Megatext

Megatext is a term used by scholars of speculative fiction that describes the elaborate fictional background, tropes, images, and conventions that science fiction or fantasy narratives share.

This collective body of knowledge, utilized by writers and recognized by readers, has been described as a "nourishing medium" for science fiction.

References

• Reading by Starlight: Postmodern Science Fiction by Damien Broderick. 1995.
• Rhetoric of the Unreal by Christine Brooke-Rose. 1981.
• Introduction to The Norton Book of Science Fiction by Ursula Le Guin. 1993.