What makes a work of alternate history "good". Is it plausibility? Historical accuracy? Or should it merely aim to be entertaining?
And as a side question, what are some examples of really bad alternate history?
>>7853931
What makes a book "good"? Is it plausibility? Accurate portrayal of society? Or should it merely aim to be entertaining?
>>7853931
Same things that make good sci-fi. Good writing and an interesting hypothetical. That's all. It doesn't need to be serious in tone, just good like any other book.
Pic related, I'm not sure how it would hold up today but I still think about the one scene with the knight reaching out to try and help his electrocuted comrade and dying in the process. On the nose maybe but there was a bitterness to it that really stuck with me.
Maybe you wouldn't consider it alternate history either but you could have set stricter parameters here.
>>7853954
Alternate history as a genre is fundamentally tethered to this world.
how well the prose is and how it explores different issues in a creative way