Tropes and Clichés
Overview
The Tropes and Clichés Analysis identifies the recurring narrative patterns within a manuscript, both those used effectively and those that may benefit from refinement. It examines the story’s engagement with familiar literary devices, archetypes, and genre conventions to highlight how these elements support or limit originality, emotional resonance, and thematic depth.
This analysis is especially valuable for authors looking to understand how their work fits within or pushes against their genre’s expectations. It draws attention to where tropes may be consciously subverted, unintentionally overused, or ripe for deeper exploration, offering guidance on how to strengthen originality without losing the clarity and momentum readers expect from well-worn structures.
Purpose of the Tropes and Clichés Analysis
This analysis helps writers strike the right balance between resonance and repetition. Tropes can offer powerful narrative shorthand, but when deployed without specificity or nuance, they risk flattening characters or undermining emotional weight. This report highlights the tropes at work in the manuscript and evaluates whether they are used intentionally, subverted meaningfully, or in need of revision to better support the author’s goals.
By understanding how tropes function within the manuscript, authors gain insight into how their choices shape genre alignment, character perception, and reader expectations.
What the report includes
Strengths
This section highlights areas where the manuscript’s use of tropes strengthens the story’s emotional, thematic, or structural effectiveness. Common strengths include:
- Genre Alignment: Strategic use of familiar tropes to signal genre, tone, or pacing.
- Subversion: Moments where the story twists an expected pattern in a way that deepens complexity or challenges assumptions.
- Narrative Efficiency: Effective shorthand for character types, stakes, or worldbuilding that doesn’t compromise originality.
- Thematic Resonance: Tropes deployed in service of the manuscript’s deeper messages or authorial intent.
“The prisoner’s arc begins as a classic 'Damsel in Distress' setup, but her final act of defiance meaningfully subverts the trope, reinforcing the manuscript’s theme of moral complexity.”
Suggestions
This section surfaces tropes or clichés that may be working against the manuscript’s goals or emotional impact. The report offers constructive guidance on:
- Overused or generic character types: When side characters or antagonists feel more like placeholders than people.
- Formulaic plot beats: When narrative turns mirror expected genre movements too closely without offering a unique perspective.
- Emotional shortcuts: When familiar scenes (e.g., heroic sacrifice, betrayal, sudden redemption) lack specific grounding.
- Underdeveloped subversions: When a trope is gestured at but not fully flipped or interrogated.
“The gas station escape leans on a ‘convenient getaway’ cliche. Reframing the moment to rely on Kyle’s manipulative skill rather than antagonist hesitation could better align with the protagonist’s established traits.”
Summary
The Tropes and Clichés Analysis offers a critical lens into how narrative patterns shape a reader’s experience. Rather than eliminating familiar devices, it helps authors ensure they’re used with clarity, intention, and originality. The result is a manuscript that either embraces its genre conventions with confidence or breaks them in service of a deeper, more resonant story.
This report is especially useful for authors working in genres with strong conventions, such as thrillers, fantasy, romance, or crime, where innovation often lives not in avoiding tropes, but in how they’re wielded.
What We Evaluate
This analysis identifies and assesses a wide array of common tropes and clichés across plot, character, and structure. While Story Stream’s internal classification system is proprietary, reports are grounded in evaluation of elements such as:
- Common character archetypes (e.g., Mysterious Mentor, Gruff Military Type, Loose Cannon, Disposable Woman)
- Familiar plot devices (e.g., MacGuffin, Redemption Arc, Fish Out of Water)
- Genre-specific expectations and subversions
- Thematic alignment and use of symbolic narrative patterns
- Over-reliance on convenience (e.g., convenient escapes, sudden revelations)
- Emotional and structural repetition
- The freshness and specificity of execution
The analysis also highlights moments where tropes may unintentionally reinforce problematic norms or flatten the narrative’s psychological depth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is using tropes bad?
Not at all. Tropes are a natural part of storytelling. The goal isn’t to eliminate them, but to use them consciously, either to fulfill expectations or to surprise the reader with something deeper.
Will this report tell me exactly what genre I’m writing in?
Not directly, but it will surface the narrative patterns that signal genre to readers. It can help clarify whether the story leans more into or away from certain genre traditions based on how tropes are employed.
What if I’m intentionally using a cliché?
That’s fine, intention matters. This report helps ensure that the cliché is serving your goals and not undermining them. If a moment is meant to feel