After retiring from her work as a medical coder and bookkeeper, Janet Brown took up writing.  Her writing goes from YA to inspirational, to adult mystery.  In fact, I am almost finished with her mystery, CATastrophic Connections, and I can recommend it.  Janet has agreed to give a copy of one of her books to a person chosen at random from those who leaves a comment.

Striking Synopses

How exciting! You’ve queried an agent or editor. They request a synopsis and a few chapters of your book. After the happy dance and celebration, the work begins.

 First of all, only send actually-written-edited-best-it-can-be chapters. Second, prepare the dreaded synopsis.

 “Yikes,” you say, “what’s a synopsis?”

 When I began writing, a synopsis was my final task.

 Multi-published romance author, Karen Kelley, set me straight. “Write your synopsis first when you have the idea in your head but don’t yet know all the twists and turns.”

 Her words of wisdom proved correct. When the book was completed with all the problems I threw at my protagonist, my synopsis was too long and convoluted. Every plot twist seemed important. I couldn’t delete anything. When I wrote the synopsis first, I hit only the main themes and problems.

 What a synopsis is not:

    It’s not a summary.

    It’s not a chapter by chapter outline.

    It’s not a query.

    It’s not a back-cover blurb.

 What a synopsis is:

     It gives the reader the essence of the story.

     It tells who and what with a light touch on when, where, and how.

     It answers the questions:

    What’s so different about this story?
         Why should I care about this person or their problems?
         What does the protagonist want? Why? Why can’t he get it?

     Instead of saying what happened next, it should tell the reader what impact it had on the characters.

 A suggestion I’ve found helpful is beginning a synopsis with the tagline or one sentence elevator pitch. When I sold my debut novel, Victoria and the Ghost,I began with this:

     At fifteen, Victoria, a city girl, loses her mother’s love and copes with country isolation, no friends, and no one who cares, until she meets a ghost.

 In this way, I’ve hit the recipient with the idea of the story before I enlarged the scope.

 For non-fiction, your synopsis remains the same but may add facts or figures for why the book is needed and what your expertise is for writing on the subject. I included my weight loss testimony in the synopsis for my second book, Divine Dining: 365 Devotions to Guide You to Healthier Weight and Abundant Wellness. I also gave facts about how many people struggled with weight especially in churches with all their pot lucks and refraining from other sinful practices.

 Important Reminders in writing a synopsis:

   Those who read it judge your writing.

     Each agent or editor wants synopses done their way. To some that might mean one page. To others, it could be nine. Find out what your target agent or editor wants. Then, comply. 

A synopsis is important.
 

When you set out to write a synopsis, here are several good websites about the subject:

 http://www.margaretdaley.com/2011/04/synopsis-writing/

 http://cjdarlington.com/writing-articles/how-to-write-a-novel-synopsis.htm

 http://killzoneauthors.blogspot.com/2010/06/synopsis-writing-made-easy.html#.UaYwN6wo7cs

 http://www.lindaneedham.com/synopsistips.htm

 Good examples of a winning synopsis:

 http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/open-ready-synopsis-example-the-ides-of-march-political-thriller

 http://www.storysense.com/synopsis.htm

 Now, get out there and send in your submission. Perhaps, you’ll be celebrating a contract soon.

 JIM: Remember, Janet will give away a copy of one of her books to one lucky person, chosen at random, from those who leave a comment – even a very short comment.

For More on Janet, here are some links.

http://www.janetkbrown.com

Facebook at http://tinyurl.com/nqdw75q

Twitter: https://twitter.com/janetkbrowntx

e-mail: Janet.hope@att.net