While struggling to speak to a group of writers about the book proposal this week, despite a case of laryngitis, I stumbled upon what I think is a pretty good idea for writing a Synopsis. It\u2019s actually something that I sometimes do, but I hadn\u2019t analyzed the concept before or verbalized it. <\/p>\n
If you\u2019re having trouble writing a Synopsis or Overview of your proposed book, try this:<\/p>\n
1: Start by writing an outline of the Synopsis. This might be the traditional outline we learned in junior high school\u2014with numbers representing the main topics and letters trailing down with subtopics, for example. Or just write a skeleton of your story\u2019s highlights or your nonfiction book\u2019s purpose and main points. <\/p>\n
2: Bring in a few statistics showing who would be interested in this book and why.<\/p>\n
3: Organize the material in a logical manner.<\/p>\n
4: Come up with a good hook for the first sentence\u2014something that will make the publisher or agent want to continue reading.<\/p>\n
5: Flesh out the story and\/or points using your best writing skills.<\/p>\n
Many authors are downright intimidated by the Synopsis. It is a mighty important piece to your amazing book proposal, but it certainly isn\u2019t any more difficult to write than the book you\u2019ve so eloquently penned (or are in the process of writing). In fact, if you have trouble writing your Synopsis, maybe it\u2019s because you really don\u2019t have a handle on your story or the content of your nonfiction book. Writing the Synopsis will sometimes cause a writer to rethink his or her book. And this can be a good thing. What are some of the problems you might discover in your book once you start writing the Synopsis? <\/p>\n
1: You\u2019re trying to include too many aspects to your book. You need to narrow down your purpose for and the scope of this book. For example, you plan a how-to book featuring convenient airline travel in these changing times. Good idea! You want to include a little airline history and anecdotes demonstrating some nightmare airport experiences. This is all good. But you might be off base with your idea to add a scathing message to airline managers, information about how to get a job with the airlines and your extensive personal experience stories as a flight attendant for an airline. Write additional books on these topics.<\/p>\n
2: You aren\u2019t clear about the story you\u2019re trying to tell. If you can\u2019t describe it, you\u2019re probably off track. Go back to the drawing board.<\/p>\n
3: You don\u2019t have a wide enough audience for your book. In this case, you might change the focus to include a larger audience or consider producing a booklet or small book and promoting it to a smaller segment of readers.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t look at the Synopsis as something to be feared. This aspect of the book proposal is your friend. If handled correctly, it can help you to avoid making costly mistakes with your book project. <\/p>\n
For more about the Synopsis and the rest of the book proposal, read my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book<\/em>. http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/rightway.html<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" While struggling to speak to a group of writers about the book proposal this week, despite a case of laryngitis, I stumbled upon what I think is a pretty good idea for writing a Synopsis. It\u2019s actually something that I sometimes do, but I hadn\u2019t analyzed the concept before or verbalized it. If you\u2019re having […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3,4],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t