I don't see why the kind of story you're describing can't be labeled fantasy. I mean, within fantasy there are sub-genres anyway. The kind of thing you mentioned -- magic, taking over the world, dragons, etc -- sounds like high fantasy to me. But that doesn't mean that it's the only type. There are plenty of fantasy stories without magic or dragons or elves, and there are plenty that focus on smaller, more centralized plots (such as a family drama). In fact, I prefer those kinds of fantasy stories to the wide sweeping ones.
For me the difference between fantasy and science fiction is that SF is based on some kind of science, be it astronomy, chemistry, engineering, genetics, psychology...whatever. Granted, a lot of it is based on science that really borders on fantasy sometimes - I've fallen into that trap myself more than once - but that's supposedly the major difference.
Honestly, I think fantasy can be anything else. Anything with elements out of the ordinary or outside our experience. It can be set in the contemporary world, or it can be set in some world made up just for that story. I know people talk a lot about tropes and "rules" when it comes to fantasy, but I don't buy into that. Fantasy can be anything you want it to be, which is why it's called fantasy to begin with, I should expect.
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2009-07-09 03:16 pm (UTC)For me the difference between fantasy and science fiction is that SF is based on some kind of science, be it astronomy, chemistry, engineering, genetics, psychology...whatever. Granted, a lot of it is based on science that really borders on fantasy sometimes - I've fallen into that trap myself more than once - but that's supposedly the major difference.
Honestly, I think fantasy can be anything else. Anything with elements out of the ordinary or outside our experience. It can be set in the contemporary world, or it can be set in some world made up just for that story. I know people talk a lot about tropes and "rules" when it comes to fantasy, but I don't buy into that. Fantasy can be anything you want it to be, which is why it's called fantasy to begin with, I should expect.