Xenofiction is one of the most interesting sub-genres within science fiction, allowing us to explore the perspectives of non-human characters.
I once heard someone say that science fiction is the most avant-garde of all the genres because it describes concepts that do not yet exist, and that’s stuck with me ever since.
Some readers find science fiction to be challenging for that very reason, as it’s difficult to engage emotionally with concepts which seem fanciful, if not downright impossible. I can relate to this, as a matter of fact, as I don’t often like fantasy fiction. Why? Because magic, the supernatural, and the frequent low-tech setting of many fantasy works are difficult for me to connect with. When these ideas are transplanted into more modern settings (think urban fantasy), then things become just relatable enough that I can resume suspension of disbelief.
What makes xenofiction so challenging?
Circling back to the topic of xenofiction, it makes complete sense to me why many people don’t know what it is, and if they do, why they might not seek it out.
Xenofiction is a challenging sub-genre of sci-fi because it is so entirely speculative. We, the human authors, are creating a point of view out of thin air. After all, it’s not like we can interview an orca whale and get their insights into their day-to-day, nor can I visit another planet and see how the inhabitants there live.
The point of view established in xenofiction differs between stories, as does the level of anthropomorphism present in a xenofiction narrative. The defining feature which gathers these works together in the genre is simply that they present a non-human viewpoint, but what exactly qualifies as a non-human viewpoint in regard to xenofiction isn’t as clear cut as you might think.
For example, when trying to decide whether a work is xenofiction, some writing resources have suggested that authors try to swap out their non-human characters for human characters (possibly with superpowers), to see if the story still works. If the story still functions, then the work is probably not xenofiction. The idea behind this is that if the swap doesn’t affect the narrative, then the non-human elements are purely cosmetic.
I think, however, things may be more nuanced than that. Consider the character of Clark Kent, otherwise known as Superman. Clark Kent is not Human, he is a Kryptonian raised on earth. Aside from his awesome powers, he’s very down-to-earth (no pun intended). I would argue that Superman is definitely a xenofiction story. The fact he is not human is the key reason he has his powers, and allows for the introduction of other elements into his stories, like his battles with other cosmic entities. That Clark Kent (and Supergirl, and other Kryptonians) looks just like a human doesn’t affect the xenofiction aspects of the story.
There is a pretty good indie game called ‘Night in the Woods’. I really enjoyed playing this title, which presents a troubled town and a young woman who has recently returned there on a sojourn from university. All the characters are depicted as different animals. This doesn’t affect the plot in any way; the characters and the world they live in are completely human. The game is zoomorphic fiction (presents humans as animals) rather than xenofiction (depicts non-human characters).
People who enjoy sci-fi have no doubt heard the terms ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ sci-fi. Basically, these terms refer to how grounded in reality a story is. ‘The Martian’ I’d say is hard sci-fi, based on what is currently known about our universe with all the limitations that implies. ‘Star Wars’, on the other hand, I’d say is soft, perhaps to such an extent it could even be considered a fantasy in a high-tech setting!
I think xenofiction has something similar to it–a spectrum of speculation, if you will. Some stories present highly unusual viewpoints or cultures which are, for lack of a better term, alien. Others give their non-human characters a recognisable emotional or cultural core which could make them more relatable.
My personal tastes are probably somewhere in the middle. I still really like the alien characters shown in works like ‘Mass Effect’ or, when I was a kid, ‘Animorphs’. There were a variety of interesting character designs in these series along with worldbuilding which made sense and was satisfying. They were just challenging enough to be an exciting addition to the narrative, but not so challenging that I couldn’t feel immersed.
I’ve struggled a bit with some sci-fi stories which present alien viewpoints, finding them too strange to grapple with. It wasn’t that the stories were bad, just that there was too much friction involved with understanding the viewpoint that it stopped being fun to read about. There’s a happy medium between froth and innovation, and that middle ground is where I’d like to be.
The Xenofiction continuum
When I consider works of xenofiction, I like to imagine them as existing on a continuum of sorts, one which represents both biological and psychological/cultural distinctiveness from humanity.
(As an aside, one thing I ponder is what exactly constitutes ‘psychological distinctiveness’. I guess you could say it’s how ‘human’ in personality and emotions your alien or non-human characters are, but then I ask: how exactly would we know if these emotions are exclusive to humans? Seems to me that various animals on this planet show emotions similar to our own, so I don’t know if it follows to say that, for example, feeling sad when it rains is necessarily the sole province of humans…)
In my view, there really isn’t any need to gatekeep xenofiction too much; as long as the POV is non-human then it should qualify. The extent to which that POV departs from our understanding of human-ness will depend on the author, their vision, and how well they execute upon it.
Everyone has their happy medium, so I suppose I have one too. Since writing my own series of xenofiction, I’ve found it interesting that there are some who say the characters or setting are too alien, strange, or complicated. Conversely, I’ve also received comments that the characters aren’t alien enough–they laugh, and cry, and go about their day in ways that are just too recognisable for those readers. My advice to those who want to write xenofiction is simply to tell the story you want to tell, with characters you love and care for, and things will proceed naturally from there.
