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A future history is a postulated history of the future that some science fiction authors construct as a common background for some of their stories. Sometimes the author publishes a timeline of events in the history, while other times the reader can reconstruct the order of the stories from information provided therein.Perhaps the first detailed future history was that of Robert Heinlein, who originated the term in the sense described here. His collection The Man who Sold the Moon offers a vertical timeline labeled "FUTURE HISTORY 1951-2600 A.D." with stories and novels located appropriately, lives of significant characters marked with vertical bars, and commentary. His full future history is compiled in two volumes: The Past Through Tomorrow and Orphans of the Sky.
Other notable future histories:
A set of stories which share a backdrop but are not really concerned with the sequence of history in their universe are rarely considered future histories. For example, neither Lois McMaster BujoldLois McMaster Bujold (born November 2, 1949) is an American author of science fiction and fantasy works. Bujold is best known for her series of novels featuring Miles Vorkosigan, a severely-disabled interstellar spy and mercenary admiral from the planet B's Miles Vorkosigan series nor George R. R. MartinGeorge Raymond Richard Martin (born September 20, 1948 in Bayonne, New Jersey) is an American writer of science fiction and fantasy, and also a screenwriter and producer. He has been an instructor in journalism (in which he holds a master's degree) and a's 1970sMillennia: 1st millennium 2nd millennium 3rd millennium Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Years: 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 Events and trends short stories which share a backdrop are generally considered future histories.
Also, standalone stories which trace an arc of history are rarely considered future histories. For example, neither Walter M. Miller Jr.'s A Canticle for LeibowitzA Canticle for Leibowitz is a post-apocalyptic science fiction novel by Walter M. Miller, Jr. first published in 1959. It is set in an abbey in Utah after a devastating nuclear war, and takes place at intervals of hundreds of years apart as civilization r nor Olaf StapledonWilliam Olaf Stapledon ( 1886- 1950) was a British philosopher and author of several works of science fiction, including Last and First Men ( 1930), Odd John ( 1936), Star Maker ( 1937), and Sirius ( 1944). His work directly influenced Arthur C. Clarke, B's Last and First Men are generally considered future histories.
Unlike alternate history, where alternative outcomes are ascribed to past events; future history postulates certain outcomes to future events. One problem with future history science fiction is that it will date and be overtaken by real historical events (for instance, H. Beam Piper's future history, which included a nuclear war in 1973, and much of the future history of Star Trek). For this reason, some authors set their stories in an indefinite future, often in a society where the current calendar has been disrupted due to a societal collapse or undergone some form of distortion due to the impact of technology. In other cases, such as the Star Trek universe, the merging of the fictional history and the known history is done through extensive use of retroactive continuity. In yet other cases such as the Doctor Who series, much use is made of secret history in which the events which are to take place are largely secret and not known to the general public.
However, a number of hard science fiction writers extrapolate today's technology and events into the near future. Their stories need no fantastic technologies that have not yet been discovered but merely take the next step or two in foreseeable technological advancement and ask "What If?"
