The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (SFE) is an English-language reference work devoted to science fiction, first published in 1979 under the editorship of Peter Nicholls and John Clute. It covers science-fiction authors, themes, terminology, films, television, magazines, comics, awards, and related topics.

The encyclopedia has appeared in four major editions. The first edition was published in 1979, followed by a substantially expanded second edition in 1993 and a CD-ROM version in 1995. A third edition was launched online in 2011 under the editorship of Clute, David Langford, Nicholls, and Graham Sleight, transforming the work into a continuously updated digital resource. Following a change of web host, a fourth edition was released in 2021.

Since its first edition, the encyclopedia has grown from approximately 2,800 to more than 20,000 entries and over seven million words in its online form.

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction has received widespread critical acclaim and has frequently been described as an indispensable resource for readers, scholars, and critics of science fiction. It has won multiple major genre awards, including the Hugo Award, Locus Award, and BSFA Award, and has been credited with helping to establish standards for science-fiction scholarship.

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction contains entries under the categories of themes, terminology, science fiction in various countries, films, television, magazines, fanzines, comics, original anthologies, awards, and miscellaneous, as well as people (authors, filmmakers, illustrators, publishers, and others).^[1] The encyclopedia, however, does not include entries on individual books.^[2] Most releases include various multimedia content;^[3] the 4th edition, as of February 2026, had over 35,000 images (mostly book covers).^[4][5]

Early on, the editors decided that the encyclopedia would be organized as a single alphabetical sequence rather than divided into separate sections, with cross-references linking related topics throughout the work. This emphasis on internal linking remained a defining feature of later editions and became more fully realized via hyperlinks after the encyclopedia moved online in 2011^[6]

The online edition of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction was released in October 2011 with 12,230 entries, totaling 3,200,000 words. The editors predicted that it would contain 4,000,000 words upon completion of the first round of updates at the end of 2012; this figure was actually reached in January 2013, and 5,000,000 words in November 2015.^[7] As of February 2026, the site contained 20,868 entries totalling 7,532,364 words.^[8]

The encyclopedia originated in around 1975, when Peter Nicholls was approached by publisher Hugh Elwes of Roxby Press about creating a reference work devoted to science fiction. After agreeing to the proposal, Nicholls developed the encyclopedia's editorial structure with John Clute and other early contributors before publication arrangements were made with Granada in the United Kingdom and Doubleday in the United States, culminating in the publication of the first edition in 1979.^[9][10][6]

The first edition, edited by Nicholls with Clute,^[11] was published by Granada in 1979. It was retitled The Science Fiction Encyclopedia when published by Doubleday in the United States. Accompanying its text were numerous black and white photographs illustrating authors, book and magazine covers, film and TV stills, and examples of artists' work.^[12] It had about 2,800 entries.^[2] Contributing editors included Malcolm Edwards and Brian Stableford, and notable contributors, John Brosnan.^[10]

A second edition, jointly edited by Nicholls and Clute, was published in 1993 by Orbit in the UK and St. Martin's Press in the US. The second edition contained 1.3 million words, almost twice the 700,000 words of the 1979 edition.^[13] The number of entries grew to over 4,300.^[2] The 1995 and 1999 paperback editions included an appendix listing corrections and addenda.^[9] Unlike the first edition, the print versions did not contain illustrations.^[2]

There was also a CD-ROM version in 1995, styled variously as The Multimedia Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (MESF) and Grolier Science Fiction.^[14][15][16] This contained text updates through 1995,^[17] hundreds of book covers and author photos, a small number of old film trailers, and author video clips^[3] (from the TV series Prisoners of Gravity and E-scape Velocity).^[18]

The companion volume, published after the second print edition and following its format closely, is The Encyclopedia of Fantasy edited by John Clute and John Grant.^[14] A small number of entries overlap between the two volumes; however The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, while also available online, is not being updated.^[19][20]

By the early twenty-first century, the editors concluded that further expansion in book form was no longer practical, leading to the development of an online third edition. Development of the online edition began in earnest in 2005, using a corrected and expanded version of the 1995 CD-ROM text as its foundation.^[10][6]

The third edition was launched in October 2011 by SFE Ltd (Science Fiction Encyclopedia Ltd) in association with Victor Gollancz Ltd and the SF Gateway project. The encyclopedia website's October 2011 launch date was chosen to coincide with the debut of SF Gateway as part of Gollancz's fiftieth-anniversary celebrations, at the insistence of publisher Malcolm Edwards.^[9][21]

