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Writer's Glossary - A # - A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z 
A response from an editor indicating he wishes to purchase publication rights to a piece.
Action is how things happen in a story. It doesn't need to be gun battles or car chases (although they certainly can be); action is literally the events that unfold in a story to progress the characters through the plot toward the climax of the story.
An advance, also known as an advance against royalties, is money a publisher gives to a novelist after the purchase of rights to the novelist's book. This money compensates the writer immediately as it will likely be some time before the novel gets out to the public (not to mention the delay before royalties are paid). The writer is not liable to pay back this advance, but is is deducted from royalty payments made to him by the publisher. This is common practice and no writer should ever sign a contract without receiving an advance.
A professional who represents writers or artists to aid in publishing. Most agents will only work with those who have previously sold at least one piece. Many editors will recommend agents once they have agreed to purchase a writer's work, although many industry experts advise against this as they feel editors are likely to recommend agents with whom they have favorable relationships and thus may be agents not working as hard for the writer. That likely depends on the editors and agents in question. Agents are instrumental in securing better deals and understanding contracts better than the writer, although you should always have your lawyer look over any contract before you sign it, agent or not. Agents are a standard in novel sales, but not in short story sales (unless you are an established writer already). However, Stephen King once said words to the effect of there being no reason to give an agent a cut of your money until you're making a large enough cut to share any of it with someone. This seems like very logical advice.
A character who, or force which, opposes the protagonist or in some way hampers his attempts to achieve his goal. An antagonist can be the villain working to thwart the hero, an unwitting hindrance (such as a frail relative the protagonist must care for, but is in the process "ruining" the protag's life), and so on. Antagonistic elements may not be human. Nature has been a popular antagonist; bad weather from hurricanes to floods to tornados to the burning sun have often been used as those obstacles preventing the protagonist from achieving his goal.
A printed medium, usually in book or some other bound form, containing a collection of similar works (usually fiction). Some anthologies are the results of new works; others are "best of" or "topic-themed" assemblies from past issues of magazines.
Following the climax of the story, it should end very quickly after tying up any remaining loose ends; the story is over, so get it over with! Anticlimax is when a writer doesn't do that, and continues to ramble on and on. This should normally be avoided at all costs; very few writers can do this and get away with it. The best example that comes to mind is Stephen King in his monumental work The Stand, where after hundreds of thousands of words the story is concluded, but he continues to write for another forty or fifty thousand words—all anticlimactic. King is such a powerful writer and master storyteller that he can get away with this. Be very sure you are the same if you try.
A protagonist or central figure completely lacking in any classic heroic qualities. The antihero is the often a main character but there's nothing good about him at all—yet he is written so that we empathize and understand him.
Writing award given my the Science Fiction Writers of America as a way to recognize and appreciate senior writers of science fiction and fantasy who have made significant contributions to the field but who are no longer active or whose excellent work may no longer be as widely known as it once was.
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