Definitions of SF

• SF - the "definition" used at the FSFwiki
• "science fiction, fantasy, magic realism, horror, surrealism, le fantastique, myth and legend, fantastical storytelling, and any other writing beyond the strictly realistic", the definition used by the Sunburst Award
• "A handy short definition of almost all science fiction might read: realistic speculation about possible future events, based solidly on adequate knowledge of the real world, past and present, and on a thorough understanding of the nature and significance of the scientific method. [S]trike out the word 'future' it can apply to all and not just almost all SF." -- Robert A. Heinlein, "Science Fiction: Its Nature, Faults and Virtues" in The Science Fiction Novel: Imagination and Social Criticism, Advent: Publishers, 1959.
• "A good science fiction story is a story about human beings, with a human problem, and a human solution, that would not have happened at all without its science content." Theodore Sturgeon, quoted in James Blish, More Issues at Hand: Critical Studies in Contemporary Science Fiction (Advent Publishers, 1970)
• "Speculative fiction is one of those nebulous terms that everyone defines differently. You could say speculative fiction stories are those that haven't happened yet and might never happen if we limit ourselves to the known rules of our reality. A narrower view might say it's science fiction where some or all of the science has been replaced with less constraining elements, such as magic, horror or unexplained weirdness. I just say 'SF' for short." Jayne Fenn, personal bio (last visited 2009/03/09)