The 7 Most Popular Romance Tropes of 2024: To Write
Bella Rose Emmorey
book editor, rogue behaviorist, digital marketer, writer, brand builder, plant aunt, and cheese enthusiast.
Trends are interesting and volatile to predict, and there will be some of the most popular romance tropes of 2024 that are unpredictable. Sometimes an idea pops off for reasons we can’t quite pinpoint.
But then there are trends that make sense because of the initiators.
I like to think of these initiators as common elements or events in current culture that dictate the type of stories people read in books. Our everyday life often dictates what we’re in the mood for, especially the popularity of other forms of media like TV and movies.
Let’s dive into some of the most popular romance tropes of 2024 and what you can expect this year–to either read or $ write to market$ in to sell books.
Most Popular Romance Tropes of 2024
Popularity now creates trends later. We’ll look at a $ few tropes getting major attention$ online both because of current events, but also trending categories and consistently reliable tropes on Amazon.
1. Ugly Duckling
There is a big TV show releasing a season this year, one in which a longtime friend, and discounted love interest, finally catches the eye of the man she’s been in love with for a long time.
Have you guessed it yet?
It’s Bridgerton’s third season, focusing on Penelope and Colin’s love story. We already know that from the books, Penelope Featherington isn’t "pretty" (even though she is literally so hot and smart and nice). She’s overlooked as a love interest because of her size (*rolls eyes*) and her family’s status. As much as I loathe the premise of this trope–the idea that people can’t look past physical appearances or that certain appearances are less appealing than others–the fact is that people feel overlooked and underrated because of their appearance every day. Most people, actually.
Which means when they watch the newest season, set to release on May 16, 2024, they will seek more stories of that nature to remind them that they can be loved for who they are.
It’s worth noting that in the books, Penelope manages to catch Colin’s eye because she lost weight, much to the anger of fans. This is such a toxic take, and does not appear to be something that’ll make it to the TV show, thankfully.
The Ugly Duckling trope can apply to more than physical appearances, like a person's wealth, social status (especially in period pieces and royalty fiction), intelligence, and other factors. It's simply a narrative that brings a once-discounted person into the limelight of appreciation that they deserve, even if that attention is only from their love interest.
2. Friends-To-Lovers
Thanks to Bridgerton season 3 again, we’ll see a lot more friends-to-lovers trope representation taking off in popularity in 2024. Their friendship is special, and we’ve had 2 seasons (and books) to build up to it.
Part of what makes this trope work so well is the slow burn, genuine compatibility of the couple.
Insta-love is very much on its way out. It’s not realistic and many readers no longer want to jump right into something that’s supposed to be "real love" when the character just met the person.
Like People We Meet on Vacation, the couple in a friends-to-lovers story. has history and their eventual romance makes sense and is built on more than just physical attraction. If you want to write in this trope, aim for that energy.
3. Sports star romances
We can thank Taylor Swift for this (and, of course, Travis Kelce). The amount of publicity this couple has got has caused many romance fans to seek stories similar to theirs, like this person:
Much like other tropes pushed to popularity because of current events, this is no different, but the sports star romance isn’t actually new.
There are many of these tropes, notably some of the most popular among them being a hockey romance that took off in 2023, like $ Icebreaker by Hannah Grace$ . Overall, the inside world of professional sports has been cracked open with Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, pulling non sports fan romantics into a curious new world.
TIP: Subvert this trope by making the woman the sports star (as the majority of the stars in these stories are men), or write LGBTQ+ characters to give a different audience from the norm a taste of this trope.
4. Specialty School / Training Together
For popular romance tropes of 2024, be prepared for some stories taking place in specialty schools in which the characters will be spending a lot of time together, possibly competing, to learn the same skill.
This is based off the massive success that was Fourth Wing and its sequel Iron Flame in 2023. While this is fantasy, it’s also a romance, and it takes place in a dragon riding academy. Now, you don’t have to write fantasy to write this trope.
The trope itself is popular beyond the fantasy genre because:
- It involves forced proximity
- Competition is involved
- Competition whenever there’s romance causes intriguing conflict
- The level of detail necessary for a “specialty” school makes for an interesting story
This is another trope that used to be popular and is swinging back into the public attention. Trends are cyclical—think Sky High (2005) as an example.
5. Childhood Friends-To-Lovers
This differs slightly from "friends-to-lovers," in the sense that the two love interests would have known each other as kids, and have lost touch for some time. Where the trope gains popularity is in the historical experiences together, and returning to childhood roots. Plus, it’s rediscovering each other as adults instead of meeting brand new.
What readers also love about this trope is:
- Returning to the home town
- Different walks of life reuniting
- Potential flashbacks to the characters as kids
- Uncovering a doubt or misunderstanding as a kid that changes how the adult views themselves
6. Sweet Romance
Also known as "low spice" books. Now, 2023 saw a rapid increase in high smut books, with much more graphic sex depicted on the page. As with any increase in these, there will be those whose taste doesn’t lie in books like these who want something else.
Which means they’ll be seeking books without a lot of spice. That’s where this comes in as one of the most popular romance tropes of 2024.
It’s to balance the scale. Previously, books may not have clarified the amount of sex in the book. But because of the rise of books with a lot of it, there will be a need for specificity for those without it.
You’ll see many more books labeled as "sweet romance" as this is the name of the trope that has no sex on page.
7. Escape From Abusive Relationships
I debated whether or not to include this one, as it often opens the doors for people to romanticize abuse instead of depicting what it looks like to truly live in it and get out of it. Fiction is a place for people to explore ideas safely, so there is some nuance, but this topic should be explored in an intentional and mindful way.
There’s a very popular romantic thriller author who is getting a movie this year, one that has been met with controversy over the fact that many see her depiction of abusive relationships as romanticizing the abuse. One that I believe is going to trigger an influx of "what other books are like this movie?"
It’s possible the movie will right some of the toxic wrongs of the book. But it’s possible you’ll get readers who flock to stories much the same. Either way, I think one of the most popular romance tropes of 2024 will be stories of people getting out of abusive relationships.
TIP: Again, you might tap into an underserved audience by turning the trope and having a man (or LGBTQ+ character) be the one to escape abuse.
8. Later-In-Life Romance
This can also be called "second chance" romance. Basically, there are a lot of romance novels for late teens-early 20s. There are not many for people in their 30s, 40s, 50s, and above. Which means there’s a huge audience waiting for something they can relate to more, like this woman and many others:
Because the romance genre has been burst wide open, even extending into fantasy so much the new common term for a true fantasy romance is romantasy, it’s leaving certain stories for certain ages untold.
Grab ahold of this trope and write good romance novels in it! It’s sure to be one of the most popular romance tropes of 2024.
While tropes aren’t the end-all-be-all for whether a book will be successful, knowing some of the most popular romance tropes of 2024 can help you figure out how to position your story, or what to write if you want to write to market. Remember to $ make the tropes your own$ , though, so you can stand out among all the others!
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