An Amazon review of one of my ebooks some time ago - it was either Write a Great Synopsis or Dear Agent, I don't remember - says something along the lines of "probably written in a weekend." It goes on to praise the book and I seem to remember it had four stars. Which is good.
But that remark reveals a common misconception about the skill of writing. It does not necessarily take longer to write more words. A first draft, for example, is almost always longer than the final version because time spent chopping is almost always time spent improving.
For your interest, that's one of the things that highlights the skill of the children's writer: the ability to express a complicated concept in a few words, and often restricted ones.
Several well known writers are credited with apologising for writing such a long letter on the grounds of not having time to write a shorter one. It's an important point, whoever said it.
Anyone can write lots of words. A skilled writer says exactly what he or she wants to say in a few, because each one has been well-chosen.
As it happens, both Write a Great Synopsis and Dear Agent took months to research, write and edit. And that's why the books have clearly helped so many people
(I'm away at the moment so may not be able to reply to comments. Don't let that stop you, though!)
Showing posts with label Write a Great Synopsis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Write a Great Synopsis. Show all posts
Monday, 28 October 2013
Monday, 27 February 2012
My Synopsis - stepping up to the plate
Well, I thought, if I'm a) expecting you all to write a synopsis and b) going on about how easy and lovely the process is, I should step up to the plate and do one for you. This was the same thought I had while writing Write a Great Synopsis (WAGS - see cover image on the right), which is why I wrote a couple of sample synopses in that book.
Friday, 20 January 2012
Write a Great Synopsis launches at a crazy intro price! Wot? AND Tweet Right??
Announcing the launch of Write a Great Synopsis - hooray! All your troubles are at an end. Well, the ones relating to writing synopses, anyway. And that's quite enough to be going on with.
To celebrate, I have a crazy price promotion until the end of January: Write a GREAT Synopsis and Tweet Right - The Sensible Person's Guide to Twitter will each be stupid cheap on Amazon. I'm aiming for 99p, but VAT and currency fluctuations, along with Amazon's naughtiness, are making that hard to acheive. So, forgive me if it's £1 or even - gasps - £1.02.
But only till the end of January. So hurry! Unfortunately, I can't do the same price promotion on other platforms, and have less control over the price, but I'm going to try to set it low on Lulu, which feeds ibookstore etc, but it can't be lower than Amazon. (*growls*)
Here are the links to the books on Amazon UK:
Write a Great Synopsis on Amazon UK - for Kindle AND laptops/ipads/etc if you download the FREE Kindle app
Tweet Right on Amazon UK - as above.
For non-UK purchases, please see the Amazon.com site and do a search for the titles.
Spread the word - Crabbit has gone mad. And remember: it's January only. Imagine how weird it would be for a book on synopsis-writing to be near the top of the charts :) Together, we can do it.
And tonight on Twitter there will be fizz, as soon as I'm back from Oxford, where I had mucho fun with some workshoppers and a whole load of imaginary characters. Join us!
To celebrate, I have a crazy price promotion until the end of January: Write a GREAT Synopsis and Tweet Right - The Sensible Person's Guide to Twitter will each be stupid cheap on Amazon. I'm aiming for 99p, but VAT and currency fluctuations, along with Amazon's naughtiness, are making that hard to acheive. So, forgive me if it's £1 or even - gasps - £1.02.
But only till the end of January. So hurry! Unfortunately, I can't do the same price promotion on other platforms, and have less control over the price, but I'm going to try to set it low on Lulu, which feeds ibookstore etc, but it can't be lower than Amazon. (*growls*)
Here are the links to the books on Amazon UK:
Write a Great Synopsis on Amazon UK - for Kindle AND laptops/ipads/etc if you download the FREE Kindle app
Tweet Right on Amazon UK - as above.
For non-UK purchases, please see the Amazon.com site and do a search for the titles.
Spread the word - Crabbit has gone mad. And remember: it's January only. Imagine how weird it would be for a book on synopsis-writing to be near the top of the charts :) Together, we can do it.
And tonight on Twitter there will be fizz, as soon as I'm back from Oxford, where I had mucho fun with some workshoppers and a whole load of imaginary characters. Join us!
Monday, 16 January 2012
The Big Write a GREAT Synopsis Competition!
At last, Write a Great Synopsis – An Expert Guide is available. (Henceforward, WAGSynopsis, or if you’re feeling cheeky, WAGS.)
BIG WAGSynopsis COMP
Win a synopsis critique and advice from the Crabbit Old Bat herself! Surrounding publication on January 20th of Write a Great Synopsis – An Expert Guide, I will be visiting many blogs for a guest post, review or interview. If you’d like the chance of winning help with your synopsis, simply leave a relevant comment on any of the guest posts - including any WAGS-related posts on my blog, beginning with this one. It could be a deep and meaningful comment or a plea to the gods of fortune to pick you! One comment per post – but comment on each post if you wish. On February 15th, each blog host will send me the names of valid commenters and I will do a random selection, using a random number generator and my sparkly fairy dust spreader.
Prizes:
1st Prize: a synopsis critique from me; your choice of one of my books*, subject to availability, signed; a sought-after (only 6 in the world!) Write to be Published mug; a crabbit bag; and a pile of postcards.
