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Book Tropes: The Ultimate List of 70+ Tropes in Literature

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If you read enough contemporary literature, you’ll inevitably start to notice patterns. Character archetypes, situations, and motifs will appear again and again throughout a given genre, giving readers an idea of what to expect when they pull a book off the shelf. These recurring motifs are called “tropes,” and they’re something of a double-edged sword for writers. We’ll guide you through everything you need to know about literary tropes, with some of the most common tropes across seven popular fiction genres. A trope is a recurring plot device, incident, or character type that we see over and over again in storytelling mediums. These recurring motifs can be comfortably familiar, though they can grow tiresome when overused too often in the same way. A group of friends renting a party cabin in the woods is an example of a common horror trope. Literary tropes are polarizing because they represent what readers love most about a given genre, but they can also signify a lack of originality.

Book Tropes: The Ultimate List of 70+ Tropes in Literature by Fija Callaghan Fija Callaghan is a storyteller and poet who has been recognised by a number of awards, including winning the SFPA Poetry Prize in 2024 and shortlisting for the H. G. Wells Short Story Prize in 2021. Her writing can be found in venues like Seaside Gothic, Gingerbread House, Howl: New Irish Writing, and elsewhere. Her debut collection, Frail Little Embers, was released by Neem Tree Press in 2025, and a poetry pamphlet inspired by folklore and fairy tales is forthcoming from Black Cat Press. You can find out more about

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