Mundane science fiction

Mundane science fiction (MSF) is a niche literary movement within science fiction that developed in the early 2000s, with principles codified by the "Mundane Manifesto" in 2004, signed by author Geoff Ryman and "The Clarion West 2004 Class". The movement proposes "mundane science fiction" as its own subgenre of science fiction, typically characterized by its setting on Earth or within the Solar System; a lack of interstellar travel, intergalactic travel or human contact with extraterrestrials; and a believable use of technology and science as it exists at the time the story is written or a plausible extension of existing technology. There is debate over the boundaries of MSF and over which works can be considered canonical. Rudy Rucker has noted MSF's similarities to hard science fiction and Ritch Calvin has pointed out MSF's similarities to cyberpunk. Some commentators have identified science fiction films and television series which embody the MSF ethos of near-future realism. MSF has garnered a mixed reception from the science fiction community. While some science fiction authors have defended the proposed subgenre, others have argued that MSF is contrary to the longstanding imaginative tradition of science fiction, or questioned the need for a new subgenre. The MSF movement, which was inspired by an idea from computer programmer Julian Todd, was founded in 2004 during the Clarion workshop by novelist Geoff Ryman among others. The beliefs of the movement were later codified as the Mundane Manifesto. The authors of the Manifesto stated that they were "pissed off and needing a tight girdle of discipline to restrain our sf imaginative silhouettes". Ryman and his collaborators believed that much science fiction was too escapist, and they thought that setting their stories in a world closer to our own would give the narratives more political and social power. Kit Reed's 2004 interview with Ryman states that the "young writers decided they wanted to limit themselves to the most likely future.

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