2nd Prize: a synopsis critique; a signed book (mine); postcards.
3rd Prize: a synopsis critique; postcards.
(* For clarity: an ebook can't be signed and therefore WAGS is not one of the books you can win. It's so cheap that I don't feel guilty suggesting you should buy it!)
1st Prize: a synopsis critique from me; your choice of one of my books*, subject to availability, signed; a sought-after (only 6 in the world!) Write to be Published mug; a crabbit bag; and a pile of postcards.
2nd Prize: a synopsis critique; a signed book (mine); postcards.
3rd Prize: a synopsis critique; postcards.
(* For clarity: an ebook can't be signed and therefore WAGS is not one of the books you can win. It's so cheap that I don't feel guilty suggesting you should buy it!)
The list of blogs I’m visiting will appear one by one on the panel on the right. Do go and read them – all the bloggers are great supporters of writers. Comment on as many as you have time for.
Here is the lovely short book trailer, made by my film-maker daughter just before she headed off to make documentaries in South Africa for six months.
Here is the lovely short book trailer, made by my film-maker daughter just before she headed off to make documentaries in South Africa for six months.
Comment away!
Monday, 31 October 2011
The key to a synopsis is to forget your book
I've always known that the best way to learn something really well is to teach it. You think you know something but until you put it into words for someone else to understand, you don't know if you know it properly. And you might find you don't.
My point? While writing my forthcoming book, Write a Great Synopsis - An Expert Guide, I have learnt something extra about how to write synopses. I learnt it from myself, I hasten to add, but it was the act of trying to explain everything about synopses as clearly and fully as possible that showed me a truth I hadn't been aware of.
So, am I going to make you wait till January when WAS comes out? Of course I'm not! I wouldn't be so cruel.
My lightbulb moment came when I was preparing to write a synopsis of Wasted, as an example to go in the book. I enjoyed writing it and it took about fifteen minutes, perhaps less. "Well, this is a doddle," I thought. "I always knew people stressed too much about synopses." I wondered why I found it easy. And then I realised.
I'd forgotten the order of events in Wasted. I'd forgotten everything except the most important events, characters and emotions, the core drivers of the book, the skeleton and the skin. I'd (accidentally) deleted from my memory everything that shouldn't be in a synopsis. And I didn't look at the book once while writing the synopsis because a) I didn't need to, which is the point and b) I'm lazy.
This made me think of two analogies which I'd already used in Write a Synopsis but which now became clearer.
The conscious human analogy
If your synopsis were a human being, we'd see the skin and have a sense of the strong skeleton but we would not see the organs and veins, because the vital gleam in the eyes would be sufficient evidence that the body was properly constructed. Also, you need to include the ending, because otherwise you've got a body without feet.
The journey analogy
If your book is a journey, the synopsis needs to include:
1. Who is on the journey and why?
2. What is the intended destination and why?
3. What terrible thing will happen if they don't reach their destination and who or what is trying to stop them?
4. What happens to knock the travellers off course?
5. What characteristics and tools do they use to get back on course?
6. What is their actual destination and who survives and with what injuries?
Here’s what we do not need to know (unless what we're writing is an outline, which, as I explain in WAS, is different):
1. All the detours they took along the way - unless without it we can't understand the book
2. The weather.
3. What they said to each other.
4. What the scenery was like.
5. The people they met along the way, unless without them we can't understand the book.
6. The route in order.
Because my dyslexic-behaving brain can't do sequences, I can never remember what order things happened in, or even that half of them did. This makes my brain perfect for writing synopses and the amazing thing is that until I tried teaching you lot about all this I didn't even know my brain was perfect for anything.
Hooripity-yay.
So my message to you today is: when writing your synopsis, cultivate a really crappy memory like mine, a memory that forgets everything except essence. To paraphrase all of our mothers: if you can't remember, it can't have been very important. And if it's not important, it has no place in your synopsis.
Therefore: whatever you do, don't look at your book when writing your synopsis. Your book has no place there.
My point? While writing my forthcoming book, Write a Great Synopsis - An Expert Guide, I have learnt something extra about how to write synopses. I learnt it from myself, I hasten to add, but it was the act of trying to explain everything about synopses as clearly and fully as possible that showed me a truth I hadn't been aware of.
So, am I going to make you wait till January when WAS comes out? Of course I'm not! I wouldn't be so cruel.
My lightbulb moment came when I was preparing to write a synopsis of Wasted, as an example to go in the book. I enjoyed writing it and it took about fifteen minutes, perhaps less. "Well, this is a doddle," I thought. "I always knew people stressed too much about synopses." I wondered why I found it easy. And then I realised.
I'd forgotten the order of events in Wasted. I'd forgotten everything except the most important events, characters and emotions, the core drivers of the book, the skeleton and the skin. I'd (accidentally) deleted from my memory everything that shouldn't be in a synopsis. And I didn't look at the book once while writing the synopsis because a) I didn't need to, which is the point and b) I'm lazy.
This made me think of two analogies which I'd already used in Write a Synopsis but which now became clearer.
