Before Chapter One: Outline

 How do you start a book? 

That seems to be the most common question I get asked once it becomes known I’m a writer. And it also happens that this week’s topic is Before Chapter One: What do you have in place before you start drafting?

I may not physically be a laboratorian any longer, but inside I’ll always and forever be a lab girl. And lab people follow the procedure! Each step of the way. 

Step one, for me which means YMMV: outline

It seems like I’m in the minority when talking to others in the writing community. I love having an outline. I love knowing the main plot points from beginning to end. I love being able to see the story’s loose form right away and watch it tighten into a solid novel. 

I’m going off the before you start drafting here. Because technically before I do an outline or being my detailed synopsis, I have a scene in my mind. It’s always in full technicolor—meaning I can see, smell, feel, and hear everything in that scene. 

Preferably, I want that key scene to marinate in my brain for a good 3-6 months before I explore it further. And I really want to have a story idea for a solid year before I start writing it. I find that the words flow out of me much easier if I take the time to do that. 

Once I have the scene and MCs (main characters) formed, I do a three act outline and from there I start my synopsis which usually rounds out around 6 pages. From there I break the synopsis into chapters so I have at least one sentence for each one. As this process is happening I’m researching names and places and adding images to their respective folder in Scrivener. 

Does anyone else pre-plan the crap out of their novel? And if you do, how much do you put into your program/Scrivener? 

Queries, Synopses, and Taglines, Oh My

If the question is are queries and synopses bane, benefit, or both, my answer is yes. All the things. I have a decidedly love/hate relationship with them. 

I've spent months (possibly years, to my dismay) thinking in terms of broad strokes, long arcs, interwoven threads, and the details that build a complete sensory world in a book. It took me way too many words to do so. Now you want me to boil it down into a single page synopsis? This is bane. It's bane because of the cognitive shift that has to happen from writer to marketeer - a shift that apparently comes at emotional cost for a lot of authors, including me. 

However, synopses done well are absolutely a benefit. They really do force you to distill the main conflict, emotion, and themes. From that synopses, a query can be born. From that synopses, pithy one liners about the story and the characters can be used as teasers across social media and ads if you're so inclined. If you'd asked me what was good about a synopses a few years ago, I'd have said, 'when they're over'. But somewhere along the way, a critique partner relayed a message from her editor at a large house - learn to love synopses because it's how the big trad houses sell you and your story. Did you think anyone other than your editor read your book? Doesn't happen. The cover art skims the synopsis. Marketing skims the synopsis. If that synopsis is a toss off, it shows. Love that impossible quest to write a synopsis. It's what gets you where you want to go. 

I'm aware of a couple of schools of thought on synopses. One is that synopses are nothing more than a point by point logical flow through the plot. The second says that synopses are a story in and of themselves that should reflect the voice and feel of the book. My synopses tend to fall into that second category. I want the feeling in the synopsis. I want all that character angst sitting on some marketing person's chest, staring into their eyes. That means I select for melodrama when I undertake a synopsis.

Don't think there aren't several false starts, hair tearing, and wails of 'why is this so hard'? I usually end up with a couple of half done versions full of stilted phrases around what happens in the book. Then I get mad, say 'melodrama, stupid' and go for a paragraph describing the heroine and her goal, one for the hero and his goal, and then the rest is how those goals collide and how everyone's gonna die if the two of them can't get it together. It's not a patented formula or anything, but it does seem to work well. 

I also only speak in terms of the synopsis because for me, the query is the teaser for the synopsis and is derived from it. Some authors start with a tagline and then build longer and longer focused content until they hit synopsis length. I go the other direction. Long form that boils down farther and farther until I have a single tagline. But by the time I'm done, I have a query, a synopsis, and a back cover blurb all ready to go in a media kit that I can pull from easily. 

But ye gods, I still dislike having to stare at a blank page and a flashing cursor after having written 'The End' on something else.

An Author's Bane: Writing a Query & Synopsis

 

This week we’re talking about a common bane to all authors…writing queries and synopsis. 

The topic actually asks if these are a bane, benefit, or both—but if you’re a writer, and if you’re honest with yourself, they’re both stressful and challenging. Writing a query or synopsis does not use the same mind-tools as writing a novel, you need to switch gears and view your book from a marketing standpoint and how best to leverage its saleability. Thus, bane! 

