Genre-Savvy Grab Bag

Hi there and welcome to the Genre-Savvy Grab Bag! We're writers who like stories and what we're about are genre tropes. What is a genre trope? It's a repeating pattern, motif, theme, structure, and/or archetype across a genre or medium of storytelling.

Really, any storytelling feature can be a trope. The important thing is that to be a trope the feature is repeated across many works and by many authors in a genre or medium. Multiple tropes being put together in a certain way can define a genre or particular type of story. 

For example, what are the tropes of a superhero origin story? Classically, they're about a exceptional individuals living through an unresolved personal crisis that results in a tragedy leaving the hero isolated and spurred to action. Batman, Superman, Spiderman, and Daredevil all share the traits of a classic superhero origin story.

Being genre-savvy is recognizing when tropes are used. It's like understanding how buildings are built and what keeps them standing. A good story knows how to use, or not use, and subvert tropes to keep the audience interested and satisfied.

Good stories will use tropes and still leave the audience wondering what's coming next. Being genre-savvy means you might be able to recognize when a story is put together poorly. It also means you probably know why that story stands strong when it's good.

Every few weeks, our talented writers are going to hunt down tropes across numerous narrative mediums, from audio dramas to literature, and we're going to tell you about what we found. Where they are (or aren't?), how they worked (or didn't), and maybe even why they're satisfying (or decidedly not). See you there!