The conscious human analogy
If your synopsis were a human being, we'd see the skin and have a sense of the strong skeleton but we would not see the organs and veins, because the vital gleam in the eyes would be sufficient evidence that the body was properly constructed. Also, you need to include the ending, because otherwise you've got a body without feet.
The journey analogy
If your book is a journey, the synopsis needs to include:
1. Who is on the journey and why?
2. What is the intended destination and why?
3. What terrible thing will happen if they don't reach their destination and who or what is trying to stop them?
4. What happens to knock the travellers off course?
5. What characteristics and tools do they use to get back on course?
6. What is their actual destination and who survives and with what injuries?
Here’s what we do not need to know (unless what we're writing is an outline, which, as I explain in WAS, is different):
1. All the detours they took along the way - unless without it we can't understand the book
2. The weather.
3. What they said to each other.
4. What the scenery was like.
5. The people they met along the way, unless without them we can't understand the book.
6. The route in order.
Because my dyslexic-behaving brain can't do sequences, I can never remember what order things happened in, or even that half of them did. This makes my brain perfect for writing synopses and the amazing thing is that until I tried teaching you lot about all this I didn't even know my brain was perfect for anything.
Hooripity-yay.
So my message to you today is: when writing your synopsis, cultivate a really crappy memory like mine, a memory that forgets everything except essence. To paraphrase all of our mothers: if you can't remember, it can't have been very important. And if it's not important, it has no place in your synopsis.
Therefore: whatever you do, don't look at your book when writing your synopsis. Your book has no place there.
Thursday, 27 October 2011
Write a Synopsis - Expert, Snappy, Stressfree
Well, I have decided. Possibly. Yes, I am - almost - certain about the title for my forthcoming guide to synopsis-writing. But I could change my mind at any moment.
You may remember that I asked for your help, and help you did. Many of you. I said I'd give a free copy to the person whose suggestion I chose, but that became complicated because so many of you were so helpful and in the end what I chose was not exactly what anyone had suggested and yet it was informed by so many of you. So, in an All-Must-Win-Prizes sort of a way, I have decided that all must win a prize. So, ALL those who have already contributed to that discussion will win a free copy (pdf or Kindle version) as soon as it's ready, probably in the New Year when your resolutions are at their strongest.
My decision* is: Write a Synopsis - Expert, Snappy, Stressfree
* in the loosest sense of the word.
Or possibly: Write a Synopsis - Expert, Snappy and Stressfree
* in the loosest sense of the word.
Or possibly: Write a Synopsis - Expert, Snappy and Stressfree
Or even: Write a Synopsis - An Expert Makes it Snappy and Stressfree.
Oh feckity feckity feckity. (There goes my CRB clearance. I am now officially a danger to young people.)
Erghh. I may need to ask you to vote between those three...
I loved Jan's idea of Help! I Need a Synopsis! and the various permutations of Right and Write and Sensible Guide etc, to fit the concept of branding, but I don't then want to be tied to those words for future titles. I loved Mary's Make it Snappy and Jan's In a Nutshell, but in the end I needed to describe the book more concretely, for someone who has no idea what I do. I know the word "expert" is effective, and I did want to include "write a synopsis" or "write a great synopsis" somewhere. So, although it's not the cleverest or most original combination, I like all of my possible decisions well enough: the first part is crystal clear, appropriately, and the second part is functional. And the whole thing is suitably snappy and yet full.
So, thank you! And could these people please send me an email address? Also, when you email me, if it's not likely to be 100% obvious to me which of the personages you are, please say so in your email.
Rebecca Brown
Rebecca Brown
Elaine AM Smith
Carolb
Mary-Jane
E. A. Brass
Helen
Widdershins
Juliet Boyd
Later, I look forward to bringing you the cover, designed by Andrew Brown.
Meanwhile, I'm working my way through the synopses that some of you sent for free analysis on this blog and/or for use in the book as examples. I now have a substantial backlog so any you send from now on may not be seen before you are published!
Do please comment about my choices and say which of the slight variations you prefer. Or if you hate them all...
Finally, if you know of a well-followed blog for aspiring writers that might want to be part of an extensive blog tour, do please suggest below or contact Rebecca Brown - mail@rebeccaebrown.com* - who is my trusty publicist for this book! (Becky Hearne is still my lovely assistant but Becky now has a glorious proper job with Hachette as publicity officer, so I can't call on her so much, sadly.)
[Apologies - that email address was originally wrong. Now corrected.]
All publicity suggestions gratefully accepted. Meanwhile, I will be putting more synopses up here for your comment soon.
Do please comment about my choices and say which of the slight variations you prefer. Or if you hate them all...
Finally, if you know of a well-followed blog for aspiring writers that might want to be part of an extensive blog tour, do please suggest below or contact Rebecca Brown - mail@rebeccaebrown.com* - who is my trusty publicist for this book! (Becky Hearne is still my lovely assistant but Becky now has a glorious proper job with Hachette as publicity officer, so I can't call on her so much, sadly.)
[Apologies - that email address was originally wrong. Now corrected.]
All publicity suggestions gratefully accepted. Meanwhile, I will be putting more synopses up here for your comment soon.
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