Tropes. We all know them, we love them, and some of them we hate.
I'm going to be listing some terrible tropes and some actually interesting tropes, and some overdone tropes that could be good if written well(all which are my opinion)
PIECE OF SHIT TROPES:
Mischaracterizing BL: Webtoon writers are famous for this, making the "top" practically 🍇 the "bottom". You don't wanna write this. Smut is okay(consensual). Rape is not. And it's fucked up. Unless that's your intention, don't write it like this
Love at 1st sight: DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THIS ONE! Loving someone is a very deep emotion, and you won't feel it unless you start spending time and energy with the person. Lust, is one thing. Love is so much different.
And then...I woke up: okay, so you're saying that you went through all that shit just for it to be a dream? Like, what's the fun in that?
The gay bff: OMG I HATE THIS TROPE SO MUCH LIKE NO THAT'S NOT HOW THEY ACT THEY AINT THAT TWINKY SO DONT GO STEREOTYPING IT FOR FUCKING CHRIST. Point is, it's stereotypical and it sucks.
THOSE strong female protagonists: okay what I mean is that a lot of these "strong" female protagonists are literally like "GRRR! I can drink bottles of alcohol! I live in the streets! I play in dirt because I'm not like other girls!"
No hunny ur not an alpha demon hybrid so stfu and be an actual strong female😊
WE STAN THESE TROPES:
Hot/iconic ass villain: I don't think I need to explain why everyone loves this.
Tough badass becomes a parental figure to child character: RAAAAA ITS SO ADORABLE ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY ONLY HAVE A SOFT SPOT FOR THEM LIKE OMG PLS I NEED TO SEE THIS MORE. This is just plain wholesome, so it's adored.
The very sweet, never-hurt-a-fly girl goes apeshit cuz someone threatened her loved one: this trope is refreshing and interesting because it's like their a different person, and you're just sitting there like "damn that person fucked up".
The charming, outgoing character and the serious, boring character that are besties:I always find this dynamic interesting, mainly because it actually shows that they both have depth, and are so much more than what they show on the outside.
Characters with actual brains: I NEED THIS TROPE MORE CUZ HOLY SHIT EVERY CHARACTER IS DUMB ASF. Like, I want them to have brains, where it's actually realistic.
OVERWRITTEN BUT POSSIBLE MASTERPIECES:
Enemies to lovers: this is so so cliché, but I have seen really good books with this trope.
Unreliable narrator: this one is probably my fav, but it's so hard to write because it throws off the story. And so, if you're skilled, give it a try. If not, practice!
Happily ever after: this one is very difficult to pull off, since it's normally driven by plot armor and unrealistic things. Although, like disney, you could write happily ever after stories and make it enjoyable.
Unlikable suspect: this one appears a lot in those murder mystery books, but this one is also cliche and generally not the best to write(cuz they're a jerk). But, it's possible
The twist ending: this one is a lot easier if you have an unreliable narrator with some red herrings. This is probably even harder than enemies to lovers, because since it's a twist at the very end, it could ruin the whole book.
Anyway, here are all the tropes I could think of. There's a lot more of them, each with their own unique characteristics. But here are my opinions on certain tropes, and if you want more go to the link in the comments.
