Dig A Little Deeper
You know how it is, you’ve just finished a series on Netflix and you’re not sure what to watch next, so you pick the first thing that looks vaguely interesting and give it a few minutes to catch your attention. This week, for me, it was a situational cop drama that was light on the drama, heavy on the fluff, and didn’t tax my brain too much when trying to work out who done it. The plot was light and slow, it wasn’t going to win any awards, but sometimes easy watching is all you’re looking for.
Then out of nowhere enters Mr. X, an attractive character who had very little backstory or purpose other than being hot. “Oh great!” I thought, “I see where this is going.” But I kept watching, just in case this light daytime show was going to surprise me with a new take on modern relationships. It did not.
Within one episode of Mr. X’s introduction, our protagonist, who up to this point had been in a healthy loving relationship, was jealous and untrusting, assuming both his spouse and Mr. X must have ulterior sexual motives for spending time together. Was there a history of infidelity in their relationship? No. Was Mr. X untrustworthy or overtly antagonistic? No. Was the protagonist’s conflict entirely based on the fact his spouse was spending time with an attractive member of the opposite sex? Yes.
For me, this show had committed the ultimate sin. They used a cliché, stagnant storyline that propagated unhealthy relationship standards for no other reason than lazy writing. They wanted a little conflict but couldn’t be bothered to think beyond the obvious, and instead, relied on an overused, misogynistic trope as a crutch for a weak and unoriginal plot. They weren’t trying to set up a future plot hook or make a statement about our protagonist’s insecurities. All they wanted to do was add a little spice without thinking twice about the stereotypes their characters were playing into.
So, after turning off the TV and ranting for a while about the overabundance of lazy writers in popular media, this experience got me thinking about romantic tropes in general. About how they appear in almost all genres of fiction, how so many writers like to add a little tension with a romantic interest or a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers subplot. And about how, as writers, we owe it to our audience to understand where these tropes come from, and what stories we are actually telling when we use them in our fiction.
What are tropes?
The term trope has a contentious definition. Yes, I see you in the back with your dictionary out! And you’re right, the correct definition of a trope is figurative language used to enrich prose, such as metaphor or hyperbole. But, as is so often the case with language, the word has taken on a new meaning to modern audiences.
Today, the term trope also refers to a familiar plot device that is used so often it becomes ubiquitous with a genre. Harry Potter, Luke Skywalker, and Frodo Baggins are all examples of The Chosen One trope commonly found in sci-fi/fantasy. The poor orphan superhero, the ugly duckling transformation- every genre has its tropes, and because romance is a theme common to almost all genres, romantic tropes are some of the most well-known and most overused.
The damsel in distress. The Shakespearian love triangle. The workplace romance or an enemies-to-lovers reveal – pull a novel off your shelf or press play on the latest Hollywood movie and you’ll likely find a sprinkle of these plots in every one. Boy meets girl, forbidden love, happily ever after- romantic tropes are so widely used that it can be hard to find a story without them, and while that’s not in itself a negative thing, certain tropes can leave a bad taste in your mouth.
What can tropes add to or take away from your fiction?
One could argue that genre itself is nothing more than a collection of tropes. After all, you can’t write a murder mystery without a mysterious murder, or a crime caper without a crime. Genre groups stories together based on certain themes, and a reader expects these themes to be present. If you don’t deliver, you run the risk of disappointing your reader.
And tropes aren’t necessarily a bad thing. Tropes have become so common because they’ve been used in a multitude of successful stories before.
The issue, therefore, arises when a writer relies too heavily on tropes and litters their story with one obvious theme after another. One trope is fine, expected, recognizable to your reader, but too many and your story becomes bland and predictable. Tropes by default are well-known plot devices that you can assume your reader has come across before, so why would they keep reading if they already know what’s going to happen?
But where tropes become troubling, where you start to insult or alienate your audience, is when you fall back on societal tropes that perpetuate misrepresentation and harmful stereotypes. The dumb but attractive blonde that dies first in a slasher movie. The token minority character that has no real impact on the storyline. Certain romantic tropes lean into sexist stereotypes and romanticize abuse or unhealthy relationship standards, such as the meek female character that needs a strong man to save her, or the femme fatale that leads the straight-edge protagonist astray.
