Writing Cliché: A How-to Guide for Authors

Toxicity and Electricity: Dark Romance

Title: My Mafia Alpha Prince [Mature 18+]​​

​​Starring​​

Sweetie Ingenue​​

Mangry Dominic

​​Lots of violence​​

Lots of sex​​

Devlin Mafioso​​

Trigger Warnings

​​The Dark Romance Summary​​

​​Sweetie Ingenue gets tangled up in the world of mafia Alpha Prince Mangry Dominic. He's the hottest, darkest, most-tattooed guy she's ever seen and he speaks Italian and uses guns. His ties to the Familia puts her life in danger because... mafia. 

Due to toxic romance rules, Mangry's the only one who can protect her. When he treats her worse than a brood mare, she's turned on so much, she devotes her entire life to him. But then he crosses the line, and she leaves him... then forgives him and they make up by the next chapter. 

Somehow, rival wolfpack alpha, Devlin Mafioso, kidnaps her and nearly kills her due to some vengeance plot that she's oddly at the center of... even though she just started dating said prince. So, Sweetie is in deep now, fully committed to her prince and his mafia. She's willing to sacrifice herself for Mangry, who storms in right on time with the Familia in tow to save her. 

She's now a princessa. We get a cute epilogue where Mangry's still a possessive, jealous a​🤯​​🤯​hole but... less, so his character arc's complete. And now he's married to Sweetie, they have a future wolfbaby on the way, and their love will withstand the test of time.​​

​​The End​​

Unless the story's hugely popular. Then you better get a sequel ready.​​

​​Author's Note: There are a handful of newly-created subgenres of Romance that fit into this... subgenre. I've been around the block a few times and have come to find they've become wildly popular only in the last 10 years. We can all trace this trend to two (arguably three) publications that possessed the minds, hearts, spirits, and lady parts of many women around the world. I won't name them but if you've written or read Dark Romance recently, then you've read those series. ​​

​​Dark Romance Subgenres​​

The aforementioned, Billionaire.​​

Who can forget the Mafia, dolce amore?

​​The Werewolf stories and their wily alphas. You better not get on his bad side or else!​​

The Kidnapped (a.k.a. Stockholm Syndrome) stories. Hey, if Belle can fall for Beast...​​

The Arranged Marriage stories. I'm gonna leave that alone.​​

The everyday YA and Adult Fiction stories where you wonder why's this girl still with this loser?​​

The Dom/Sub Erotica that romanticizes abuse.​​

The DDLG​​ that romanticizes abuse. 

​​Tips on Dark Romance​​

​​​🤯​ Trigger Warnings are a must. Use them in your description, Author's Note chapter, at the end of the chapter preceding the triggering chapter, at the beginning of the trigging chapter, and at the end of the triggering chapter.​​​

🤯​ Your male lead should be as two-dimensional as possible but really hot if he's the romantic lead.

🤯​ Don't romanticize abuse but definitely make sure your MC's turned on by his disturbing possessive behavior... but not getting punched in the face.