[Culhwch]

I have to admit to siding with Hawkshaw on this one. What matter if there is a 'science-fictional conceit' or if there's just sf 'furniture'? If this is the story that the author concieved, developed, and above all wants to tell, then bowing to some preconcieved notion about what a science fiction story should and shouldn't contain is just ludicrous. As I see it, such a forced concession is most likely to be damaging to the end result. If the square block don't fit in the circular hole, then there ain't no amount of pushing that's gonna make it... In my book, if the story is set in space and concerns aliens, well, what do you know, I think that might be science fiction. Sure, it mightn't be hard sf, or serious sf, or whatever other 'literary' categories there are, but that doesn't exclude it in any way from being entertaining, engaging, moving, or thought-provoking.

I'm not too proud to admit that I'll take space opera over hard sf any day...