Now that you are tying up your threads for your synopsis, and packing it with a punch, have written those amazing sample chapters…now it’s time to put it in a cheery, compelling package and knock on the agent’s door. Aka: the Query letter. A query letter is that first meeting, (unless, of course, you meet at a conference!), where you pitch your idea to an editor. It’s what will get your toe in the door, so it has to be something that makes the editor take notice, and shows them how your book will be the Next Hot Thing. What makes a good Query Letter? Let’s take it apart…. 1.. A compelling, succinct first paragraph hook 2.. A summary of your book in 2-3 sentences 3.. Where […]
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Give me a sample! (Sample Chapters)
Let’s talk just a moment about Sample Chapters. Every proposal package include sample chapters for the story you are proposing. Even if you are a multi-published author, you will have to write sample chapters for new contracts with new publishers, so it is wise to learn how to write them now. There are so many elements to writing decent sample chapters, and we’ve covered most of those topics over the past year, but I felt we needed to touch on them in order to fully cover the proposal package. When new authors read “Sample Chapters” in the submission requirements of an editor or publisher’s website, sometimes they are tempted to think… “I’ll pick my BEST chapters…chapter one, chapter eight, and chapter twenty-two.” Delete that thought. Editors DO […]
Read the RestHighlight it! Synopsis writing day 4
It’s Christmas decorating day here at the Warrens – I love it when our house goes from dreary to dazzle! We already have the red wall, and I jazz up the rest of the house with ribbons and ornaments and pine boughs, suddenly the season doesn’t seem so…filled with to-do lists. It seems, well, jolly. Color adds life! Yesterday, we talked about adding color WORDS to your synopsis. Today I want you to add actual color. When I first started writing a synopsis, it felt so…overwhelming. Weaving in all those threads, and helping my editor see the main plot, as well as knowing whether I’d sufficiently explained all the turning points and the black moment…arrgh! For example…through your synopsis, you should have three different story threads […]
Read the RestSynopsis Day 3 — Making it Colorful — Part 1
A synopsis, as you know, is not only a summary of your story. It is a slice of your writing style. It gives the editor the first taste of who you are and what you write. Because of that,you want to give it the flavor of the type of story you write. What do I mean? Well, every noun and verb you use conveys a feeling or mood. For example, if you are trying to up tension, and create fear, you might use verbs that generate feelings of fear. Stricken, caught, blindsided, choked. If you want to convey feelings of warmth, you might use, embraced, soothe, coo. If you want to create feelings of suspense, you might use: flicker, ripped, tear. The idea is to look at your piece, and choose carefully the words you […]
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