Slipstream is a literary genre or category of speculative fiction that blends science fiction, fantasy and literary fiction, or that otherwise does not remain within the conventional boundaries of genre and narrative. It directly extends the experimentation of the New Wave science fiction movement while also drawing on fantasy, psychological fiction, philosophical fiction and other literary genres and styles. Historical examples of the genre were partially codified in the anthology Feeling Very Strange: The Slipstream Anthology, and contemporary examples include Peaces by Helen Oyeyemi, The Dangers of Smoking in Bed by Mariana Enríquez, and The Butterfly Lampshade by Aimee Bender.
Facts
Place of OriginUnited States; the term was coined by Richard Dorsett according to Bruce Sterling, who first described it in print in SF Eye issue 5, in July 1989. 1 Notable ExampleFeeling Very Strange: The Slipstream Anthology (2006), edited by James Patrick Kelly and John Kessel, which partially codified historical examples of the genre; contemporary examples include Peaces by Helen Oyeyemi. 1 Defining TraitA literary genre or category of speculative fiction that blends science fiction, fantasy and literary fiction, or that otherwise does not remain within the conventional boundaries of genre and narrative. 1 FAQs
Is slipstream a true genre or more of a literary effect?
It is often treated as a literary effect of cognitive dissonance rather than a fixed genre.
Some of its own editors say it is closer to an effect. James Patrick Kelly and John Kessel, who edited Feeling Very Strange: The Slipstream Anthology, argued that cognitive dissonance is at the heart of slipstream, and that it is not so much a genre as a literary effect, like horror or comedy. That is why works as different as magical realism, metafiction and surrealism are sometimes grouped under the name.
Connections
In the Other Atlases
Originated In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.
Source Slipstream Fiction (Wikipedia)tier 2
Sources
1. Slipstream Fiction (Wikipedia)
WikipediaLead section
Slipstream is a literary genre or category of speculative fiction that blends together science fiction, fantasy, and literary fiction, or otherwise does not remain within conventional boundaries of genre and narrative.
Lead section, second paragraph
Historical examples of the genre were partially codified in Feeling Very Strange: The Slipstream Anthology. Contemporary examples include Peaces by Helen Oyeyemi, The Dangers of Smoking in Bed by Mariana Enríquez, and The Butterfly Lampshade by Aimee Bender.
'Origin' section
Sterling later described it in an article originally published in SF Eye #5, in July 1989, as "a kind of writing which simply makes you feel very strange; the way that living in the twentieth century makes you feel, if you are a person of a certain sensibility."
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