Tropes ARE NOT The Story

I had a question from an author regarding tropes. Essentially, she was trying to write for a particular Harlequin line and continually found that her stories were getting rejected because the stories were not unique. She was struggling to understand how to make the stories unique and still fit the particular line.

In her case, her writing was "trope dependent." In other words, instead of creating a story that used tropes as small elements and plot devices within the story, she was building a story around that particular trope. For example, if we have a hidden baby trope, that should be just one small element that appears somewhere in the middle of your story about the hero and heroine who have other conflicts they are working through. The hidden baby element becomes the "straw that broke the camel's back."

This is really an issue many authors face when they are trying to see what is selling in the current market. They focus exclusively on plot, ignore either how those plots are being constructed, how the characters are being used, or even the voice.

What we are looking for is how you, as an author can bring your unique voice to the story, while at the same time, find a way to use those plots and common themes the publishers are looking for.