Here is a list of paranormal romance tropes to use as inspiration in your own novel.
What are paranormal romance tropes?
Tropes are common themes, plot devices or motifs. In other words, they are common scenarios and patterns that often take place in a novel of a particular genre. Novels don’t need to have all these tropes to be considered paranormal romance, but you’ll notice when reading paranormal romance novels that these tropes may turn up time and time again. For example, a common trope in paranormal romance novels is a mortal falling for an immortal.
Romance tropes
- Enemies to lovers
- Friends to lovers
- Love triangles
- Billionaire hero
- Fake dating
- Grumpy sunshine
- Forbidden love
- Reluctant hero
- Wounded hero
- Shared quest
- Morally grey love interests
- Fated mates
- Fated mates through time
- Mortal falls for an immortal
Supernatural ability tropes
- Immortality
- Mind reading
- One partner is cursed
- Unlocking one’s hidden powers
Situation tropes
- Just one bed
- Touch her and die
- Isolated due to illness or a threat
- Sharing a bed (or coffin)
- Vampire needs blood
- Hiding ones identity from their human
- Outsider joining the pack or community
- Having to choose ones human or supernatural side
- Secret paranormal societies
- The paranormal integrating into the human world
- Prince and princesses
Creature tropes
- Werewolves
- Bears
- Fae
- Dragons
- Fallen angels
- Guardian angel
- Necromancer
- Ghosts
- Majestic birds
- Big cats
- Vampires
- Demons
- Angels
- Fallen angels
- Shadow beings
- Witches
- Wizards
- Necromancers
- Mages
- Sorcerers
- Shifters
- Gods and demigods
Relationship dynamic tropes
- Secret admirer
- Friends to lovers
- Love at first sight
- Protector and protected
- Aloof couple
- Star-crossed lovers
- Unrequited love
- Us against the world
- Unattainable love interest
- The one that got away
- Wanting different things
- Just friends
- Rivals
- Fated mates
- Always right
- Enemies to lovers
- First love
- Work romance
- Against the odds
- Beauty and the beast
- Lovers in denial
- Opposites attract
- Forbidden love
- Rich vs. poor
- Wrong side of the tracks
- Soul mates
- Not good enough for them
- Frenemies
- Destiny
- Dating the wrong person
- In love with partner’s best friend
- Bully crush
- Hate to love you
- Best friend’s sibling
- Long distance relationships
- Different worlds
- Fear of commitment
- Second chance
- Emotional scars
- Not good enough – a love interest thinks they aren’t good enough to be loved
- Allergic to commitment
- Coming out
- Reunion romance
- Hates what they are
- Proud about who they are
- Fish out of water
- All grown up
- Awakening of magical powers
- Assigned to protect
Romantic conflict tropes
- Secret stalker
- Break up to save them
- Rescuer
- Two person love triangle – mistaken identity
- Matchmaker gone wrong
- Road trip
- Disguise
- Singles pact
- Reversal of fortune
- Competition rivals
- Falling in love with the wrong person
- Bait and switch
- Person in peril
- Last to know
- Secret romance
- Mistaken declaration of love
- Cyrano – when a nerdy person helps a popular person date someone by telling them what to do
- Undercover romance
- Right in front of you all along
- Riches to rags
- On the rocks – love interests who had broken up get back together
- Redemption story
- Betting
- Everyone can see it except them
- Miscommunication
- Secrets
- Fish out of water
- Learning to love – one love interest falls in love with their teacher or mentor
- Parallel worlds
- Marked or cursed
- Awakening of magical powers
Protagonist and love interest tropes
- Rake – a “loveable scoundrel”, often a rich playboy who invests his money and time on women, drinking and gambling
- Tamed rakes
- Mary Sue – one love interest, often female, is unrealistically flawless
- Protective
- Childhood sweethearts
- Outcast from society
- Loveable rogue
- Widow
- Jock and nerd
- Grumpy vs. sunshine
- Puppy hero
- Good girls want bad boys
- Pretty boy
- Diamond in the rough
- Possessive
- Alpha hero
- Rags to riches
- The protector
- Anti-hero
- Oblivious to love
- Reformed villain
- All grown up
- Tortured lover
- Sworn off romance
- Cinderella
- Beta – one love interest is not an alpha and may be less confident
- Damsels out of distress
- Hunk
- Caretaker
- Ugly duckling
- Wallflower
- Not like other girls
- Playboy
- Physicality – such as big muscular guy vs. small girl
- Plus-size
- Reformed rakes
- I can fix him
- Innocent
- Girl next door
- Dude in distress
- Age gap – in paranormal romance this age gap can be big, like 200 years!