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Plot Synopsis Project
Posted February 5, 2009 in Blog
Writing a book doesn’t end when you type those final words on the page. Beyond workshopping and countless revisions… the dreaded submission package. One of the most difficult parts of that package, for most new authors, is the plot synopsis.
This three to five page document must convey the entire book entire book in a way that entices agents and publishers to ask for more pages. Several members of my writing group are nearing this stage. Thankfully, some serious help has arrived. Joshua Palmatier (jpsorrow on LiveJournal) has put together an excellent post on the subject that includes links to twenty-five authors offering nuggets of wisdom (and their own examples):
“I set up what I’m calling the “Plot Synopsis Project”. Essentially, I gathered together a group of authors who were willing to post an entry about their own plot synopsis writing technique as well as a sample copy of one of their own plot synopses OR post an entry about how they got published without using a plot synopsis, to show everyone how different people write their synopses, and that it isn’t necessarily required to get published. There are other routes. I would say that MOST people have to write a plot synopsis in order to get published though . . . and most of us hate doing it. I personally do.
And just to clarify, by plot synopsis, I mean the (usually) 3-5 page summary of the book that is (usually) included in a submission package to the agent or editor, along with a cover letter or query letter, and sometimes with the first few chapters of the novel. This is not the one paragraph pitch, or even the one line pitch. Some of the other authors will talk about these other things as well in their discussion, but the main thrust of these posts is the 3-5 page synopsis.”
Check out “The Plot Synopsis Project” right here.
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