A “trope,” not to be confused with nor transformed into a cliché, is an element a reader expects as a characteristic of a genre (such as magical creatures or talismans in a fantasy story). A cliché, on the other hand, occurs when you take a trope too far (rich-boy-loves-poor-girl romance, for example). The material difference between the two is what fresh, new characters, settings, or magical canon you bring to the already-familiar.
The usual disclaimer: For reference and guidance only. The “possible conflicts” are just suggestions as well.
(Nerd alert!) Read poetry from the literary Romantic Movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries (Keats, Shelley, Wordsworth, et. al) and you’ll see that romanticism in literature dealt with emotions, the metaphysical, and nature. Romantics were more like proto-hippies. America had its own version in Henry David Thoreau. Over in England, Alexander Pope probably turned over in his grave at the idea of poets writing about hearts dancing with daffodils.
The “romance” genre is based more on romantic notions such as two people meeting--and meeting their destinies, that some sort of cosmic or mystical “thing” is happening. The term "romance" causes confusion because what began as romantic tropes evolved into a genre dedicated to idealized love stories. Most of us try to preserve the distinction by referring to the Romantic Movement as Romanticism and the genre of fiction as Romance. But mention the clash of realism and romanticism in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and you're likely to get either blank stares or "Huck had a girlfriend?"
I’m trying to to remove my tongue from my cheek as I write about this genre, but I personally find most of what’s published in it to be trite and formulaic. I understand that fans read them for their escapist value. What worries me is when the people who read them consider them an attainable or desirable reality.
Possible tropes: Too many! The only genre for which there are actually handbooks, including lists of suggested phrases ("silken hair / mane / tresses" and "rippling muscles") and what characterizations and plot points are “allowed” and which "don’t fit."
--Idealized beauty and repetitive descriptions of physical attributes. Writers should take care not to fall into the ridiculous here.
--Tiny flaws in character or appearance that make the characters all the more endearing or attractive-- because they’re only ever tiny flaws.
--Troubled hero’s heart melted by angelic heroine. Think Jane Eyre.--Fairy-tale type “rescues.” Endless possibilities--girl in the end cubicle catches the eye of the boss’s son. After sneaking around and meeting clandestinely all over St. Louis (make it a non-glamourous, non-coastal city, please), the two discover they have a mutual passion and talent for art. He decides following his heart is the most important thing, cashes in his trust fund and together they fulfill their dream of selling their paintings and sculptures in Montmartre.
--Characters overcome personal issues such as prejudice or pride, but the difference between modern “romance” and the famous novel by Jane Austen is that Elizabeth Bennett and Fitzwilliam Darcy had to evolve as human beings in order to become right for each other. Also, Austen’s work is social satire, not romance.The only really "romantic" notion in Austen is that people ought to marry for affection. By contrast, romance is usually about two people who are meant to be together but they just don’t know it yet.
Few surprises: Readers know Dirk and Kira will end up together. Destiny and soul-matedness are sine qua non in this genre.
--A third party may be thrown in for tension, as a foil for either principal player, or to create a love-triangle situation. The interloper will be more attractive or richer or better at something than one or the other protag, throwing the relationship into turmoil and making one party doubt the other’s loyalty to them
--Since it's a foregone conclusion that Dirk and Kira will end up together and love will always triumph, romance writers often place their protagonists in interesting professions that involve travel or even danger to create tension or an element of surprise.
--Conflicts concerning class levels presented in a historical romance don’t really exist today, so contemporary romance writers may need to go out to the fringes to find conflict, such as: daughter of the local Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan falls in love with African-American classmate or coworker, KGB double agent falls for CIA double agent, Protestant living in Belfast falls for a Catholic, undercover cop falls in love with drug dealer (the “rescue” trope again).
The goal is more to offer the reader an escape than to explore deeper existential questions. There are romance writers out there who characterize their own work as "snacks" or "bathtub reading," so it's not just me, okay?
Setting will be the most variable element in the romance genre.
Romance novels are more likely to feature sex scenes than they used to be, and these range from teasing to explicit, but if they were movies they’d be shot in soft-focus with gold filter.
The ultimate "romantic" story is, of course, Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, where two people meet, fall in love, marry secretly and are dead within a week because they'd rather be dead than live without each other. Unless you prefer to see it as a socio-political play about two very impulsive
Sub-genres: Historical, paranormal. Historical romance gives writers an opportunity to explore feminism and sexual mores in other time periods, but since romance is about escape and suspend-your-disbelief, any such explorations are lost among the ruffles and lace. Readers are usually given characters (especially heroines) with much more "modern" sensibilities than was typical in the 15th century. In this sub-genre, is easier to create tension and conflict because it is a common trope that the protagonists come from different classes, or that their fathers are political rivals.
Paranormal romance ups the ante on dangerous or forbidden love. I dealt with it briefly in an earlier post.
Another increasingly popular sub-genre: Christian romance. The stories and the characters’ actions reflect Christian values and practices.These books fill a niche for those who don’t approve of pre-marital relations and graphic sex scenes. For many, it's comfortable to read about people whose values are like their own.
There are romance books featuring same-sex couples with most of the same conflicts as hetero romances. Again, here is the opportunity to see one’s lifestyle portrayed in a positive light, to read a book with relatable characters who find love. It's an even smaller niche than Christian-themed fiction because many "mainstream" editors and publishers are editing or deleting gay characters in other genres.
Most common conflicts: person v. self, person v. person (until the first smooch, that is), maybe a little of person v. society depending upon the time period or if the couple are gay or if the young viscount falls in love with the scullery maid.
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