Compared to the second edition (CD-ROM version), the editors extensively revised and expanded the text, increasing it from about 1.4 million words and 6,700 entries to more than 3.2 million words and 12,000 entries at launch. A gallery of 10,000 images (mostly book covers) was also added. The editorial team consisted of John Clute, David Langford, Graham Sleight, and Peter Nicholls, the latter serving as editor emeritus until his death in 2018.^[9][22]

Unlike the earlier print editions, the third edition was conceived as a continuously updated reference work, with the editors emphasizing that the encyclopedia would remain a work in progress. Since its launch in that format, the encyclopedia has been updated regularly (usually several times a week) by the editorial team with material written by themselves and contributed by science fiction academics and experts.^[11][9][22]

The 3rd edition received the Hugo Award for Best Related Work in 2012. Though the SFE is a composite work with a considerable number of contributors, the three main editors (Clute, Langford and Nicholls) have themselves written almost two-thirds of the 5.2 million words to date (as of September 2016).^[14]

Although in the 2010s SFE wwas initially closely linked to the SF Gateway project, the relationship weakened after Edwards left and SF Gateway was redesigned.^[9][21] The Encyclopedia ended its arrangement with Orion in September 2021 and moved to a new, self-owned web server, resulting in the launch of the fourth edition in October of that year. While based on the earlier design, the new edition incorporates a number of revisions; for instance, many author entries now include thumbnails of the author's book covers.^[23] Meanwhile, the SFE Ltd has closed in 2024, with the encyclopedia published since by small press Ansible Editions.^[9]

According to the editors of the encyclopedia, the distinction between the third and fourth editions is primarily technical (regarding the legal aspects of the publishing entity) and not regarded as of great importance.^[10]

The encyclopedia received a number of reviews.^[24]

Writer Ian Watson reviewed the first edition in 1980, the journal Foundation. Watson noted his positive surprise that the publication contained a much smaller number of errors than expected, and noted that its format allowed for easy correction of those in the expected second edition. He concluded that the "volume is a genuine encyclopedia – the first such. It is the Britannica of the sf field", positively commenting on the breadth and scope of the entries, and even the illustrations, which he found informative, and not just decorations.^[25]

The first edition was also reviewed for the Australian fanzine SF Commentary by writer Bruce Gillespie. He noted that "there is no need to review [the work as] everybody has done so already and no book in science fiction has received such universal praise". He praised the enjoyable "English tone" and concluded that the encyclopedia addresses most important topics in the field, although noted some omissions that he hopes will one day be added.^[26]

The second edition was widely anticipated in the Anglophone SF community. Writing for Locus, Christopher Fowler noted that the encyclopedia's launch event at Eastercon and subsequent book signing were well attended, and reported that the volume had already sold out at specialist bookstores in London.^[27]

Subsequently, the second edition received widespread critical acclaim and was frequently described as an indispensable reference work for science fiction readers, scholars, critics, and libraries, who commonly emphasized its intellectual ambition and critical value, noting that it functioned not only as a reference work but also as a source of analysis and discovery. Reviewing it for Foundation, Edward James called it "the one indispensable volume on every sf readers' shelf",^[12] while Gary Westfahl in Extrapolation described it as "the one essential reference book for anyone interested in science fiction" and predicted it would become heavily cited in future science fiction studies scholarship.^[28] Gary K. Wolfe writing for the Locus saw it as a work that defined the genre at the end of the twentieth century,^[29] and Stephen P. Brown in Science Fiction Eye opined that it was "the single most important book ever published in the SF field".^[30] Similar endorsements were offered by other reviewers and critics.^{[nb 1]}

Reviewers particularly praised the encyclopedia's greatly expanded scope compared to the first edition, highlighting its breadth of coverage, thematic essays, cross-referencing system, and inclusion of film, television, media, international topics, and emerging trends such as cyberpunk.^{[31][30][34][36][37][40][29]} Broderick praised its success in bridging academic criticism and popular science-fiction culture, appreciating the conversational yet rigorous tone that bridged academic and fan perspectives^[31] while Brown highlighted its hyperlinked, cross-referential structure^[30] and Kessel singled out its 212 essays on themes as a particularly valuable feature.^[2] A recurring topic in reviews was the encyclopedia's distinctive editorial voice. Critics praised its readability, intellectual rigor, and willingness to make critical judgments rather than merely compile facts.^{[29][31][30][37]} John Kessel noted that, despite some debatable opinions, the treatment of authors was generally fair and professionally balanced.^[2]

