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In terms of speculative fiction, which is a genre that covers a huge swath, I usually break it into a few major subgenres:
Science Fiction (skiffy, space travel, aliens, stunning tales of superscience, space opera, mil-sf, etc.)
Fantasy (elf opera, magic, witches, urban fantasy, vamps, werewolves and the men they love, and including any horror stories based on fantasy elements)
Alternate History (American South wins Civil War! Newsreel at 11:00 pm. Breaking News Flash: Belisarius conquers Alien Invader.)
Other (slipstream, ahistorical & unfantastic whatevers, magical realism, etc. You know, "Other".)
Beware! This whole subject can induce mind-numbing & endless discussion threads on rec.arts.sf.written.
Other common genres:
Historical fiction
Mysteries & Thrillers
Westerns
Nautical tales
Sports stories
Romance
I'm sure people can come up with a few others.
I view them as a menu of things one could read if one were so inclined. Sometimes you feel like a nice Police Procedural with psycho killers and 'One Courageous Detective Who Keeps Faith With the Kid Who Cries Wolf', others you long for the sound of ripping bodices and sweaty bodies, lungs heaving, locked in torrid (fade, cut to next scene).
Regards,
Jack Tingle
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