“You Can’t Mix Science Fiction and Horror!” Um, Yes, You CAN!

Guest columnist Richard H. Fay is back today, as he continues to give us his very personal view of genre fiction, which he has been a part of as a reader, writer and illustrator for decades.  You can read his blog here, and we also recommend checking out his Zazzle Store.  

One of the more ridiculous notions floating around in the science fiction writing world today is that you cannot mix genres, especially science fiction and horror. As it was once explained to me by an adherent of this notion, if something with the trappings of science fiction (like the movieAlien) elicits a sense of horror or dread, it is actually horror, not science fiction. What rot! Not only is this type of genre gatekeeping annoying as heck, it also neglects to acknowledge the reality of the situation.

This idea that one cannot mix science fiction…