Worse cliches to include in novels

Cipiteca396

Monarch of Despair 🐉🌺🪽🌊🪶🌑🐦‍🔥🌈
Joined
Jun 6, 2021
Messages
2,704
Points
153
I hate the 'Pain equals progression' trope. Pain is literally how your body tells you that you're being stupid. It's tolerable, but it will 100% ruin my immersion. I guess in the same way, the whole 'I'll hurt you to make you stronger' trope sucks.

I also tend to dislike hyper aggressive plot lines - 'Just kill everything because it's easier than talking' for example...

I also dislike 'jealousy is hot' stories or kinks when they show up. Not just yanderes, but those stupid plots where it's like 'I'll make them jealous so they fall in love with me!' or 'Wow, they totally manhandled that person who was hitting on me, that's hot.' One of the few things that makes me physically cringe.

I also hate the bard trope. That's the other thing that makes me cringe.

Can't think of any more off the top of my head.
 

esThr

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 2, 2024
Messages
192
Points
133
Personally, the ones I dislike a bit are the ones that "want to preserve the original story" archetypes.
If they think for more than 0 seconds they would realize that their transmigration would likely cause the so-called original to change...
I rather deal with traditional dense mc than those tbh
 

Dark_Phoenix_Zaetyk

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 4, 2022
Messages
724
Points
133
Even when you avoid the cliches of a genre people complain about it not being like everything else saying the replacement is wrong for not be the cliche version. Seen complaints in comments on my books too many times about that exact thing.

I wrote my Her Beasts series because I didn't like the cliches in Asian beastworld novels where only pale white skin is considered pretty, all women are treated like incapable baby makers where only their beauty matters, they're always underaged minors, the smut was always being talked about, but never written, and they never have the background to backup all of the random technological advances they make.

I did weeks of research into common dungeon core cliches, why they're disliked, and deciding which ones to keep and which ones to change to something else while making it all fit together. Only then I get hate for it not being a murder hobo dungeon with an MC who is soooo special they get to break all the rules of the world. Instead, I went a different route and people get big mad.
You can't please anyone while writing a novel people get mad or find simple things to hate on ... those randoms should not be taken serious
None yet all.

There are no bad cliches only bad execution.
But when a cliche is badly executed it becomes a bad cliche :sweating_profusely:
I hate the 'Pain equals progression' trope. Pain is literally how your body tells you that you're being stupid. It's tolerable, but it will 100% ruin my immersion. I guess in the same way, the whole 'I'll hurt you to make you stronger' trope sucks.

I also tend to dislike hyper aggressive plot lines - 'Just kill everything because it's easier than talking' for example...

I also dislike 'jealousy is hot' stories or kinks when they show up. Not just yanderes, but those stupid plots where it's like 'I'll make them jealous so they fall in love with me!' or 'Wow, they totally manhandled that person who was hitting on me, that's hot.' One of the few things that makes me physically cringe.

I also hate the bard trope. That's the other thing that makes me cringe.

Can't think of any more off the top of my head.
The pain one especially when author confuses challenges and constant struggles...a character that face challenges and a little pain to progress atleast i can tolerate but constant struggles and useless pain every chapter is another thing
Personally, the ones I dislike a bit are the ones that "want to preserve the original story" archetypes.
If they think for more than 0 seconds they would realize that their transmigration would likely cause the so-called original to change...
I rather deal with traditional dense mc than those tbh
Seems we are the same on this one....
 
Last edited:

Mikeynohmore

Member
Joined
May 31, 2024
Messages
6
Points
18
The crazy-strong, OP, game-breaking, absolutely BROKEN skill/class/build/etc. that nobody besides the protagonist has ever thought to exploit, even if the exploit itself would be obvious as shit to the playerbase of any real-world game. Even dumber is when, after the protagonist has shown everyone how ungodly powerful his skill/class/build/etc. is, nobody attempts to mimic him. Even worse, they continue to downplay the validity of his skill/class/build/etc.'s strength.

The concept of a "meta" just doesn't seem to exist in a lot of LitRPG stories. IRL, everyone who plays a competitive game for a significant amount of time knows what the best moves, cards, skills, classes, builds, etc. are, and if they don't play them, they at least have ways to counter them.
 
Joined
Jun 14, 2024
Messages
2
Points
18
Some cliche done well can make a novel enjoyable while there those nightmare cliches that gives readers headaches and you definitely drop a novel because of them
I think that perfect MCs are the mist cringe worthy. They get to a new world or the system drops and they know everything from the start and are just perfect. Nobody is, and some floundering or even a lot of floundering is much more logical
 

Dark_Phoenix_Zaetyk

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 4, 2022
Messages
724
Points
133
I think that perfect MCs are the mist cringe worthy. They get to a new world or the system drops and they know everything from the start and are just perfect. Nobody is, and some floundering or even a lot of floundering is much more logical
Or they are able to exploit holes in the system that has been around for eons
 

BearlyAlive

I'm not savage, you're just average
Joined
Oct 13, 2021
Messages
1,981
Points
153
Yeah, MC "exploiting" the world by pressing B instead of A is a terrible cliche. Can't tell me no heretic or weirdo tried to experiment in at least thousand years of history.

Same as the "banished because X, but X is actually """""secretly""""" OP" trope. Nobody with a functioning brain would kick their utility main or healer instead of hiring more people. And if it's a conditional power the group would try to fulfill those conditions for more milage instead of greet and yeet.

Solving everything with a gimmick like Pokemon battles, Yugioh card battles or higher numbers in litrpgs. It's just stupid, imo.
 

BouncyCactus

Wearer of Dozen Facades
Joined
Aug 11, 2020
Messages
301
Points
133
Same as the "banished because X, but X is actually """""secretly""""" OP" trope. Nobody with a functioning brain would kick their utility main or healer instead of hiring more people. And if it's a conditional power the group would try to fulfill those conditions for more milage instead of greet and yeet.
Some people never play the old Pokemon game, and it shows. You bet there is a Bibarel on my team from start to Champion! He ain't no slave, he's the HM Master
 

ConansWitchBaby

Da Scalie Whisperer
Joined
Dec 23, 2020
Messages
1,707
Points
153
No mentor training is the main one for me. As if swinging a weapon a few times makes you good. I've met larpers that think highly of themselves yet swing like their chopping wood. Street "badasses" that try to grapple, only to fondle my balls with their face trying to push me down. Over-swinging. Footwork. For fucks sake, footwork. As if anyone can teach themselves that in a void or an empty field.

You need an aggressive attacker to practice. Fear the one that has limp wrist a thousand times? I'm not taking advice from people who constantly cannibalize themselves throughout history.
 
Top