Wattpad just turned 19! That’s right – the orange app, which not only provided a safe haven for a vast array of fantasies but also provided a creative space for blossoming writers to put their work out has been part of fandom culture for 19 years now.
Undoubtedly a cornerstone of pop culture, Wattpad is one of the first app where most of us go when a new hyper-fixation hits us. The fanfictions – regardless of spelling errors and at times out-of-character narratives – always have a sort of magic pull of allowing us to discover alternate realities and storylines for the characters that have become our new obsession.
As certified dreamers who build whole worlds in our heads, the Lyrical Muse editors – Malvika Padin and Khushboo Malhotra – simply couldn’t help discussing our favourite fanfiction tropes and how they may have – very slightly! – influenced how we view romance, friendship and well, the world in general.
So, here are six Wattpad tropes + a few honourable mentions that shaped us.
Found Family
There’s plenty of found family tropes in TV/films. The idea of a group of misfits finding the protection, safety and love they never received from the world in each other is particularly heartwarming.
The stories where characters who never interacted in canon end up building a dynamic is also one of my favourite types of AUs. Despite some characters having zero space in the actual narrative, they carve out space for themselves in the found family trope, delivering a dose of comfort and warmth regardless of the overall genre.
As an introverted person with a whole host of opinions that go against the grain, I’ve constantly felt like an outsider in a world that seems to be intimately connected to each other. Wherever I went, I was the odd one out, the person who never quite managed to build a “friend group,” yet deeply, quietly craved to find my tribe.
So, the found family trope? That’s my AU! The trope carries hope for a version of me that’s been accepted and loved as I am at least by a few in this big, wide world.
Grumpy x Sunshine
Ask my best friend – and she’d tell you I’m definitely one of the grumpiest person she’s ever known. Hugs are usually a no-no. Teasing is easier to offer up than comfort. And romance? Might as well be allergic.
But underneath it all I’m a softie ( that’s a secret though!) and all I’m missing is an extroverted, sunshine with a zest for life to not only see through my layers of grump but actually unravel those layers to discover the person I am underneath the gruffness.
Grumpy x Sunshine to me could be romance or a great friendship, any dynamic where someone who shines brighter than me still chooses to spend time with me.
In almost direct contrast to found family, the grumpy x sunshine trope is less about finding your community and more about finding your person – a ride-or-die who will stick with you despite – and maybe even because of -your differences.
Celebrity x Y/N
Self-insert fanfictions – quite possibly one of Wattpad’s most famous genres/tropes. You’ll see a plethora of Y/N memes floating around the internet. The premise is how YOU stand out among crowds of millions, getting noticed by and eventually romancing a famous public figure – musicians, actors you name it!
Whether I got my Y/N romance moment with my celebrity crush or not – I did in fact get to interview them!
I’ll admit I find the trope a bit too cringe and don’t particularly indulge in reading them. But then how has it shaped my life? Well, as a 20-year-old for the first time in my life I found myself quite taken with a celebrity who seemed to deeply out of reach. Around that time I also happened to start my degree in journalism and figured that choosing a beat that would allow me to be adjacent to his career might close the gap between us just a little.
Giving music and entertainment journalism a try just for the off chance it would bring me closer to my celebrity crush was very Y/N of me. But now, almost 10 years I’d say that was one of the best decisions of my life.
Whether I got my Y/N romance moment with my celebrity crush or not – I did in fact get to interview them, going on to do much more I’m so proud of. Who would have thought a little bit of Wattpad-esque delusion would help build my whole career?
Billionaire/CEO Romance
One of Wattpad’s most indulgent trope — the tall, dark, handsome billionaire heir or CEO with a tragic backstory and a jawline sharp enough to slice through moral dilemmas — shaped me far more than I’d ever confess out loud.
But it wasn’t the money or the penthouse skyline that drew me in. It was the mix of ambition, intensity and that rare, deliberate devotion that exists only in fiction and, occasionally, in delusional daydreams.
And somewhere along the way, the trope rewired my expectations. I stopped rooting for ‘bare-minimum’ affection and started expecting intentionality. Someone who listens, chooses, protects, but doesn’t possess and doesn’t degrade you. These love interests weren’t perfect; they were layered, flawed, occasionally unhinged and morally questionable at times. Yet, impossibly gentle with the one person they truly adored.
