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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/42529
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/42529
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Time travel can _enable_ the plot - appear as a plot device once at the start, and never show up again. **Time travel is part of the setup, not part of the story** , as it where. This is the case of Mark Twain's _A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court_ and Michael Moorcock's _Behold the Man_. Those stories, I'm not sure either the "fantasy" or the "science fiction" label particularly benefits them. **They are specifically time-travel stories, as they have no other "unreal" element in them.** Their focus is the contrast between the modern character and the time they find themselves in.

In other stories, time travel plays a key role in the events throughout the story. It not only _enables_ the story, but is _explored_ within the story in some way. The problems created and solved within the story are connected to the time-travel element. (Time travel might not be the _main_ element explored, though.) Such stories include _Back to the Future_ and _Harry Potter and the Cursed Child_. In such stories, I would look at the other trappings to decide whether a story is fantasy or science fiction, as per the question you link to.

Either way, I'm not sure there are implications for authors, maybe not even for publishers. Fantasy and sci-fi are sold together, in the "fantasy and science fiction" section. Alternate history is also usually found on those same shelves. I find "speculative fiction" is a good umbrella term for all the above. But you might want to take a look at (my) question [What is genre, and why should we care?](https://writing.stackexchange.com/q/39361/14704) for some further discussion of genre distinction implications.

Original score: 5