Boy meets girl

My research tells me that a book synopsis should have an interesting first sentence. Something that will engage the reader.

The synopsis should answer questions the reader will have. What is the story about? Who are the chief characters? What do they want? Why do they want it? And, what stands in their way of getting it?

The synopsis should be written in the present tense. It should give a flavour of the manuscript.

So it’s got to be more than “Boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy and girl transported to alternate world, boy tries to save girl, loses girl again…"

I’ve written the synopsis. It’s about 2 pages – within the recommended length of 2-3 pages. I found it difficult to write – there were a couple of areas where I just got stuck. It was a bit like writing a resume. It can be difficult to know what to include and what to omit.

I will leave it now for a day or two, then look at it afresh and edit again. Then, the next step, is to call that literary agent!

How frustrating...

Literary agents.  They are people whose job it is to present your manuscript to publishers, negotiate a fantastic deal for the author, and leave the author to their core business...which is writing.  Sounds great.  If I can get a literary agent, it means I can back to writing.

The only problem is that literary agents are about as difficult to engage as a publisher is.  The web-sites of publishers and literary agents are almost identical.  They exhort you not to waste their time, to follow their very clear rules for submission of manuscripts.  There are clear procedures to follow.  And the sub-text is - the author is not worthy. 

What is worse than this?  The manuscript isn't enough.  They all require me to complete another piece of work: a story outline, or synopsis.  There are clear rules to be found on what this should look like too.  It sounds like 'the pitch'.  A few pages outlining the story, the main characters and what motivates them, and revealing the entire plot up front.  The agent can use this guide to determine whether or not to read the manuscript.  How frustrating...What if I am ok at writing manuscripts, but very poor at writing synopses?

It is an obtacle I need to get over.  It's only a couple of pages, so what's the big deal?  At times I feel creating the synopsis could be almost fun.  It could be funny.  It's only writing after all.  Here's a mini-synopsis:  Boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy and girl transported to alternate world, boy tries to save girl, loses girl again...Hm, I will have to work harder on this.

When I was taking the dog for a walk this evening I was thinking about something I'd rather write.  When I was finishing the ms off I made a connection that I had not seen before.  A funny, quirky connection that I suggested, but left open.  There's another thirty pages that would start the sequel that I would love to write right now.

But if I don't get on with this synopsis soon, it will never get done.