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Old 05-01-2008, 07:05 PM   #11
Aeditor
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Re: Comparing Science Fiction, Science Fantasy, and Fantasy

As with most things, there aren't really any standards set in stone for the publishing industry, though I imagine large book publishers have some in-house guidelines that help them market their book lines. As a short fiction editor, it's definitely something I define as needed (with the help of my co-editors), but we do agree on the basics as I outlined above.

Now to clarify that: by "believable" I mean essentially that the author has made me believe it's possible. As you say, that's going to depend somewhat on my scientific knowledge (she might not fool the reviewer who takes her to task on the details), however it also depends on the writer's skill at revealing just enough to make a technology seem tantalizingly possible without delving into the nitty gritty details that, while of interest to some audiences, can also make the flaws more apparent.

That's my current take, anyway.
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