Hello, I have not updated this book in two months hahahaha...ha...

I promise, things are going okay right now despite my inactivity. I've been relaxing ever since AP Exams finished (I had to take two during makeup week, which was the first week of June) and I'm preparing to start about two months' worth of summer classes. I figured that since I'm stuck at home anyway, might as well get a head start on college courses to not only get a feel of how they're taught online but also hopefully allow me to graduate a bit earlier.

Now, where does that leave writing? Uhhhh, to be honest, I have not written a word lmao. I keep getting new ideas that end up pushing back other ideas and in the end, I make no progress. I've been a little occupied by playing BOTW, but hopefully, once I start classes, I'll be able to focus a little better on what I need to do.

Now, onto the purpose of this chapter! Recently, Cora-chan  ranked fanfiction tropes based on a video made by readwithcindy (I love her), and I was inspired by her and JunieWeathers to make my own version. I tried to order them within tiers as best as I could, but it's probably not completely in order. Just know that within a tier, the ones on the left probably rank a little bit higher than the ones on the right. And also, I added an extra tier because the middle tier was getting a little too clogged haha.

How to win my heart (the best of the best)

Angst: Hoo boy I am a sucker for angst. That raw emotional pain that hits you in your gut and brings tears to your eyes is very good and painful food. Angst is just so good at bringing out potential character development; when a character is hit with feelings of loneliness, insecurity, hurt, and despair, angst can bring out another side of that character that you've never seen before. Good stuff, good stuff.

Canon Divergence: Do you ever wonder what would happen if a character made a slightly different choice at a crucial moment? That basically sums up canon divergence. The amount of possibilities are endless with canon divergence, and it's really exciting to see how the plot can change and new moments are created when canon starts to veer off the normal path. There is actually an example of this happening in original material: the Final Fantasy VII Remake. I'm not going to go too in detail though, as that would be spoilers :') This only really works with fics based on canon material though, hence the name.

Slow Burn: My favorite relationship trope. I think this one appeals to me the most because of its potential for lots of drama and angst (which you know is my favorite). Two characters start from the buds of a relationship and you spend the course of the fic navigating ups and downs with them. The characters mature and develop as they enter a relationship, all while dealing with potential complications that could threaten the relationship. Definitely a lot of emotional investment.

Would read any day (some of my favorite tropes)

Unrequited Love: Oops, what can I say, I love pain. One character hides their feelings, locking them behind a cheerful facade, while the one receiving the unrequited love remains unaware until it all comes crashing down and they realize how much pain they're causing to the one who loves them but cannot have them. Or, the one receiving never realizes and lives life happy while the one bearing the unrequited love can only watch in sadness. Let's just say I've thought of writing this subplot before huehuehue :)

Enemies to Lovers: This trope creates some of the most thrilling romances ever, especially if they are enemies on opposite sides of the law or a war. I like enemies to lovers in the context of hate turning into love as well, but when you add this extra dimension created by the setting, it becomes even more exciting. What if the one you thought was causing harm was actually hiding something important? What if both of the ones in the relationship realize there is something more to the conflict they're involved with?

Gen Fic: Romance makes for a good plot or subplot, but sometimes I just love strong platonic relationships. There's something just so appealing about friends who have each other's backs and trust in each other, even without romantic feelings.

Fluff: As much as I love angst, yes I admit it, sometimes I just want to read some tooth-rotting fluff. Too much yummy angst can sometimes make you too full that you want something sweet and happy where people aren't suffering all the time hahaha...

Magic AU: As Reinhardt from Fire Emblem says, Magic is Everything! Magic is so fun to play around with, especially when it can lend to world building and the development of a vibrant setting. Plus, who wouldn't want to see their favorite characters commanding the powerful spells that we all dreamed of as kids?

Major Character Death: This is on the end of its tier because I truly do love this trope, but it needs to be done well. When an important character dies, there's so much potential for that character's death to influence the development of other characters or pull the plot in a new direction. Lots of good angst that can come out of it too. But if the character's death doesn't do that or somehow becomes trivial because they get resurrected, then what's the point of the death?

