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Help:Tropes and Genres
This help page provides instructions for how to create, organize and develop articles about fanwork tropes and genres.
Fanlore documents genres, tropes, and trends within fanworks (all types of fanworks--fanfic, art, vids, etc.). Many of these topics are also glossary terms (WNGWJLEO, etc.), but some are not (cyberpunk, unicorns, etc.). You can browse a list of all tropes and genres in Fanlore here.
How do I name the page?
If it's a glossary term, this is easy: The name of the page should be the term itself. Example: Alternate Universe
If there's no generally accepted term, or it's a broader topic that covers multiple terms, use more generic language that describes the topic. Examples: Animals in Fanworks, Pregnancy, Safe Sex and Fandom
See also how to create a page and guidelines for naming pages.
Which templates and categories should I use?
Use the trope template. The template automatically adds the Tropes & Genres category.
If the trope/genre is mainly used in one fandom or originated in a particular fandom, it should get a fandom category. If it is also a glossary term, manually add the glossary category.
See also Help:Templates and Help:Categories.
What content should I add?
Suggested topics:
- definition/scope
- what type of fanwork it is associated with (story trope, art genre, etc.)
- history/evolution - when did it start?
- relationship to other tropes and genres
- which fan communities use it most and how
- comparison of how it is deployed in canon versus fanworks, if it is used in canon
- examples of fanworks that use it
- resources to help the user find more fanworks of this type: link to the AO3 tag, LJ community tags, masterlists, etc.
- anything else relevant
More on adding examples
We love examples! Standard procedure is to put them all in a section like this
==Example Fanworks== *[http://url.com AWESOME TITLE] by AWESOME FAN. (AWESOME FANDOM) THIS IS AN AWESOME EXAMPLE OF THE TROPE BECAUSE..... (YEAR)
You may want to organize examples by fandom, date, subgenre, or whatever works best.
If applicable, try to include as wide a variety as possible (not just one character/pairing/fandom, not just fanfic, not just one fan creator, etc.)
If the page doesn't have (m)any examples yet, you can encourage other editors to add more by adding Template:ExamplesWanted. You can browse the Examples Wanted category to find pages that need love.