Questions tagged [science-fiction]
Stories about space, technology, the future, and other things that could be real but aren't.
183
questions
15
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8answers
3k views
Sci-fi change: Too much or Not enough
I am in the process of editing a short story. It is science fiction of the "if this goes on" kind: I take a social trend I see, and paint its event horizon - a troubling future. 1984 and Fahrenheit ...
13
votes
5answers
2k views
Sense of humor in your sci-fi stories [closed]
What kind of humor do you find appropriate for your sci-fi stories?
I realize that the question might seem so broad, but I think the target group for most sci-fi stories has a sense of humor that ...
4
votes
1answer
102 views
Write a story based on characters from an old novel
I am considering writing a "history" of the Morlocks (based on the characters in the H. G. Wells novel).
Question: Is this allowed, or do I need permission from his descendants?
11
votes
8answers
2k views
Is a lack of character descriptions a problem?
I have written a novel in which none of the characters are ever described. It started out by accident (3 chapters in when I realized).
Question: Is this a good/unique approach or shot myself in ...
13
votes
7answers
2k views
How do you show, through your narration, a hard and uncaring world?
As I've already mentioned, I'm working on a sci-fi novel.
One of the main feelings that I wanted to represent when I started is the sense of a vast, empty, artificial world, mostly cold and uncaring ...
12
votes
6answers
384 views
How do you build a story from a world?
I have some material for a "world" (more fantasy than sci-fi at this point). I've noodled around with this world off-and-on for ages but have never had a story to put in the world. I have some brief ...
7
votes
5answers
186 views
20 Minutes into the Future - problem with setting the period
I have just finished a short story, set in what is known as 20 Minutes into the Future - a time frame that's only a little into the future from our own. There is a change from modern times, but it is ...
21
votes
5answers
4k views
Is every story set in the future “science fiction”?
Science Fiction is a "big tent" genre, and we all know it when we see it. Even if we argue about the specific tropes – and what might make something lean heavily towards another classification (...
18
votes
8answers
5k views
Can I bring back Planetary Romance as a genre?
This question is about genre and reader expectations. I'm not trying to change my story to fit a mainstream genre. I have already taken steps to broaden it's appeal, but it's too late to create an ...
24
votes
10answers
4k views
The unknown and unexplained in science fiction
Science fiction has been defined as a genre where the "incredible" elements are "recognizable as not-true, but also as not-unlike-true, not-flatly- (and in the current state of knowledge) impossible" (...
5
votes
4answers
975 views
When an imagined world resembles or has similarities with a famous world
Arguably this might belong in worldbuilding.stackexchange.com, but the question has to do with a fiction story and its relation to other fiction in the real world.
I have a plot which involves an ...
7
votes
6answers
3k views
I have a unique character that I'm having a problem writing. He's a virus!
Yes, you read that correctly. My villain character is literally a virus. He thinks and behaves just like any other character does, mentally and
personality-wise, but his body is best described as a ...
10
votes
5answers
1k views
English words in a non-english sci-fi novel
In the modern world, english is a well-estabilished technical and scientific language. Some terms have become so commonly used that they are accepted in my native tongue (words like "computer", "PC", "...
15
votes
3answers
4k views
Is Social Media Science Fiction?
I am writing a science fiction story (actually a screenplay for a film, but I imagine that for the purposes of this question the same rules apply) and I have been told that it isn't really science ...
23
votes
7answers
4k views
How do I create uniquely male characters?
In How to write strong female characters, Standback says that the best way to write a strong female character is to make her uniquely female, the type of character that can not possibly be male and ...
4
votes
2answers
113 views
Future battlegrounds
What makes a battle scene tense and visceral is the immediate danger and the fast-paced action and reaction. For that, the human soldier needs to be on the battlefield, in the action.
Here's the ...
8
votes
2answers
133 views
Characterizing a sentient robot: inhuman PoV
Following the previous question:
Characterizing a sentient robot: sensory data
I'm writing a robot character with a particular PoV. In the previous question I wanted to talk about sensory data; here ...
