Recently updated on November 29th, 2024 at 08:34 pm
This Glossary will help you become familiar with terms that are commonly used on the Rainbow Reading Nook website as well as terms used in the reading and LGBTQ+ communities.
B
- Bookstagram – Bookstagram stands for book Instagram. It refers to any book related content on Instagram.
E
- Enemies to Lovers – Enemies to lovers is when two characters start off hating each other and gradually fall in love throughout the course of the book, movie or TV Show.
F
- Fake Dating – As a general rule, the fake dating trope is where two people start faking a relationship of some sort. It can encompass financial schemes, wedding dates, marriages of convenience, making someone jealous and many more.
- Fantasy – Fantasy is a genre of fiction involving magical or supernatural elements.
- Found family – The found family trope is where a group of people come to love and understand each other like a family.
G
- Graphic Novel – A graphic novel is a book in comic strip format which is the same length as a novel.
L
- LGBTQ+ – LGBTQ+ stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer or Questioning. The ‘plus’ represents other identities such as Pan and Asexual. The acronym is used to represent a diverse range of sexualities and gender-identities,
M
- MLM – MLM can mean either multi-level marketing or man loves men. As a general rule, when talking about books it normally means Men loving Men. It’s used to highlight books with specifically gay male representation.
- Morally Grey – Morally grey refers to a character who is in-between good and evil. They do too many bad things to be considered good. Yet they’re not bad or evil.
N
- NA/New Adult – NA stands for New Adult. As a general rule, New Adult books feature protagonists age 18-24 and they discuss themes that appeal to this age group. New Adult books commonly include themes such as mental health, college, first job and a first long-term relationship. They also can feature more graphic content.
R
- Retelling – A retelling is when a story has been written again in a different way from the original version. For example, authors often put a new spin on a popular fairytale.
S
- Slow Burn Romance – A slow burn is when the romantic attraction between characters builds slowly over the course of a book or book series.
T
- Trope – A trope is a commonly recurring element or plot device in fiction. A trope can be a person, place, thing, or situation. For example – Luke Skywalker is an example of the chosen one trope – he is the only one who can foil the evil villain’s plans and save the day.
- TBR List – TBR stands for to be read list. It can also be referred to as a reading list.
U
- Urban Fantasy – As a general rule, an urban fantasy is a book with fantastical or supernatural elements set in an urban setting in the present day. Urban Fantasy books are set in the real world but have fantasy elements and concepts
W
- WLW – WLW means Women Loving Women. It’s used to highlight books with a relationship between two female presenting people.
Y
- YA – YA stands for Young Adult. As a general rule, YA books feature protagonists age 12-18 and they discuss themes that appeal to a teenage age group in an accessible writing style. YA Books commonly include themes such as coming of age, friendship, family and first love. As a whole, they avoid graphic content and tend to have a positive ending.