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Are you occasionally daunted by the volume of acronyms and brand-new bookish terms that appear on platforms like Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and Pinterest?

In fact, until about a year and a half ago, I was unaware of what a TBR was.

And I had no idea that Bookstagram existed! So you can imagine my surprise when I saw the word “trope” for the first time on Instagram!

Don’t panic! Whether you’re a novice in the realm of book lovers and reading enthusiasts, or you’ve been engaged in these literary circles for some time but find yourself perplexed by the numerous literary vocabulary and abbreviations, I have you sorted.

Online Book Platforms

1. Bookstagram

A section of Instagram dedicated exclusively to books.

2. Booktok

Literally, book TikTok.

3. Booktube

YouTube channels that, once again, concentrate on books.

Genre-related Terms

1.   Trope

A trope is just a recognizable plot element or a cliché.

For example, grumpy-sunshine romances or enemies to lovers.

Click here for more information on tropes

2. High Fantasy/Epic Fantasy

High fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy where all the fantastical happenings occur in different worlds with their own set of laws.

3.  Low Fantasy

Low fantasy is a fantasy subgenre in which events occur in a seemingly normal world.

4. Urban Fantasy

Another fantasy subgenre that takes place in the present day and incorporates supernatural elements is urban fantasy.

5. Dystopian

In dystopian fiction, the setting is frequently a society where the ruling authority controls the populace. These tales frequently focus on individuals’ battles against oppressive systems.

6. Contemporary Romance

Contemporary romance is a subgenre of romance books that typically takes place in the same time period as the book’s author.

7. Sapphic

Describes books with LGBTQIA+ representation that include romance or attraction between two females.

8. Dark Academia

Dark academia is nothing but an academic aesthetic. It features anything from boarding schools to museums, but it usually focuses on negative themes.

9. Light Academia

Light academia, another academic aesthetic,  is just a lighter form of dark academia.

10. Magical Realism

Stories that exhibit magical realism depict magic as a common occurrence in which everyone possesses it.

12. Romantasy

Romance+Fantasy

13. Cozy Fantasy

At this point, you can probably guess what Cozy Fantasy means.

Bookish Acronyms

1. TBR

To be read [TBR] refers to a list of novels that you want to read.

2. DNF

Did not finish [DNF] refers to the books that you were unable to finish.

3. ARC

Advanced reader’s copy [ARC]: books that critics or influencers receive from publishers before the official release of the books in order to post reviews of them.

4. QOTD

Question of the day [QOTD]—you’ll find this floating on Bookstagram where bookstagrammers (book-instagrammers) ask bookish questions to their viewers.

5. RTC

Review to come: When someone still has to review a book they’ve read.

6. WIP

Work in progress: used by authors to indicate that their books are, well, a work in progress.

7. SFF

Sci-fi /Fantasy

8. CAWPILE

Characters, Atmosphere/Setting, Writing Style, Plot, Intrigue, Logic/Relationships, Enjoyment—CAWPILE is a system created by book influencers that helps them review books in detail.  

9. POV

Point of view [POV] refers to the perspective of the person you are following in the book you are reading.  

10. CR

Current read [CR] refers to the book you’re reading at the moment.

11. BOTM

Book of the Month [BOTM] is an online service that offers books to its members and subscribers every month.

12. HEA

Happily ever after.

Click here for my thoughts on HEAs

13. TW/CW

Trigger warnings/Content warnings – are given in book reviews to inform sensitive readers about the contents and events they may encounter while reading.

14. POC

Person of color.

15. HFN

Happy for now.

Other Bookish Terms

1. Book Tour

A book tour essentially involves the author visiting different regions to conduct book sales in order to promote a recently published book.

2. Mood Read/Mood Reader

Being a mood reader entails reading whatever you want, whenever you want instead of following a strict reading schedule.

For more elaboration on mood reading, click here.

3. Buddy Read

Buddy reading is when two people read the same book at the same time and have ongoing conversations about it—basically a book club with two members.

4. Book Haul

When book bloggers, booktokers, or bookstagrammers buy a lot of books, they post about their haul on social media to inspire other people to buy the same books.

5. Meet-cute

The term “Meet Cute” refers to a first meeting between two characters that is cute or funny and eventually results in romance.

6. Backlist

A publisher’s backlist consists of books from the past as opposed to those that have just been released.

7. Canon

The word “canon” refers to a writer’s original work.

Example: The Harry Potter series is canon but any fan-fiction is not.

8. Wrap-up 

A wrap-up involves people discussing all the books they’ve read during a given period of time.

9. Tome

A book with more than 500 pages is considered a tome.

10. Plot-driven

A plot-driven book is one where the action in the story is the main focus of the narrative.

11. Character-driven

A character-driven book is one where the main focus of the book is on the main characters.

12. Reading Slump

A reading slump occurs when you have a ton of books on your TBR but are unsure which one to start with.

13. Slump Buster

A slump buster is a book that gets you out of your reading slump.

14. Shelfie

A shelfie is a photograph of your bookshelf.

15. Book Mail

Book mail refers to the books you’ve received via mail.

16. Street Team

A street team is a collection of people who congregate outside to spread the word about and promote a particular book.

17. Insta-love

When two characters fall in love at first sight, it is called insta-love.

18. Mary Sue

Mary Sue is a female character that is depicted as one without any flaws.

19. Second Lead Syndrome

Fans of Korean dramas, mangas, manhuas, and webtoons all too well know the phenomenon of the second-lead syndrome. It’s the feeling of heartbreak when the second lead (love interest, usually) doesn’t receive the happy ending they deserve.

20. Bibliomania

An obsession with books.

21. OwnVoices

First coined by author Corrine Duyvis, OwnVoices is when an author from an underrepresented group writes fiction and/or non fiction about their community.

22. Readathon

Reading + Marathon—getting easier, isn’t it? Readathons are events centered around a specific theme.

Save the Bookish Lingo for Later!