Some of my favorite stories start with the words “What if”

When I was a kid, I had a subscription to Marvel Comics, and one of the titles that came to me each month was the “What If” series. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s basically the Twilight Zone in comic book form: a one-shot story about situations that normally wouldn’t occur, like what if Superman was Russian, or if Spider-man was a woman. No matter the outcome, it was the possibilities that intrigued me — and I think that’s my favorite part about writing fantasy.

And speaking of fantasy…

There are two camps when it comes to fantasy regarding its younger brother, science fiction: those who think that sci-fi is its own distinct genre, and those who think that sci-fi just a sub-genre of the greater fantasy genre itself. I tend to fall into the second camp, and I always cite Star Wars as an example. Why? Well…

Obi-wan is Gandalf with a light saber

Star Wars blurs the line between science fiction (typically associated with “technology”-focused power that drives the world and the plot) and fantasy (where those things are driven by magic). But, just like Aurthur C. Clarke says, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” So are the two really that different?

I don’t think they are, and I always grew up putting them in the same category. It’s why I always felt equally comfortable dressing up as a Jedi for the theatrical release of Episode I as I did dressing up as a wizard the The Lord of the Rings. (Ask my mom. I was an awkward kid). To me, science fiction and fantasy are just two sides to the same coin, and that coin is fueled by imagination.

The crux of the two genres is this: doing the impossible. It doesn’t matter if it’s Harry Potter using the disarming charm “expelliarmus” to grab an enemy’s sword, or if it’s Luke Skywalker using the Force to do the same thing — the result is the same, and it’s (currently) impossible.

Even though I grew up reading sci-fi along with fantasy, I never felt comfortable writing it. To me, you kind of had to know a thing or two about science in order to fake your way into a believable story. In fantasy, the answer is always “because magic”; in sci-fi, you have to be able to explain the faster-than-light drive you invented, or the colossal ringworld that orbits a star (although Larry Niven himself has said that physics wouldn’t really allow for it. Oh well).

Sci-fi and fantasy can coexist!

In the meantime, though, I’ve begun to try my hand at writing sci-fi. I started on Wattpad with a story I’m calling “Lucky Us” (for the time being), and you can read it for free if you’re interested.

But, keeping with my fantasy roots, I’ve also put up the first six chapters of another story I’m working on called The Air Dancer, and I pitch it as “Game of Thrones meets the Jungle Book.” Feel free to take a look, poke around, and leave me a comment!

Do you think sci-fi and fantasy are one and the same? Or do you separate the two? Let me know in the comments below!

And, as always, if you’re eagerly awaiting the launch of Book Two of the HIGHGLADE series, sign up for the newsletter so you can know exactly when it drops!

-D.L.