Science Fiction Genre: information from our library science students
Overview of the genre:
Science fiction takes the question “What if?” to its extreme. Like fantasy, it falls under speculative fiction, but instead of the impossible or improbable acts being created by magic, they are made possible by science (Wyatt and Saricks, 2019, pp. 94). Science fiction is a grounded genre that varies in tone from dark and gritty to light and silly. While often taking place in space, it can also take place in the future or across a multitude of eras. It often deals with political and ethical questions and usually features technology like robots and AI. However, they can also be humorous, action-adventure tales with suave heroes. It features a variety of genre blends, crossing over into horror, fantasy, and romance.
Wyatt, N. and J. G. Saricks. (2019). Readers' advisory guide to genre fiction. ALA Editions.
List of common themes/tropes with descriptions:
Good vs Evil: a battle, whether physical, digital, or intellectual, between good and evil. Examples can include robot uprisings, alien first contact, or resisting colonization, corporations, or corruption.
Survival Against the Odds: the protagonist(s) fight to survive in extenuating circumstances. Examples can include dystopian and apocalyptic settings, abandonment on other planets, meteorites hitting Earth, and spaceships breaking down.
Advanced Technology and Artificial Intelligence: focusing on the consequences or philosophy of AI and other tech. Examples can include robots or AI that fall in love, ethics of advanced weapons, and technology imbedded in people’s brains.
Clones and other Genetic Manipulation: for good or for bad, the leads make or encounter clones or otherwise genetically modified people. Examples: using clones to lengthen lives, genetic manipulation as eugenics, creating super humans, or clones cause identity confusion.
Aliens: beings from other planets can be friend or foe. Examples include aliens that are humans from the past or future, monster romance with aliens, communication between vastly different physiologies or cultures, first contact or abduction
General description/genre’s appeal elements:
Since the beginning of time man has created stories to explain the unknown. Today we still conjure stories of what the what the past could have been like or what the future might hold. These stories are considered a genre of their own: science fiction, also known as SciFi, where technology and scientific principles are used to imagine what the future could be like. In the words of Wyatt and Saricks (2019), this is a genre that “explores world that could exist” (p. 93). They go on to say that while most of it is set in the future, it could also explore alternate history or life in parallel universes.
Readers are drawn to this genre because of storylines that feature SciFi’s core ideas of “what it means to be human, how we relate to our environment, how we treat people who are different, how we adapt to change” (McArdle, 2015, p. 141). When it comes to characterization, McArdle adds that whether these stories feature humans or not, they must have humanity. A third appeal factor is the setting, which allows readers to escape from their everyday lives to worlds that are vastly different from their own. Additional appeal factors such as tone, writing style, and pacing will vary depending on the subgenre.
McArdle, M. M. (2015). The readers’ advisory guide to genre blends. American Library Association.
Saricks, J. G. (2004). Readers' advisory service in the public library. ALA Editions.
Click on the genre you would like to explore!
Contact us
These lists and genre information are brought to you by the MLIS students in our Fiction Genres for Adult Readers class in the Master in Library and Information Science program. Thank you for sending in such good books, materials, and information. I hope you had a good time with this project!
If any material listed is problematic or you would like to suggest future recommendations and themes please contact Crystal Miller at crrichardson@valdosta.edu! They would love feedback, or just to talk about books!
