I don't know...it lacks something and I'm not sure it doesn't tell people what they already know... But here it is:

Genre Convention VS. Cliché:

First off, it would be appropriate to define the two. A genre convention is something common among many tales of one genre that helps define that genre, but aren’t necessarily a required component. A good example within the sci-fi genre would be aliens. They tend to be present, but not a necessary part, and the book wouldn’t necessarily be eliminated as a sci-fi book if it didn’t have aliens, but aliens help mark it as a sci-fi book. A cliché, on the other hand, is undesired. Usually it starts out as an original idea that one author had, and then others began to use it as well because they liked it. Eventually, readers have come tired of hearing about it.

Genre conventions are a desired component that define what genre the book is a part of. In other words, genre conventions are your friends. They are even required in a book, and can help provide the story with unity. Clichés, I think, are a failed attempt by an author to achieve a genre convention, which turns into something that has been used before or has become over-used with time.

Sometimes the line between the two can become blurred, and an author may have a hard time being able to tell if the item is cliché or genre convention. One question I like to ask is: Will it make the reader groan? In other words, would you, as a reader, be un-satisfied and dis-appointed when you read it? If so, it is probably a cliché, or possibly even blatant copying.

Another interesting thing about clichés is that they aren’t always dependent on the content. A genre convention can be just another over-used idea that is executed with just a hint of originality so that it is melted into a brand-new creation that readers will love to read. And since it comes from other sources and fodder from other authors, readers will feel more familiar with it, and that will help to hook them. But that’s for a different post…

The bottom line is that, no matter what you are writing you need genre conventions and you should avoid clichés. Get a good editor who is familiar with the genre (who is also brutally honest) and can point out the ups and downs of your work, and you should be set.

Special thanks to Melody Kondrael and Armorbearer for lots of the fodder.

Whada you all think??

*smiles * You were supposed to pm this to me or Philli, Elanhil. We don't want our mods and editors thinking they have something new in here to edit when it isn't time yet. PM it to me, then lock and archive this thread

Oh I was?? I seemed to have missed that bit... Sooooooooooooorry..................

No problem, Elanhil. It is a new system. This is the old way we used to do it