If you’re scratching your head right now, I’ll give you some background:

Query: a query is roughly one page in length and its purpose is to entice an agent or editor to want to read your work. 

If a writer desires to work with an agent there’s a high chance they will contact them with a query letter. And if an author has an agent or wants to sell their book to a smaller press they will need to present a query—which equates to a proposal if your agent is sending it—and synopsis. 

the Guts of a Query:

• a hook, one sentence that summarizes your book
• title in all caps
• genre and word count
• comp titles (list a few books that are comparable to yours)
• one to two paragraphs describing your plot/characters
• writing credentials, if you don’t have these, don’t make any up
• thank you, the most important thing to remember is be respectful
• complete within 300-400 words

Please do not blanket copy your query letter. You are sending it to different people, right? Does everyone like the same kind of pizza? Nope, and they’re definitely not going to be hooked by the exact same query. Personalize, at the very least address it with the correct name, and stick to their listed requirements. If you do not have any stated requirements, go with your gut, but be respectful. 

Are your palms sweaty and your stomach cramping? It happens because: stressful writing here! If you’re struggling with writing a hook check out Publishers Marketplace, they list book deals with their one sentence hook, or peruse Goodreads, sometimes the blurb starts out with a one sentence hook. 

I honestly can’t recall anyone ever saying they enjoy writing a query, but I’m sure there is someone out there that loves it! Though I have heard a few authors say they like writing the synopsis. 

What’s a synopsis?

Synopsis: an overview of a book from beginning to end that reveals the entire plot. 

Include in a Synopsis:

• present tense third person narrative
• capitalize your characters’ names the first time you introduce them
• only use Main Characters’ names
• emotions!
• simple writing—don’t get wordy, you don’t have enough room
• pages: 1 (short) to 2 (2-4 is considered long)

Yes, you must include your entire plot and the ending. Twists and all. Agents and editors read the synopsis to ensure your story has structure and is free of plot holes. And they need to know how everything comes together at the end. Why? Well, you don’t want to be pitching a romance that ends in one of the characters dying or a sci-fi that wraps up with an out-of-the-blue, magical miracle.

#WritingTip: write a short and long synopsis because, like pizza, 

different people will require different lengths and you don’t want to be unprepared.

The thing is, love them or hate them, suck at it or excel, there’s pressure when you write a query or synopsis. Work at it and perfect it. It’s worth the time because you get one shot to hook someone. So, writers. Embrace the bane and go sharpen those hooks.

Syns and Queries: If You Can't Write Them, Your Story Isn't Ready Yet

Queries & Synopses: Boon, Bane, Both?

Both. Mostly boon, though, because--as Jeffe mentioned on Sunday--both types of summaries force you to crystalize the essence of your book. If you can't do it, there's a really strong chance your plot isn't as clear nor as tight as it should be. You may have written 90k of what felt like a compelling story, but if you can't distill it down to 250(ish) words, then open a blank page and chapter-by-chapter write a one-sentence summary for what happens in that chapter. You should be able to condense those 30(ish) sentences into a shorter summary that still tells a story. The continual refining of your "short story" is akin to zooming out, just keep mentally hitting the Ctrl- keys until you've hit the requested length. If you can't craft a flowing story from the chapter summaries, then you might have embraced an author's nemesis--the tangent. Fun to write, but nothing that advances the plot or the character development. Thar be edits in your future, matey. Better to know that before you send your "completed" mss into public. 

I consider synopses and the meat of queries to be a critical "is my book ready for submission/public" check. 

Also, as James said, you've got to be able to write your own marketing copy. From your back-cover blurb to the hook on your website to your social media promos. Regardless of which publishing path you've taken, those super short BUY ME statements are necessary. Here are examples for my Immortal Spy UF Series.

Side tip: When you're promoting your book on social media, in addition to the short hook, use your genre hashtags, include a Call To Action (Pre-Order! Buy Now!) with the corresponding link, an image that includes the cover art and book title. Use the title in promo the text too. Make it easy for a total stranger to ONE click-to-buy and ONE click-to-share. 

Example:

#NewRelease: THE EXPOSED SPY #UrbanFantasy. Whistleblowers found a fatal flaw in the Mid World defense system. Can Bix & the Berserkers save them and the project before the government kills them all?

