At a glance
Rom-com tropes are recurring romantic situations developed through comedy. Fake relationships, romantic leads competing with each other, contrasting personalities, and memorable first meetings can all provide material. The labels identify the setup; the characters' responses make it funny.
How the setup becomes a scene
Picture two people pretending to date at a wedding. One has rehearsed an elaborate account of their first meeting. The other tells the truth: they met while arguing about a parking space. Now they have to explain why their supposedly romantic story includes a tow truck.
That invented scene uses fake dating. It could also involve rivals or opposites. None of those labels requires the same joke in another book.
Explore these entries
- Meet-Cute: the first encounter.
- Fake Dating: a relationship performed for others.
- Rivals to Lovers: competition alongside attraction.
- Opposites Attract: differences shaping the connection.
- Friends to Lovers: a familiar bond changing.
- Forced Proximity: circumstances creating contact.
Sources consulted
- Entangled Publishing, Lovestruck submission guidelines. Wedding example and grouping are editorial.