Burnout in Science Fiction

Writing science fiction has become a puzzle. It feels like every idea has been written down, every dream or assumption has succumbed to the speed of technology. How satisfying or original can ideas be in such an age?

I thought about this question again after receiving a note some time ago. The reason was to write a story in a genre I had not written in recently. The first thing I did was to read to get a good understanding of the genre. Then I tried to remember exemplary literary works in the genre and related themes. I also asked the AI to present them to me quickly.

When you want to write a story, it can sometimes feel easy to write the first thing that comes to mind. Even if you like the idea, it may be similar to a work that has left its mark in a certain period of history. So there is no harm in adding a little difference. Because you want some parts to be special to you. But the real problem is that you do not know what kind of change you are going to make. Because no matter what you do, you learn that something similar has already been written. So I listed every idea that I thought was crazy and sometimes strange in my AI chat, 'What if it was like this?', 'No, then what about this?

But I could not overcome time and literature. Those before me had already dreamed and written.

Let's not overlook that: It is not necessary to create a completely original structure to write a story. Besides, it is impossible. At the end of the day, we all take something from here, there, from this or that theme or genre, collect a collection of detailed ideas, and create as original a work as possible. That includes every writer before us. However, as I have recently experienced again how difficult this can be in relation to the subject I am dealing with, I think it is worth mentioning.

I think there are two main reasons for this problem. The first, as I said, is the feeling that every subject has already been written about. The other, since I am providing a narrative through science fiction, is the unimaginable evolution of technology.

I would like to broaden the subject with the evolution of science fiction from the past to the present.

Photo by Imad Alassiry on Unsplash

Let's go back to the beginning. Although science fiction has given some examples from centuries ago, when it became definable in literature, the calendars coincided with the dates of the 19th century. In its first incarnation, this was called the “Early Period”. As social philosophy and the industrial revolution (which also means scientific progress) gained momentum, the ideas naturally spread to literature. It also seems much more understandable now that the imagination exploded during these periods when people felt stuck.

The next period is called the “Golden Age”. After the 1930s there was a great love affair with science fiction. The most important factors in this were the abundance of science fiction magazines. There were too many names on the market for variety, and the issues they published lasted for decades. The well-known fathers of science fiction were also recognised at this time. The other main factor is the comfort that comes with the end of wars, the desire to embrace the imagination again, but the reality of the Cold War and the race for space and technology.

Then comes the “New Wave” period, when it starts to be packaged in literary terms, and we move on to the 60s and 70s. Criticism of the social order, various ideologies and movements, dystopian narratives, we come across many names that are now classics in the field of science fiction. The main reason is that the culture is more rebellious and against fashionable themes.

The penultimate period is, of course, the 80s and 90s, one of our common nostalgia periods. The main theme of this period, which we can call “Cyberpunk and Postmodern”, is the emphasis on computers, the internet, cyberspace and everyday life linked to technology. People have come up with more and more crazy and unbelievable ideas with each passing period. In my opinion, cyberpunk is still the most incomprehensible and tedious of them all. Because it blurs the boundaries between technology and humanity too much and asks us to imagine the unknown. Also, because we are bored with hero stories, we are attracted to the darker and relatively more realistic stories of anti-heroes. While everything was about computers and technology, with the emphasis on the millennium, there was also chaos in society. This, in turn, gave a chance to stories that reinforce dystopia.

We have reached the present and we are in what we can call the "Modern/Contemporary" period. At least it seems reasonable to say that. Nevertheless, I have the feeling that people always cling to these two titles when they cannot find a name. Even this confusion or banality of names shows that science fiction now has difficulty finding a place for itself. If nothing happens, it is contemporary. After all, something was contemporary 10 and 20 years ago. So let's just call it that.

Now you know the prominent themes that have shaped science fiction in the past. Technology is still at the forefront, but in a unique way. The transformation of artificial intelligence, the return and diversification of robots after decades, the increase in environmental catastrophes, biotechnology, the dystopian perception that never goes away, and so on.

Image of the years of the works - Dan Meth

The reason I mention them one by one, but quickly, is that the period always has a unique structure. They can be shaped by the issues that societies deal with as fashion. They can be addressed when they have a global impact. They may be short-term issues that come and go in an instant, but they are remembered as part of that period.

I want to be as positive as possible about the problem of the perception that everything is written down and the exponential development of technology that I mentioned at the beginning. It is therefore necessary to understand that the time, period or 'now' in which we find ourselves is always the most challenging. And how do we know this? It is easy to understand. We only have to look back 5-10 years ago. Are the problems we experienced then and the problems we say have shaped us now the same? No, they are not; the groundbreaking ideas of that time are now commonplace. There was a literature that formed around those ideas then, but when we are in the aforementioned subjects, our perception becomes completely numb. Issues that were not/rarely mentioned in the past become commonplace because they are now normalised and part of our reality.

This numbness gives us the idea that every topic has been covered, that there is nothing left, that it is very difficult to create topics without going into detail. To repeat, we have always loved the development of technology and we have always heard the phrase “it can't get any better than this”. Now, looking back, we can see how cumbersome, useless or inadequate most technological devices are.

Maybe we can't stop technology, and maybe we shouldn't. In fact, I think we are missing the point: Technological (or other global) developments give us the power to open and close more epochs. This may not always be seen in a positive light. For example, writing a dystopian work sometimes feels like an obligation, because we all see that something is going wrong. But to be able to do it, despite all the bans and censorship, shows the power of literature, imagination, fiction and human beings. Even if they are not banned at the moment, we do not know what ordinary work will be considered strange the day after tomorrow.

Photo by Nik on Unsplash

It is normal to feel that we are lagging behind, unable to keep up with the stress and chaos of the times in which we find ourselves. I am sure that the most forward-thinking and successful writers of our time have gone through similar periods. There have been days and nights when they felt dark, there have been conversations when they felt they could talk and talk and get nowhere. This situation should be the global heritage of humanity, regardless of time and place.

Yes, it is difficult to write science fiction; we feel that everything has already been written and that technology is moving faster than us. But let's not forget: A great work comes not only from the originality of the idea, but also from the way the author expresses it. All these writers have, at some point in their lives, experienced those difficult nights, those endless questions. So write, erase, transform. You will find your own way; there is no need to wait for a new era.