Amazon: https://t.co/rtcbsQN5kA
Other Retailers: https://t.co/3ZsMPfS2kI pic.twitter.com/ZsAXq52Y1t

— K. A. Krantz (@KAKrantz) October 13, 2020

It breaks my heart when I see book promos that are little more than "I have a new book out today!" Without the supporting info mentioned previously, you're disinviting potential new readers to discover your work. It's like saying, "If you don't know the details without me telling you, then you're clearly not cool enough to hang with me." Eeep. That's like, anti-marketing. The un-sale notice. Don't, don't do that.

Synopses - the Pain Never Ends

Our topic at the SFF Seven this week is "Queries & Synopses: Bane, Benefit, or Both?"

Besides all of us immediately screeching BANE – because all sane human beings hate writing synopses – I’m here to tell you to learn to, if not love, then at least bear with them. Being able to write a decent synopsis is a critical skill for a writer, even indies. Same with queries.

Also, the need for them never goes away. If you want to be a career author, you’ll be pitching/querying your books and writing synopses for the rest of your life.

Did I scare you? It IS October, after all!

I totally sympathize, by the way. When I was a newbie writer, I was fond of saying that if I could synopsize my novel, either in an elevator pitch or a couple of pages, then I wouldn’t have had to write the whole book. Which is true in a way, but also precious.

People rightfully rolled their eyes at me.

I sucked it up and took a class on writing synopses.

The main thing I learned from the class was not necessarily how to write a synopsis, though I kind of did, but that condensing a story concept to 10 pages, 5 pages, 2 pages, 1 paragraph, 288 or 144 characters, or 1 line helped crystallize the essentials of the tale. And I had to face the very uncomfortable truth that, despite my newbie arrogance about having written this entire novel to tell the story, the main reason I couldn’t write a synopsis or come up with an effective short pitch was that I didn’t have a clear focus on that story. I didn’t KNOW what the essentials were.

That’s why I say that even indies – who may never need to write a synopsis, but will certainly need to write a blurb – will benefit from developing this skill, too.

And if you’re going for trad at all… Well, let’s just say that a synopsis is hovering in my near future. I’m not looking forward to the painful process of writing it, but I know that, in the end, I’ll understand much more about the story.

Which is always a positive.

Why my new obsession is and must be a secret. (Hint at the end.)

The thing I like most about my work-in-progress is that you know nothing about it.

It's not that I don't like you or trust you [I love  you to bits, and you should know that]. It's not that I'm scared of rejection [except I so am] or even that I don't do well with criticism [oh God, what if it sucks? what if my baby grows up to be a super villain?!].

See, the thing is, this new series is nascent, gestating, passing through gleaming android milk over and over again like the monsters on Westworld, slowly becoming something better than it was in my brain.

But it's not there yet.

Right now, it's a lattice with little sprout vines reaching up, latching on. I think they will make flowers someday, and I think they will be beautiful. But I don't know for certain, and my hands are still dirty, and the no-you-can't voice is still really, really loud in my garden.

Last night, this unformed android alien plant baby transmorgified into complete synopses of all four books.

Tomorrow I will send those synopses in all their slimy, gross, hope-laden still-growningness to my agent. And I will be terrified.

This is the first time I've ever written a synopsis before I finished the book, and, in case you couldn't tell by the disturbing metaphors, doing the process this way is extremely weird. In the past, when I've synopsized, either the book was done and ready to roll or ... the magic bled out in the summary as I wrote it and the exsanguinated story gasped and died. Crisp vine, no flowers. Limp, fetid puddle of android alien goo. And then I hopped along to the next shiny.

Except, this time, I'm trying really hard not to do that, to kill my plant. I sort of have to send this early idea-let to my agent because that's how the next phase of my writing adventure progresses. I should be able to do this. I'm a professional, damn it.

So tomorrow I'll drop the chubby li'l info packet off at preschool [write email to agent; attach prehensile thing; tap Send], maybe have a little cry, and then go drink a lot of vodka and hope it learns how to play nice with others.

[Though, like all nurturers of super-villains, I do dream of it taking over the world someday.]

Wish us luck.

Hint: There are dragons.