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A "Snowclone" is a form of trope title that relies on imitating an older title's form with only a small modification. Usually this modification amounts to replacing a word or making a pun.
For example, [[This Trope Name References Itself|this very page is a snowclone]] of the [[
If your trope title completely relies on the idea that "surely, ''everyone'' read that other page- I just have to make a pun with it", you should scrap it in favor of something clearer. Always assume that yours will be the first page on the Wiki that someone reads. Given that obscure cultural references are frowned upon, obscure in-jokes originating from the wiki are probably not that much of a good idea either. Here are some examples of it not working:
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* [[Shipping]] → [[Going Down With the Ship]] <br /><br />In this case, the latter example was eventually completely renamed to [[Dying Declaration of Love]]. It was an easy pun on the whole [[Shipping]] terminology, but it is very easy to confuse for the thing where an ''actual'' captain goes down with an ''actual'' ship. (And in fact, that is exactly what you'll find at [[Going Down With the Ship]], now.)
* [[
=== Commonly Problematic Snowclones ===
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As you may have noticed, we have some titles that people very ''frequently'' try to make snowclones of, almost enough for the practice to become a [[Discredited Trope]] in and of itself. Be careful with these!
* [[What Do You Mean
* [[Chekhov's Gun|Chekhov's X]]: This family includes tropes about elements that are introduced early to become important later. If what you're suggesting is this sort of trope, clearly explain what differentiates it from a generic [[Chekhov's Gun]] and make sure that it actually needs its own trope. If the difference comes down to "[[The Same but More Specific|Chekhov's Hat]]- a [[Chekhov's Gun]] that happens to be a hat", for instance, then it probably doesn't.
* [[
* [[What Measure Is an Index|What Measure Is an X]]: This family of tropes is about characters of type X giving off a "this is a nobody and you should not care about them" vibe to some degree, as portrayed in the work or as perceived by the fans. Usually this has to do with them not living up to some standard that plays to a form of [[Wish Fulfillment]]. It's suffered a lot of [[Trope Decay]], so don't just slap something random or grammatically inappropriate instead of the X there just because it sounds vaguely related to your idea of the trope.
* [[Screw This Index I Have Tropes|Screw X I have Y]]: This is pretty much [[Exactly What It Says On the Tin]], and as such it works very well (e.g. [[Screw the Rules, I Have Money]]). The problem starts when the X and the Y mutate into metaphors and it's not entirely clear anymore what is being screwed, for what reason, in what sense does the person doing the screwing "have" the Y and what part the Y plays in the screwing of the X. Usually at that point it becomes clear that the trope is being shoehorned into a snowclone and you should start looking for a better title.
* [[Schrodingers Cat|Schrödinger's X]]: Based on the famous thought experiment, these are about cases where one choice can ''retroactively'' change whether something was true or false all along, so until then, it is both true and false at the same time. These can only happen in interactive fiction (or in passive media, if it is based on the writer's choices caused by audience reaction). DO NOT use it for "until something happens, it might turn out either ways". That's just plain, old, obviously logical uncertainity.
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