What is a trope in storytelling (and why it’s not a dirty word)

At this year’s ThrillerFest, I sat in on a session that had writers leaning forward, furiously jotting notes. The topic? Tropes vs clichés—and how understanding the difference can elevate your writing.

Tropes get a bad reputation, but here’s the truth: they aren’t the enemy. When used well, tropes are powerful tools that can help readers feel grounded in your story world and keep them turning the pages.

In this post, we’ll explore:

• What a trope is

• Whether tropes are bad

• Examples of tropes across popular genres

• Why tropes matter

• What’s coming next week: how to breathe fresh life into familiar tropes

  
  

What is a trope?

A trope is a recognizable story element—whether that’s a type of character, relationship dynamic, plot device, theme, or setting. Tropes are patterns. They’re storytelling shorthand.

Think of them like narrative DNA—used across generations of stories because they work. They help readers know what kind of emotional journey they’re signing up for.

Here’s the key: tropes aren’t inherently bad or good. They’re simply tools. It’s how you use them that matters.

Are tropes bad?

Nope. Not even a little.

Tropes only become problematic when they’re used carelessly or lazily. That’s when they risk turning into clichés—which we’ll talk about in next week’s post.

Done with intention, tropes can:

• Anchor your story in a specific genre

• Tap into your readers’ emotional expectations

• Create comfort, suspense, tension, or surprise

• Provide a framework for subversion or reinvention

Readers don’t groan when they see a trope—they groan when a writer uses a trope exactly the way every other story has before them, with no twist or depth.

Examples of Tropes by genre

Let’s look at some popular tropes across genres and the books that use them well:

Thriller/Suspense

• The reluctant expert pulled in for “one last job” – The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum

• The villain who’s always one step ahead – Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

  
  

Romance

• Enemies to lovers – The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

• Fake dating – The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

Fantasy

• The chosen one – Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

• A magical object with hidden power – The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

• The reluctant hero in training – Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

  
  

Horror

• The final girl – Final Girls by Riley Sager

• A haunted house with a tragic past – The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

• A small town with a dark secret – Needful Things by Stephen King

Paranormal

• The vampire with a soul – Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice

• The secret supernatural society – A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

  
  

These tropes are popular for a reason—they work. But none of these books feel like carbon copies of each other. Why? Because the authors added specificity, nuance, and voice.

Why do tropes matter?

Tropes are like a promise. When a reader picks up a romance, a thriller, or a YA fantasy, they come in with certain expectations—whether consciously or not.

Tropes:

• Create familiarity and trust

• Help readers orient themselves in the story world

• Tap into universal emotional experiences (like forbidden love, fear of betrayal, or the desire for justice)

• Allow room for surprise when they’re subverted or flipped

If you ignore tropes entirely, you risk confusing readers. If you use them thoughtlessly, you risk boring them. The goal is to use tropes intentionally and creatively.

A closer look: the vampire trope

The vampire trope is one of the most enduring and flexible tropes in literature, and it continues to evolve with each generation. Let’s take a deeper look at where it comes from, how it's been used, and why it remains so compelling to readers.

The idea of vampires—undead creatures who feed on the blood or life force of the living—has ancient roots across many cultures. But the literary vampire as we know it today was solidified by works like:

• The Vampyre by John Polidori (1819) – Often considered the first English vampire story, it introduced the concept of the vampire as an aristocratic predator.

• Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu (1872) – One of the earliest examples of the female vampire, full of Gothic tension and homoerotic undertones.

• Dracula by Bram Stoker (1897) – The definitive vampire novel, combining horror, sexuality, xenophobia, and power dynamics into a chilling narrative.

  
  

From the beginning, vampires were more than just monsters. They were symbols—of fear, desire, disease, immortality, and control.

Common vampire tropes

The vampire trope includes several sub-tropes or conventions that authors can choose to embrace, reject, or twist:

• Immortality (and the existential dread that comes with it)

• Drinking blood as metaphor (addiction, lust, power)

• The vampire with a conscience (wrestling with their own monstrosity)

• Turning others into vampires (as seduction, punishment, or rescue)

• Daylight vulnerability, stakes through the heart, garlic, etc. (rules that vary by story)

• Vampires as metaphors (for outsiders, queerness, contagion, the aristocracy, or repressed desire)

Vampire stories across tones and genres

Classic Gothic Horror

• Dracula by Bram Stoker – Fear of the foreign and the powerful woman.

• Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu – Repressed female sexuality and predation.

Romantic or Tragic Vampires

• Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice – Philosophical, sensual, guilt-ridden immortals.

• Twilight by Stephenie Meyer – Romance, abstinence, and sparkling in the sun.

• Crave by Tracy Wolff – A YA blend of romance tropes and magical school dynamics.

Social or Literary Commentary

• The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix – Vampirism as a metaphor for systemic misogyny and predatory power.

• Fledgling by Octavia Butler – Race, consent, and what it means to be a predator or prey.

Horror/Thriller

• Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist – Childhood, loneliness, and horror in frozen suburbia.

• Salem’s Lot by Stephen King – Vampires as a parasitic evil infecting an entire town.

Why the vampire trope works

The vampire continues to thrive in modern fiction because it is endlessly adaptable. It embodies contradictions:

• Seductive yet terrifying

• Immortal yet emotionally stunted

• Monster and lover

• Human and inhuman

These contradictions create tension and drama. Whether you're writing literary fiction, YA fantasy, horror, or paranormal romance, the vampire can become a metaphor for anything from addiction to trauma to queer longing to capitalist consumption.

Next week: how to make tropes fresh

In part two of this series, we’ll look at how to breathe life into a trope so it doesn’t feel stale. We’ll cover:

• The difference between a trope and a cliché

• How to subvert reader expectations

• Exercises to twist tropes in your current WIP

• Examples of fresh takes on classic ideas

Whether you’re working with dragons, love triangles, small-town secrets, or revenge plots, there’s always a way to make it feel uniquely yours.

So stay tuned—and until then, keep writing stories that embrace the patterns and dare to disrupt them.

What trope are you currently working with? Drop it in the comments—I’d love to hear how you’re making it your own.