A literary movement and a literary trend are two very different things, though these terms are often used interchangeably. The Harlem Renaissance and the Beat Generation were literary movements; vampire romances and real-life survival tales are literary trends. So what is the difference between a literary movement and a literary trend?

1. Their Impact on Writers and Readers

Literary movements are more significant and have a lasting influence on both authors and readers. Literary eras such as the English Renaissance and the Modernist movement forever changed the landscape of literature. While literary movements are definite left or right turns, literary trends are mere deviations on the path. They can exist within literary movements without having much of an impact on the current movement or literary climate.

2. Their Cause or Advocacy

Literary movements arise as a result of or in revolt against social, political, economic, cultural, educational, and religious conditions of the time. For example, Romanticism bloomed in the 19th century in response to the strict and logical sensibilities of the New Enlightenment. Meanwhile, literary trends rise and fall depending on the current needs and interests of the market, marketing ploys by publishers and agents, and the effects of the film, TV, and music industries on the publishing industry. Unlike literary movements, literary trends arise out of something less ominous.

3. Their Effects on the Literary World and the Population of Readers

The literary world may eventually move on, but literary movements will always be looked back on and referred back to for decades and even centuries hence. Literary movements give birth to new generations of authors with a collective writing style and/or political stance. Meanwhile, literary trends are flashes in the pan with no real significant effect on literature and the literary world except, perhaps, in a monetary sense. Literary trends come and go without spawning new ways of thinking or birthing new literary styles.

4. Longevity and Popularity Among Readers

Literary movements may span many years, decades, and even centuries. Take, for example, the Middle English era that occurred between AD 1066 and AD 1550 and the Modernist movement that took place between the 1890s and the 1940s. Meanwhile, literary trends – as the name implies – tend to be transient. They pass through and are soon discarded in favor of the next trend. A literary trend may be popular for a year or less before disappearing into oblivion.

Separating Literary Movements from Literary Trends

To further illustrate the differences between literary movements and literary trends, here are some examples of which literary developments fall under these categories:

Literary movements include Surrealism, Dada, Post-modernism, Post-colonialism, Gothic, Transcendentalism, Dark Romanticism, Realism, Stream of Consciousness, Imagism, Magical Realism, Nouveau Roman, High Modernism, Elizabethan, Sturm und Drang, Black Mountain Poets, and the Lost Generation.

Literary trends include “chick lit”, splatterpunk, cyberpunk, contemporary Christian fiction, techno-thrillers, multimedia series, dystopian fantasies, young adult paranormal stories, journal-style fiction, retold fairy tales, mythology-based fantasy, post-apocalyptic survival stories, dysfunctional families, zombie survival, pop-culture-inspired coming-of-age tales, contemporary realism in young adult romance, confessional mystery thrillers, special-needs protagonists, and paranormal love triangles.