As discussed previously, horror is meant to frighten, scare, or make the reader feel ill at ease. Horror stories typically explore themes related to demons, spirits, death, and the afterlife. The horror genre in all its forms makes us confront our fears and tries to rattle us in order to make us think. Now let's look at the horror sub-genres.

Horror doesn’t have as many sub-genres as fantasy or science fiction. It tends to be more difficult to break down into sub-categories. The following is not a comprehensive list (and the definitions are intentionally brief), but should give you a better understanding of the more common horror sub-genres out there.

Body Horror

Body horror is horror that puts a particular emphasis on the distortion of the body via transformations, deformations, degeneration, etc. Body horror is about the loss of control and is not necessarily gory.

For example, Helpmeet by Naben Ruthnum, Wilder Girls by Rory Power, and Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica.

Cosmic Horror

Cosmic horror pits the insignificance of the human experience against the unknowable elements of nature and the universe.

For example, Ring Shout by P. Djeli Clark, The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle, and Sister, Maiden, Monster by Lucy A. Snyder.

Folk Horror

Folk horror relies on elements of folklore (such as a rural setting, isolation, superstition, etc.) to unsettle the reader. It often involves an “outsider versus old-world beings or beliefs” framework.

For example, The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher, The Lonely by Andrew Michael Hurley, and Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss.

Gothic Horror

Gothic horror tends to be dark stories that focus specifically on death, dread, mystery, and fear. They strive to create a sense of menace and sinister pasts.

For example, Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher, and We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Occult Horror

Occult horror focuses on rituals designed to obtain secret knowledge or power. Typically this includes witchcraft, spiritualism, black magic, or secret cults.

For example, The Book of the Most Precious Substance by Sara Gran, Slewfoot by Brom, The Necromancer’s House by Christopher Buehlman.

Psychological Horror

Psychological horror is about mental trauma and agony. It elicits paranoia, self-doubt, and suspicion. It does not need much (or any) physical violence.

For example, House of Leaves by Mark Z Danielewski, Wonderland by Zoje Stage, and I’m Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid.

Slasher Horror

Slasher horror is physically violent and descriptive of that violence. These stories are typically about punishment and revenge.

For example, My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones, My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite, and You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron.

Supernatural Horror

Supernatural horror, as the name suggests, focuses on supernatural beings or abilities (ghosts, werewolves, vampires, etc.)

For example, The Good House by Tananarive Due, Bad Cree by Jessica Johns, and Stolen Tongues by Felix Blackwell.

Survival Horror

Survival horror is about being isolated from outside help and having to survive the environment the character(s) are in as well as whatever horror is plaguing them.

For example, The Troop by Nick Cutter, The Terror by Dan Simmons, and The Hunger by Alma Katsu.

Those are some of the more common sub-genres of horror out there. Understanding the differences between them can help you focus your story or it can make you want to blur the line between two or more of the sub-genres.

If you have any questions, or think I’ve missed any important sub-genres, let me know in the comments.

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As with the fantasy genre, science fiction has many sub-genres to look out for. Again, these definitions are intentionally brief and the list is far from comprehensive. The goal is to give you a better understanding of the more common science fiction sub-genres out there.

Apocalyptic Fiction

Apocalyptic fiction takes place in a time where our world is coming to an end. It describes how and why this event may occur and how humanity reacts to the situation.

For example, The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters, Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler, and Flood by Stephen Baxter.

Post-Apocalyptic Fiction

Post-apocalyptic fiction takes place after the world as we know it has already ended. It focuses on the people who survived the cataclysm and how they now live.

For example, The Girl with All the Gifts by Mike Carey, The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, and Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel.

Cyberpunk

Cyberpunk takes place in a high-tech futuristic world. It has a heavy focus on computers, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence. Cyberpunk stories typically take place in urban settings.

For example, Neuromancer by William Gibson, The Fortunate Fall by Raphael Carter, and Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson.

Hard Science Fiction

Hard science fiction is more focused on the scientific and technological ideas rather than the characters. The science and technology must be plausible in order for the story to be considered hard science fiction.

For example, The Martian by Andy Weir, The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin, and Spin State by Chris Moriarty.

Military Science Fiction

Military science fiction equals space wars! Seriously though, military science fiction is all about war and combat in the future. Typically set in space or on planets other than Earth, military science fiction focuses on high-tech weaponry (including genetically altered soldiers) and military protocols.

