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The Universal Genre Savvy Guide

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"Isaac Clarke is basically the character who does everything we keep yelling at people in horror films to do. He has a suit of armor that he never takes off, he uses convenient high-powered cutting tools to carve his initials into slime monsters, and he never speaks, because he knows his dialogue would have to come from the same God-awful script that all the other sods are using."

Why should the Evil Overlord have all the Genre Savvy knowledge? Anyone can figure out what to do, depending on what kind of fiction they are in, and what kind of character they are.

Read these lists, and you'll be Genre Savvy, or close enough. Fail to read them, and your Genre Blindness will condemn you to pick up any Idiot Ball you see, perhaps even become Too Dumb to Live. Just make sure you read the right list. As a note, any one of these might count just as well for another kind of story (for example, Caveat Emptor when entering The Little Shop That Wasn't There Yesterday is a given in both a transformation comic and a horror story) but it's your choice how much of each genre you decide to be savvy about in any given moment.

Note that developing one's character further, whether good or evil, is always beneficial. No matter what genre you're in, it makes you popular among the fanbase, and may even make the story more popular—which is, again, always good. Done properly, it may even induce characters of the opposite side to assist you.

For various character types and other miscellaneous guides, see the TV Tropes "How to" Guides index.

Please feel free to add any tips you have in the relevant sections.


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