A human discovers an alien device on an ancient starship. Gloved hands, shielded from the void, but not from curiosity, grasp the artifact. The human possesses the item, but only in a physical sense. Metaphorically, and psychologically, it possesses its claimant. This relic is a deviation from a universe where humans reign as the sole […]
Faster than light travel is a science fiction staple. Like time travel and encounters with alien life, it is one of those big ideas SF was born to explore. When the relativistic speed limit does not meet their narrative needs, many authors are content to let starships flit from here to there in violation of the […]
World-building: an essential part of science fiction and fantasy. Possibly the most overlooked, yet crucial aspect of building a world: naming it.
Books fade away. The center cannot hold. Even books that were best sellers, that were made into movies, that dominated pop culture for decades, can suddenly find themselves fading from public consciousness. It’s worse in science-fiction, because the genre has always labored under the pressure to be ahead of its time, which is no easy […]
When it comes to predicting technological breakthroughs, science fiction writers can be absolute visionaries. From the electrically powered submarine in Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1870), to the genetic engineering in Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World (1931), science fiction has foretold countless scientific advances, including smartphones, touchscreen tablets, LCD televisions, GPS, virtual reality games, […]