Unhappy Ending: Similarly to Major Character Death, this trope is so good but it needs to be executed properly. If done right, it leaves a large emotional impact on the reader. What would've happened had a character made a different choice? Is the reality of the story's world meant to be this cruel? Don't just let things end on a bad note without the proper emotional value. Alas, I must admit that even an angst lover such as myself will sometimes get a bad taste in her mouth when the story concludes in sadness, but it's still too good.

Have decent potential (tropes I read relatively frequently or enjoy, but might have some execution issues)

Mutual Pining: I'm really not the biggest romantic, but I really think it's great when two characters are mutually attracted to each other. It leaves your heart satisfied and yearning for the characters to get together. They might not even realize that they both are attracted to each other, and that's where the drama comes in. But when they do realize, it makes everything all worth it and that much sweeter.

Love Triangle: Love triangles are always fun to read. I like that it's a lot more toned down than harem or reverse-harem, which tend to go overboard for me. The key criteria for this trope is that I have to be very invested in the one who the other two are fighting over, because otherwise, I'll find the love triangle to be boring and maybe even annoying. I've had my fair share of media where guys are fighting over a girl but I really just don't give a fuck.

Friends to Lovers: I think this trope is great because it allows a relationship to evolve. Characters who originally saw each other as friends will invariably encounter struggles as they come to terms with the fact that their attraction might not be just platonic, and they will mature from those obstacles. They will see a different side of the person who they thought they knew, and their bonds will become stronger.

Fix it Fic: As much as this trope seems to trivialize past struggles in the original canon/timeline, it's still a guilty pleasure of mine. However, when I read fix it fics, I don't want everything to be fixed easily. Fix its come with the potential of adding new plots and new scenes for character development, so if you're gonna "fix" canon, make sure to add a good dose of emotional impact that either comes from trying to fix events that went wrong (e.g. time travel, but things don't necessarily go as planned), or new scenes from taking the story in a different direction.

Amnesia Fic: As much as this trope is overused, I still think it has good potential if done correctly. Take My Name is Loto by ImberLapis, for example. The protagonist struggles with the pain of not knowing his past, and when he does come to realize what he had forgotten, things perhaps become worse because of it. I love what Imber did with amnesia in this fic, because it's not like everything became better when the protagonist remembered. Too often I see an amnesiac who's secretly some OP person and suddenly becomes a god when they remember what they forgot. I know this because I was guilty of it during middle school :p

Time Loop: I personally really enjoyed Groundhog Day, which is the classic example of a time loop. That overwhelming feeling that comes with being stuck in the time loop can lead to good angst and character development as the character tries to find a way to break the time loop. On the flip side, when the character goes through this time loop every time, the story can end up becoming repetitive and boring.

Fairytale AU: Like most people, I grew up reading a lot of fairytales, and I used to love reading those novels that put a spin on classic fairytales (think Lunar Chronicles even though I never read it lmao). I think this trope can build a solid foundation for a plot, but at the end of the day, I don't want a plain retelling of the fairytale because that's been done so many times. If you're going to use this trope, make sure to add something that changes the fairytale up a little bit.

Established Relationship: I prefer seeing the development of a relationship over the course of the fic, but that doesn't mean an established relationship can't be done well. Instead of the conflicts that come with realizing your feelings for another character, the conflicts that an established relationship faces can include maintaining the relationship, working out differences that could cause fights, etc. It's still pretty good stuff.

Crossover: Now I know that a lot of people have trouble reading crossovers, but I personally enjoy them. It's so fun to see the possibilities when characters from different worlds interact with each other and adjust to different settings. Of course, crossovers involving different universe characters aren't always written well, but there's another type of crossover that you might find enjoyable. What I'm talking about is taking the world from one story and plopping the characters from another into that world. That also lends itself to a lot of possibilities, as the entire setting has changed.

Historical AU/Royal AU: These to me work somewhat similarly, though of course royalty doesn't necessarily need to be set way back in the past. The reason why I grouped these two together has more to do with the fact that I don't read a lot of these fics (kind of hard to find), but they're usually quite exciting. I'm a sucker for both history and royalty, and I think there's a lot of sweet drama that comes from both of these tropes.

It's okay (tropes I read sometimes)

Missing Scenes: Sometimes, a story can't include all the scenes the author wants to include. We can easily see this in movies, for example, as they have limited running time. Movie producers, after releasing the commercial version, might release an extended or complete version that includes "deleted scenes." In terms of missing scenes in fics, I like reading about them when they add something a little unexpected or interesting to the story, but a lot of the time, missing scenes can be irrelevant and have little importance to the story, hence why they were "cut out."

