The Various Types of Science Fiction

There is more to science fiction than a story taking place in battle cruisers fight out in the dark reaches of space.  In fact, not all science fiction actually takes place in the future.  Science fiction, like many genres is as varied as the authors who write for it. But the one thing tying it all together, is the effect of a science on the characters in the novel.

Hard Science Fiction

These types of stories are typically written by authors who have a strong background in science; think Isaac Asimov or Arthur C Clarke.  As such, most of the science if very detailed and realistic. It plays such a role in these stories that the technology is actually central to the plot, not just part of the environment.

Soft Science Fiction

The so called ‘soft sciences’, sociology, psychology, and philosophy, are the central aspects to this type of story.  They focus on the effects future technology could have on a society or individual characters.  Ray Bradbury and Frank Herbert are authors of this sub-genre.

Cyberpunk

Philip K. Dick and William Gibson are popular cyberpunk writers; Gibson even invented the word.  Cyberpunk is about the negative, almost dystopian like societies that are dominated by computer technology, typically involving hackers and AI (artificial intelligence).

Military

Military science fiction stories focus on interplanetary or interstellar war and usually stress traditional military attributes, aided by a soldier’s point of view.  On of the staples of this genre is Forever War by Joe Haldeman, in which a university student is drafted for an interplanetary war.  When he returns to Earth years later, it ends up that a few years for him were a few thousands for the planet.

Apocalypse/ post-apocalypse

If you’re thinking zombies, guess again. Setting instead are after a world altering disaster such as nuclear war or an alien invasion and how humans overcome the event.  If you’er interested, check out works by SM Stirling.

Alien Invasion/ Alien Contact
Aliens are common in science fiction and thus what most people think of when picturing the genre. Sometimes they try to destroy the earth, sometimes they are benevolent. The TV show Stargate SG-1 has a little bit of both, and if you want a more classic story read H.G.Wells’s War of the Worlds.

Alternate Universe

Shorted to AU, these stories revolve around the idea that something has happened in the past and the course of history changed or may involve an alternate reality, aka a parallel world, that exists next to the one we live in but is defined by some differences. John Cramer and some of Philip K. Dick’s work can be considered a part of this sub genre.

Steampunk

These stories don’t actually take place in the future, but rather in the past with technology superior to what was actually available at the time. The stories are typically set in the Victorian era, and unlike cyberpunk don’t contain dystopian elements.  Think Jules Verne, the movie The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, or Lincoln with a machine gun arm. This is actually a relatively new genre, just coming about in the 1980s.

Time Travel
Time travel stories center, obviously, around the ability to travel through time and the effects it has on the traveler or sometimes the future. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells is a great example.

Space Opera

No signing is actually involved here.  Space opera is actually the sf equivalent of epic fantasy, meaning high adventure amongst the stars.  It’s this genre that used to be serialized in the movies and pulp fiction and it’s characterized by beautiful women and bug-eyed monsters.  Star Trek is actually a more sophisticated, contemporary space opera.