For example, Old Man’s War by John Scalzi, A Soldier’s Duty by Jean Johnson, and The Forever War by Joe Haldeman.

Parallel/Alternate Universe

Parallel/alternate universe means for every decision made there is another universe that plays out the consequences of the decisions that weren’t made in this one.

For example, A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab, The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde, and Dark Matter by Blake Crouch.

Slipstream

Slipstream is essentially a mainstream or literary fiction story with strong speculative elements.

For example, Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami, The Mount by Carol Emshwiller.

Soft Science Fiction

Soft science fiction is the reverse of hard science fiction: it is more about the characters than the science and technology. It focuses on how the science or technology affects the characters and their society as opposed to how the technology works. Soft science fiction is rooted in the “soft” sciences (anthropology, psychology, and sociology).

For example, Blackout by Connie Willis, Falling in Love with Hominids by Nalo Hopkinson, and Borne by Jeff VanderMeer.

Space Opera

Space opera is essentially an adventure story set in space. These stories aren’t concerned with how technology works; they are more focused on the action, adventure, and melodrama.

For example, Willful Child by Steven Erikson, The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, and Ancillary Justice by Anne Leckie.

Steampunk

Steampunk is typically set in an era where steam engines are widely used. It has strong technological elements combining what was used in that time period with future or imagined technology. Delightfully, this is a subgenre that does not adhere to the futuristic aspect commonly found in the definition of science fiction.

For example, Soulless by Gail Carriger, Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld, Boneshaker by Cherie Priest.

Time Travel

Time travel stories are about characters who travel (or are visited by someone who travels) either forward or backward in time. These stories are often more about the consequences of time travel rather than the act itself.

For example, This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar, Kindred by Octavia Butler, and The Time Machine by H.G. Wells.

Those are some of the most common sub-genres of science fiction. The boundaries of these sub-genres are not hard lines, but soft squishy edges that easily blur into each other. So if you’re worried your story doesn’t fall neatly into one category or another, take a deep breath and remember that very few stories are only one thing.

If you have any questions or think I’ve missed any important sub-genres, let me know in the comments.

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The definitions below are intentionally brief. There is so much overlap and wiggle room to allow for in each sub-genre. The following list is also far from comprehensive, but it should give you a better understanding of the more common fantasy sub-genres out there.

Contemporary Fantasy

Contemporary fantasy takes place in our current reality and deals with contemporary issues, but in this reality magic and/or monsters exist.

For example, The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune, Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire, and Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson.

Dark Fantasy

Dark fantasy is a blend of fantasy and horror. It uses common elements of the horror genre to set the tone but relies heavily on fantasy elements for the story’s plot.

For example, The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins, Nevernight by Jay Kristoff, and Alice by Christina Henry.

Epic Fantasy

Epic fantasy takes place in a secondary world and deals with large-scale stories with high fate-of-the-world stakes.

For example, The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson, The Waking Fire by Anthony Ryan, and The Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson.

High Fantasy

High fantasy is very similar to epic fantasy. It takes place in a secondary world but the stakes are smaller and focus more on the characters and setting. Magic and fantastical elements are abundant in high fantasy which means these stories contain a lot of worldbuilding.

For example, The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, and Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor.

Historical Fantasy

Historical fantasy takes place in a recognizable real world historical time period but the story is infused with magic. It mixes historical fiction and fantasy genres to give us an alternate and more magical/supernatural version of real events or time periods.

For example, The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden, The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker, and She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan.

Low Fantasy

Low fantasy places less emphasis on the fantastical or magical elements of the story. It can be set on a secondary world that is similar to our world or in our world. Low fantasy focuses on the characters and their quest.

For example, The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie, The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch, and Sword of Shadows by J.V. Jones.

Science Fantasy

Science fantasy is a blend of science fiction and fantasy. It has a futuristic setting with magical or supernatural elements, or it uses science or technology that is impossible in the real world given what we know.

For example, Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe, Red Rising by Pierce Brown, and Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir.

Urban Fantasy

Urban fantasy is a fantasy story in an urban setting. Typically, they take place set in our world but with magical rules applied to it. This is very similar to contemporary fantasy but tends to be darker, grittier, and always in an urban setting (whereas contemporary fantasy can be anywhere in our world).

For example, The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews, and Moon Called by Patricia Briggs.

Those are some of the most common sub-genres of fantasy, but there are others that may not be listed here. As you’re thinking about which sub-genre your writing falls into, remember that you don’t need to narrow it down to just one. Most books fall into several different sub-genres. These are not tidy little boxes, they’re more like messy sprawling piles, and it’s not always clear where one ends and another begins.

