There are so many bookish phrases and acronyms that are confusing or bizarre. I’m breaking down over twenty terms that I think everyone should know.
When I joined bookstagram, I had absolutely no clue what TBR meant or what trope referred to. I was confused by a lot of the questions that more seasoned accounts utilized in their captions. I have opened my fair share of Google tabs, attempting to research the phrases I came across while scrolling. Don’t even get me started on the number of abbreviated book titles that still baffle me to this day!
I asked my own audience if there were any terms that they were unfamiliar with when they joined bookstagram (or ones that they still weren’t sure about) and I saw that we shared a lot of the same answers! This article is going to serve as a guide for those who are just as unsure as I once was about the commonly used phrases, acronyms, and terms that are frequently seen on bookstagram – and really, just across the web.
Let’s start with some must-know bookish phrases, shall we?
I was a fashion/lifestyle blogger for over four years before even learning what “bookstagram” was. Now I regularly schedule buddy-reads with my bookstagram bestie and my favorite trope is definitely friends-to-lovers.
Just a few more bookish phrases that might come in handy.
It took me nearly a year to use “canon” properly (don’t judge me). I also discovered that I’m 100% not a mood-reader and I often prefer backlist books!
Ah yes, the acronym: so helpful – but only when everyone else knows what it means as well.
My phone recognizes TBR now, which is great until it decides that every time I write “the” it’s supposed to be “TBR.” It’s truly an honor to receive an ARC from an author/publisher and I rarely ever DNF my books.
As a bonus, I decided to dive into some sub-genres that I frequently read about!
Recently, I mentioned to a friend that I love books with magical realism, and the confusion on their face told me everything. I realized that these sub-genres are really popular amongst bookworms, but maybe not so much for others. I absolutely adore high fantasy and contemporary romance!
related posts
Why I Switched from Goodreads to The StoryGraph // How to Read More Books // Why You Should Use a Planned Reading List
Are there any bookish phrases and acronyms you want to learn more about?
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Joy says
First time seeing this blog and yes to the aestethic.
I loved reading this post, made me feel like Iβm in a pretty cottage.
And yes, I must say I have had my fair share of confusion from what the acronyms meant, thank you!
Kate says
Ah this is such a good list! I never realized how many phrases I knew that aren’t in the wider vernacular until I tried to talk to my mom about bookstagram haha
Kait says
I love this! I was new to the blogging realm when I joined bookstagram last year and so many terms were unknown to me. This is a great guide! I especially like how you broke up the guides into sections.
Eleanor Jones says
Hmm I know some of these, but not all of them! It’s not really book-related but I would love to learn more about etymology in the next few months as it’s a subject I’ve always been fascinated by!
Jeny says
Thanks for sharing. Now I can say I am a mood reader.
Amanda Elizabeth - meet at the barre says
Well I definitely didn’t expect to learn so much today. Thank you for taking the time. This is a great read π
Neely Moldovan says
I did know most of these but a few were new to me. I thought I was pretty good with book lingo!
K.J. Haakenson says
This is so helpful even for someone (AKA me) who has been on bookstagram for about 3 years now!! I have seen “SFF” around but I didn’t actually know what it meant xD
Sumedha says
It’s so funny to think that these are strange and unknown terms to most of the world while we use them in almost every sentence! I’m going through this list like “oh yes, BASICS” but newbies actually won’t know. Good job on putting together a guide!
Elle says
Iβd never heard of half of these phrases so thank you so much for sharing! Iβll be making sure I put these to good use Xo
Elle – ellegracedeveson.com
Andrea's Book Corner says
I loved this post so much! It’s funny that I didn’t know roughly 25% of these terms until now haha. Definitely can relate since I remember having to learn these terms as I went. Back then whenever I saw something I didn’t understand, I Googled it right away. This post is so useful for people new AND old to the bookish realm.
Julie Plagens says
This is the best post Iβve read on understanding the fiction world. Iβm a non-fiction writer and completely intimidated by all the genres and acronyms! Thanks for letting me inside your world!
Kelly Diane says
This is so helpful. Even though I quite often write and read book reviews, I didn’t know what half of those phrases meant.
Della Driscoll says
Oh my, I love this!! So many cool phrases and a couple I’ve not heard of before – great post xx
Rebecca | Velvet Opus says
I do love a good acronym and there are so many great ones in the bookish community! A great list, thanks for sharing β¨
Tiffany McCullough - Metaphysical Mama says
Thank you so much for this post! I always struggle with keeping up with all of the acronyms. This has helped me so much.
Lizzie says
Loved this post! Super informative and interesting! I am definitely a mood reader lol. Well…not just for reading but for anything haha!
Lizzie
http://www.lizzieinlace.com
I'm All Booked Up says
This is an essential list, thanks for sharing. We even learned about Cawpile.
Aria | Blogs by Aria says
such a good list because so many of these I had heard before but never knew what they meant.
Lucy says
Wow I learnt a lot from this post, some of these bookish terms I hadn’t heard of until now! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Jaya Avendel says
As a writer, I was familiar with many of the bookish acronyms, but also fascinated by some terms, like ‘cawpile’, that I did not know about!
“Meet Cute” and the real meaning of a ‘backlist’ were also new to me. Contemporary books in general always confuse me, so your handy explanation was very informative.
Thanks for sharing!
Anika says
Great post, this will be super helpful for newbies to the bookish community!
