The Silly Shirt Manifesto: A practical guide to writing fantasy and sci-fi

By Andy Coughlan

"Wear a silly shirt and tell everyone you're a writer."

That's the advice Robert Rankin gave me on a writing course years ago. It sounds flippant. It changed everything.

Most people who want to write never finish. They read craft books, watch videos, accumulate advice - and somehow the actual writing keeps not happening. Or they start, get stuck in the middle, and abandon the manuscript for something shinier.

This book is for them. For you, if that's where you are.

The Silly Shirt Manifesto is a practical guide to writing science fiction and fantasy - from the mindset shift that turns "wanting to be a writer" into actually being one, through the craft of plotting and character, to the hardest part of all: finishing.

What's inside: The identity shift - Why thinking of yourself as a writer changes how you write (and why Robert Rankin's silly shirt advice actually works)The three questions - David Mamet's diagnostic tool that fixes most scene and story problemsPlotting without pain - Why pantsing is just writing a very long, expensive outline, and what to do insteadWorld-building without drowning - How to build deep worlds without letting them devour your storyNovels vs screenplays vs short stories - The crucial difference between "immediate" and "remote" storytelling, and what each form demandsThe rewrite - Why revision is where the real writing happens, and how to survive professional editingFinishing - Why most writers don't, and how to be one who does
I've spent most of my writing life in screenwriting before transitioning to novels. This book draws on both disciplines - and on what I've learned working with one of the most respected editors in fantasy publishing.

This isn't a book for complete beginners. I'm not going to explain what a protagonist is. I'm assuming you know the basics, even if you haven't put them into practice yet.

What I want to talk about is why you're stuck - whether that's stuck before starting or stuck in the middle - and how to get unstuck.

Wear the silly shirt. Tell people you're a writer. Then go home and write.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0GM1XR3YT
• ISBN13: 9798246998441
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 109 Pages
• Weight: 0.26 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.3" x 5.0"