speculative fiction n. 1

Edward Bellamy, in ‘Looking Backward,’ and George Parsons Lathrop, in a short story, ‘The New Poverty,’ have followed the example of Anthony Trollope and Bulwer in speculative fiction put in the future tense.

There are at least two principal ways to write speculative fiction—write about people, or write about gadgets.

Speculative fiction (I prefer that term to science fiction) is also concerned with sociology, psychology, esoteric aspects of biology, impact of terrestrial culture on the other cultures we may encounter when we conquer space, etc., without end.

Speculative fiction is not fantasy fiction, as it rules out the use of anything as material which violates established scientific fact, laws of nature, call it what you will, i.e., it must [be] possible to the universe as we know it. Thus, Wind in the Willows is fantasy, but the much more incredible extravaganzas of Dr. Olaf Stapledon are speculative fiction—science fiction.

In writing speculative fiction, I feel I have not failed the auspices of my natal day.

I have written almost every sort of thing—filler paragraphs, motion picture and TV scripts, poetry… I found that what I did enjoy and did best was speculative fiction. I do not think that this is just a happy coincidence.

The fathers of speculative fiction. Wells dealt in invasion of the Earth.

Omni has the opportunity to introduce to a large number of readers the delights and fascination of rigorous speculative fiction and non-fiction.