Including these themes in your story might seem harmless, like you’re just “writing to genre”, but when a writer doesn’t think about the history behind a trope, where it came from, or why it exists in popular culture, you can end up telling a story you had no intention of telling.
How to re-imagine romantic tropes to write unique, compelling fiction
We can all agree that conflict is the beating heart of storytelling, and sometimes it can be tempting to use romance to add a little spice to an otherwise bland plot. We’ve all done it, Hollywood is notorious for it, but romantic conflict is so overdone it can end up having the opposite effect on your work; turning a good story into an obvious cliché.
Here are some ideas for re-imagining overused romantic tropes and how to find your conflict without relying on the obvious.
Look for conflict elsewhere
For starters, let’s see if we can find a little conflict elsewhere. Instead of inserting a questionable romantic interest that plays into obvious stereotypes, consider other outside influences that could cause tension between your main players.
Delve into your protagonist’s backstory; Financial debts, criminal dealings, a family secret uncovered. There’s great potential for lies, betrayal, mistrust, miscommunication, or a comedy of errors. But these themes go a step beyond the obvious romantic tension and give your reader something they weren’t expecting.
Use the reader’s expectations against them
The benefit of tropes is that you know what your readers are expecting. When you introduce the hot, flirty character who takes a shine to your protagonist’s love interest, you know your reader is expecting there to be tension. Perfect. Use that against them. Know what they’re expecting and give them anything but that. You’ve read your genre. You know what’s been done before. Give your readers a taste of the obvious, make them think they know where the story is going, and then take your plot in the completely opposite direction. They’ll be surprised, slightly confused, and guaranteed to keep reading.
Flip the trope on its head
Another way of using a trope against your readers is to take a stale, obvious theme and flip it into something fresh. For example, you want to introduce some infidelity. Okay, your reader thinks, I know where this is going. But instead of seducing the spouse, your hot new character ends up in a relationship with your protagonist’s mother, or the police chief, or a local criminal your protagonist is investigating. You still get romance, and the potential lies and deception that come with it, but not in a way your reader can see coming.
Reject the trope, not the romance
There is nothing wrong with romance. Love triangles, infidelity, friends-to-lovers, these can be great themes to include in your fiction. Just make sure you’re introducing them because your plot and characters need it, and it’s going to add something that your storyline is currently lacking. If you’re just looking for a little conflict, a little spice, try looking elsewhere, and use the romance to tell a different story.
Write multidimensional characters
The best way to find conflict without relying on tropes is to write fully formed, multidimensional characters. When even your minor characters have rich backstories, and unique voices and goals, they stop fitting into stereotypical roles and feel less like you’ve added them simply to fulfill a plot device. You don’t have to include all these backstories in your fiction, but if you spend some time off the page getting to know your cast, they’ll tell you what motivates them and the best ways to make them clash.
Know your tropes and use them intentionally
Lastly, there is nothing to say you can’t include a storyline, no matter how trope-ish, if that’s the story you want to tell. Tropes, even the negative, stereotypical ones, can be used to great effect if you do it intentionally and with purpose.
Sansa Stark from A Song of Ice and Fire is the perfect example of a weak damsel in distress, and the negative qualities that come with that trope are exactly what George R. R. Martin was trying to portray. Her weakness contrasts with other strong female characters and shows us the fate of damsels in distress in Martin’s world. She starts out as the perfect trope so the reader can see her grow out of it and go with her on her harrowing journey to find her strength.
How to check for common romantic tropes in your writing and what to do when you find them
If you’re having trouble with a tricky plot that you’re worried has become predictable, or you’re not sure whether your story is relying too heavily on romantic tropes, here are three questions to ask yourself to assess where you’re at, and help come up with innovative ideas of where to take your story next.
If this was a soap opera, how would this scene resolve?