If you have any questions about fantasy sub-genres, leave them in the comments.

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The beauty of a good book is getting to be transported to a different world. Sometimes that means our world through someone else’s eyes. But other times it literally means to a different world or a different version of our world. These latter two options tend to fall into the category of speculative fiction.

Defining Speculative Fiction

Speculative fiction is a very broad term, which is why some people find it so confusing. This genre is all about stories with imagined elements. Is your novel futuristic? It’s speculative fiction. Does your story involve the supernatural? It’s speculative fiction. Does your story alter the reality of our world? Is it set on a different world? Are there magical abilities or creatures? Guess what? It’s speculative fiction.

Speculative fiction is a genre that diverges from the accepted rules of our world. It is a catchall phrase to cover fiction dealing with elements that do not exist in the real world. Elements like magic, other realms of existence, monsters, speed of light travel, advanced technologies, or any number of things that we can’t possibly experience in our current daily lives. This means it is a genre with many sub-genres including fantasy, science fiction, horror, alternate history, dystopian fiction, and magical realism to name a few.

Let’s Talk Genres

Fantasy, science fiction, and horror all have many of their own sub-genres which we will be taking a closer look at in the next few posts. For now, let’s focus on some broad definitions of genres that fall under the speculative fiction umbrella. I’ll also provide some examples of books written in these genres to help you get your bearings. (And to plump up your To Read piles).

Fantasy

The fantasy genre typically contains elements of magic and the supernatural. This genre tends to emphasize magic and the unexplainable over technology and science. Fantasy stories can be set in our world with magical or supernatural rules applied to them, or they can be set in a fictional world as different from our own as the author likes.

Examples of fantasy books include The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter, Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi, and Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree.

Science Fiction

The science fiction genre typically deals with the advancements of science and technology in a more futuristic setting (though the futuristic setting is not a pre-requisite). These stories can be set on Earth, in space, or on other planets.  The emphasis for science fiction genres tends to be on things like scientific and technological advancements, interspecies relationships, and exploration of new worlds.

Examples of science fiction books include Binti by Nnedi Okorafor, The Deep Sky by Yume Kitasei, and The Stars are Legion by Kameron Hurley.

Horror

The horror genre is meant to frighten, scare, or make the reader feel ill at ease. Stories in this genre typically explore themes related to demons, spirits, death, and the afterlife. The horror genre explores the shadowy places in our minds while tackling some big topics.

Examples of horror books include The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones, And Then She Fell by Alicia Elliot, and The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White.

Alternate History

As the name implies, the alternate history genre takes real historical events and explores what the world may be like if that event had a different outcome. Alternate history doesn’t necessarily have any magical or futuristic elements, it simply speculates about what could have been.

Examples of alternate history books include Everfair by Nisi Shawl, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke, and The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling.

Dystopian Fiction

The dystopian fiction genre is set in an oppressive society that attempts to project its perfection through control (be it moral, technological, corporate, totalitarian, etc.). These societies are typically in decline and the story conveys characters inciting change in their circumstance.

Examples of dystopian fiction books include Trail of Lightening by Rebecca Roanhorse, Parable of the Sower by Octavia E Butler, and Unwind by Neal Shusterman.

Magical Realism

The magical realism genre is set in the real world but has undercurrents of magic. The magic in these stories isn’t the main focus; it’s considered normal in the world and therefore is often unexplained.

Examples of magical realism books include The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender, The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates, and The Tiger’s Wife by Tea Obreht.

Why is Genre so Important?

Understanding the different speculative fiction genres will help you categorize your novel. And there are so many reasons being able to categorize your own writing will be beneficial to your process.

Knowing which genre you’re writing helps when it comes to worldbuilding and plotting. It means you can figure out which genre conventions you should adhere to, or at least consider, as you write. Genre conventions are what define the genres and set reader expectations. They are the story elements (such as character archetypes and settings) that commonly appear in books of certain genres.

This means that identifying your genre also helps your readers to choose your book. Readers choose books based on their expectations (which are often dictated by genre conventions). If they pick up a fantasy novel, they’re going to expect some form of magic or supernatural creatures. But if that book turns out to be about terra forming a new world, they’re going to be disappointed and probably confused.

Still have questions about what speculative fiction is? Or about the importance of genre conventions? Leave them in the comments.

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