Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly book meme brought by T5W on Goodreads.
Last week I posted my first Top 5 Wednesday post about things I love that aren't books. It was actually pretty fun to take some time and think about some good things in my life, even if the list at the time did include things like leggings and nachos. Sometimes it's the little things, right?
This week the Top 5 post is about something a little darker. Today we're talking about trends in writing/publishing that need to GTFO already.
1. Bad Girl Friends
I'm a bit tired of the mean girl trope too, but when I talk about bad girl friends, I'm talking about the book where the main character is just terrible to all of her girl friends. She can't be bothered to listen to them when they talk about their problems, she belittles their problems, she ditches them in favor of other people (usually boys).
Girl friendships are complex, and girls talk about everything. This includes clothes and make-up and boys, yes, as well as everything else. And sometimes we're bad friends. I have no problem with books that look to illustrate what real female friendships look like, but I'm so tired of seeing girls be so bad to their friends over and over again.
2. Insta-Love
Sure, real people can find themselves crazy attracted to each other very quickly. Some people may even say "I love you" crazy fast. But can we get rid of this trend in fiction, maybe? It's enjoyable, I think, when the romance builds up, when the characters have time to move through those steps. For that matter, I'm also tired of insta-lust. Toss 'em both out. Let those characters cook!
3. Special But Ordinary Kids (w/ or w/o magic)
We all loved Harry Potter, or should have, at least. And Katniss. And whatever that girl's name was who ended up being a super special angel. And Clary. And somewhere down the line, all we had were those ordinary kids who turned out to ultra-special.
Look, the truth probably is that we're all of us just ordinary people who hope to one day wake up with the sudden realization that we're so valuable that we alone can save the loved one, or the country, or the world. But maybe we're all valuable anyway, and maybe we should read stories about ordinary people who just stay ordinary and still do incredible things.
4. Seriously, WHERE ARE THE PARENTS
But really, where are they? It's like all these kids have just raised themselves. And then if the parents are there, then it's all angst and lack of understanding. Or if the parent is cool, that's your clue that he or she will probably die. Geez Louise.
5. The Most Beautiful People In The World
If you think people in TV shows about LA are the most beautiful people in the world, then you've never read a book, because they're literally all there.
This is frustrating for a number of reasons. For one, it's boring. For another, it's obviously unrealistic. Sometimes we're just normal looking. Sometimes we have more than just one pimple that doesn't last very long, sometimes clothes look much better on the hanger than on our bodies. We're still wonderful people. We still rock our clothes. We still find and deserve love.
Let's find some books about real life bodies and real life people going through real life situations, k? With maybe some real parents in there too. I dunno, a girl can dream I guess.