Reviewers also identified a number of shortcomings. Frequently mentioned criticisms included occasional factual errors and omissions, perceived British bias, inconsistent coverage, underrepresentation of some non-Western topics and short-fiction authors, and the absence of entries for individual books. The decision to drop illustrations in favor of more text received mixed reactions but was generally accepted as worthwhile.^{[29][28][39][30][37][33]} Edward James criticized what he perceived as the "sneering" tone of some film entries.^[12]

The CD-ROM edition was reviewed by Fiona Kelleghan for Science Fiction Studies,^[29] Russell Letson for Locus,^[16] and Moshe Feder for Asimov's Science Fiction.^[41] The reviewers found the underlying core text useful, but found the added multimedia elements (video clips, images, etc.) largely superficial and disappointing compared to the strength of the core reference text.^[16][29][41]

Reviews of the online third edition were highly positive, with commentators praising its comprehensiveness, usability, and continuing development. Reviewing the beta version in 2012 for Choice Reviews Online, Robert A. Aken noted that although the encyclopedia was not yet complete, it was easy to access, up to date, and remarkably free of errors, concluding that "no print or online work approaches this resource's coverage" and recommending it for both students and researchers.^[42] Andrew M. Butler similarly described it as "a gold standard for reference works in the field".^[43]

Reviewing the encyclopedia for Reference Reviews in 2013, Waudenna Agee highlighted its vast scope, extensive hyperlinking, frequent updates, advanced search tools, and user-friendly design, describing it as a comprehensive and authoritative resource whose transition from print and CD-ROM editions to an online database had enhanced its usefulness and reliability.^[44] Writing in Black Gate in 2019, Steven H. Silver likewise characterized The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction as a landmark achievement in science-fiction scholarship. Tracing its development from the first edition through its online incarnation, he emphasized the role of Peter Nicholls in establishing professional SF criticism and argued that the encyclopedia remains one of the most important and award-recognized reference works in the field.^[45]

• First edition:
  • Nicholls, Peter, ed. (1979). The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction: An Illustrated A to Z. St Albans, Herts, UK: Granada Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-0-246-11020-6.
• Second edition:
  • Clute, John; Nicholls, Peter, eds. (1993). The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (2nd ed.). London: Orbit Books. ISBN 978-1-85723-124-3. xxxvi + 1370 pp.
  • Clute, John; Nicholls, Peter, eds. (1995). The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (2nd ed.). New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-0-312-13486-0. xxxvi + 1386 pp.
  • Clute, John; Nicholls, Peter, eds. (1995). The Multimedia Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (CD-ROM) (2nd ed.). Danbury, CT: Grolier Science Fiction. ISBN 978-0-7172-3999-3.
  • Clute, John; Nicholls, Peter, eds. (1999). The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (2nd ed.). London: Orbit Books. ISBN 978-1-85723-897-6. xxxvi + 1396 pp.
• Third edition:
  • Clute, John; Langford, David; Nicholls, Peter; Sleight, Graham, eds. (2011). The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (3rd ed.). London: Gollancz. Archived from the original on 19 December 2011.
• Fourth edition:
  • Clute, John; Langford, David, eds. (2021). The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (4th ed.). London and Reading: SFE Ltd and Ansible Editions. Retrieved 7 October 2021.

• The Encyclopedia of Fantasy
• Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (1978 book)
• The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy
• The Visual Encyclopedia of Science Fiction

• SFE: The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, 2014—current online edition
• Self-referential entry on the Encyclopedia, written by David Langford
• SF Encyclopedia Editorial Home (formerly sf-encyclopedia.co.uk)—with data on multiple editions
• "Formats and Editions of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction" at WorldCat
• 1993 SF Encyclopedia Updates—"New Data, Typographical Errors, Factual Corrections, and Miscellanea; Last updated September 2002"—superseded by the 2011 edition
• Grolier product information, 1995 Multimedia edition at the Wayback Machine (archived October 17, 2008)
• "Q&A with the Founder of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction", The Independent, 12 January 2012—Neela Debnath with Peter Nicholls