Book Lingo: A Guide to Acronyms, Terms and Slang

I've always loved reading, but I didn't become, what some would call, an "avid reader" until the end of 2019. Before then it had been years since I'd picked up a book that I actually finished. Covid and the various lockdowns enhanced my re-entrance into the book world and since then I've read over 300 books and joined in with the online book community.

When I first joined online book clubs and started following “BookTubers” and “Bookstagrammers” during the pandemic I often found myself wondering “what on earth are these people talking about?” There were words and terms used by many that meant absolutely nothing to me. Over the last year and a half I’ve come to learn and appreciate a lot of the terms, acronyms and slang used and I thought it might be fun to put together a list and explain some… for those of us who are just starting out or anyone who’s not sure what some of these mean!

ARC:

Advanced Reader Copy - a pre-published, almost-complete version of a new book that is distributed to some people before the official release. Reviewers and book bloggers read the book before its publication date so their reviews can be posted before the book's debut. It's a win-win as readers receive the book early and authors/publishers get free marketing.  

Auto-Buy Author:

An author whose work you collect, new and old, regardless of the storyline. When news of an author’s work is released, some people add it to their TBR list/purchase the book without knowing anything about it or regardless of review scores.

Book Hangover: 

The inability to start a new book because you are still living in the last book's world. The story is over, but the reader misses the characters or the atmosphere of the novel and can't move onto the next one yet.

BookTube:

YouTube channels that revolve around books/bookish material. BookTubers may vlog their reading experiences, post book reviews or give a list of book recommendations for a specific trope or subgenre.

Bookstagram:

Instagram accounts that revolve around bookish material. Bookstagrammers can be book bloggers, book reviewers or people who just love to post about the books they’re reading. It’s a great place to discover and discuss books.

CR:

Currently reading/current read - the book you are reading at the time.

DNF:

Did Not Finish - you may come across this term in someone's Instagram story, explaining that this book wasn't to their taste and they didn't like it enough to finish. If someone calls a book a DNF or claims to have "DNF'd" it that means they've abandoned it for something more suited to their tastes.

Goodreads:

A website and subsidiary of Amazon that allows users to search for, review and annotate books. Mostly used to generate book lists, the most popular of which are “Read” and “To be read” and lets individuals set targets through their Reading Challenge section - my goal was to read 75 books this year.

H:

Hero - the male main character in a romance book.

h:

Heroine - the female main character in a romance book.

HEA:

Happily Ever After - used commonly in the romance genre to describe the fairytale ending romance readers expect. Most romance readers claim if there isn't a HEA or HFN then it doesn't count as true romance.

HFN:

Happy For Now - used to provide a resolution that implies a positive outcome, if not guaranteeing it in the romance genre. In my world, both HEAs and HFNs qualify as “happy endings,” but many romance readers have their preference.

MC:

Main Character - genderless term for the main character in a story.

MG:

Middle Grade - an American term to describe books that are suited for children aged 8-12. They are usually shorter, and are significantly less mature and complex in theme and content than YA.

NA:

New Adult - this is a developing genre that bridges the gap between Young Adult and Adult fiction. It typically features protagonists in the 18-25 age bracket and is aimed toward readers of the same age.

PNR:

Paranormal Romance - a subgenre where both a central love story and the future/a fantasy world/paranormal happenings/beings are an integral part of the plot.

POV:

Point of View - perspective from which the story is told. There are three overarching types of point of view: first person - uses me, we, I, us, second person - uses you and third person - uses he, she, them. Books also sometimes have dual POVs, which is the first person narrative of two different characters.

Reading Slump: 

A reader's worst nightmare. You can’t read books and it’s not because the story is too slow-paced or you dislike the characters or you're too busy. It’s just because you’re incapable of reading. This time it’s not the book, it’s you. Sorry. It's a horrible feeling because if you're an avid reader then you WANT to read, but you just can't.

Shelfie:

Combination of “Shelf” and “Selfie” so basically a picture of your bookshelves

TBR:

To Be Read - that pile/list of books you’ve always intended to read but haven’t had the chance to start yet is referred. Mine needs a cleanse - there’s 1,026 books on there currently.

Trope:

In literary terms this is a plot device that is used so commonly that it's seen as run-of-the-mill. For example, a common trope in fantasy books is "The Chosen One" where the fate of the world depends on one single person, who is the only one capable of solving the story’s main conflict.

TW:

Trigger warning - statements to warn readers of distressing content their pages might contain. Authors often put these at the start of books which contain darker subject matters. They are also commonly found in blurbs on Goodreads.

WIP:

Work-in-progress - if you follow a Bookstagrammer that is also an author you may see them use this term when talking about the book or project they're currently working on.

YA:

Young Adult - a genre written for readers 12-18 years of age. While the genre is targeted to this age bracket, approximately half of YA readers are adults. For a book to be considered YA it must have at least one teenage protagonist and tackle more mature and adult themes than MG and children's books.

I hope these were helpful! Feel free to comment any that I've missed.

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