I’m a big fan of all three genres and not just because I like dragons or blood and guts but because it opens our minds to other worlds. Where would we be now if it wasn’t for imagination? Most things we take for granted was first conceived by a writer many years ago. The idea of talking to someone face to face over an electronic device was so far fetched that it was labeled science fiction. Yet now we have the iPhone with FaceTime and many other phone companies looking to jump on the band wagon.
The idea of living on Mars was just preposterous when written about but it made good reading. Now when you watch a documentary it highlights the possibility of colonising other planets with Mars being the most obvious.
Even the term ‘robotics’ was first invented by a sci-fi writer called Isaac Asimov and is now a widely accepted term within the scientific community. Where will it end? The answer is simple. How far can the imagination go? Pretty far I’d say.
Don’t take me the wrong way. I love all books and all stories. I can read a thriller or a crime novel just as well as a horror one but they are based in our own world and it’s more or less something we see played out in the newspapers and tabloids every day. The appeal is seeing the good guy win. But when it comes to other worlds it’s a whole new set of rules. Different politics mean you could kill a man in the street with no consequence. You can venture into distance galaxies and planets from you comfort of your own living room.
Science Fiction alone is one of the most popular genres in the world producing films such as Avatar, X-Men, The Green Lantern and Star Wars whereas horror has produced classics such as Hellraiser, Saw, The Candyman and The Exorcist.
Horror has produced some of the most memorable books and films in the world. One such example would be Stephen King’s The Shining.
Fantasy itself isn’t anything to smirk at when you have such stories as Avatar or Lord of the Rings.
People are so apt to dismiss these three genres as rubbish or hocus pocus, unbeknownst to them that most of their favourite films started out life as a book.
One of life’s greatest pleasures is reading, taking you places you’ve never been before and some you’d rather not re-visit any time soon. But they’ll always leave a lasting impression.
