Fic Talk > General Discussion

The Sci-fi and Fantasy debate

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mare:
We started a debate about this topic a long time ago and it ended up being a great discussion, kind of like the romance one earlier. So, I thought since we have a lot of fresh faces and since sci-fi/fantasy seems to be making a comeback, now would be a good time to bring this back.

What are your thoughts on sci-fi and fantasy? Are you someone who tends to lump them together or in your mind is there a distinct difference? Why do you think they are usually paired together so often? A lot of you when we were doing the reading challenge, refused to read sci-fi or fantasy, why?

For the writers of the genres, do you feel like you are given a fair chance? What do you think you can do to bring in readers?

Those are my talking points, but there are a lot more i'm sure. Hopefully some of you will weigh in on this!

:)

Rose:
I feel sci-fi and fantasy are very underrated genres. They require a lot of creativity. Because in most cases you have to go out and create this whole new world, different in so many ways from reality. It's not easy sometimes.

I don't know why they're grouped together. They're very different. Sci-Fi usually involves space, aliens, or technology and the future. Fantasy on the other end involves different realms, realities instead of actual worlds (which would be more sci-fi). It tends to be magic, or creatures only told about in myths, rather than aliens.

Most of the time they're not given a fair chance. But when you write them, you know that going in. You write them simply for the love of writing them. You can't harp on reviews or read counts. If you do, you'll just drive yourself crazy. Or if you harp on them for everyone to see, it's almost like asking for pity reads LOL. You just can't do it, there's a readership for the genre but it's smaller and you gotta accept that from Day One.

Sometimes you can bring in more readers if in some way, the Boys are still the Backstreet Boys rather than having it be an AU. But that's not a guarantee. I haven't written sci-fi in awhile, but it used to be a majority of what I wrote. Sometimes I miss it, though I have future ideas I'll one day go back to. There's something to be said for creating that whole new world, it's so fun to write in it.

Purpura Lipstick:
I love writing them though I usually steer away from sci-fi when I write too so I don't have to sound all futuristically scientific! LOL.   I think they get lumped together because some people don't know what the difference between the genres is.   I sometimes have a hard time determining what would classify it as sci-fi vs. fantasy.

I do think these types of stories do get overlooked.  I know plenty of authors that base it off of summaries and not genres but from the summaries, many times you can determine if it is sci-fi/fantasy.  Currently I do have an AU/ sci-fi story being written that I love writing but doesn't get a whole lot of readers *shrugs* their loss. ;)  I have "bugged" people about reading Rose, but I really don't expect them to, I just love the story so much I want to share.

I think if people gave them a shot they would be surprised where they could take their own writing.  Now maybe it's because I already love sci-fi/fantasy from growing up but I get hugely insipred from watching or reading something from these categories and not only when I'm trying to write something in these genres.  

Purpura Lipstick:
did you know Rose that many considered the original Star Wars to be fantasy because of the mystical Force .. even though there were aliens and it took place in space?

When the prequels came out, it turned the series into a sci-fi series.  I just read this ...

Rose:

--- Quote from: Purpura Lipstick on August 06, 2011, 09:26:48 PM ---did you know Rose that many considered the original Star Wars to be fantasy because of the mystical Force .. even though there were aliens and it took place in space?

When the prequels came out, it turned the series into a sci-fi series.  I just read this ...

--- End quote ---

The genres can blend, like anything else LOL. I'd say the mystical force would be more of a fantasy element, the "magic" feeling of it, rather than Sci-Fi

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