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Romance Tropes and Hooks
Over 500 tropes and hooks to plot your next romance novel.
Are you looking for plot inspiration?
Or perhaps you’re confused as to what tropes and hooks are?
Look no further!
Romance Tropes & Hooks will give you the inspiration to start crafting stories your readers will love with its handy collection of tropes and hooks—including clear descriptions, examples and variations. Every romance writer should have this valuable writing resource in her craft library.
Karen Winter is the author of the popular book series Romance Writers’ Bookshelf – essential craft books for the serious romance author.
As a writer herself and an avid reader of romance fiction, Karen has put to good use her background in technical writing and research to create one of the most valuable books a romance author can have in her toolkit. With this resource at your fingertips you’ll no longer stress about having to come up with ideas for your next romance— Romance Tropes & Hooks is crammed full of romance-story inspiration!
In Romance Tropes & Hooks you’ll discover an extensive and well-researched collection of the most popular and successful tropes in the romance-writing industry, plus ideas for adding a twist to rejuvenate common plot scenarios.
Buy Romance Tropes & Hooks to get started on your path to bestselling success today!
Are you looking for plot inspiration?
Or perhaps you’re confused as to what tropes and hooks are?
Look no further!
Romance Tropes & Hooks will give you the inspiration to start crafting stories your readers will love with its handy collection of tropes and hooks—including clear descriptions, examples and variations. Every romance writer should have this valuable writing resource in her craft library.
Karen Winter is the author of the popular book series Romance Writers’ Bookshelf – essential craft books for the serious romance author.
As a writer herself and an avid reader of romance fiction, Karen has put to good use her background in technical writing and research to create one of the most valuable books a romance author can have in her toolkit. With this resource at your fingertips you’ll no longer stress about having to come up with ideas for your next romance— Romance Tropes & Hooks is crammed full of romance-story inspiration!
In Romance Tropes & Hooks you’ll discover an extensive and well-researched collection of the most popular and successful tropes in the romance-writing industry, plus ideas for adding a twist to rejuvenate common plot scenarios.
Buy Romance Tropes & Hooks to get started on your path to bestselling success today!
- GenresWritingNonfictionRomance
144 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 9, 2017
131 people are currently reading
86 people want to read
About the author
Karen Winter
10 books14 followersKaren Winter is the internationally published author of the popular book series Romance Writers’ Bookshelf - essential craft books for the serious romance author. Her books are written specifically for romance writers and have helped many achieve their writing dreams.
As a writer herself and an avid reader of romance fiction, Karen has put to good use her background in technical writing and research to create valuable resources that every romance author should have in her toolkit. Her passion is to help writers become skilled in their craft and confident in their writing career.
Visit Karen’s website for links to her books and social media:
https://karen-winter.com/
Karen is a member of Romance Writers of New Zealand and Romance Writers of America.
As you will see from some of the dedications in her books, she is a strong advocate for animal welfare and supports several organisations.
She lives in New Zealand in the beautiful city of Christchurch.
As a writer herself and an avid reader of romance fiction, Karen has put to good use her background in technical writing and research to create valuable resources that every romance author should have in her toolkit. Her passion is to help writers become skilled in their craft and confident in their writing career.
Visit Karen’s website for links to her books and social media:
https://karen-winter.com/
Karen is a member of Romance Writers of New Zealand and Romance Writers of America.
As you will see from some of the dedications in her books, she is a strong advocate for animal welfare and supports several organisations.
She lives in New Zealand in the beautiful city of Christchurch.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
April 10, 2020
Great writer's tool to help writers plot their romance stories using over 500 tropes and hooks from A-Z! Very helpful and straight to the point! I'm literally hooked! Now to write a book because I know we all have a story or two to tell.. ha-ha-ha
“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.”
― Toni Morrison
“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.”
― Toni Morrison
April 22, 2022
Such a helpful resource I’ll definitely be referring back to.
November 9, 2020
Honestly, I didn't find the book that useful and I should have probably downloaded a sample first because I wouldn't have bought it. I was hoping for something like writing prompts or a TV Tropes style summary of common themes. Instead it's literally just a list of words or short phrases making up common romance themes.
The raw list aspect is so strong that I'd even argue it butts up against the "telephone book" test of ineligibility for copyright status. It really is just an alphabetic regurgitation of words without even describing the theme like a dictionary or encyclopedia might do.
The raw list aspect is so strong that I'd even argue it butts up against the "telephone book" test of ineligibility for copyright status. It really is just an alphabetic regurgitation of words without even describing the theme like a dictionary or encyclopedia might do.
Read
July 5, 2021I didn't get much out of this book. It should be marketed more as an encyclopedia of troupes and less like a writers craft book. Truthfully anyone embedded as a reader in the romance genre probably does not need this.
June 9, 2024
Expected More
I’ve read several other trope books and have loved seeing different perspectives on the beloved tropes of the romance genre. This book is actually just a random list of things that might be in romance.
Many of them aren’t even tropes or hooks—they’re settings (America, for example), physical traits (long-haired heroes), genres (YA books, historical, etc.), or random things that might be in your book (like hot air balloons, kilts, humor, etc.).
Even worse was the odd wording that I found all over the place, like “hot dirty talk” instead of “dirty talk,” “hot man-candy in a kilt” instead of “kilt,” or “not blood siblings” instead of “step-siblings.” It just doesn’t really make sense to me.