Imagine your characters are transported into a standard daytime soap opera- How would your scene/plot/romantic interaction resolve under these cheesy, predictable circumstances? If your answer is the same as the storyline you’ve written, chances are you’re relying on tropes. But don’t worry. Now you know the most obvious answer, you can go ahead and take your story in another direction. Changing one small detail can be all it takes to surprise your readers and refresh a predictable plot.
How will this story arc affect my main characters moving forward?
Your characters should be changed by the events of your story. That change doesn’t have to be positive, but they should be a different person by the end of the narrative. The situations you throw at your characters, the events you make them live through, should all be catalysts for this eventual change.
If your scene, story arc, or romantic interaction is not intended to have any lasting impact on your characters, it’s probably only there to fulfill a trope. Instead of cutting the whole arc, make the storyline matter. Make it affect your main players moving forward. How can a future scene reference what happened in this one? How will a character’s future decisions be based on what they experienced here? Even a cliché trope can serve a purpose if it shows us why a character is the way they are or sets the stage for future events.
Would all my conflict be resolved if my characters just talked to each other?
If your whole romantic conflict is based on your characters not talking, or not telling each other how they’re feeling, would everything be resolved if they just spoke to each other? From a reader’s perspective, this can be frustrating to watch as it makes the romantic tension feel forced and unrealistic, and makes the eventual resolution anticlimactic
I’m not saying you always have to write happy, healthy relationships. Where’s the fun in that? But make sure your characters have a reason for acting the way they do, a reason why talking might make the situation worse. Show their internal struggles, show them trying and failing to fix their problems, and make your flawed, imperfect relationships flawed for a reason.
Tropes are natural, some might say unavoidable, when writing any genre of fiction, and romantic tropes are as commonplace as a three-act structure. There is no right or wrong way to write. You can write whatever story you wish, but we owe it to ourselves and our readers to think about the stories we are unintentionally telling when we rely on certain outdated assumptions and overplayed romantic trope
When your lead heroine waits for her Knight in shining armor to save her, are you showing us her fears and insecurities or are you implying that women are weak and unable to save themselves? When your character has a mid-story ugly duckling transformation that allows them to reach their goals, are you commenting on the superficial nature of their world, or that physical appearance is the key to happiness? And when your main character becomes jealous of their spouse around the attractive Mr. X, are you showing us the frailty of their trust, the flaws in their relationship, or are you implying men and women can’t be friends without it leading to infidelity?
Conclusion
Let’s start writing characters who trust their partners, who talk about their feelings, and who think love at first sight is a myth. Let’s write strong, complex love interests who are more than just attractive characters with nothing to say. Let’s think harder about the roles our characters are playing, and why we’ve written them the way we have, and dissect our own influences to see if we are taking what we want to be taking from the authors that came before us.
And let’s leave the stereotypes, the misrepresentations and the one-dimensional characters, where they belong; in daytime television and straight to video hallmark movies, and dig a little deeper when writing romance.
About the Author
Franky is a freelance writer based in Canada, who writes about nerd culture, creative careers, storytelling and freelance lifestyle. You can find more of her work on Medium and on her Blog.
When she’s not behind a computer, she’ll be out camping, snowboarding, and exploring the mountains that make up her beautiful home. Shoot her a message on LinkedIn and check out her website for more info.
Get my free Character Profile Training!
Another great way to beat the tropes is to have round, relatable, and realistic characters. In under 15 minutes, this training will teach you how you should actually look at the character profile, and what to do with the information in it when it’s complete.
How does the information in the profile translate to the story you’re writing? Why do we need to know everything about our characters’ lives? And how does this tool help us write better stories?
If you’ve got less than 15 minutes, I’ve got the answers. Let me send this training to you!
Franky Seymour
Franky is a freelance writer based in Canada, who writes about nerd culture, creative careers, storytelling and freelance lifestyle. You can find more of her work on Medium and on her Blog. When she’s not behind a computer, she’ll be out camping, snowboarding, and exploring the mountains that make up her beautiful home. Shoot her a message on LinkedIn and check out her website for more info.
