An Unconventional Conversation

Marcel: Do you know where I can get a copy of Asimov's short stories?

Me: Why, suddenly took an interest in Asimov?

Marcel: Of course not! It's for Sacha.

Me: Oh. I thought it was because your were interested in him or got influence by Mr. Bulaong.

Marcel: Sorry but Asimov is Science Fiction...

Misconceptions About Science Fiction

First off, Science Fiction is well, like fiction (the same goes with fantasy). It's about telling a good story, although it uses a specific method in doing so. It doesn't even have to be about space, the future, or some complicated contraption. Look at Ray Bradbury's Farenheit 451. It's pretty much contemporary, except for the one fact that all books are banned.

Second, a lot of people usually associate SF with jargon or scientific terms. That's not necessarily so. I mean a writer doesn't necessary put jibberish into their work. I mean look at Asimov's Foundation series. Hardly anything scientific in his writing. Or even Frank Herbert's Dune. What they do have though is concepts (which needn't be explained in a language other than English).

That's not to say there aren't writers who include terms which aren't in the dictionary. I mean in McCaffrey's Pern, she alludes to simple chemical formulas, but that's probably it. Of course in my opinion, McCaffrey didn't need to put in those terms and could have explained it in layman's terms and still be called science fiction, but those are the perks of writers.

Third, SF (and Fantasy) aren't all geek stories about robots going mad or people killing other people. Rather, it's an avenue to take off into other aspects of fiction such as romance or philosophy or adventure. The "science-fiction" aspect of it is only there to give a viable explanation for their current situation, such as why it's possible to travel long distances in space (usually, this is just a "fake" solution that only gives a theory and not the actual mechanics of it, which we readers should appreciate since it is a work of fiction and not a thesis). Ender's Game is a pre-Matrix novel about a boy who thinks he's playing a game and in the end, there are morality issues have to be faced. Heinlen's Starship Troopers (please, read the novel... while the movie is a bit good, it's vastly different from the actual book) is a rite of passage to manhood, and there's a sprinkle of romance in stories like Pern, Dune, and Ursula le Guin's Left Hand of Darkness. There's even comedy in Douglas Adam's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

So if you're someone who actually reads, don't diss science fiction without giving it a try (but like any genre, there will, of course, be horrible writers who can possibly scar you for life). Then there's Dean who's stance on SF is NEVERRRRRRRRRRR.