As far as what each entry offers, it’s mostly a brief definition, a sentence or two max. By no means are these thorough explanations with examples and other information to help a writer utilize said tropes. I saw maybe one or two examples of existing works with these tropes at most.
I felt like this one was a waste of time. Writers are better off reading the much more thorough trope books from Cindy Dees, Jennifer Hilt, or Tara Ericson and Jessica Barber.
I’ve read several other trope books and have loved seeing different perspectives on the beloved tropes of the romance genre. This book is actually just a random list of things that might be in romance.
Many of them aren’t even tropes or hooks—they’re settings (America, for example), physical traits (long-haired heroes), genres (YA books, historical, etc.), or random things that might be in your book (like hot air balloons, kilts, humor, etc.).
Even worse was the odd wording that I found all over the place, like “hot dirty talk” instead of “dirty talk,” “hot man-candy in a kilt” instead of “kilt,” or “not blood siblings” instead of “step-siblings.” It just doesn’t really make sense to me.
As far as what each entry offers, it’s mostly a brief definition, a sentence or two max. By no means are these thorough explanations with examples and other information to help a writer utilize said tropes. I saw maybe one or two examples of existing works with these tropes at most.
I felt like this one was a waste of time. Writers are better off reading the much more thorough trope books from Cindy Dees, Jennifer Hilt, or Tara Ericson and Jessica Barber.
September 2, 2020
Character tropes, an extensive list
This was a great resource for tropes about the relationship between characters in various romances. If I had a concern, it is that it covered character tropes, not all tropes.
Sadly, it answered the question I didn't have in detail, but didn't help the question I had; I need a reference of conflict tropes, of things that try to tear the couple apart. It's like having an excellent noun dictionary when all you need is a verb.
A possible issue is that the tropes are in alphabetical order; some sort of topical index would help this work tremendously, but I understand how much of a beast indexing can be. An index can be more of a window into the mind of the author than anything, given how idiosyncratic the thought process is.
Still, very useful for finding a list of what kinds of characters exist.
This was a great resource for tropes about the relationship between characters in various romances. If I had a concern, it is that it covered character tropes, not all tropes.
Sadly, it answered the question I didn't have in detail, but didn't help the question I had; I need a reference of conflict tropes, of things that try to tear the couple apart. It's like having an excellent noun dictionary when all you need is a verb.
A possible issue is that the tropes are in alphabetical order; some sort of topical index would help this work tremendously, but I understand how much of a beast indexing can be. An index can be more of a window into the mind of the author than anything, given how idiosyncratic the thought process is.
Still, very useful for finding a list of what kinds of characters exist.
April 25, 2023
so helpful
I really like how the tropes and hooks for romance writing are set out in alphabetical order. It’s great to find a resource for inspiring new stories in one handy reference book.
I’d recommend this book to anyone looking to learn more about romance tropes in a quick and easy format.
I really like how the tropes and hooks for romance writing are set out in alphabetical order. It’s great to find a resource for inspiring new stories in one handy reference book.
I’d recommend this book to anyone looking to learn more about romance tropes in a quick and easy format.
July 19, 2022
A comprehensive breakdown of the tropes which are used in crafting romance novels and scripts.
I expected more depth from this book, but for what it is worth the information gives authors who are unfamiliar with tropes and hooks a map to crafting their plots and character arcs.
I expected more depth from this book, but for what it is worth the information gives authors who are unfamiliar with tropes and hooks a map to crafting their plots and character arcs.
January 11, 2018
An interesting and helpful book for romance writers. Almost like a dictionary of tropes. Well organized and useful.
February 11, 2020
A great list of various tropes with descriptions. It's a quick read and one I will reference often when plotting my romances.
December 21, 2021
A fabulous starting place for thinking about the tropes that go into a romance novel. The definitions are so helpful.
December 21, 2023
Great reference book. I bookmarked so much information. Very helpful for my WIP.
March 1, 2024
Short to the point
Wish the tropes had more details or examples but not bad. The list feels like there should be more descriptions
Wish the tropes had more details or examples but not bad. The list feels like there should be more descriptions
June 27, 2020
Very helpful resource!
February 25, 2024
A fantastic resource that should be on every romance author’s reference shelf.
Romance authors use tropes and hooks to both design and sell their novels. Understanding tropes can help you write the kind of romances that readers are searching for and help you signal to readers that your book is one they’d enjoy.
What it covers:
+ What tropes and hooks are and how they relate to plot, character, and setting
+ Breakdown of the subgenres of romance
+ A to Z list of tropes and hooks with definitions for each one
A great reference for when you want to check the definition of a specific trope or hook. Or you’re searching for ideas on tropes or hooks to add to your romance.
Romance authors use tropes and hooks to both design and sell their novels. Understanding tropes can help you write the kind of romances that readers are searching for and help you signal to readers that your book is one they’d enjoy.
What it covers:
+ What tropes and hooks are and how they relate to plot, character, and setting
+ Breakdown of the subgenres of romance
+ A to Z list of tropes and hooks with definitions for each one
A great reference for when you want to check the definition of a specific trope or hook. Or you’re searching for ideas on tropes or hooks to add to your romance.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews