This is number 127 in the blog series, “My Life in Erotica.” I encourage you to join my Patreon community to support my writing.
READ THE DAMN REQUIREMENTS!
I’m going to give some instructions on writing a typical synopsis as required by a typical agent, publisher, or contest sponsor. But before you DARE to submit your novel for consideration, read and understand the actual requirements spelled out by the place you are submitting to. Most will require a one-page synopsis and sample chapter or ten to twenty pages. That’s not a lot. In fact, your synopsis may be shorter than the description described in last week’s post.
In nearly every instance, a publisher, agent, or contest will have ‘submission guidelines’ that spell out exactly what they want in a submission. The first and foremost rule in submitting a novel, memoir, or even non-fiction book is to follow that entity’s submission guidelines.
Too many aspiring authors develop their own approach to the topic and don’t understand why they receive a rejection so quickly. Did the agent even read your manuscript?
Probably not. If a submission doesn’t follow the guidelines, it is usually automatically rejected. It’s a harsh reality, but it’s reality.
First off, what is a synopsis?
A synopsis is a short summary of the plot, characters, and significant events in a book, including the ending. That makes it very different than the description. In a description, you want to tantalize the reader and not give any spoilers. But the people who read the synopsis want to know you can actually end the novel.
This is often written after your novel is finished and you are ready to circulate it. It needn’t be. You can write the synopsis up front, but expect it will change by the time you write ‘The End.’
The purpose of the synopsis is to show the reader that you know your story and understand its plot and characters. It is not a ‘marketing piece’ in the sense the blurb and description are. It is not targeted to a casual reader, but to a writing and publishing professional who will decide if your story is ever exposed to a buying reader.
The typical submission requirements for a synopsis are that it be one page, with one-inch margins on all sides. It should be in Times New Roman typeface, 12-point type, double spaced. All paragraphs should be indented half an inch. (Metric measurements are a near adaptation.) This amounts to roughly 375-400 words. Some agents and contests request 500-800 words, which allows extension to two pages. I have personally never seen a submission requirement for more than that.
It should include the inciting incident (delay of Bob’s spaceship), the events illustrating his opposition (needs to keep show running while also fighting trafficking), the climax (Bob and Lacey free 10,000 captives in a single night), and the resolution or concluding state (how the story ends).
To avoid the risk of a spoiler for something you might read, let’s take another look at the imaginary book I might write in November, The Year I Lived. If I had written the book already, the synopsis might have looked like this:
Lowell Thompson had lived a completely ordinary life until the one temptation he couldn’t resist. Now he is divorced, unemployed, homeless, and hopeless. Things can’t get worse for Lowell, but they do. A police sweep of the area removes all homeless people from the street. Even Lowell’s old car, for which he can’t afford gas or insurance, is impounded and Lowell is arrested for vagrancy and panhandling.
During the roundup, Lowell witnesses Alliya Carver being sexually assaulted by one of the officers and intervenes. He injures the officer and escapes with Alliya to the edge of the city. With nothing but the clothes on their backs, the two attempt to make a life out of their bleak prospects.
Lowell and Alliya find temporary work and food at a small company just outside of town. Both are willing workers and soon attract the attention of other homeless people who seek help from them. With their limited funds, they establish a community, work to keep people off drugs, and get them employed. Some leave, but others join the effort to improve their lives.
At great risk to himself, Lowell fights against an ordinance to remove homeless people from the streets of their community, but he shows those people to be genuine contributors to the community.
Even when they are assaulted by a gang, Lowell stands up to the oppression and is hospitalized. Unable to pay, he is released quickly, but one of his employers steps up to get medical aid for him.
With the new-found fame, resulting from the beating, the police officer from the sweep identifies him as his assailant and he is arrested again. This time, Lowell argues his case in court with an army of the unhoused to back him up. Noting his exceptional sales ability in the courtroom, a corporate executive offers Lowell a job that is perfectly ordinary and gets him and Alliya off the street. When temptation comes with the job, Lowell resists and resumes his new perfectly ordinary and uneventful life.
Here we have an example of a one-page synopsis of about 340 words. It is in present tense, begins with a statement of how the story starts and ends with a statement of how it ends. Between there are events that contribute to the outcome and the climactic courtroom scene that establishes Lowell as a salesperson if nothing else. Coupled with the first 20 pages of the story (which I haven’t written) this would make a reasonable submission for consideration by an agent or a cover for a contest entry.
There are so many things in writing a novel that aren’t actually sitting down and writing the novel. We’ll consider more of them next week as we discuss ‘Categories and Keywords.’