How close is Sci Fi to Fantasy?
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible (or at least non-supernatural) content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities. Exploring the consequences of scientific innovations is one purpose of science fiction, making it a "literature of ideas".
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common. Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of (pseudo-)scientific and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three, all of which are subgenres of speculative fiction.
Above is the defineation of the two major fiction genres.
I wish to open the doors to a discussion I have debated internally with years with myself and other people. How close is Science Fiction and Fantasy? And should the various grey areas (steampunk, disealpunk, magepunk, cyberpunk) be how we define any work that crosses the two genres?
The cornerstone of my debate is science fiction is magic and if magic is understood then its science fiction. Alchemy is one example. To some it’s magic to create gold from lead or to create a potion to allow one to fly. However if turning lead into gold was a scientific formula where it was innately understood. How the chemical transformation was done then its science fiction. Another example is mythology the things that the gods of the Roman pantheon did where magic. Zeus turning into a ram, or the universe being formed from the flesh and bones of Chronos. Is it magic or science fiction since as A. Clarke summed it up "Any advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic"
I have been working on a series that is on the edge of Fantasy, Post-Apostolic Science Fiction with a blend leaning towards Stempunk.
I tend to think that a blend of this kind blend kind must start with Fantasy because fantasy does not require any explanation where Science Fiction demands explanation. Noting your comment, "The cornerstone of my debate is science fiction is magic and if magic is understood then its science fiction."
My first novel was pure fantasy because I did not explain how certain things happened. So people who read it agreed that it was magic. Then in the second book of the series I began to explain scientifically how some of these things occurred. So those parts became Science Fiction and the unexplained parts are still fantasy.
So to answer your question, "is it Fantasy or Science Fiction". To me it simply depends on how much knowledge/information the reader is given about the subject.
Point taken. Maybe one can classification Sci-Fi like D&D Aliginments LOL some like a Y line of Totally, Mainly and Somewhat and a X line of Hard Sci-Fi, Soft Sci-Fi, Fantasy Sci-Fi. So you have a classification like Totally Fantasy Sci-Fi that would be your mage/steam/diesel punk and Somewhat Hard Sci-Fi would be like taking a realistic rocket ride to the moon to find out its made of cheese and you can breathe in space.
That said, I also think that cross-genre works are just as valuable as those that fit nicely into science fiction or horror or fantasy. It is a talented writer who can blend two or more genres into a single work and have it turn out comprehensible. In those cases, we develop new categories (such as steampunk, which is neither solely period fiction nor science fiction) or new descriptions.
Science fiction and fantasy are as close as any two other genres. The main reason I see that they get lumped together is that until recently, being a nerd or a geek was something to hide and public collections of those genres were small. Condensing them into a single section made it possible to expand the more mainstream fiction sections. I also feel that since both genres are forward-looking (or at least commonly in other worlds/ dimensions), it is easier to blend the two together than say, thrillers and romances.