5
votes
4answers
112 views
Characterizing a sentient robot: sensory data
I have a sentient robot in my novel.
Truth to be told, I have many. Sentience is somewhat cheap to achieve, meaning that there are multiple artificial beings that can be considered sentient by our ...
4
votes
3answers
349 views
Using substitution ciphers to generate new alphabets in a novel
A substitution cipher is a method used in cryptography to encrypt the meaning of a text. In the most common form, a substitution cipher changes every letter in the target text with another, making it ...
6
votes
2answers
128 views
Handling Earth-based religions on a foreign planet
For some context to my question:
The story I'm currently writing takes place on another planet. It is never mentioned whether Earth exists (or had existed), but the characters are all human, have ...
1
vote
4answers
117 views
Is it a bad idea to use footnotes to describe new technologies in a science-fiction novel?
I am wondering if we can use footnotes to describe technologies used in a science-fiction novel instead of describing it by switching from an omniscient POV, that describes everything in a poetic way, ...
2
votes
2answers
119 views
What are some ways to make absurdity of certain ideas in fiction more palatable?
I am writing a science-fiction short story where there are a lot of pseudoscientific ideas being dealt constantly. I was wondering how to reduce the absurdity of some of those ideas using literary ...
8
votes
3answers
462 views
Is time travel science fiction or fantasy?
The line between science fiction and fantasy is often blurred. And that's okay. Genre is often more about marketing than anything else. As a general rule though: SciFi has science and technology ...
2
votes
3answers
76 views
Research on an alternate history novel
I love alternate history scenarios; however, I just want to start writing. Should I do research or just start writing and go with it with some research along the way?
24
votes
12answers
4k views
Problems Blending Sci-fi & Traditional Fantasy?
I have been cautioned against blending:
Traditional fantasy elements
Such as magic systems and exotic, less plausible creatures (on a scientific level - magic tends to explain away these beasts)
...
0
votes
3answers
140 views
Finding resources for sci-fi writers on Quantum Mechanics
I don't have the financial resources to hire a scientific consultant to ask him whether my science-fiction plot is realistic, so I was wondering if there were any resource that teach Quantum Mechanic ...
18
votes
9answers
6k views
Is it time to start closing up my novel?
I realize this may be a duplicate question. I've seen, for reference [
How long can a first novel be? ] yet I think my situation is a little more specific.
I find myself in a similar situation. My ...
10
votes
5answers
875 views
In the background of the Future
As I've mentioned multiple times, I'm writing a military sci-fi novel. The focus of the story is war, and that happens far away from Earth. However, I'm starting with my MC's "normal", on Earth. It is ...
20
votes
12answers
3k views
How to explain the main plot with science based concepts, without the non-sci-fi fans getting bored?
Let me explain: I'm writing a game where the Earth gets a massive biological attack from an alien race in the close future, and only a small part of the planet's life survived (few dozens of humans ...
1
vote
1answer
146 views
How do I write a Star Trek themed fiction making the story believable?
I love reading, but I am unable to retain specifics. And Star Trek has quite a few - like the difference between the 'bridge' and the 'deck'.
So, when I try my hand at writing, I tend to skirt ...
5
votes
3answers
564 views
Dystopia that isn't cliche
Dystopian fiction is a big thing right now, and YA books like The Hunger Games and Divergent are pretty individual and subsequently are bestsellers. But a lot of stuff is also really cheesy and trite,...
2
votes
0answers
52 views
Where can I post my rough drafts for peer evaluations? [duplicate]
I apologize if I am not in the right community but I figured this would be the best place to ask.
I am looking for a place or a group where I can have my story read by others, so they can offer me ...
4
votes
3answers
156 views
Writing Structure - Building an Anthology Outline
Hi more experienced writers than I,
I have been struggling to figure out how to outline a story (script) I am writing to put all my ideas together. I would like to make an Anthology where it starts ...
1
vote
0answers
54 views
Halting virtual reality advancement [closed]
Imagine a world where a shadow organisation can insert, modify or delete the thoughts and actions of individuals to maintain the status quo in society. Due to one faction of the organisation becoming ...
