The Synopsis Post. Or, A Collection Of Posts On Writing A Synopsis That Are My New BFFs.

So. The synopsis. 

*cracks knuckles* 

I've written synopses before, but they still intimidate me. Not as much as they used to, I'll admit. They just take me a while to get right. Aaaaaaa whiiiiileeeeeeee. I'd rather write a gazillion query letters than one synopsis. #fact

The very first time I had to write a synopsis, I scoured the interwebz for advice/moral support/pizza. I found plenty of great resources. There's even more of them now. Seeing as I'm not the only one freaking out over Death By Synopsis, I figured I'd collect my favorite posts on how to write a banging one. I hope they guide you into the mystical land of Ninja Synopsis Writerdom. Word on the street is they have chocolate cake. *packs everything*

Here's my list of faves:

 

 The Sum of the Parts: Writing a Synopsis by author Janice Hardy

Writing a Synopsis from the Ground Up by Dee-ann Latona Leblanc

In Short: Writing a Novel Synopsis That Rocks by H.L. Dyer on the QueryTracker blog

6 Steps For Writing A Book Synopsis by author Marissa Meyer

How To Write A 1-Page Synopsis by author Susan Dennard

Hope these help!! :)

What My Synopsis Taught Me

Confession: I am a pantser.

Outlines? Not for me.

So when it was time to crank out that dreaded synopsis for my WIP, I figured hell was coming to town. It did, but not the way I expected.

You see, I followed a game plan:

1) Write about major characters.

2) Write major plot points.

3) Write ending.

4) Add "voice".

Steps 1 and 2 went well. But as I got closer to the end, my synopsis showed me something I hadn't seen before.

My ending sucked.

By describing what happens in my story, I learned it was pretty flawed. Characterization was okay, but plotting downright sucked toward the final pages. So how did I fix it? I took out the epilogue, which contained a cliffhanger scene. I plan on using this scene in the sequel (if there's ever one...). I went back and rewrote other scenes in order to create a little doubt regarding the twist reveal, but not in a way that leaves the story ending in a WTF moment.

Now my synopsis looks like it's about one book, not one and a half. It does suggest a sequel, but it also shows that this story can work on its own.

There you have it, fellow pantsers: synopses can change lives.

I mean, stories...

What has your synopsis taught you?