An illustration by illustrator Frank R. Paul, of inventor Nikola Tesla's speculative vision of a future war.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to science fiction:
Science fiction – a genre of fiction dealing with the impact of imagined innovations in science or technology, often in a futuristic setting.[1][2][3] Exploring the consequences of such innovations is the traditional purpose of science fiction, making it a "literature of ideas".[4]
Definitions of science fiction: Science fiction includes such a wide range of themes and subgenres that it is notoriously difficult to define.[5] Accordingly, there have been many definitions offered. Another challenge is that there is disagreement over where to draw the boundaries between science fiction and related genres.
Science fiction is a type of:
Fiction – form of narrative which deals, in part or in whole, with events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary and invented by its author(s). Although fiction often describes a major branch of literary work, it is also applied to theatrical, cinematic, and musical work.
Genre fiction – fictional works (novels, short stories) written with the intent of fitting into a specific literary genre in order to appeal to readers and fans already familiar with that genre. Also known as popular fiction.
Science fiction genre – while science fiction is a genre of fiction, a science fiction genre is a subgenre within science fiction. Science fiction may be divided along any number of overlapping axes. Gary K. Wolfe's Critical Terms for Science Fiction and Fantasy identifies over 30 subdivisions of science fiction, not including science fantasy (which is a mixed genre).
Science
Genres concerning the emphasis, accuracy, and type of science described include:
Hard science fiction—a particular emphasis on scientific detail and/or accuracy.
Mundane science fiction—a subgenre of hard sci-fi which sets stories on Earth or the Solar System using current or plausible technology.
Soft science fiction—focus on human characters and their relations and feelings, often exploring psychology, sociology, anthropology, and political science, while de-emphasizing the details of technological hardware and physical laws. In some cases, science and technology are depicted without much concern for accuracy.
Cyberpunk — uses elements from the hard-boiled detective novel, film noir, Japanese anime, and post-modernist prose to describe the nihilistic, underground side of a cybernetic society
Steampunk — denotes works set in (or strongly inspired by) an era when steam power was still widely used — usually the 19th century, and often set in Victorian England — though with otherwise high technology or other science fiction elements
Genres concerning the historical era of creation and publication include:
Scientific romance — an archaic name for what is now known as the science fiction genre, mostly associated with the early science fiction of the United Kingdom.
Golden Age of Science Fiction — a period of the 1940s during which the science fiction genre gained wide public attention and many classic science fiction stories were published.
New Wave science fiction — characterised by a high degree of experimentation, both in form and in content.
Cyberpunk — noted for its focus on "high tech, low life" and taking its name from the combination of cybernetics and punk.
The setting is the environment in which the story takes place. Alien settings require authors to do worldbuilding to create a fictional planet and geography. Elements of setting may include culture (and its technologies), period (including the future), place (geography/astronomy), nature (physical laws, etc.), and hour. Setting elements characteristic of science fiction include:
Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim (SWCA) - From Droid Builder's Club Room
There are a number of science fiction media franchises of this type, typically encompassing media such as cinema films, TV shows, toys, and even theme parks related to the content. The highest-grossing science fiction franchise is Star Wars.
Space science fiction franchises:
Alien (6 films since 1979 and 2 Alien vs Predator films since 2004)
Babylon 5 (2 television series, 7 TV movies since 1993)
Doctor Who (TV series since 1963, 2 Dr. Who films since 1965, and 1 1996 television film, five spinoff TV shows (K-9 and Company, The Sarah Jane Adventures, Torchwood, K-9 and Class), video games and hundreds of books)
Dune (23 novels since 1965, 1 film in 1984, 3 comics since 1984, 2 TV series since 2000, 1 film in 2021)
Godzilla (36 films since 1954 and 3 TV series since 1978)
Space Odyssey (2 short stories since 1954, 2 films since 1968, 4 novels since 1968, 1 1972 book)
Star Trek (7 live-action TV series since 1966, 3 animated TV series, 13 Theatrical films: 6 Original Series films since 1979, 4 Next Generation films since 1994 and 3 reboot films since 2009)
Star Wars (9 episodic "Saga" films since 1977, 1 1978 TV film, 2 Ewok films since 1985, 1 2008 The Clone Wars film, 2 "Anthology" films since 2016, 4 canon animated TV series since 2008, 4 canon live-action TV series since 2019, 3 Legends TV series since 1985)
Stargate (4 TV series and three theater film since 1994)
Transformers (28 TV series since 1984, 4 animated films since 1986, 6 live action films since 2007, started from toy line)
Ultra Series (34 TV series since 1966 and 29 films since 1967)
The War of the Worlds (half a dozen feature films, radio dramas, a record album, various comic book adaptations, a number of television series, and sequels or parallel stories by other authors since 1897)
Warhammer 40,000 (family of tabletop wargames first published in 1987 by Games Workshop, hundreds of novels by Games Workshop's in-house publishing company Black Library, dozens of video games, and several short films and web series officially published by GW. Games Workshop recently signed a development deal with Amazon Studios to develop a Warhammer 40,000 TV series, with Man of Steel and The Witcher star Henry Cavill as both producer and playing a starring role.)
^For example, Patrick Parrinder comments that "[d]efinitions of science fiction are not so much a series of logical approximations to an elusive ideal, as a small, parasitic subgenre in themselves." Parrinder, Patrick (1980). Science Fiction: Its Criticism and Teaching. London: New Accents.
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