Is there still a stigma to the space opera genre in books?

[CmdrShepN7]

This article seems to think so.

Blogging the Nebulas: Arkady Martine’s A Memory Called Empire Marries Cyberpunk, Space Opera, and Political Thriller

This mindset may have been justified in the 2000s when space opera was dominated by mostly gung ho military adventures published by Baen but this past decade has brought us masterpieces like the Imperial Radch, Machineries of Empire, and now A Memory Called Empire.

Not to mention the Culture novels. Hydrogen Sonata is my first Culture novel and I am blown away.

 

[Richard-Allen]

I am thinking about writing a science fiction space opera. How much singing should there be. I am not sure if I can reach the high notes. Teasing, it is an interest I have writing something along those lines. Can you recommend some books for me to check out. To see how it is done. How long should I put it into the oven for. What temperature should I set it to bake at.

Me just being me. The idea of a space explorer finding a ship, that has been attacked by an alien being. The ship has sent out a mayday signal.

The crew of the ship have found it there. They send out a response, but get nothing back on it. So, they send out a shuttle to investigate the ship. They find that there is life there, one human and the other alien. The aleins boarded with a shuttle.

 

[CmdrShepN7]

I am thinking about writing a science fiction space opera. How much singing should there be. I am not sure if I can reach the high notes. Teasing, it is an interest I have writing something along those lines. Can you recommend some books for me to check out. To see how it is done. How long should I put it into the oven for. What temperature should I set it to bake at.

Me just being me. The idea of a space explorer finding a ship, that has been attacked by an alien being. The ship has sent out a mayday signal.

The crew of the ship have found it there. They send out a response, but get nothing back on it. So, they send out a shuttle to investigate the ship. They find that there is life there, one human and the other alien. The aleins boarded with a shuttle.

The Expanse series, Ancillary Justice, Culture novels by Iain M. Banks, etc.

The Hydrogen Sonata is top quality space opera!

 

[Richard-Allen]

Thank you. I should try and find these books to check out. I appreciate your response. I hope all is well with you.

 

[jbmwriting]

I'm curious about the mainstream perception of space opera as well. I've always enjoyed them personally, and I don't mind the lack of hard science as long as nothing is too blatant.

 

[Rodders]

I've always enjoyed Space Opera and never thought there was a stigma attached to it.

My go to author at the moment is Neal Asher's Polity novels, which I adore.

 

[Ambrose]

I still recall Karl-Bliger Blomdahl's Aniara. Not a book of course. But the end as the ship drifts off . . .

 

[StevenF]

Hi CmdrShepN7, I've been working my way through the Culture novels and its side novels since nearly ten years ago, love them too. Reading at a rate of about two per year to make them last (just finished Matter). There is an interview with the author at the back of Matter and I think it mentioned the Culture series is roughly chronological in order, with Consider Phlebas being the first and Hydrogen Sonata being his last book, and have noted myself occasionally that events which were in the early books being talked about as history in later ones. Something you might want to bear in mind if you plan to read through the whole series. Looking forward to Hydrogen Sonata as it was gifted to me as a hard cover too.

 

[DLCroix]

Hi CmdrShepN7, well, my ignorance on the subject may be regrettable, but from everything I have read so far I think that this stigma does not occur in the Space Opera precisely because the thematic limits have been established for a long time and nobody tries pierce them either side or the other.
But this, I insist, I say from a very basic position. Even so, I think that this situation occurs preferably in science fiction literature; not so, for example, in the cinema, anime or in comics, where the points of view are much more liberal and their authors are not afraid that their works are considered of low artistic value.
This, if I'm not so clueless, is an old discussion. In short, it refers to the somewhat closed and spartan character of the fandom. In fact, within the same fandom the Space Opera does not seem to me to have too much prestige; at least proponents of hard Sci-fi tend to look at it less.

At the same time, fans of a softer type of science fiction also look over their shoulder at Warhammer fans. In this regard, I remember that I once commented on a forum that I wanted to do a couple of stories about it and several friends told me: What ... are... you ... doing? For the same reason that nobody thinks of writing something like Twilight, but on another planet, I suppose because fantasy fans and, even worse, sci-fi fans, would look badly at him. I'd be lucky if they consider it pulp.

After all, that boy who is such a good toothbrush customer is now even called... xenomorphic, I think? But no one would dare to brand him a vampire or a werewolf or a zombie (wait, don't shoot me yet, some suck blood, others put Ozzy when there is a full moon, etc). But no one would dare call him a vampire. Although, differences apart from each species (well, the werewolves do not have a queen that lays eggs), it is not much more the damage that it does; nothing else gives you a little bite and that's it.

Yeah, now you guys can shoot me. Gulp...

 

[Vince W]

When I look back at my sci-fi reading history Space Opera dominates it. I've never felt any stigma with that or any other sci-fi subgenre. Well, alt-history is a bit pants.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I’ve been known to enjoy a good Space Opera from time to time.