Future fiction

[iansales]

Originally Posted by scalem X

Anyway, that might take it too far, but if you don't use a system like this, you'll always have trouble with definitions, same goes for music genres for example.

You wouldn't happen to be a librarian, would you? :-)

[scalem X]

Now that might be future fiction that could hold some truth.
No I'm a student of course! (Asian studies: mainly Japanese)
What I mean is that I fear that nowadays a lot of writing suddenly seems to be fantasy. If you would consider the connection with art for example, I think it is easier to defend my point of view. Would you call an Escher drawing a fantasy drawing? Is everything beyond being possible fantasy? Then, I come back to the point: Does old science fiction become fantasy, now that it has become impossible to be true?

[chrispenycate]

And I thought "future fiction" was the books I hadn't yet written.
So, we're into sub-sub sub-categories, are we? How about a letter for any book which contains a character or event which is historically correct combined with elements that are fictional? Or one where some non-human species (biological, magical, spiritual or electronic) is capable of comprehensible communication? Give me an hour or two and I can get as many letters printed on the spine of the book (with recommended reading age, and the time and location atwhich it is most likely to be appreciated( as the author has managed to get onto the pages.
And if, despite having described some gadgets accurately enough that they now exist, science fiction has been slightly less accurate in predicting social trends, I still like to think that "Brave new world,"A jagged orbit" or "Level seven" have done a tiny little bit to warn people, to prevent the state they describe ever coming to be.
Still. I might just be an optimist.

[Julie Bertagna]

A piece on 'Speculative Fiction' by Jamie Jauncey in today's Guardian Books Blog (a follow-up to our event on Apocalyptic Fiction; see Dystopian thread on this author board):

Guardian Unlimited: Arts blog - books: Imagining the worst, not expecting it