0
votes
2answers
66 views
How to describe movement in zero-G?
Within the setting of my personal project (a hard science fiction) I need to be able to describe movement in zero-G extensively.
Because I wish to write a whole narrative involving very little ...
0
votes
2answers
93 views
Characters' motivation and feelings on defending against an alien invasion [closed]
I got really good answers to my last question, so I decided to post a new one:)
In my novel, a few humans suddenly find themselves tasked with defending humanity against an imminent alien invasion. ...
14
votes
3answers
1k views
What are key features and pacing in a satisfying ending to a science fiction novel?
My novel has been through multiple drafts and beta reads, and by and large is in good shape. I've learned how to cure a saggy middle, how to stay in point-of-view, how to keep the protagonist driving ...
23
votes
12answers
6k views
When writing science fiction, how important is it to provide scientific details for the (fictitious) things you are presenting in the story?
I know there is a difference between 'hard' and 'soft' science fiction. But even then, it can be hard to know what sort of categorization in which to place and treat your story, and it is not really ...
1
vote
5answers
216 views
How can I make a compelling character unlikable?
I know what goes in to making an unlikable character compelling and engaging but I'm not sure I know how to make them unlikable in the first place. In particular how does one show that a main ...
6
votes
4answers
1k views
How alien can my aliens be if I want them to demonstrate how alien a human character is?
Using non-humans to show human failings is a mainstay of Science Fiction but is there a limit to how alien a viewpoint can be and still be used to show that a human character is devoid of an aspect, ...
2
votes
1answer
55 views
Seeking Comp (Comparison) Titles for my Work-In-Progress [closed]
Seeking comp titles for my WIP. Can you recommend books that meet one or more of these criteria?
Soft sci-fi
Space setting with fantasy feel
Speculative fiction about species that has advanced ...
19
votes
8answers
7k views
Is it considered lazy writing to have a dry prelude at the start of a book?
I'm thinking of the crawl sequences at the beginning of Star Wars, that just give you the background information straight up, and then start the excitement.
I've just been wondering if putting a ...
17
votes
18answers
7k views
The role of the supernatural in hard science fiction
The response to this question makes it clear to me that I haven't quite asked the question I had intended, the answers are useful but not quite what I'm looking for.
So different but related ...
8
votes
13answers
4k views
The role of inexplicable events in hard science fiction
The modern world has few true mysteries, among them the fate of the Roanoke colonists and the crew of the Mary Celeste but do such happenings have a place in futuristic settings?
In settings with ...
9
votes
1answer
163 views
Writing a short story set in a place I’ve never been
I’m writing a science fiction type short story set in Germany (actually Stuttgart). To some extent the location isn’t that important- it could be set anywhere but setting it there appeals to me and ...
12
votes
3answers
1k views
Researching Future Technology for a Science Fiction Novel
Because I enjoy reading Science Fiction, I'm thinking of writing a Sci-Fi novel myself. I'm interested in 'hard' (related to the engineering sciences) science fiction with a military bent (think The ...
7
votes
8answers
304 views
Why do most literature magazines take so long (several weeks or months) to respond to submissions despite having only a few hundred subs per month?
I have heard that the the editor of F&SF (Finlay) is the only one who reads all the submissions. Yet he always responds within a week! (With detailed comments on each story.) Clarkesworld is ...
17
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8answers
2k views
How do I know which elements I can use from the work which orginally inspired me?
I recently read the Blood on the Stars series by Jay Allan and really enjoyed the idea of a post-Golden Age human civilization that has splintered into factions and is now at war with itself.
I ...
3
votes
3answers
204 views
How far I should describe an alien invader character that has similar appearance to human?
I'm starting to write a sci-fi story where the alien invaders will have slightly similar looks and anatomy as humans. I mean they are still imaginative characters but I wonder how I can develop those ...
24
votes
9answers
6k views
Does everything have to be accurate?
Do I have to make everything apply to logic, physics, science, etc?
The Harry Potter series has been a major hit, and it is nowhere near to being scientifically possible. But I've noticed that I can'...