And that duality? That’s my greatest weakness. I like ambition paired with tenderness. Give me a man who could win a corporate war at 10 AM and still notice the tremor in my voice at 10:01.
It also explains why I gravitate toward characters (and write fictional men myself) who operate in morally complicated worlds but treat love like their one unbreakable rule. Wattpad fed me a very specific fantasy: a partner who could burn the world down but would never raise his voice at you. Unrealistic? Maybe. But deeply romantic? Absolutely!
True Crime & Mystery
While other people’s Wattpad eras were full of soft, heartwarming romances and fanfictions, my foundational era featured crime scenes, encrypted files, unsolved secrets, serial killers, detectives with tousled hair, and brooding investigators tracing red strings on case boards at 3 a.m. I devoured stories where love interests could hack into databases, interrogate suspects, and unravel motives with terrifying accuracy.
Blame Wattpad for turning me into an emotional detective with chronic overthinking as a side effect.
It awakened the analytical part of me; the desire to understand people like puzzles. I became obsessed with motives, psychology, and the secrets people hide between sentences. I didn’t just want to know who did it; I wanted to know why.
So much so that for a long time, I flirted with the idea of becoming a criminal lawyer or a forensic psychologist. I was convinced my true calling involved case files, interrogation rooms, profiling… or at least a very dramatic “ma’am, step away from the suspect” moment.
And even though I didn’t pursue it professionally, the mindset stuck. Now, I’m the friend who catches micro-expressions, predicts plot twists in real life with concerning accuracy, and identifies red flags with forensic-level precision.
Blame Wattpad for turning me into an emotional detective with chronic overthinking as a side effect.
Girlboss Glow-Ups & Being Chosen
My softer side belongs to another Wattpad classic: the girl who starts off invisible, overlooked, underestimated or “just there”, and then slowly builds herself into someone powerful, independent and radiant.
No fairy godmother, no miracle makeover. Just slow, steady evolution and the kind of confidence that builds one chapter (and a heartbreak) at a time. That was my coming-of-age arc.
Wattpad taught me that glow-ups aren’t about mascara and new haircuts; they’re about choosing yourself, trusting timing, and embracing the version of you that existed beneath all the doubt. This trope helped me recognise myself in the girl who works hard, dreams big and refused to shrink herself to fit anyone’s comfort.
And yes, the romantic in me adored the “never chosen, then suddenly is” arc, where the right person sees you in a way no one ever has before. (still waiting, still counting…) But more than romance, it taught me emotional clarity; your worth isn’t measured by who notices you; timing isn’t a verdict; and self-romanticising is a survival skill.
It made me softer toward myself and harder to impress — in the best way. And perhaps this is why my real-life high school romance didn’t hit the Wattpad-high. Tragic, truly!
Honorable mentions
Omegaverse
Yes, I know – a bit of a curveball and not one that people talk about enough openly – but the omegaverse has always intrigued me. An alternate universe that plays around with sub-gender dynamics.
As someone who didn’t grow up with a family built on conventional gender roles, this genre where gender roles maybe subverted, where queerness feels conventional and where characters get to lean into an primal, animalistic nature is one that feels refreshing to me.
A world so vast and versatile, the omegaverse may not have shaped me, but it sure makes for an incredibly fun read and is definitely part of my very niche hyper-fixations.
Time Travel
And then there’s Time Travel and timeline loops – the one trope that never shaped me personally, but remains one of the most entertaining escapes on Wattpad.
There’s something irresistible about characters stumbling through decades, rewriting fate, meeting alternate versions of themselves, or trying (and failing) to stop the universe from repeating the same day until they get it right. It’s chaotic, clever, occasionally headache-inducing, but always fun.
Even if it didn’t influence my worldview the way the other tropes did, I’ll always have a soft spot for stories that bend time just to see what breaks.
Words by Malvika Padin and Khushboo Malhotra
So what’s your favourite Wattpad trope? Share your fanfic obsessions with us on X and Instagram — and visit Lyrical Muse for more features on pop culture and fandom deep dives.
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