I’ve posted two steampunk reviews in the past couple weeks, and both times in the “genre” section I’ve had to put Sci-Fi/Fantasy, which REALLY grates my cheese. Science Fiction and Fantasy are NOT the same thing (except when, occasionally, they are…) and even though the get lumped together at bookstores and libraries, it’s usually pretty easy to spot the difference.
But not with Steampunk.
I think this is largely due to the fact that Steampunk has often adopted supernatural creatures, such as vampires or werewolves, which make them crossover more to fantasy. However, Steampunk works without those creatures have little or no fantastical elements. In those cases they function more as alternate histories featuring crazy technological advancements which, while scientifically possible, we never made. Hence, science fiction.
Really, it’s unfair to attempt to throw the whole sub-genre into one genre. Which makes absolutely no sense.
So what do I do in my book reviews, and, more importantly, on my bookshelf? I COULD differentiate. Boneshaker is more of a fantasy, what with the zombies and all. The Difference Engine, however, is more science fiction. But I don’t know, that seems like a lot of responsibility, and I’m a little afraid of pissing off the hard-core science fiction lovers. Also, it seems like they should be on the same place on my bookshelf… I could permanently combine Science Fiction and Fantasy, like they do at bookstores, but as I mentioned, that bugs me. THEY AREN’T THE SAME!!!! I could just not include the “primary” genre in my reviews, and give steampunk its own shelf on my bookshelf, I guess… But as I mentioned many moons ago, I’m running out of bookshelf space, and it doesn’t make sense to create a whole shelf for like, three books. (I gave most of my steampunk to Half Price Books. Still looking for a steampunk novel to fall in love with!)
Thoughts?
Never Not Reading 
If you want, you can just create a shelf for the whole Steampunk subgenre. If not, I don’t see any problem with putting them in fantasy if they have fantastical elements and in sci-fi if they don’t 🙂
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I think I agree with Naty. There are so many sub-genres (paranormal fantasy, dystopian fantasy, gothic fantasy etc.) and sometimes it’s unclear which book relates to which genre. The exact same thing happens with scifi as well.
So, I think you should just create a shelf solely for the steampunk sub-genre.
😘
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I understand how complicated that it. I think maybe have your sci-fi section then the steampunk section, and then fantasy. That way steampunk is near both but also it’s own little bubble of space.
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Putting it in the middle seems like a reasonable compromise…
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The only distinction I really have on my shelves is fiction or non-fiction so I don’t have the genre/sub-genre issue.
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I’m thinking about doing it that way (running out of space on a few shelves), but I’m worried I won’t be able to find books like Tom Jones when I can’t remember who the author is.
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I can understand that issue. It can be problematic if you don’t remember the author’s name, but thankfully it is not usually that time consuming to pop on Goodreads and search the title to find the author.
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That’s what my husband said! I said I would feel like such a dummy having to google a book in my own tiny library!
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Well, as long as you don’t have to Google most of your books, I think you’ll be all right.
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I completely arbitrarily classify as Hard or Soft steampunk.
Hard steampunk contains no supernatural elements or weird science, and Soft does.
So I write hard steampunk, Gail Carriger writes soft steampunk. Easy.
Of course even the hardest steampunk is soft SF because it contains something that isn’t possible 🙂
You an’t necessarily call any steampunk alt history, because it isn’t necessarily historical (Patricia Loofburrow’s future noir steampunk, or Robert Harkess’s contemporary urban steampunk).
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Wow, thanks for your input!
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I like Steve’s input! It may be safe to say that steampunk won’t always fall under sci-fi though because steampunk style should utilize machinery and working functionality from the past rather than advanced technology.
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I agree with Steve as well and categorize my steampunk books similarly on my shelves and for me steampunk that is truly alternate history goes in that category all to itself.
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As long as there’s no wizards or elves or unicorns it’s all Science Fiction but that drags a thought from the dark recesses of my mind, what about wizards in spaceships or elves riding clockwork unicorns in Victorian London? Oh damn I’d still read it!
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Why can’t all Speculative Fiction just live harmoniously? I know, each sub-genre has its fanaticism, but they all live to encourage the ‘what ifs’ of the world. I love them all.
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I’m with you! If my library wasn’t organized into genres I probably would just ignore the question all-together, let it be it’s own thing. But, alas, my library must be perfect.
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