by krazydiamond

What is Speculative Fiction? Where did the term come from? How does it differ from the usual genre terms?

There is a great deal of debate in this department and many genre bloggers passionately argue the pros and cons of the label. The term itself gained popularity thanks in part to Robert Heinlein in the 1940's, who wrote a whole book on the Writing of Speculative fiction. His advice on writing is fascinating, breaking down elements and structure. I highly recommend it. He also intentionally sparked the eternal debate of where to draw the line for this label. (Perhaps intentionally, Heinlein seems the sort for a good rousting.)

Speculative Fiction is a bit of an umbrella term, encompassing multiple genre aspects of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Historical fiction is often thrown in for good measure. How thoroughly do the genres bleed into one another?

However, not all stories of these genres would fall under the label of speculative fiction. The definition of 'Speculate' means to investigate, to wonder, to guess. It is an exploratory term, and this is the essence behind Spec-fic. These are the stories meant to make the reader think, to ponder what if, with a smidgen of reality tossed in for a good mind boggle. It is all about blurring the genre line, weaving elements of genres together to take the reader to new worlds.

So what sort of stories fall under the speculative banner? Think superhero tales, especially in the realm of fantasy fiction. In the realm of horror, spec-fic would include paranormal events, stories of weird creatures, and peculiar happenings. What about science fiction? This is probably the hardest genre to pinpoint where the line falls. Here you'd find space, time travel, and futures to be explored. A lot of dystopian and alternate histories could also be considered Spec-fic, such as Suzanne Collins's Hunger Games trilogy.

The line is a bit wobbly for sure, but Spec-fic aims to challenge you, to make you look deeper into the story at what lies beneath the monsters and mayhem. We here at @su-SPEC-t aim to explore the genre to its full extent.