Lovely says
Thank you for this amazing post! Some of these phrases were totally new to me and it was interesting learning them.
xoxo
Lovely
http://www.mynameislovely.com
GWT says
Do you know, I’ve meant to Google ‘trope’ for a very long time. Well you’ve just saved me the job and educated me further!
What Happens on a Cruise, my current WIP! Woohoo!
Merry Sari says
Some of these phrases were totally new to me! I’ve been wondering what “wip” means actually lol – Thanks for this awesome post x
Megan Elliott says
This is so helpful and interesting! I’ve heard of a few of these terms, especially “trope” and “meet cute”, but a lot of them are new to me. Very cool!
Raji says
Great post! This is such a useful resource especially for bloggers just starting out, or anyone new to the bookish community!
Ashley@AttemptsAtDomestication says
This list is AMAZING! So helpful for someone new to the bookish world. I surprisingly knew some of these words from growing up being really into Star Wars. You had to be conscious of which books you read because only select titles were considered canon by George Lucas. And I wrote a little Star Wars fanfiction as a kid. Like handwritten in a notebook. *cringe*
Simona says
Okay, maybe I’m old or something, but this was sooooo eye-opening! I see acronyms and such and I always have to google it HAHA so now I’m bookmarking this for future reference and hopefully, I will learn all of it. Extra kudos for explaining what CANON is for someone who never ever got it fully. x
Corinne says
I didn’t know most of these! Who know there was a need for a jargon buster for the book community haha!
Corinne x
Lovely says
This is fantastic! Learnt something new today!
xoxo
Lovely
http://www.mynameislovely.com
Tatyana says
Love this!!! Saving to share with friends in the future.
Love, Willow Blog says
Okay, I had no idea about even HALF of these LOL but this post is very in depth! Great job!
LIzzie says
This is such an interesting and helpful post! I didn’t know most of these words, surprisingly! The sub-genre descriptions are really helpful too. I feel like there are so many now!
Lizzie
http://www.lizzieinlace.com
Jodie says
What a great post for readers of all kinds! While we all have our favourite genres, itβs interesting to read about others and their sub-genres! Thanks for sharing.
Penny says
I love this post! I used to see β WIPβ all the time on my feed and didnβt know what it mean π€£ this was so helpful! xx Penny | http://www.whatdidshetype.com
Simona says
As a fanfiction reader back in the day, I just realised I knew nothing about terms like canon. And don’t even get me started on the rest! I finally (underlining finally!!) understand what a trope is and while I might not start using the other terms here and there, I finally have a glossary to refer to! Thank you Stephanie!
Aisling says
Thank you so much for this post – it’s so helpful! I’m going to bookmark it so when I come across a phrase I’m not sure of on bookstagram, I will come back and know where to look!
I'm All Booked Up says
Love that you put this together. This is super helpful for people new to book blogging.
Jenny in Neverland says
Coming from the book blogging community and having run my own book tour company, I’m familiar with most of these phrases but there were a couple of new ones for me!
Cristina Rosano says
Such a great extensive list and totally been in your same shoes opening Google to check what half of these meant when I first started following Book related accounts!| Honestly never heard of RTC and Cawpile before now! I really love how they look like flashcards! Finally discovered what magical realism is, without an overcomplicated explanation! Thank you for sharing x
Sue Berk Koch says
I didn’t know the acronym ‘DNF!’ I hope not to incorporate this one in my book reviews. Thanks for the great information!
Fadima Mooneira says
Yeah!!!!!! Itβs important for every bookish to know this. In fact, it is more important for everyone who works in the book industry to know this. This is part of book marketing. Thank you for sharing.
Fransic verso says
This is interesting, I don’t know a lot of bookish phrases so it’s good to know these. It gets a bit confusing for me when it comes to sub-genres.
Jenni @ I on Image says
This was very interesting to read. I didn’t know half of the terms so definitely learned something new. Thanks for sharing!
Katie says
This is so helpful. I’ve never heard “Canon” before but it makes so much sense!
Molly | Transatlantic Notes says
I am pleased to say that I know a number of these but there are also quite a few I didn’t know. I’d often see them being used on social media and be none the wiser about what they meant until I Googled them, haha! This is a useful reference!
Brooklyn says
This is so helpful! I do have a question tho: so are low fantasy and magical realism the same thing? Or/and are magical realism and urban fantasy sub-genres of low fantasy? What’s the difference between the three?
Stephanie Whitman says
Nope! While low fantasy is where magical events intrude on an otherwise normal world (ex: Twilight β a normal city in Washington state where supernatural creatures exist), magical realism paints a realistic view of the world while adding magical elements (ex: Opposite of Always β the book I read that contains a boy who lives in a normal world with normal relationships that just happen to repeat themselves). And urban fantasy is fantasy that takes place in a city of some sort, usually modern (but not always), like The Mortal Instruments.
sumedha @ the wordy habitat says
these phrases are so ingrained in my vocabulary, i barely realize that not everyone knows them π i used to add them in my posts and started to be conscious about it only after someone asked me the meaning in the comments π
Charity says
What a fun list of phrases! I will have to use them more often since I am a book nerd too! Thanks so much for sharing!
Lauren says
This is such an interesting blog post. I am not in the book community and so this was a great learning post for me. Thank you for sharing.
Lauren.
Lauren says
I donβt know some of these, it is so interesting to learn other phrases about books! Thank you for sharing.
Lauren
Tasya @ The Literary Huntress says
Love this post! I especially still get confused between low fantasy, urban fantasy, and paranormal genre π