Bakery AU
| Tropes and genres | |
|---|---|
| Related tropes/genres | Alternate Universe, Coffee Shop AU, Baking AU, Mundane AU, College AU |
| See also | Food in Fanworks |
| Related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Bakery AU is a popular fanfiction trope. Typically, one half of the main romantic pairing owns or works at an artisanal bakery or other shop that specializes in baked goods. The preparation of hand-made baked goods plays an important part in the romantic plot. Sometimes, several of the main characters work at the bakery.
Trope Conventions
It sometimes overlaps with, but is not synonymous with, the Coffee Shop AU trope where baked goods are sometimes involved but which focus on the coffee element, and with Baking AUs where characters bake, but not in a commercial setting. Some stories include elements of all three tropes, like gyzym's I've Got Nothing To Do Today But Smile (The Only Living Boy in New York), where a stress!baker meets the owner of a coffee shop to create a bakery-slash-coffee shop by the end of the fic.
This article or section needs expansion. |
Criticism
Bakery AUs often receive the same types of negative response as Coffee Shop AUs, which are sometimes criticized by fans as being unrealistic, rampant with OOC characterizations, or overly mundane.[1]
From the article Fandom Is Broken by Devin Faraci, about fandom entitlement, bakery and coffee shop AUs are mentioned in relation to criticism of fans who want fan service:
[...] There are new wrinkles for younger fans, a group that seems uninterested in conflict or personal difficulty in their narratives (look at the popularity of fan fics set in coffee shops or bakeries, which posit the characters of a comic or TV show or movie they love as co-workers having sub-sitcom level interactions. I had an argument with a younger fan on Twitter recently and she told me that what she wants out of a Captain America story is to see Steve Rogers be happy and get whatever he wants - ie, the exact opposite of what you want from good drama) [...]
Example Fanworks
Fanfiction
- The Second Rise, by musesfool, 2012, Steve/Bucky. The one where Tony buys Steve a bakery after Bucky goes MIA, and three years later, Bucky comes back.
- if only you could see me (for the pie that i am), by bitelikefire, Steve/Bucky, 2014. In which Steve is the proud owner of Frost; a semi famous local bakery in D.C. And despite the overwhelming insistence that it’s about time he start dating, Steve swears up and down he isn’t ready for that. Or as of recently, just doesn’t have the time because of Mr. Barnes. The highly demanding wedding planner on the phone who keeps asking for nearly impossible deliveries and maybe Steve would like to personally strangle him. Maybe.
- Buy Handmade by jjtaylor, Frank/Gerard, 2008. Podfic by pennyplainknits. Gerard Way quits his job to sell his art on Etsy, Frank quits his to learn how to be a baker.
- Baby, It's Cold Outside by savvygambols, Brendon/Ryan, 2008. Brendon works in a bakery. A bakery owned by Gabe Saporta!
- oh sugar, sugar (you got me wanting you) by merryofsoul, Jamie Benn/Tyler Seguin, 2015. (Locked to AO3 users.) Tyler owns a bakery, Jamie is his dorky self, and they fall in love.
- I Got a Sweet Tooth (And a Taste For You) by hapakitsune, Sidney Crosby/Evgeni Malkin, 2013. (Locked to AO3 users). Sidney is sweet on the guy who works at the local Russian bakery.
- I've Got Nothing To Do Today But Smile (The Only Living Boy in New York) by gyzym, Arthur/Eames, 2010. The triple combo of a Coffeeshop/Baking/Bakery AU.
- One Good One by milou407, Bahorel/Feuilly, 2016. In which Bahorel is an adorable baker, Feuilly is an adorable dad and everything comes up pain au chocolat.
The setting is common in non-famous AUs as Harry Styles used to work in a bakery before the band. However for that reason, not all stories set in bakeries are technically Bakery AUs, some pre-band fics are simply canon compliant. Example: Manchester Tarts Have a Cherry in the Center by cyclogenesis, Nick/Harry, 2013, in which Nick Grimshaw enters the bakery Harry works at by chance before Harry becomes famous.
- Only Several Miles From the Sun by robpatFF, Harry/Louis, 2012. It started with a walk and unexpected rain and Babs. It started with a smile and green eyes and a bag of warm apple cinnamon muffins. Actually, it started with the bakery.
- Flour and Chocolate by teaandtumblr, Harry/Louis, 2015. Louis is a single dad and Harry works at the newly opened bakery down the street.
- Foster's Bakery by Cesare and anatsuno, McKay/Sheppard, 2008. Summary of Part 1: Grounded by an injury, John Sheppard leaves the Air Force and, at loose ends, takes up running the bakery he inherited from his mother's family in Colorado Springs.
- Loki is Sorry Cakes, Archived version by anno_Hreog: Years later, as penance for leading the Chitauri to attack New York City, Loki bakes cupcakes. Coffeeshop/bakery AU, without the AU, and mostly an excuse for fluffy crack. (2012)
- sweet on you by moogle62, Mark/Eduardo, 2011. Summary: BAKERY AU. Mark is Mark, Eduardo owns a bakery/café near the Facebook offices. [...]
- Space Bakes: A Love Story, Keith/Shiro, 2018. Summary: What happens when Cake Baker Keith meets Librarian Shiro? A great love story ensues.
Fanart
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Archives & Resources
- Alternate Universe - Bakery tag on the Ao3
- Sweet Baker article at TV Tropes
References
- ^ Fail-fandom anon thread. Posted on August 26, 2017.