Sub-genres of Speculative Fiction

Most speculative fiction novels fall under at least one of the following genres.

Some may fall into multiple genres depending on the story structure:

• Science fiction: stories with imagined technologies that don’t exist in the real world, like time travel, aliens, and robots.
• Sci-fi fantasy fiction: sci-fi stories inspired by mythology, folklore, and fairy tales that combine imagined technologies with elements of magical realism.
• Supernatural fiction: sci-fi stories about secret knowledge or hidden abilities, including witchcraft, spiritualism, and psychic abilities.
• Space opera fiction: a play on the term “soap opera,” sci-fi stories that take place in outer space and center around conflict, romance, and adventure.
• Urban fantasy fiction: fantasy stories that take place in an urban setting in the real world but operate under magical rules.
• Utopian fiction: stories about civilisations the authors deem to be perfect, ideal societies.
• Dystopian fiction: stories about societies deemed problematic within the world of the novel, often satirising government rules, poverty, and oppression.
• Apocalyptic fiction: stories that take place before and during a huge disaster that wipes out a significant portion of the world’s population. The stories centre around characters doing everything they can to stay alive—for example, running from zombies or trying to avoid a deadly plague.
• Post-apocalyptic fiction: stories that take place after an apocalyptic event and focus on the survivors figuring out how to navigate their new circumstances—for example, emerging after a global nuclear holocaust or surviving a total breakdown of society.
• Alternate history fiction: stories that focus on true historical events but are written as if they unfolded with different outcomes.
• Superhero fiction: stories about superheroes and how they use their abilities to fight supervillains.

Description from MasterClass.