Several writers have suggested that Frankenstein by Mary Shelly is the first true SF story. This is true insofar as one accepts the idea that humans can be replaced by their own creations as the only, or at least main, theme in SF. But SF has always had a large element of the "Romance genre" as part of its essence. Romance fiction covers events that are out of the ordinary and are often to do with adventures in strange lands and with other-wordly beings. Thus some see "True History" by the Greek writer Lucian of Samosata who around 160 CE described a ship that is carried to the Moon by a giant waterspout where he finds the Lunarites at war with the Solarians over the colonisation of Venus. As part of the peace treaty both sides agree to jointly develop Venus, which is inhabited by giant spiders.
What is the first writing in SF?
Updated: May 7, 2020
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