 2020

📚 Published Author
Author of 12 books across multiple series, including *Henrietta the Dragon Slayer* (YA fantasy) and *Janey McCallister* mysteries (SF) and the Touchstone series (paranormal romance)

🎓 Certified Creativity Coach
Professionally trained to help writers overcome blocks and achieve their creative goals

⏰ 20+ Years Coaching Experience
Guided thousands of fiction writers worldwide from manuscript to publication

🎙️ Podcast Host
*How To Write The Future* — practical craft advice for SF/F writers

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Featured Podcast Episodes

* Deep POV with Hugh Tipping
* Character Development episodes
* World Building Tips
* Where to insert backstory

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Get Started

1. Subscribe to the RSS feed or the email subscription. Thank you!

If you’ve already done this, thanks! You’re awesome!

Be sure to check your inbox for your goodies and special reports. It may take a while. It’s the Internet! It has to go to space!

2. Sign up for the free 5-day mini course of Writer’s Motivation Course and get writing.

3. If you want to write for Writer’s Fun Zone, check out the writer’s guidelines here.

4. Ready to plan your novel? Then check out our PLAN YOUR NOVEL LIKE A PRO book and workbook.

4. Want more resources? Get our list of books and other resources on Creativity, Fiction Writing, Character Naming, Literary Law, Publishing, and Book Marketing on our Resources page.

“I can’t tell you how much your coaching and friendship has meant to me. I would never have gotten as far as I have without both of you. My only real regret is I didn’t know about your [program] earlier. Your lessons and instructions are the cornerstone of my new writing career.”

– Keri Kruspe, Author of Otherworldly Romantic Adventures

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This Blog is Brought to You by…

This blog provided by Beth Barany, Certified Creativity Coach for Writers, and Barany Consulting, a coaching and consulting firm dedicated to education, writing, publishing, marketing and selling books, and the fun exploration of the human experience. We do that through:

Coaching
Consulting
Editing
Workshops & Seminars
Trainings
Fun Products
Travel & Writing Workshops

“I had wanted for some time to complete NaNoWriMo and found it a daunting task. Then I took the [Plan Your Novel] 30-Day Writing Challenge from the Barany School of Fiction. This comprehensive set of classes and group coaching gave me the tools I needed to make it not only to the 50K November goal but far beyond and my story continued.”
– Hugh Tipping, Author

Contact Me

You’re invited to contact Beth with questions about her services or anything else related to helping writers, by clicking here. (Contact form on Writer’s Fun Zone)

Creative Credits

Blog Header and Site Design by Web.Ninja

Image Designer

We hired Leanne Knight of Authentic Vision Media to create our blog post image templates, as well as other image templates. We recommend her highly in creating image templates for your creative business.

Copyright

+ This entire site © 2007-2025 by Beth Barany
+ The design itself © 2007-2025 by web.ninja.
+ This site is protected by triple copyright. Please don’t infringe, copy or lift anything. Besides not being legal, it isn’t very nice. Thanks.

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