Plus, SFF fans are — for better or worse — super invested in their favorite authors and the worlds they create. So, once an author gains a following, why not keep it? Regardless, genre fiction has been all the rage in recent years. A 2015 article in Wired Magazine proclaimed in its title: “At Long Last, Sci-Fi and Fantasy Have Infiltrated the Literary Mainstream.” One side effect of this mainstreaming has been an increase in writers who don’t usually work within these genres publishing in them nonetheless. That could be the result of the publishing industry’s increased willingness to publish works of SFF. It could also be what happens when writers feel they’ll still be taken seriously if they produce SFF. Most likely, it’s a combination of these (and other) dynamics. Regardless of the reason, it’s a wonderful boon for readers. When a Pulitzer Prize–winning writer like Colson Whitehead publishes literary fiction in the same breath as a zombie novel (ever heard of Zone One?), you know it’s not an isolated case. This list is a celebration of recent works of SFF written by writers who don’t usually write SFF. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
Seeking More Stellar Reads? Look No Further!
If you like books that push the boundaries of SFF, you’ll probably have a field day with the books on this list of speculative poetry! You might also dig this list of bookish fantasy or this list of SFF in translation.
