Tag: tropes

new blog post: Join Me on the Trope-ology Podcast Join Me on the Trope-ology Podcast
Writing

Join Me on the Trope-ology Podcast

Kara Jorgensen1 Comment

This week I had the pleasure of chatting with Chris (@themythofChris) on their podcast, The Trope-ology Podcast, to discuss my favorite trope, hurt-comfort. I had an absolute blast, and instead of a blog post this week, I hope you will check out this episode where we discuss the psychological pay-off of hurt-comfort, how it relates to disability and chronic illness, the intimacy of being seen, why having needs (big and small met) matters of much in this trope, and of course, a TON of great book recs.

After my conversation with Chris, I think I added like 10 books to my tbr. I have embedded the episode below or you can check it out through the link above, and I hope you will follow Chris and her podcast as well because it’s a lot of fun and features some fabulous authors.

Writing

Bookish Bitching

Kara Jorgensen9 Comments

As readers, we all have things we see in a book that make us roll our eyes or want to immediately put it down. This week, I was inspired by Nate Philbrick’s 20 Bookish Pet Peeves to write my own list. It’s Monday, so why not bitch about it?

  1. Covers that change mid-series
  2. When paperbacks are released six months after the hard cover
  3. Ebooks that cost as much (or more) than a paperback
  4. Highly sexual book covers
  5. Poorly done photo-manipulated covers
  6. Publishers who give authors super short print-runs
  7. Love triangles
  8. Characters will oddly apt names, like a werewolf named Luna Woolf
  9. When side characters are more interesting than the main characters yet get very little screen time
  10. The “tragic queer” trope
  11. Invisible people of color (when characters are only revealed to be PoC by the author AFTER the book has been published and widely read, yet there’s no textual evidence in the book)
  12. Mary-Sues/Gary-Stus
  13. Complex female characters being called Mary-Sues because they can think and act like a capable human being
  14. Books that flat-line in the middle in terms of pacing
  15. Unlikable characters only being “bad guys”
  16. Lack of diversity in many genres (in terms of race, sexuality, gender-identity)
  17. Books with no back blurb, just “reviews” by big name papers or authors.
  18. Authors who put out one really great book and never write again
  19. Certain genres being seen as lesser or more important than others
  20. When the dust jacket won’t stay on your hard cover

What bookish things do you bitch about?