Why Sci-Fi, Horror, Fantasy Genre Fiction is Important

There's fiction and then there's genre fiction. When one specifies the former, it tends to mean stories that fit squarely into the "drama" genre; stories that are realistic (at least on the surface), stories without any fantastical elements. These stories are taken seriously, seen as being more real, more meaningful and more important. When a story starts spicing up the narrative with imaginative, less realistic elements, it's doing the equivalent of sticking its neck out on the chopping block when it comes to serious criticism.

Why?

Admittedly, straight out dramas, whether in books, movies are television, are often written better. That isn't a reason to stereotype genre fiction, however. Just because many do use aliens, robots, serial killers and so on as an excuse to write cheaper, faster stories doesn't mean that they have to be written that way and it doesn't make fantasy itself somehow lesser.

Fantasy, science fiction and horror tales can open our eyes to new horizons and utilize the incredible powers of our imagination like other stories can't. They can use metaphors, teach us lessons and take us on incredible journeys. A good genre story can bring us escapism, just as much as it can illuminate the world around us and display it through a clearer microscope.

As if that weren't enough, one just has to look at the massive, unlimited variety of stories that one can tell. Stories about dragons, stories about alien invaders, stories about detectives tracking down serial killers, stories about adventures in other dimensions, stories about monsters in the closet or under the bed...and what's even better is that while these stories can be presented as far out tales of wonder, they can also be used as launching vehicles for more human, relatable elements. A story about a sky-flying superhero can be grounded by the fact that the hero is a real human with dire relationship problems. The protagonist of a ghost story can be a hard-working pregnant mother. A story about a natural disaster destroying the world can also be a story about an alcoholic father finding redemption. By placing real characters in fantastical settings, genre fiction can have all the advantages.

One of the best movies this year was District 9. Why? Because it took a far-out, science fiction concept - aliens arriving on Earth - grounded it in a sense of realism and then, crafted an apartheid allegory around it. Books like The Lord of the Rings trilogy, I Am Legend or the Dark Tower series shouldn't be looked down upon just because they aren't set in the apartment next door.

A story, no matter what form of media it's told in, doesn't need to be realistic to be important. All it takes is for people to lose their prejudices, open their eyes and accept that a story is a story, no matter how it's told and realize that it shouldn't be evaluated any differently just because it's not afraid to take the audience's hand and guide them into a whole new world.