Genre Definitions

This is pretty self explanatory but to explain a bit, I thought of writing a post that basically lists the 3 main YA genres and their definitions because let's be honest, there are times when genres can get mixed up and I thought it would just be helpful for me to have them all down. Most of these are just going to be pretty simple genres and their definitions. I hope to go more in depth with the fantasy genre and its sub-genres in another post. 

Genre: categories of literary composition and usually diverges into subgroups 

Fantasy: Magic is probably the main element in a fantasy book which can lead to a deviation from ordinary laws the universe operate on. 

Alternate History Fantasy- Takes a real historical event/setting and adds a magical twist.

      Ex. Soulless by Gail Carriger 

Epic Fantasy- A tale of large cast of characters with lots of "quests" and has its own world. 

      Ex. Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

High Fantasy- Generally has a medieval like setting with lords/ladies, different kingdoms, dragons, and the whole shebang. There's usually a good vs. evil plot (but aren't most?) 

Urban/Contemporary Fantasy AKA Paranormal- Most paranormal books are generally fantasy books b/c of the magical element. We do seem to associate them differently because we don't think of a contemporary setting when we see the word "fantasy". These fantasy books take place in modern society but of course features the paranormal (vamps, witches/wizards, werewolves, etc...)

     

Sci-fi (sometimes known as Speculative Fiction): Society (modern or imaginative) that's based on science and technology. Anything out of the norm can be explained with the science from the story.

Sub genre examples: Dystopian, Post Apocalyptic, Time Travel, Superhuman, Military SF, Alternate History, and more 

     Ex. The Journey from the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne 

Dystopian- (Don't necessarily have to be sci-if but the futuristic setting is generally caused scientifically or has hi-tech elements to the world. The world has suffered and there's a new type of society/government that rules a (usually) impoverished country. 

Post Apocalyptic- The world has just ended (but not really because there are people alive; just not that many). It's a story of survival and generally deals with the cause of the apocalypse and its aftermath. 

Contemporary (Realistic Fiction?): There are lots of different definitions for contemporary books but I like to classify it as a realistic book or story taking place in a modern setting (with no magic). Lots of contemporaries are romances. These books are imaginary characters put into pretty realistic/probably situations that they would solve just as we would. Topics can vary from romances, family/friendship struggles, suicide, disabilities, abuse, etc...

Sorry for the lack of current YA examples, I'm saving those for another post (let me know in the comments of you do want just to clarify though)! Also I do note that there are a lot of books that connects more than one of these genres. I learned that a lot of these genres can be sub-genres of other genres. #genreception

Does this help clarify some things? 

Do you have another definition for one of these genres?
Any other genres that I didn't mention that you would like me to explain 

or one from this you would like me to go over more thoroughly?