Shaggy God story

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A shaggy God story is a story in a minor science fiction genre that attempts to explain Biblical concepts with science fiction tropes. The term was coined by writer and critic Brian W. Aldiss in a pseudonymous column in the October 1965 issue of New Worlds.^[1] The term is a pun on the phrase shaggy dog story, which describes a lengthy or complicated story with an anticlimactic conclusion.

A typical shaggy God story might feature a pair of astronauts landing on a lush and virgin world and in the last line their names are revealed as Adam and Eve. The television show The Twilight Zone used several versions of this, the most notable being "Probe 7, Over and Out". Another classic example is Isaac Asimov's 1956 short story "The Last Question," which ends with the protagonist supercomputer exclaiming: "Let there be light!"

The creation of the term is often misattributed to Michael Moorcock. Moorcock edited the issue of New Worlds in which Aldiss coined the term in a pseudonymous column. It has been suggested that many assumed Moorcock to be the author of the column. The issue was cleared up in an August 2004 David Langford column in SFX magazine.^[1]