How do I write a one page synopsis that will sell my novel or screenplay?

Deep within the Stronghold of Seclusion, in the Ice Woods of Perpetual Revision, far bey­ond the Thrice Barred Gates of Insanity, sits a Superhero.   The Writer.   Who is this masked super­hero? Nobody knows. All we know is they have given everything. Everything.   A single tear of joy slides from beneath The Writer’s mask as they type the final words on the final page of the Manuscript of Destiny. THE END. The Writer pauses. The very atmo­sphere shivers with anti­cip­a­tion. The mas­ter­piece is com­plete. Soon the world shall know of its glory.   The Writer con­sults his Book of Arcane Writing Knowledge. Written in gold on the page is a hor­rific com­mand. The Writer’s blood freezes at the sight: Submissions should include a one page sum­mary. The Writer’s scream of des­pair echoes through the frozen cor­ridors of the Stronghold of Seclusion, unheard.   The Dreaded Synopsis   Why do we writers hate pro­du­cing a syn­op­sis? Probably because, as authors, we’re very close to the story. We know every sen­tence  and how it fits with the oth­ers to tell the story. Now we’re being asked to throw 99% of that away. Which makes us feel a bit like this:   Plus, a lot of stor­ies sound a bit rub­bish when you sum­mar­ise them. All the sub­tlety dis­ap­pears, most of the char­ac­ter­isa­tion is eliminated. Even the twists and turns of the plot sound a bit lame when stated baldly.   No won­der we hate the synopsis.   Are all these prob­lems inev­it­able? To an extent. You can’t take a hun­dred thou­sand words and turn them into five hun­dred without some­thing going miss­ing. Does that mean your syn­op­sis has to be a limp, pathetic doc­u­ment that doesn't do your awe­some novel justice?   NO!   We need some­thing power­ful, a heroic syn­op­sis. One that’s: Faster to read than a speed­ing bullet. Clearer than a pol­ished diamond. Able to leap entire chapters in a single bound. We need a:   Short Synopsis of Power!   Format Length : 500 — 600 words (one page of A4, single spaced or two pages double spaced). Tense : Third-person, present tense regard­less of how the novel is writ­ten. Content   Tip : First read http://graemeshimmin.com/spy-fiction-archetypes-that-make-your-story-resonate/ and determ­ine your story’s arche­types — par­tic­u­larly the  PROTAGONIST, ANTAGONIST, QUEST, PRIZE/GOAL and GUARDIANS The short syn­op­sis of power starts with SETTING — when and where the story is set. Next it intro­duces the PROTAGONIST. Then we explain the ini­tial PROBLEM that the prot­ag­on­ist faces and intro­duce the ANTAGONIST who is caus­ing the problem. We show how and why the prot­ag­on­ist sets out on their QUEST. We describe the chro­no­lo­gical sequence of GUARDIANS (friends, enemies, clues, events etc.) that the PROTAGONIST deals with. We describe how CONFLICT (internal or external) com­plic­ates the protagonist’s QUEST. Finally we show how the prot­ag­on­ist com­pletes their quest and to what extent they reach their PRIZE/GOAL. Tips on Writing the Short Synopsis of Power Remember the ant­ag­on­ist is not neces­sar­ily another person. Don’t men­tion any char­ac­ters you don’t have to. Just include the Protagonist, Antagonist and the main Guardians. Don’t include the sub­plots in the synopsis. Don’t include any unne­ces­sary detail, descrip­tion, or explanation. Don’t write a ‘blurb’ of the sort you’d find on the back cover of a book, the Synopsis of Power tells the whole story, it does not tease the reader. Cut adverbs and adject­ives from your syn­op­sis – write as min­im­ally as you can. How to Boil the Story down for the Synopsis   One trick to try when cut­ting the story down to size is the same one we used in http://graemeshimmin.com/writing-a-logline-for-a-novel/ . In the same way we can reduce the whole story to a single sen­tence we can reduce each chapter to a sentence. So, try using the Killogatorâ„¢ for­mula on each chapter:   Having a each chapter as a single sen­tence will be a great start to build­ing your synopsis.   Talk to Someone   Another trick is to get a friend and sit down with a voice recorder. Then tell them your plot. Listen to the ques­tions they ask. Transcribe the con­ver­sa­tion and pick out the best bits. You might find that your story flows more nat­ur­ally in a conversation.   Do What Works   Test, test, test! Combine the best bits from try­ing the pro­cesses above and keep work­ing until you have the one page syn­op­sis your novel deserves. In the end you should be able to read the syn­op­sis to a friend and their response should be “Wow, sounds great!” Keep work­ing until you get that response.   Start Writing a Short Synopsis of Power   So next time you’re try­ing to write a one page syn­op­sis, don’t des­pair, just remember: --- Originally published as http://graemeshimmin.com/how-to-write-a-novel-synopsis/  on http://graemeshimmin.com/

This is where you wish you were a journalist telling a story with only 500 words to play with. A synopsis is a condensed novel - I know that's not really true but think of it that way. You are writing an overview of the plot, introducing the main characters, telling the reader what the characters are doing and the consequences of their actions that lead to a climax and final outcome. You don't have to go into great detail but make sure you are writing with a dramatic edge to your words whether it is a thriller, love story, or about vampires. Elements to include - Hero, Villain, Problem/ Threat, Action, and Resolution.Your goal is to get the reader interested in reading the first three chapters. Try writing three synopsis - long, medium and short for the same story and the more you write the sooner something will click. I draft about seven times before I have a synopsis I am happy with but like your book, there is always room for improvement.

As a hybrid author who does much of my sales directly to the reader, I have started a sort of hybrid approach to creating synopsis-like material. Somewhere between the middle drafts and latter drafts of a manuscript I sit down and try to create what I call the Promo pack: 1.) long product description (250 words) 2.) short product description (100 words) 3.) pitch (25 words) 4.) tagline (10 words or less). I also include in this mix a list of key words for SEO purposes. (stuff like "page-turning" "thriller" names of influencing authors, etc.) I find it easiest to start with the longer description. As I find gems that really resonate, I move those along to the shorter description. Usually I have to come back to this process on at least three or four separate days before I feel really good about it. When I find the right tagline, then I know I have it made. At that point I will move backward and make sure that I have the longer descriptions really reflecting the key elements of where the story will connect with it's audience. (If you don't know the audience, then this whole process will be in vain.) I do all of this before the final couple rewrites to ensure I still have space to go back and fix the story to bring it in line with a singular thrust. (sometimes I remain confused about this until working through the synopsis process!) For products that require an official submission synopsis, I take the material I have already written (long product description) and adapt it using points of emphasis I believe the publisher is looking for. In general, I always try to make these as short as possible. 500 words would feel pretty long to me. Shorter requires more skill and insight into your own writing. Personally I find brevity more impressive (when it actually communicates).