The SciFi Catholic (D.G.D. Davidson) supplies a quote from Clifford D. Simak taken from the criticism book SF: The Other Side of Realism:

It has always seemed to me that if there were such a thing as “mainstream,” science fiction should belong, at least marginally, to it, for everyone who writes, whatever he may write, does so within the parameters of a literary tradition that has evolved, developed, and changed through the years. And the effort to disassociate fantasy (which is pretty much an undefinable term) and science fiction (which is perhaps as much so) arises from the intricate business of arguing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. I don’t think that we should attempt to distinguish between the two, and that the writer, especially, should disregard any artificial line that exists between them. The best stories, it seems to me, are fantasies, whether they be based on solid scientific extrapolation, or on engineering concepts carried to an ultimate point, or on something else.

Related posts:

  1. RETRO-REVIEW: City by Clifford D. Simak
  2. Science Fiction for People Who Hate Science Fiction
  3. Has Science Ruined Science Fiction?
  4. Science Fiction, Science Present
  5. It’s Not the Science in Science Fiction That Matters

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