Witch fiction is hugely popular right now. The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Mandanna. Accidental Magic by Iris Beaglehole. New Witch on the Block by West. Hex Appeal by Johnson. Payback’s A Witch by Harper. What the Hex by Daria. To name just a very very very few.

And if you look through many of the available titles, a surprising number have something in common beyond the witchy theme.

The main character is usually a barista.

Or maybe she works in a tea shop. Or a pastry shop. Or a dessert shop.

Lots and lots and lots of witchy romances and witchy adventures and witchy novels in general feature protagonists in the food industry. Usually cutesy little shops populated by an assortment of quirky staff and regular customers.

Which is fine. I love a nice cup of tea as much as the next girl and, dang, do I love the smell of baking bread and the taste of cookies hot out of the oven.

But the trope is becoming just that: a trope. And it’s starting to get a little … repetitive. Even boring.

Bear in mind, I am not saying that you can’t write and publish your witchy rom-com set at a family owned and operated coffee shop in a tiny mountain resort where your love-frustrated heroine meets The One under the mistletoe in the middle of Yule celebrations. I am not saying that. Write what you feel inspired to write. Write the books you want to read.

But I would love to see more variety. Witches in the real world fill every occupation imaginable. Surely our fiction should reflect that diversity. Why not a romantic mystery starring a witchy dental hygienist? Or a preschool teacher? What about a comedic romance centered around a witchy hair dresser or a magically-gifted shoe store clerk? Maybe a retro romance revolving around a witchy video store clerk and her least-favorite customer (they never rewind the tape!)? Or a helicopter pilot or a janitor or an accountant or an interpreter or even a telemarketer?

A witch can be anything or anyone. A cartoonist, a police officer, a geneticist, a spy, an underwater welder. And, yes, even a barista. In the real world and in the world of our imagination.

[Written by Rebecca Buchanan.]