Synopses

[Jude Hardin]

Ah, the dreaded synopsis. The three pager. To me, it's like trying to park a Buick in a Wheaties box.

After toiling with one for over a week, I've come to a startling conclusion about synopses: They suck. I keep tapping the glass on the front of the fun meter, but the needle stubbornly stays on zero.

How do you guys approach writing The Short Synopsis? I'm planning to blog about it soon, and I'd like to get some quotes.

[Jochem van der Steen]

I hate a synopsis! How to cram all your literary greatness in just a few pages ;-)

I try to chop up the book in a few pieces and tell what every piece is about.
I know the publisher needs to know how the story ends in the synopsis but
still I want to sucker them into feeling excited about reading the manuscript
so the trick is leaving out litte bits.

To make creating the synopsis easier these days I try to write a short synopsis
before I write the novel. Not so much outlining as writing down the basics of the
seperate parts.

[Jude Hardin]

Jochem: Yep. It's always a good to have an idea of beginning-middle-end and some basic themes before you get started. Nothing set in stone, but just an idea.

[Jude Hardin]

Hi Lisa. You're only the second person I've ever met who actually enjoys writing synopses, LOL. I guess we should all embrace them, though, since they seem to be a fact of life.