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Are All the Genres in Writing Transmutable and Combinable?
No genres are so set that they cannot be blended, altered, and mixed.
Both of my recent sci-fi series are not entirely sci-fi. Mostly sci-fi, yes. But not completely.
Forgotten Fodder crosses into police procedural, mystery, and conspiracy. Sure, it’s about clones and takes place in spaceships, space stations, and colonies within 30 light-years of Earth. But it still has other genre elements to it.
Void Incursion is very much sci-fantasy. There are swords, space kingdoms, and various fantastical elements that are arguably more fantasy than sci-fi.
The Vapor Rogues is Steampunk. But Steampunk, as a genre, covers many different bases. Some are alternative history, some sci-fi, some fantasy, some is all the above. Steampunk, as a genre, is transmutable by design.
What prompted this topic? On a Facebook sci-fi writer group that I’m part of, someone asked, “How much science-y detail is the right amount?” This started a discussion about whether sci-fi as a genre can take a backseat to a story centered more on characters and their experience.
Given that there are multiple approaches available for any and all genres, I think it’s important to recognize and acknowledge that all…
