Literary Hub
Craft and Criticism
Literary Criticism
Craft and Advice
In Conversation
On Translation
Fiction and Poetry
Short Story
From the Novel
Poem
News and Culture
History
Science
Politics
Biography
Memoir
Food
Technology
Bookstores and Libraries
Film and TV
Travel
Music
Art and Photography
The Hub
Style
Design
Sports
Lit Hub Radio
The Lit Hub Podcast
Awakeners
Fiction/Non/Fiction
The Critic and Her Publics
Windham-Campbell Prizes Podcast
Memoir Nation
Beyond the Page
First Draft: A Dialogue on Writing
Thresholds
The Cosmic Library
Culture Schlock
Reading Lists
The Best of the Decade
Book Marks
Best Reviewed Books
CrimeReads
True Crime
The Daily Thrill
Log In
Craft and Criticism
Literary Criticism
Craft and Advice
In Conversation
On Translation
Fiction and Poetry
Short Story
From the Novel
Poem
News and Culture
History
Science
Politics
Biography
Memoir
Food
Technology
Bookstores and Libraries
Film and TV
Travel
Music
Art and Photography
The Hub
Style
Design
Sports
Lit Hub Radio
The Lit Hub Podcast
Awakeners
Fiction/Non/Fiction
The Critic and Her Publics
Windham-Campbell Prizes Podcast
Memoir Nation
Beyond the Page
First Draft: A Dialogue on Writing
Thresholds
The Cosmic Library
Culture Schlock
Reading Lists
The Best of the Decade
Book Marks
Best Reviewed Books
CrimeReads
True Crime
The Daily Thrill
Log In
Erika Swyler
Erika Swyler on Worldbuilding as Set Design
“Remember that every bit of worldbuilding that makes it to the page adds to the set, and stage space is limited.”
By
Erika Swyler
| January 17, 2025
Are We Running Out of Monster Metaphors for the Disasters of the Real World?
Erika Swyler on Surviving Our Fears By Creating More of Them
By
Erika Swyler
| September 1, 2020
On
Not
Writing About My Father, an Actual Mad Scientist
Erika Swyler on the Autobiographical Truths of Fiction
By
Erika Swyler
| May 3, 2019
Best Reviewed
Books of the Week
Almost-Horror Movies
October 14, 2025
by
Olivia Rutigliano
10 New Books Coming Out This Week
October 14, 2025
by
CrimeReads
Hannah Beer On The Costs and Consequences of Celebrity Culture
October 14, 2025
by
Hannah Beer