Crack Fic: Hey, I love when people can think up the craziest idea possible and put it into words. Often times these fics explore an angle you completely didn't think of. Crack fics are usually for the purposes of humor, but I personally prefer those stories that are Crack Turned Seriously, because those can really end up making you think. However, I don't end up enjoying a good portion of these fics, so that's why this trope is a little lower.

Hurt/Comfort: This trope is good, in my opinion, when it's platonic hurt/comfort. I like when a character is able to trust their friend with whatever is hurting them. However, I don't necessarily like it when it's the basis for a romantic relationship. Yes, characters who are romantically involved can comfort each other, but I don't like it when a character ends up becoming dependent on another for comfort and that leads to a romantic relationship.

First Kiss: It's cute, but sometimes I want a little more spice and I can't remember the last time I actually read a first kiss fic.

Miscommunication: It creates good drama, but often it becomes annoying and drags out for too long. Also, not entirely realistic, as I can understand a few instances of miscommunication but not when it becomes so frequent that that characters are always misunderstanding each other.

Arranged Marriage: This works better if it's set in historical times. Like most people, I prefer to see two characters naturally form a relationship, but two characters in an arranged marriage learning to either love each other or become good friends isn't bad. Generally, I prefer if arranged marriage isn't the main focus of the story (there can be arranged marriages. but I don't like when it's literally the plot).

Fake Relationship: Definitely an overused trope, but the drama is not bad. I hate to admit it, but I did enjoy To All the Boys I've Loved Before (haven't watched the second, is it worth watching?). I like when the two characters in the fake relationship learn more about each other through it, regardless if they end up in a romantic relationship or not.

Humor: My sense of humor is probably a bit stunted, so I can't say I'll always laugh at things that are meant to be funny, but I do enjoy a good laugh. Unfortunately, I can't seem to remember the last time I read a humor fic, either because they aren't funny to me or I just don't read them haha.

Probably wouldn't read too often (can be good occasionally)

Sharing a Bed: It can be cute occasionally, but god, the unresolved sexual tension just makes me want to slam my head against the table.

Body Swap: Usually done poorly. What I do like about this trope though is that characters can experience the lives of other characters and leave an impact on the original host's life. If you're gonna write this trope, write it like Your Name.

College AU: Sometimes it's cool to see characters from a war torn world live in a happier world where the struggles they face are less about life and death and more about growing up in the modern world. I prefer College AU over Highschool AU because it showcases more growth in maturity.

Soulmate AU: It's cute to think that two characters are destined for each other, but this trope also takes out some of the fun of just trying to find love in your life without having destiny decide your partner for you.

Coffee Shop AU: Cute, but overused to the point that I kind of just avoid these fics.

Dark Fic: Depends how dark, because I've seen some messed up shot. Obviously, it should contribute towards the setting and tone of the story in a meaningful way; I don't want gore just for the purpose of making me squirm in my seat.

High School AU: Similar to College AU, but high school is more boring than college. Seriously, high school isn't fun.

Huddle for warmth: I really can't recall if I ever read one of these stories. The idea is cute in theory, but it kind of seems like a cheap way to get two characters together.

PWP: Okay fine, sometimes I like reading a little smut. Obviously, if it was porn with plot, it would be higher, but sex just for the purpose of satisfying horny readers? Nah, I'd rather read other things.

Haha no (c'mon, really? also I didn't really order this oops)

ABO: Bad connotations tbh. Also, why the hell would you create another hierarchy that lends itself to further inequality when we already have so much in the world? :(

Bang or Die:

Baby Fic: Often done poorly, and quite frankly, I just don't enjoy reading about it.

In Vino Veritas: Because I forgot to order this tier, this would probably be at the top. It really isn't that bad, I just think it's a poor excuse for a confession when really, it would've been way better without resorting to getting drunk.

Sex Pollen: Wattpad isn't letting me insert another weirdchamp for some reason, so :weirdchamp:

Pregnancy Fic: same as baby fic.

Annnnnnd it's done! This took me a few days to write because I kept going on and off the doc, but finally I did it. Let me know what you guys think in the comments :)

Stay safe and have a good day,

Azur